Jaquan Brisker announced he will be holding a fourth annual youth football camp July 18 at Gateway High School. Brisker, a Gateway graduate, signed a one-year, $5.5 million contract to join the Steelers this season after spending his first four seasons with the Chicago Bears.

While in Chicago, Brisker started all 52 games that he appeared in. Brisker intercepted four passes and recorded seven sacks during his time with the Bears. Brisker took the junior college path to the NFL.

He started his collegiate career with Lackawanna College and transferred to Penn State after his freshman season. He was named a second-team all-American while playing for the Nittany Lions in 2021. Brisker would end up being drafted in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft by the Bears.

James Armstrong chose to get his college commitment out of the way early. The Hopewell junior chose to announce his commitment to play at Penn State. Armstrong passed for 2,217 yards and 21 touchdowns last season. He also piled up 739 yards on the ground and scored 17 times.

​Hopewell finished 6-4 and returned to the playoffs for the first time in a decade.

The annual summer battle over athletes transferring schools has commenced. According to an article by Don Rebel of TribLive, a number of athletes were ruled ineligible for next school year. This has drawn the ire of many in the Western Pennsylvania school committee.

Charlie Batch, a former Steel Valley standout who later played in the NFL with the Detroit Lions and Pittsburgh Steelers, posted on X Wednesday night asking if there is any way he could serve on a board with the WPIAL. He has posted on social media this week that he feels the rules in place are unfair to students.

The transfer rules aren't 100 percent up to the WPIAL. The PIAA has a set of rules that set guidelines in order to try and level the playing field. There have been plenty of accusations in the past that not every district enforces the rules the same way.

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be sent to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.

McKeesport Superintendent Donald L. MacFann released a statement Saturday that the school board did not terminate any football coaches. A KDKA article published on Friday indicated the coaching staff had been let go. 

"The District is aware of rumors circulating throughout the community indicating that the McKeesport Area School District Board has terminated all football coaches during its regular meeting held on Wednesday, June 10, 2026," MacFann wrote. "This correspondence is being shared to provide accurate information and clarify the actions taken by the Board."

KDKA reported that the entire staff was let go the day following the board meeting. During that meeting, McKeesport School Director Matthew Holtzman called for the resignation of the coaching staff. Holtzman's statement came after an interview given by former McKeesport football standout Brandon Short after the sentencing of Isaac Smith, who killed his daughter, Karli, and her unborn child in 2021.

Short gave a statement to assembled media following sentencing that two members of McKeesport's coaching staff testified as character witnesses for Smith.

"Due to what has recently transpired, and the profound loss of trust that has followed, I am calling for the resignation of the entire coaching staff," Holtzman wrote. "Leadership positions within our athletic programs require sound judgment, integrity and an unwavering commitment to the values we expect out students to embody. As I started in December, I believed changes were needed within our athletic department. Recent events have only reinforced that belief."

MacFann asked for patience from the community as the district works through the process.

"At the June 10 Board Meeting, the School Board did not terminate any football coaches. Rather, the Board voted to table the hiring of football coaches due to personnel-related matters," MacFann wrote. "As these matters involve personnel considerations, the District is unable to disclose additional details. While the hiring of football coaches has been tabled, all football-related activities will continue through the summer as scheduled. The District will make the necessary internal arrangements to ensure that football activities proceed in a normal manner and that student athletes continue to have access to the opportunities and support they expect."

The pressure for McKeesport to act will be immense.  Another former McKeesport standout, Khaleke Hudson, went to a school board meeting after last season and asked to be considered as head coach.

McKeesport lost to Aliquippa, 21-12, in the WPIAL Class 4A championship game last season. The Tigers are expected to have another strong team this upcoming season, led by Georgia commit Kemon Spell, the No. 1 running back in his class, and South Carolina commit Javien Robinson, a standout receiver.

After the Tigers lost to the Quips last fall, the community was upset at the coaching staff following the game. McKeesport hasn't won the WPIAL since 2005 and has lost four times in the district title game since Matt Miller took over in 2016.

"McKeesport has too much talent, too much heart and too much history to be settling for good enough," Hudson said in a speech at the board meeting. "That's not me pointing fingers. That's me saying the truth we all know."

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​McKeesport figures to be the favorite to break the program's 21-year spell without a title. The Tigers, who stayed in Class 4A for this two-year enrollment cycle, saw two of their biggest rivals, Thomas Jefferson and Aliquippa, get reclassified in Class 5A and 3A, respectively.

"We're losing more than games," Hudson said. "Something I've been seeing in recent years. We're losing games we should be winning. Championships that slip out of our hands, opportunities that should have belonged to our kids. The losses that hurt me the most aren't on the scoreboard. It's the kids who fall through academic cracks, the kids who never get developed, it's the athletes who could be playing D1, but end up unnoticed. It's the players who switch schools because they feel stuck, the one who don't feel don't feel seen, don't feel taught and don't feel prepared."

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.

Gateway quarterback Mayson Mitchell was forced into action last year due to injury. The Gators quarterback built some confidence playing in the Big East conference. This weekend on Instagram, Mitchell announced he received his first Division I offer from the University of Akron.

Mitchell passed for 2,036 yards with 20 touchdowns and 12 interceptions last season. Gateway missed the playoffs due to the WPIAL's tiebreaking system and weren't awarded a Wild Card.

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.

There are no guarantees that Alex Tecza or Eli Heidenreich will ever play a snap in the NFL. But the Mt. Lebanon graduates will have the opportunity to continue their journey together. Tecza was invited to the Steelers rookie minicamp. Tecza, who like Heidenreich graduated from the Naval Academy, help the Blue Devils win the WPIAL and PIAA football crowns in 2021.

Heidenreich's path to the pros seems a little more likely. He was highly regarded enough that many people expected him to be drafted, if not by the Steelers, then by someone else. Tecza, a 6-foot, 199-pound running back, was consistent performer for the Naval Academy. He rushed for 902 yards and 10 touchdowns last season.

Tecza averaged 5.7 yards per carry during his senior campaign. Tecza rushed for 2,228 yardds and 23 touchdowns during his career. He averaged 6.0 yards per carry as a sophomore.

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.

Eli Heidenreich being selected in the seventh round of the 2026 by the Pittsburgh Steelers may not be the most impressive accomplishment he's had in football. The Mt. Lebanon graduate has knocked down plenty of seemingly out-of-grasp obstacles on his way to having a shot to play professionally.

As a senior in high school, Heidenreich helped Mt. Lebanon win its first PIAA Class 6A championship in school history. The Blue Devils, who were led by coach Bob Palko and had a future teammates of Heidenreich's at the Naval Academy, Alex Tecza, on the roster. In the state championship game, Mt. Lebanon knocked off Saint Joseph's Prep, which has dominated the state's largest classification in football for years.

Once Heidenreich made it to college, he spent his time rewriting's Navy record book in receiving. That isn't easy to do at a program that is best known for its run-heavy option rushing attack. During Heidenreich's season season, he set the single-game school record for receiving yards with 243 against Air Force.

Heidenreich finished with 941 yards for the season, which is also a school record. Heidenreich set Navy career record for receiving yards with 1,994 and receiving touchdowns with 16.

Mt. Lebanon has 10 alumni who have played in the NFL, with the most recent being Detroit Lions offensive lineman Colby Sorsdal.

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.

Jaden Dugger took a leap of faith to go from Georgetown to Louisiana.

The Penn Hills graduate saw all of his hard work pay off Saturday at the NFL Draft. Dugger, who is a linebacker, was chosen with by the San Francisco 49ers in the fifth round with the 154th overall pick. 

Dugger had a breakout season with the Ragin' Cajuns last season, finishing with 125 tackles. Sixty-four of Dugger's tackles were solo tackles. Dugger also recorded four sacks, forced a fumble and intercepted a pass. Dugger recorded a season-high 16 tackles against Louisiana Monroe and Southern Miss last season.

​Dugger originally went to Georgetown out of high school to play safety. After Dugger played two seasons with the Hoyas, he chose to transfer to Louisiana.

Dugger will look to be the 12th player from Penn Hills to suit up in the NFL. Aaron Donald, the All-Pro defensive lineman for the St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams, was the last. He retired following the 2023 season.

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted [email protected] or at @J_oshRizzo.