Petruccelli enjoying rest after carrying load for Mount

Josh Petruccelli isn’t doing much since he recently returned home on Christmas break.

The Mount Union running back deserves a break. He’s binging on the HBO series “Game of Thrones,” playing a bit of the video game Fortnite and hooping it up with friends.

A long five-week playoff season didn’t deliver the Perry graduate and his Mount Union teammates the ultimate goal, but as Coach Vince Kehres told his team following a tough loss to Mary Hardin-Baylor in the Stagg Bowl Dec. 15, the team has no reason to hang their heads.

Especially Petruccelli, who was a force in the NCAA Division III playoffs. In five postseason games, he carried it 119 times and rushed for 676 yards and eight touchdowns. For the season, he had 1,531 yards on 246 carries and 19 TDs.

“The playoffs were getting rough,” said Petruccelli, whose team was 14-1 this season and the NCAA Division III national runner-up. “Getting all those carries, taking a beating, it was tough on Mondays.”

Counting his senior season at Perry when the Pirates advanced to a Division IV state semifinal and played 14 games, the Mount sophomore has played 44 games the past three seasons. That’s a lot of football for any nonNFL player, especially someone who’s yet to be an upperclassmen.

That will change for Petruccelli in 2019, when he will be a junior. In two seasons, he amassed 2,594 yards and scored 25 touchdowns, making him a good bet (as long as he’s healthy) to pass 5,000 yards before his time at Mount is over.

“My freshman year, I set a goal of 700 yards, but I had no idea how much I would play,” said Petruccelli. “It was the same thing this season. I hoped for 1,000. That’s how I’ve been since high school. But I’ve got to praise my (offensive) line. They made it happen.”

His stats popped off the page in 2018 — especially in the playoffs — but Petruccelli takes as much from the fact the coaches placed trust in him while injuries took its toll on others on offense. He said it was a “confidence boost,” and that will carry over to 2019 in more ways than one.

“I’m ready to become a leader,” said Petruccelli. “I’m not a vocal guy, so I know I’ll need to let my play lead the way. But to be more a leader on this team would be awesome. I can’t wait.”

The Purple Raiders will again be big favorites in 2019 with HardinBaylor to return to the Stagg Bowl, and Petruccelli will be the unquestioned featured running back. He cemented that status with his huge finish and earned secondteam All-America honors by the Associated Press.

“My mom texted me, and I was like no way. It was an awesome moment,” said Petruccelli. “That was a goal, and to achieve that so early in my college career means a lot.”