In today's edition of This Hits Different, Shelby Cassesse tells the story of mighty Aliquippa football, which overcame obstacles on and off the field to claim another state title.
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Champion Aliquippa overcame adversity on, off field
High school football may be special to all of western Pennsylvania, but in Aliquippa it's on another level.
The Quips are a story that maybe not even the writers of Friday Night Lights could come up with, but one getting notice across the state. They've defied the odds and expectations behind Coach Mike Warfield.
"It's just the satisfaction of setting goals and working towards those goals collectively as a group and finishing what we had set to do," said Warfield. "Football is a plus for so many kids in Aliquippa because it gives you those opportunities that you normally wouldn't have."
They're a class 1A school, with about 30 guys on the team any given year. But there's a high standard in the Aliquippa football program, and the Quips volunteered to play up in 3A. Last season though, a new competitive balance rule in the PIAA bumped the program to 4A, often pitting them against teams triple their size. And now, Aliquippa may be on the verge of playing in 5A next year.
Not something that scares senior right tackle and nose guard Tyrese Jones or his teammates.
"We've got to do what we've got to do," Jones said. "We're not going to back down from no fight. If we've got to bump up to 5A and play bigger schools, that's just something for us to prove. We'll have to go out there and keep winning and keep going out there and playing our hearts out."
But it is something that Warfield says is physically demanding, and at times dangerous.
Still, the wins and titles keep stacking up, including a 13-1 record plus 4A WPIAL and PIAA titles this year.
"It's been exciting," Warfield added. "Just seeing the joy on the kids' faces is priceless."
That joy of ending the season with a championship came months after the Quips started the year working through adversity and heartbreak.
In May, receiver Sonny Anderson was an innocent victim in a tragic shooting, shot as he was driving his car. He watched the Quips from the sidelines this year as he continued his recovery.
During the preseason, standout Isaiah Gilbert went down with a season-ending ACL injury.
Both situations were hard to process and crushing for Jones and his teammates. But they also served as a source of motivation.
"Gilbert has been our motivation," Jones said. "We have to keep going, we have to keep working hard, every day in practices. Every day we step on this field, we've got to work because Gilbert would kill to be on this field. Every day, we've got to work for them."
That's the message Warfield has worked to instill in his players, especially working through things out of the control of teenagers.
"I just try to teach the kids that you can outwork your situation," he said. "If you're in a bad situation that's no fault of your own, you have to outwork it until things get better."
That outlook is all a part of the Aliquippa football roots that run deep, and have produced players like Darrell Revis and Ty Law, who aren't as far from the program these days as you may think. Warfield says both reached out after the PIAA title.
They've been at the highest level," Warfield said. "It's not winning, it's just them having pride in Aliquippa... They care about the kids so much."
Now, as Aliquippa potentially faces a fight over moving up yet another class, Warfield's message to his players won't change.
"What do we do in the meantime," Warfield asked. "We've got to keep working. You may fall, you may get tripped, you may slide down, you may get pushed down, but you've got to get back up every day and work at it. And that's what I try to tell the kids."