Spring has an impact on W&J’s fall
Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
Running back Joey Koroly scored his third touchdown of the season against Bethany last week.
Holly Tonini/For the Observer-Reporter
Washington & Jefferson quarterback Justin Heacock will start against John Carroll Saturday afternoon.
Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
Andrew Wolf has a knack for catching touchdown passes for Washington & Jefferson.
By Joe Tuscano
Staff writer
jtuscano@observer-reporter.com
It took only one game to tear down everything Justin Heacock had built up in the first four last spring.
Suddenly, there are doubts about whether he can come through in big games.
Suddenly, there are doubts about whether he should be the starting quarterback for Washington & Jefferson College.
Suddenly, head coach Mike Sirianni is being asked about whether the position is open and he is saying yes, there will be competition. Heacock, a junior, will have to outplay Colton Jones, a sophomore, in camp if he wants to keep the job.
“I realized I made mistakes,” said Heacock, who was 2-1 as a first-year starter. The Presidents had a game with Bethany forfeited to them because of COVID-19.
“I’m trying to learn from those mistakes. I watched a lot of film after with our coaches. We talked about what I needed to get better at. I’ve been working as hard as I can to make up for it and be the best I can be this fall.”
Heacock still views the position as his to lose heading into camp.
“It’s college football so there is competition at every spot,” Heacock said, “I have to go into camp and see what happens. Like I said, I’ve been working really hard all summer.”
The problems in Heacock’s game popped up in Washington & Jefferson’s 27-20 loss to Westminster in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference championship game.
Heacock threw three interceptions and each was turned into a Westminster touchdown. If he doesn’t throw those interceptions, then Washington & Jefferson probably wins the game.
“I just made a couple decisions on the field that weren’t right,” Heacock said. “I just have to get better. I missed some reads. It was good to learn from my mistakes.”
He had decent numbers, 24 of 44 for 198 yards but was sacked seven times. At times, he looked unsure of himself.
“We’re going to have competition,” said Sirianni. “Justin’s reps were live reps against a good defense. Colton is super talented so we’re going to let them compete. Someone once told me that competitions breeds success.”
Even Sirianni, who is loathed to admit Heacock might not be the man, has no choice. Heacock’s, as well as Jones’ play, demands it.
“Maybe its the offensive coordinator or maybe its the head coach dictating the plays to the offensive coordinator,” said Sirianni, who holds both those positions on W&J’s staff.
Heacock came into camp with high expectations and met them with aplomb. He passed for 621 yards and nine touchdowns. More important, he didn’t throw one interception. But the opponents – Waynesburg, Geneva and Saint Vincent – had a combined 4-10 record.
“That game hurt, a lot,” said Sirianni. “I didn’t think it would, but it did.”
W&J was without starting tailback Joey Koroly, who was ill, for the Westminster game. But Justin Huss gained 105 yards on 20 carries in his place.
Andrew Wolf, the team’s best receiver, was held to only six catches for 26 yards, the longest going for eight yards.
What made this game a turning point was that Westminster won its first PAC title and the W&J defense, which has struggled over the past few seasons, was playing well.
Westminster’s offense was throttled by Washington & Jefferson’s defense, which allowed the Titans just 155 total yards.
“We’ll definitely have a chip on our shoulder for that game this season.” said W&J linebacker Sean Doran, who leads a strong W&J defense. Doran was second on the team with 25 tackles.
“We lost three key guys for the entire season because of COVID. That’s the hand we got dealt. Hopefully, we can get it turned around this time.”
Linebacker Alex Belinotti, last year’s leading tackler, and linebacker Justin Johns return. W&J welcomes back defensive back Max Garda, linebacker Mitch Dezort, defensive back and Tannner Volpatti.
“We have 18 starters back on defense,” said Sirianni. “It’s not just one of our strong points. It is our strong point. And we just have to make sure we don’t put them in a bad position.”
Washington & Jefferson will find out Sept. 4 how strong a team it has when the Presidents take on John Carroll, a powerful team from the Ohio Athletic Conference.