Brady Brinkley is a 15 year old sophomore quarterback at North Allegheny who has continued to improve and mature his game week by week.
In the offseason Brady said that his 7 on 7 games did not go as well as he had hoped and kind of set him back a little.
Brady came into the season knowing he was going to get his opportunity to make an impact on offense. He played a little wide receiver and got his chance to spark the offense at quarterback.
When he got his opportunity, he shined early on and earned the starting quarterback job. As a sophomore at North Allegheny starting on varsity is incredibly difficult and starting at quarterback makes that even more challenging.
Brinkley got his first full start at quarterback vs rival Central Catholic. Central is ranked top 5 in the state with multiple division 1 power 4 commits that are closer to playing college football on live television than Brady is to driving a car. Unfortunately Brinkley and the tigers came up short, losing to Central.
When asked about the game Brady said, “I was happy my first full start was against Central because of the speed of the game. I feel like I grew a lot in that game”
Even though Brady felt he was improving game by game the offense as a whole began struggling. The normally dominant Tigers rushing attack was quiet against Mt Lebo as NA barely won a game they should have won by a lot more.
Brinkley said, “We need to improve on putting mistakes in the past and moving on.”
Next up on the schedule was another rival Pine Richland who was undefeated coming into Newman Stadium. Pine had also beat Central Catholic earlier in the year.
Coming into this game there was lots of doubt about Brinkley and the offense. Everyone knew that beating Pine Richland would be a statement win. Losing could also hurt the team and make it tough to gain momentum going into the playoffs.
Brinkley threw 2 first half touchdowns but he and the tiger offense played behind all game. Coming out of halftime the Tigers trailed 21-14. Brinkley led them down the field and then fumbled on the 1 yard line. Instead of letting the game slip away after making that mistake Brinkley was able to put it behind him and move forward. The next drive Brinkley broke off a long touchdown run to tie the game.
Then after a Pine Richland fumble on the kickoff, Brinkley got the ball back again with a chance to take the lead for the first time all game. He converted a third and goal, completing a touchdown pass to take the lead 28-21.
The Tigers held strong and finished the game. This was a statement win for Brinkley and the Tigers. After this game they have been on a roll offensively dominating their opponents. After a few blow out wins Brinkley and the Tigers have found themselves in a rematch against Central Catholic.
So, the question is: can a 15 year old lead the Tigers to the promised land?
