Unselfish play from standout players keys Elizabeth Forward’s turnaround
After stumbling to a 1-2 start, many wondered if Elizabeth Forward was suffering from the dreaded “championship hangover.”
Six weeks and six lopsided victories later, it’s safe to say the Warriors have answered almost all of the questions from their critics. The only question left is, can they make it back to the WPIAL title game for the second year in a row?
Time will tell, but for Class 3A No. 3 Elizabeth Forward, it’s clear that last year’s inaugural trip to the championship game was much more than just a flash in the pan.
“The kids, they never let down. That was just a testament to their resilience,” said Warriors coach Mike Collodi. “There were outsiders that second-guessed us and things like that, but they stayed the course and trusted in the process and things like that and now they’re reaping the benefits. The credit goes to them.”
Elizabeth Forward lost to Central Valley, 35-0, in last year’s WPIAL championship game, bringing a bitter end to a landmark season for the program that included an undefeated regular season. Many standout players graduated, including PostGazette Fabulous 22 selection Chase Whatton, now at Bowling Green.
Still, plenty of talent returned for the Warriors in 2021 — so much, in fact, that Collodi’s greatest challenge might be finding ways to keep everyone involved in the offense.
For starters, Elizabeth Forward brought in Johnny DiNapoli as a transfer from East Allegheny, two years after DiNapoli set a WPIAL freshman record for passing yards in 2019. DiNapoli, a 6-foot, 220-pound junior, is seeing plenty of time on both sides of the ball, but he’s no longer playing quarterback — that position is being held down by junior Zion White.
“We tell the kids, we have to do what’s best for our team, not what’s best for the individual,” Collodi said. “Zion and Johnny both have to be on the field, so let’s work it out. Johnny bought in and he didn’t bat an eye. He bought into the process, and he’s having a heck of a junior season because of it.
“[DiNapoli] is a heck of a linebacker, too. And he plays some defensive line for me. We put him all over the place. He’s doing a great job at everything we ask him to do. He does it with a smile and he’s doing a great job with it.”
White is coming off his best game of the season, having thrown for 223 yards and five touchdowns in a 56- 13 rout against Southmoreland on Friday. The 6-foot-3, 232-pound gunslinger has now passed for 832 yards with 17 touchd o w n s on the year. DiNapoli, meanwhile, is playing the H-back position on offense, a hybrid between fullback, slot receiver and tight end. He ran for a 2-yard touchdown vs. Southmoreland, his third score of the season.
“Zion is doing a great job,” Collodi said. “He has a rocket for an arm. Zion’s biggest asset isn’t his size or his arm strength — it’s his brain. He’s extremely intelligent when it comes to football. His football IQ is very high. We ask him to do a ton with our offense, and he does it very, very well. He’s leading us where we need to be right now because of that.”
Along with DiNapoli and White, the Warriors’ loaded backfield features a pair of speedy senior runn i n g backs in Kyle Flournoy and DaVontay
Brownfield. Flournoy entered the week with a teamhigh 483 yards rushing to go with eight touchdowns, while Brownfield entered with 186 yards and four scores.
Elizabeth Forward has also utilized 5-foot-4, 135pound freshman Charlie Nigut as a versatile, allpurpose weapon on both offense and special teams. The diminutive Nigut came into the week with 179 yards rushing and six total touchdowns on a team-high 11.2 yards per carry. Nigut, who also returns punts and kicks, also has seven catches for 177 yards — good for a teamleading 25.3 yards per reception.
As for the Warriors’ most dangerous offensive weapon, look no further than junior receiver Zach Boyd.
After averaging 29.7 yards per catch as a sophomore, Boyd’s average yards per reception has dipped in 2021, but he’s coming off a stellar performance vs. Southmoreland last week. Boyd caught four passes for 188 yards and three touchdowns — including two of 60- plus yards — and also scored on an 80-yard fumble return on defense. He leads the team with 13 touchdowns on the season.
“He’s just an unbelievable weapon to have,” Collodi said. “He’s very coachable. He works extremely hard. But he’s such a big target. He’s 6-2 and can run like a deer. He makes it look so effortless and smooth.”
Despite all that offensive firepower, defense remains Elizabeth Forward’s calling card. The Warriors have given up seven points or less in five of their past six games and have four shutouts on the season, allowing a miniscule 7.4 points per game.
In order to make it back to the title game and likely earn another crack at twotime defending champion Central Valley — owner of the WPIAL’s longest winning streak at 21 games and counting — Elizabeth Forward will need to maintain its stellar play on both sides of the ball. And if the Warriors do make it there, Collodi knows not many people will be picking them to win — and that’s just fine with him and his team.
“They’ve been No. 1 now for three years in a row. They’re the king of the hill right now,” Collodi said. “They haven’t been knocked off, but that’s our goal. They’re sitting on top of the mountain now and are very much deserving. If we can get to them, it will be a heck of a match-up.”
Steel Valley
Senior running back Nijhay Burt has generated plenty of headlines for Class 2A No. 5 Steel Valley this season, and rightfully so. Burt is coming off another four-touchdown performance and is now up to 1,620 yards rushing with 29 touchdowns in only eight games, and he needs four more touchdowns in the season finale to surpass 200 points on the season.
Burt isn’t the only one putting up big numbers for the Ironmen, though. Junior quarterback Cruce Brookins is coming off a big game of his own, rushing for 147 yards and a pair of scores in a 57- 6 win against Apollo-Ridge. Now with Class 2A No. 2 Serra Catholic visiting on Friday night in a battle of unbeatens to determine the Allegheny Conference champion, the Ironmen will need both Burt and Brookins to be at the top of their game to complete an undefeated regular season.