"Mr. High School Sports" - Quad-A Stars Select Schools
By Matt Popchock
If you read our live in-game blog during Friday's Keystone Conference contest between Franklin Regional and Ringgold, you know that Mount Lebanon's Luke Hagy has committed to Cornell, according to a text message sent by the senior running back to the Post-Gazette's Mike White.
In addition, another of the WPIAL's top offensive players has reportedly picked a college. Woodland Hills senior wide receiver Shakim Alonzo has settled on the Cincinnati, multiple sources are saying.
Hagy visited Pitt not long ago, but he also had been seriously toying with the notion of playing in the Ivy League, so his announcement comes as little surprise. Meanwhile, Alonzo should be a good fit where he's headed as well, considering his position has been one of strength for UC under coaches Brian Kelly and Butch Jones.
Alonzo had also been offered by Pitt, West Virginia, and several Big Ten schools. He entered Week 8 with 273 yards and five touchdowns on 14 catches this season after helping the Wolverines reach the WPIAL Class AAAA Final as a junior.
Here are some highlights of Alonzo:
Hagy, the P-G's Male Athlete of the Year for his excellence in football, basketball, and baseball during the 2010-11 academic year, recently became the seventh player in WPIAL Class AAAA history to top 4,000 career rushing yards, and earlier this season he became the Blue Devils' all-time leading rusher. He entered Week 8 as the leading rusher in the WPIAL as well, with 1,350 yards and 18 TD's.
He'll probably just stick to football at Cornell, where, in all probability, he will play safety, but it should still be interesting to see how strong the temptation is for him to take on a second sport. Anyway, here are some Hagy highlights:
These two faced each other at Baldwin High School last November in the WPIAL Quarterfinals, with Alonzo's Wolverines upsetting Mount Lebanon 29-22 in overtime en route to Heinz Field, despite three touchdown runs from Hagy.
(Special thanks to the Post-Gazette and to ScoutPennsylvania for their contributions to this post.)
(Follow me on Twitter: twitter.com/mpopchock)
