Unit Preview: Pine-Richland's Offense

In today’s installment in 2020 Unit Previews, we showcase a Western Pennsylvania powerhouse that boasts six ranked players on our site. Pine-Richland High School in Gibsonia, PA, who was the 2017 6A State Champs, will deploy a scary offense this coming season that loves to attack in different ways. Three special wideouts provide this offense the firepower necessary to contend for another 6A Championship. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-37882" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2020/07/OntheSideline-Logo-4-300x188.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="188" /> [player_tooltip player_id="27214" first="Harrison" last="Hayes"] - 6’3", 253lbs, OT, C/O 2021 We begin with the highest rated played on our rankings and one of the most athletic tackles PA has to offer. Hayes, a Liberty University commit, has the foot speed, body control, and overall strength to be left on an island in pass protection and stalemate some of the best pass rushers on the Western side of Pa. He displays a hell of an initial punch that is consistent in timing and placement. The film shows that once he gets under your pads and can lock out his arms, there’s hardly a chance he’s losing the matchup. Not often do you rave about a tackle and how well they excel in open space but this is Hayes’ best trait. He is an absolute scary sight in the open field, moving like a tight end except for the fact he is almost 260 pounds! This kid likes to play with attitude and does his best to dominate his opponents through the whistle. There is no stopping him with a full head of steam out in front of running lanes. [player_tooltip player_id="27371" first="John" last="Swisher"] - 6’2", 245lbs, OT/DT, C/O 2021 Where Hayes excels with athleticism, his counterpart along the offensive line excels with sound technique. Left tackle John Swisher, who is a top 200 senior prospect, isn’t going to wow you in the open field, where he wows you is in his awesome anchor ability as a pass protector. The lower body strength is on display when he is pass protecting, using his quick feet to get into position and strong legs to stick his foot in the ground and absorb power pass rush moves easily. You could expect some trouble when trying to block against athletic speed rushers but even then, he has enough power to throw speed rushers off course with one jab. He has a great motor in the run game and can be trusted to turn his opponent away from the hole and create seals in the run game. He is a high effort player who also plays with a bit of an attitude. [player_tooltip player_id="27350" first="D’Avay" last="Johnson"] - 6’3", 190lbs, WR/CB, C/O 2021 [player_tooltip player_id="27350" first="D’Avay" last="Johnson"] is an outside lane wideout for Pine-Richland who has a long and lean body frame. Johnson is a deceptive route runner who does a great job fluctuating his speed and pacing himself throughout his route. He shows good awareness, understanding how to use his size as leverage, stacking well downfield. His route tree is a little limited, as he primarily succeeds at running posts, hitches and screens behind the line of scrimmage with an occasional slant/dig route. However, QB [player_tooltip player_id="27363" first="Cole" last="Spencer"] and Pine-Richland do a great job of getting D’Avay the ball downfield. He has a ton of success playing vertical thanks to his good high pointing ability, good stride, and good tracking skills. He’s a hard cover in the red zone as well. Johnson isn’t the elusive type after the catch, he’d much rather turn upfield, lower his shoulder and bully his way for extra yardage. Has an edge when blocking and is without a doubt an impact blocker when on the edge. [player_tooltip player_id="27355" first="Eli" last="Jochem"] - 6’1", 181lbs, WR/FS, C/O 2021 Jochem, a highly productive player at PR and 1st Team All-State Wide Receiver who led the conference in receptions, reception yards and touchdowns with a line of 71 receptions, 1065 yards, and 14 touchdowns as a junior. Jochem can line up anywhere on offense, is awesome after the catch, and is a big play waiting to happen. He makes plays behind the line of scrimmage in the screen game and can also burn defenders downfield in the vertical passing game. Has good hands but not the widest catch radius and doesn’t always catch the ball away from his body. Really like Jochem’s acceleration after the catch is made. He shows real burst once bringing in the ball that allows him to show off his open-field elusiveness. Great balance and change of direction ability combined with his great awareness allow him to be a threat in the red zone. He is a smart player who understands where to sit in a zone, how to pace his routes, and how to attack based on alignment and leverage. His high production has really helped him develop some consistency. [player_tooltip player_id="27363" first="Cole" last="Spencer"] - 5’10",l 180lbs, QB, C/O 2021 Standing at 5’10" and weighing 180lbs, Spencer is on the smaller side of the ideal size you would like your quarterback to be. However, his height hasn’t stopped his outstanding production or ability to run this offense at a high level and lead the team to victories. Spencer surpassed 3000+ passing yards his junior season while spreading the ball around to his multitude of weapons. Really like how poised and comfortable he is running this offense and making his reads. Hits timing routes really well and understands where he should go with the ball based on pre-snap alignment. He does a good job seeing downfield and hitting open targets 40+ yards deep. Again, a small player but he displays really solid arm strength. His accuracy is terrific when hitting outside breaking routes and near the sideline. He can deliver strikes outside the numbers and throw with touch vertically as well. Spencer tends to hold the ball a little low before release, which takes away from what would be a quick release. Nonetheless, his overall throwing motion is smooth and consistent. He also has a hitch in his dropback which is a common trend amongst high school quarterbacks that can be ironed out. He’s also pretty athletic and can really hurt you with his legs and a passer and a runner. He is special when the play breaks down, always keeping his eyes downfield and trying to make the most out of a broken play and is often successful. He has good open-field vision as a runner as well and can get you yards off his feet alone. [player_tooltip player_id="27631" first="Alex" last="Gochis"] - 6’2", 180lbs, WR, C/O 2022 Gochis is definitely on the list as a breakout candidate as a junior this coming season. He’s an underrated player who doesn’t have too much film on display because of how crowded Pine-Richland’s offense currently is. There are flaws in his route running and footwork throughout as he is still a raw prospect. Good size with Gochis and good acceleration off the line of scrimmage. He shows awesome ball skills and what may be the best pair of hands on the team. He can out jump and high point the ball really well and has a knack for making some ridiculous one-hand catches. There is a ton of potential with Gochis, he’s gifted as has most of the more difficult aspects of playing wideout down. It’s honing in the little things that could really shoot his stock through the roof. It’ll be hard with established pieces like Jochem and Johnson eating many well-deserved targets, but this is a prospect Prep Redzone will keep an eye on to see how he develops.