2023 Season Preview North Catholic

North Catholic went 5-5 last year in the highly competitive WPIAL AAAA Greater Allegheny Conference. North Catholic will have a new Head Coach as Chris Rizzo takes over the program. Rizzo was a highly successful Head Coach in Arizona but played football at Bethel Park, so is familiar with the area. Rizzo is inheriting a talented squad that I expect will have a chance to win a lot of games this season.   Top returning players:    [player_tooltip player_id='571704' first='Brady' last='O'Hara']. O'Hara is one of the best players in the State of Pennsylvania. He is a difference-maker at offensive and defensive line. Below is what I wrote about O'Hara earlier this year:   O'Hara is a good defensive line prospect from North Catholic. He has great size for the position, standing 6'6. Seeing someone with his size make the athletic plays he makes is very impressive. He has a motor that never stops. Several times on film I saw him come from behind a running back to make a tackle. He also created several fumbles by doing that. He uses his hands very well. As he extends the hands to create separation for the offensive lineman and then discards them to make the play. On the offensive, he plays tight end and you can see his athleticism. Several times on film he made athletic catches. His athleticism allows him to be so disruptive to the offense as he can knock down balls, chase plays, or make plays in the backfield. O'Hara projects as a Division 1 football player who should only get better.    [player_tooltip player_id='256006' first='Jack' last='Fennell']. Fennell is a good athlete who can play a lot of positions on the football field. He is committed to Davidson Football, so Fennell has one year to finish his high school career. Below is what my colleague Avery Hawkins said about Fennell:   Jack displays impressive durability and toughness on the offensive side of the ball, while boasting 4.5 speed that North Catholic maximizes to the fullest. He's shifty and able to accelerate to full speed quickly. Fennell displays good vision and body control with the ball in hand. He's an athlete that's also a formidable return man who has the ability to single-handedly change the field position with just one return. He displays the balance and speed needed to be a college return man.    [player_tooltip player_id='855329' first='Gavin' last='Kamody']. Kamody played free safety last year. He is a difference maker at free safety. He does a good job in coverage by playing the centerfield well. Kamody does a nice job of playing the man and the ball and then separating the ball from the receiver when the ball is in the air. He is a ball hawk in the secondary by getting his hands on a ton of balls. He is also a good tackler, especially in the open field. Kamody is also good when North Catholic moves him closer to the line of scrimmage and he is good in coverage and blitzing off the edge. Kamody is a talented player who with a strong Senior Year should have a good chance to play College Football.    [player_tooltip player_id='893830' first='Kaden' last='Sarver']. Sarver is a talented QB who recently picked up an offer from Waynesboro University. Below is what my colleague [player_tooltip player_id='1156407' first='Vic' last='Castillo'] wrote about Sarver:   Excited to get this young man ranked and represented on the site among his quarterback peers. What's even more exciting is seeing Waynesburg pull the trigger on Sarver back in May. Sarver's skillset should cement his chance to play at this level, yet we see these types of prospects explode during a senior campaign, often seeing these offers snowball into more opportunities. For right now, the big-bodied passer and lacrosse prospect will be happy with any potential suitors. I wish I could get out to a North Catholic game despite the distance. Wouldn't be surprised to see this kid get attention from local D2s.    [player_tooltip player_id='558578' first='Samir' last='Ware']. This is what my Colleague [player_tooltip player_id='1156407' first='Vic' last='Castillo'] said about Ware earlier this year after a Prep Redzone prospect camp:   [player_tooltip player_id='558578' first='Samir' last='Ware'] in close consideration for 1st-team All-Camp honors. They fell slightly short, yet I still came away impressed by two names I'm slightly unfamiliar with. I've liked [player_tooltip player_id='558578' first='Samir' last='Ware'] for some time, yet seeing him move up close has me thinking he's a bit better than his rank suggests.    [player_tooltip player_id='256187' first='Gabe' last='Paredes']. Paredes is a talented offensive lineman who has one year left of High School Football to finish his career on a high note. I expect Paredes to have a good chance at playing College Football in the future. Below is what I wrote about Paredes earlier this year:   Paredes played right guard and defensive tackle for North Catholic last year. The biggest takeaway is the raw strength Paredes has as a player. Both at offensive guard and defensive tackle he shows an ability to use his strength and dominate his opponent. At guard, he shows the ability to double-team defensive tackles and gets to the next level very well. Paredes also moves his feet well, particularly when he is in pass protection you see this. At defensive tackle, he is a bully who controls his gap well. He also has a motor that never stops.    Danny Franco. Franco played outside linebacker last year. He played it at a very high-level last year. He is a bully bowl at linebacker, who just attacks offensive players by taking on their blocks and then making the tackle. He is really strong and uses that strength to control offensive players who try to block him. He gets his hands on the offensive players and then fights them off to make a tackle. Franco is really good at setting the edge and either making the tackle or forcing the play inside to his teammates. Franco is a talented player and with a strong Senior year, he should be able to get a chance to play College Football.    [player_tooltip player_id='893546' first='Alex' last='Jackson']. Jackson played right tackle last year. The 1st part of his film that stands out is how athletic he is. He does a good job of moving his feet and staying in front of pass rushers. North Catholic ran a pass-happy offense at times and Jackson excelled at keeping edge rushers from sacking the quarterback. Jackson also does a nice job of blocking defensive linemen and doubling-teaming them with the guard. Jackson is a talented player who with a strong Senior year should get recruited to play football. He recently picked up an offer from Wheeling University.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/AlexVJackson12/status/1663729369674575872?s=20 </div></figure>    [player_tooltip player_id='420531' first='Jason' last='Siket']. Siket played quarterback last year. 1st Siket has good size standing 6'3 inches tall. Siket throws the ball with anticipation into tight windows. He especially throws the ball with good touch. He throws the ball on seam routes the best where he can zip the ball into that window. Siket is a good athlete as well and when the play breaks down he is able to scramble and either run for a 1st down or keep the play alive until he throws the ball downfield. Siket has good mechanics and sets his feet well before he throws the ball. Siket is a good prospect and when a strong Senior year he should be able to have a chance to play College Football.   Final Thoughts: North Catholic has a talented roster and should be able to compete and win a lot of games this year. They do play in a difficult league, but it would not surprise me if they are competitive and win more than the 5 games they won last year. The talent on this team has a chance to allow North Catholic to have a strong year.

North Catholic went 5-5 last year in the highly competitive WPIAL AAAA Greater Allegheny Conference. North Catholic will have a new Head Coach as Chris Rizzo takes over the program. Rizzo was a highly successful Head Coach in Arizona but played football at Bethel Park, so is familiar with the area. Rizzo is inheriting a talented squad that I expect will have a chance to win a lot of games this season.