Since being hired by his alma mater in 2019, Westinghouse coach Donta Green has compiled a decorated resume only a handful of coaches in Western Pennsylvania can match.
The numbers speak for themselves — five trips to the City League championship game with four titles; three consecutive trips to the PIAA Class 2A quarterfinals; back-to-back state championship appearances; and a combined record of 52-8. But no matter who you talk to inside the Bulldogs’ program — be it a player, coach, equipment manager, school administrator, teacher or even a parent — at one point or another, each of them will relay the same three-word message made famous by the late great Kobe Bryant during the 2009 NBA Finals.
“Job’s not finished.”
It would be impossible to come any closer to winning a state title than Westinghouse did last season, when the Bulldogs held a 20-14 fourth-quarter lead against six-time defending PIAA Class 2A champion Southern Columbia, with the Tigers pinned back to their own 1-yard line after a perfect punt by Westinghouse. What unfolded next will be remembered by those who witnessed it for many years to come — an unfathomable game-winning 99-yard touchdown drive by Southern Columbia, aided by a defensive holding penalty that negated what would have been a game-clinching sack by the Bulldogs.
Although the instant classic was a contest that Westinghouse players, coaches and fans would rather forget, the piercing memories of the game’s final seconds and the heartache that followed have only added fuel to the trademark fire and intensity these Bulldogs practice and play with every time they take the field.
“At the end of the day, we can’t let our emotions get in the way of our No. 1 goal, and that’s to win a state championship,” said Green, the 2022 PUP Coach of the Year and back-to-back Pa. Football Writers’ Class 2A Coach of the Year. “[The culture] is never set in stone. You’re wrestling with it every single day, and it’s a constant fight to keep the culture. But that has become the expectation. … That has been the motivation to come to practice every day from January to June.
“It’s definitely a mindset shift from any other City League team that I’ve been a part of.”
As always, there are some key pieces to replace from last year’s team — none more significant than playmaking receiver-defensive back Taymir O’Neal and PUP All-Star defensive end Mike Richardson. The leadership provided by O’Neal and Richardson both on and off the field was invaluable, and Green knew that identifying a new crop of leaders early on would be pivotal to this group’s success.
Four players will be called upon as captains for Westinghouse this fall — senior quarterback Khalil Green, senior receiver-defensive back Lloyd Penn, junior defensive lineman Josiah Collins and junior defensive back Kyshawn Robinson. All four played major roles on last year’s team, and none of them are satisfied yet with what they have accomplished in their careers thus far.
“I really didn’t have too much when I was younger,” Robinson said. “I feel like the stuff that happened to me during my upbringing made me who I am today. It made me continue to work.”
The prized recruit of the bunch, Robinson has narrowed his list of schools to a final six of Pitt, Penn State, West Virginia, Colorado, Florida State and Ohio State. He has started in the Bulldogs’ secondary since his freshman year, but he will now transition from cornerback to free safety to take over O’Neal’s spot as the team’s “center fielder” on defense.
“Honestly, I think he’s at the tip of the iceberg,” Green said. “He has so much potential. He’s a hard worker. He hasn’t missed a practice in two years. … I’ve never coached a kid like this before, who had such early success and on top of that, the work ethic that he has.”
Collins is another rising prospect in the 2026 class who holds offers from Temple, Miami (Ohio) and Maine, but many expect his recruitment to take off with another big season as a junior. Collins was responsible for the unofficial fourth-down sack-fumble that would have won Westinghouse the state championship if not for the holding penalty, and his ability to line up all across the formation on the defensive line makes him a vital asset to the Bulldogs and a nightmare matchup for opposing linemen.
“I think about it every day, that play. That close to winning a state championship and doing something this school has never done before,” Collins said. “We’re going to go back this year, and I’m going to make that same play. Maybe an even better one — with no holding call.”
Along with Collins, seniors Nyxai Robinson and Byron Lewis are also returning starters capable of wreaking havoc on the defensive line, bolstering a defense that has been outright dominant for the better part of the past five seasons.
Of course, a football team is only as good as its quarterback, and the Bulldogs have a great one in Green. The 5-9 signal caller enters his second year as a starter after guiding Westinghouse to an average of 35.9 points per game in his debut season. Known for his picture-perfect deep ball and shifty moves in the open field, you won’t find many dual-threat quarterbacks like him in the area.
“Last year was about him getting his feet under him,” Green said. “We expect him to be able to see the play before it happens, being able to know what the defense is doing, and learning how to really study film and be more prepared.”
Green will have no shortage of worthy wideouts to throw to, but Penn and speedy sophomore K-Shawn Hawkins will likely receive the bulk of the targets. Penn is a reliable chain-mover with elite route-running ability, while Hawkins is a touchdown waiting to happen every time he touches the ball.
And as if the Bulldogs didn’t have enough offensive firepower already, their biggest addition to the roster this offseason came in the form of transfer Lenny Wicks, a senior running back from Harvest Prep in Columbus, Ohio. Donta Green offered high praise of Wicks at preseason practice, and he certainly looks the part of a player with game-changing potential. Don’t be surprised to see him take over as the focal point of the offense for Westinghouse this season.
“I know the competition is real,” Wicks said. “I know that these guys are dogs, so I feel like we can make a run.”
All in all, the Bulldogs have a solid combination of veteran experience and youthful exuberance, with each player on the team focused on coming together to achieve a common goal. That goal, of course, is to become the second City League team to win a state title and the first since Perry defeated nationally ranked powerhouse Berwick, 20-8, on Darnell “Pepsi” Farrow’s game-clinching pick-six in the storied 1989 PIAA Class 3A final.
“The main goal is to win a state championship. It’s no longer to get there,” Robinson said. “We made it there twice, and we came up short. This year, it’s time to win.”
If Westinghouse is to achieve the feat this year, it will do so in the Class 1A bracket of the PIAA tournament rather than Class 2A. That means any fans hoping for a third showdown between the Bulldogs and Southern Columbia will have to wait at least two more years for that to happen.
That being said, with Westinghouse being placed on the Eastern side of the PIAA playoff bracket this season, this year’s PIAA Class 1A championship could potentially turn into a historic WPIAL vs. City League battle for all the marbles. What could be cooler than that?
“The preparation doesn’t change,” Green said. “We’ve still got to get better every week. No matter who we’re playing, no matter how big the school is. … It should be exciting.
“It’s new territory for us, but I think our guys will be prepared for it.”
Steve is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at srotstein@unionprogress.com.
