Imagine Central Catholic's football players playing football in the district that they live in

SOURCE: Western PA Football

Central Catholic enters the 2020 WPIAL and PIAA football season as the defending WPIAL 6A football champions. Even though they lost some notable seniors from the previous year, 2019, they still have a lot of players returning for the 2020 season. Right now, some people would say that Central Catholic are once again favorites to win in WPIAL 6A and have a chance to win the PIAA 6A title. Last season, the Vikings lost to St. Joseph's Prep (the school that Ohio State football 2021 QB recruit Kyle McCord attends) by a score of 31-24 in overtime in the 2019 PIAA 6A semifinals round. You best believe that the Vikings want revenge and want to play in that state title game in December.

The returning Central Catholic football players are well aware that they have the capability of repeating as WPIAL champions and have capability to win a PIAA title. With Central Catholic being a private school, their students come from all over the Western Pennsylvania area. Think about this, if the returning Central Catholic football players did not attend the school, what school would they be playing at based on the school district that they live in? It is possible if some of the players decided to play football in the district that they live in, that they have not made Central Catholic the talented football team that they are going in 2020. So, my guys from Cover Three Athletics helped me out and asked current Central Catholic football players which school district they live in. You can all think about what it could have been like if these athletes played football at the school district that they lived in and how much of an impact that they could have had if they attended public school.

This offseason, Central Catholic's WR/LB Eric Benson Jr. has been working real hard to improve his game as he wants to go out with a bang in his senior year in 2020. I interviewed Benson Jr. earlier this season and he told me that he lives in the Penn Hills school district.

"If I did not attend Central Catholic, I would be attending Penn Hills High School. I believe I would make a big impact in the school district I live in," Benson Jr. said back in April.

Penn Hills won WPIAL and PIAA 5A titles in 2018 and went 9-1 in the regular season in 2019. If Benson Jr. attended Penn Hills, some of his current teammates would be guys like Akron commit Noel Roach and Dontae Pollard, who has an offer from Saint Francis University. Roach, Pollard, and Benson Jr. could have been a nice trio on defense for Penn Hills. However, Benson Jr. is enjoying his time and experience at Central Catholic.

"I chose Central Catholic High school because it has an excellent education and football program. I felt like it was going to make me prepared for college and life in the future job wise. Also, I feel it would make me a better athlete in return to show my talent in the next level," Benson Jr. said.

With Dom Pieto now graduated from Central Catholic, the Vikings will look for a new quarterback and rising junior Josh Altsman has a shot of winning the job as the team's starting quarterback in 2020. The school district that he lives in, Seneca Valley, also needs a new starting quarterback for 2020 as the team's previous starting quarterback, Gabe Lawson has now graduated high school. Seneca Valley would definitely have loved Altsman as their starting quarterback, but he will try and be the man at Central Catholic. Altsman is excited about potentially being the team's starting quarterback and learned a lot from Pieto.

"I did like playing with Dom Pieto because every day I felt like I was learning something new from him, and I think he helped me on being a better quarterback," Altsman said.

If Altsman attended Seneca Valley, one of his teammates would be Ethan Malachi West, who is highly recruited by Division I schools. Altsman might be the starting quarterback for the Vikings against Seneca Valley when both schools play each other on October 2nd. The funny thing is that Dom Pieto, who was Central Catholic's starting quarterback from last season, lives in the Seneca Valley school district as well as he defeated the Raiders 10-7 back on August 30, 2019 at NexTier Stadium in Harmony, PA.

Robinson Waddell is expected to have a bigger role for Central Catholic in 2020 after mostly playing at the junior varsity level in 2019. The incoming junior should have a big role on defense. If he did not attend Central Catholic, he would be playing football at West Mifflin. One of Waddell's teammates could have been Pitt recruit Nahki Johnson. However, with West Mifflin not eligible for the 2020 WPIAL and PIAA football playoffs, Waddell knows that it is possible for him to play in the WPIAL and PIAA football playoffs in 2020 as a player on Central Catholic's football team. If you ask Waddell, he would tell you that he has benefited a lot by attending Central Catholic. If someone, who was thinking about attending Central Catholic, asked Waddell the benefits of attending Central Catholic, he would know what to say.

"I would tell them [anyone who asks Waddell the benefits of attending Central Catholic] to think about the many opportunities offered at Central Catholic that would benefit them in the later years. At Central Catholic, you’re exposed to numerous career options," Waddell said.

Bralen Henderson and Carter Santos will both be seniors in the fall at Central Catholic and they both feel that they should be the team to watch out for in WPIAL 6A as they know they are playing under the right head coach in Terry Totten. Henderson, a tight end and defensive end, lives in the Woodland Hills school district while Santos, a lineman, lives in the North Allegheny school district. They both helped the Vikings reach the WPIAL 6A title in 2019 and want more than that in 2020.

"Coach Tot [Terry Totten] is a very liable and strong-willed coach. I find myself and my teammates fortunate to be coached by a man who has been around the game for a long time and has been a staple with the Central Catholic High School community for many traditions," Santos said.

With Terry Totten having a great impact on these players, he has definitely made his players such as Bralen Henderson realize that everyone should focus on Central Catholic and be afraid of them on the football field.

"People should believe that we will win again because me and my brothers are hungry, we want it all! We’ve been setting the standard for years and it’s not changing anytime soon!" Henderson said.

If Henderson and Santos would have played football in the school district that they live in, they would have been a part of other great football programs as North Allegheny and Woodland Hills are both well-known for their football programs.

Antonio Pitts, the second leading rusher for Central Catholic in 2019, decided to attend Central Catholic instead of Mohawk, the school district that he lives in. The incoming junior rushed for 402 yards in 2019 as one of the great things he enjoys about playing on the football team is the school's student section.

"The school spirit of the student section definitely helps boost the energy on the field," Pitts said.

With Johnathan Opalko now graduated from Central Catholic, the football team will look for a new kicker next season. Opalko was considered one of the best kickers in the entire WPIAL during his time in Central Catholic (2016-20). As he also played soccer for the Vikings, he decided to become a college football kicker at the University of Albany.

Matt Castelnovo will be a junior at Central Catholic in the fall and could be the team's starting kicker and punter for the Vikings next season. Matt lives in the Mars school district. Mars will also be looking for a new field goal kicker as Blake Edwards recently graduated from Mars in the past month. Matt would definitely have had a shot of being the starting kicker for Mars, but instead he will try to be the main kicker at Central Catholic and he is excited for the opportunity to try and be the team's starting kicker.

"Yeah I’d love to be the starting kicker in this upcoming season, but it won’t just be given to me. So, I got to work for it just like everyone else does," Castelnovo said.

Matt Schearer, another rising junior at Central Catholic in the fall and could also be the team's starting kicker and punter for the Vikings next season. Schearer lives in the Canon-McMillan school district and is also excited for the opportunity to try and be the team's starting kicker.

"I'm very excited to be the starting kicker this year. I think people are sleeping on our team this year but I know that I have been working and so have my teammates and I think we're going to come out real strong," Schearer said.

Antwain Carter Jr., another rising senior for Central Catholic who is expected to be a big part on defense, would have attended Brashear if he did not attend the private school. Being a student and football player to Carter Jr. means the world to him and is blessed to playing at a great football and education school.

"What it means to me to wear a Central Catholic Jersey is that every time I put the jersey on it is time to go to war and play every down to the fullest. When I put that jersey on, I’m not only playing for myself, I’m playing for my brothers on the field, previous alumni, and for the tradition of the school. When putting the jersey on it is has more of a meaning than just football. It gives me a reminder of how lucky and blessed I am to get the best education possible and attend the school," Carter Jr. said.

Rising seniors Anderson Cynkar and Eddy Tillman are two other players that are expected to help Central Catholic repeat as WPIAL 6A football champions in 2020 and are going to be relied on to help win them a state title as well. If they did not attend Central Catholic, they would both be attending city schools and possibly be playing Pittsburgh City League football. Cynkar lives in the Taylor Allderdice school district while Tillman lives in the Westinghouse school district.

Tillman rushed for 2,047 yards last season in 2019. His 2,047 rushing yards was ranked first in WPIAL 6A and ranked third in the entire the WPIAL in 2019. He currently has offers from schools such as Slippery Rock University, Seton Hill University, and others. Tillman thinks a lot of pressure is on the senior class of 2021 to do well again in 2020.

"I think there is a lot of self-inflicted pressure on this year’s seniors to repeat as WPIAL 6A champs and win the PIAA 6A," Tillman said.

Cynkar is a three-sport athlete at Central Catholic as he football, basketball and track & field. He led the Vikings in receptions (15) and receiving yards (365) in 2019 and he missed the first five weeks of the regular season due to injury. As a sophomore in 2019, Cynkar also placed 18th in the 300 Meter Hurdles at the WPIAL Track & Field Individual Championships at Slippery Rock University on May 16, 2019. With the three sports that he plays at Central Catholic, he is thankful to be a part of them.

"Being a multi-sport athlete is very challenging on the body. Going straight from the football field into the gym takes a toll on your legs physically. However, it is extremely rewarding to be on both teams, especially when they are winning a lot of games like this past season.

Cynkar has football offers from Carnegie Mellon University, Washington & Jefferson, and others.

With all the success and benefits that these football players are receiving at Central Catholic, they will easily tell anyone that attending Central Catholic was worth it and would definitely prefer attending the private school rather than the school district that they live in.

Brentaro Yamane: bkyamane@gmail.com and Twitter/Instagram @BYHilton13