Observer-Reporter Athlete of the Week
Name: Nick Cook
School: Fort Cherry
Year: Sophomore
Sport: Football
Cook’s week: A first-year starting running back for Fort Cherry, Cook’s performance Friday night led the Rangers to a 35-31 victory over Bishop Canevin at Jim Garry Stadium. The shifty 5-9, 155-pound sophomore rushed for 311 yards on 30 carries with four touchdowns. He also had an interception from his defensive back position.
“He played out of his mind,” Fort Cherry head coach Jim Shiel said. “He made a lot of great decisions as far as cutting and bouncing to the outside when it was there. The way he was running, he was really cutting against the grain. That was one impressive performance.”
Watch and learn: Cook’s freshman year was a normal one for any football player at a WPIAL Class A school. He played sparingly. It helped to be the backup to the latest standout running back at Fort Cherry, Kolton Kobrys. An elusive, downhill runner like Cook, Kobrys lifted the Rangers to a 10-2 overall record, a share of the Black Hills Conference title and the WPIAL quarterfinals. Kobrys finished second in the WPIAL with 2,262 rushing yards and was fifth in the WPIAL in scoring with 29 touchdowns. Cook did score two touchdowns as a freshman and his performance against Bishop Canevin would have made Kobrys proud.
“(Kobrys) hits the hole hard and looks for those lanes. He’s quick and gives me some tips on how to practice,” Cook said. “He tells me what kind of camps to go to and other ways to work on things.”
With the Rangers trailing 14-0 Friday, Cook scored on runs of 48 and 65 yards to give Fort Cherry the lead at halftime. He added a 36-yard touchdown in the third quarter before the Crusaders took a 31-28 lead later in the quarter.
Cook answered with a 46-yard go-ahead touchdown and the Rangers held on for the win. Cook helped seal the win with an interception of quarterback Reed Relosky.
“The games he’s had where he’s done very well, we’ve run a conventional I-formation tailback offense,” Shiel said. “He reads very well, and that’s perfect for that type of play. He has great vision for cutbacks. He hits a hole, and he has a second gear where he can shift in and get out of traffic.”
Overlooked: When the WPIAL realigned conferences, Fort Cherry was placed in a revamped Black Hills Conference that includes defending state champion North Catholic and Avonworth. Few picked the Rangers to compete with bigger schools such as Brentwood and Bishop Canevin.
Cook and the Rangers don’t mind that situation.
“I’d rather be the underdog when facing a team,” Cook said. “When you win when no one expects it, it’s just a better feeling to go out there. When you are expecting to win, you probably won’t in this conference.”
One of the bigger question marks surrounding Fort Cherry was how Shiel would replace the production of Kobrys in the backfield. A backfield-by-committee has been the answer. Cook is thriving with more work, but admits the transition hasn’t been easy.
“I knew I had an opportunity coming into this season, but I wasn’t sure how I was going to handle it or how I was going to take the season,” Cook said. “I wasn’t really sure what I was coming in, and you get hit sometimes when you carry the ball more often.”
Compiled by Lance Lysowski