There's a tradition in the making at Peters Township.
“We have someone that's a captain's captain that will take us through the offseason prior to all the other captains being chosen,” says Indians coach T.J. Plack.
At the end-of-season banquet, the previous year's captains select a new captain to take over.
This year, Jake Velgich was the unanimous choice.
“I felt proud, but it made me realize there's a lot of work to do,” says the senior defensive end.
“Sometimes the kids pick the wrong person,” adds Plack. “They got it smack-dab right this time.”
Velgich may not be the biggest guy on the field, but he certainly doesn't play like it.
“Being undersized, you've got to make sure your technique is perfect and you do all the little things right,” he says. “And just take advantage of what I have.”
And, with a 4.5 GPA, his performance off the field isn't much different.
“I hope it communicates to them to be the same way, just work hard,” he says. “When I'm gone, all the seniors are gone, that they carry on that hopefully we instilled and that they continue to win and have seasons like this.”
But with a WPIAL title within reach, he's not quite ready to pass the torch just yet.
“I think it's just a really good group of guys, we all work well together,” he says. “We don't have any problems. It's a brotherhood.”