After watching Steel Valley churn out star running back after star running back, year after year after year, you might be wondering what’s in the water in Munhall.
The truth is, it’s all in the family — the Barksdale family, that is.
When the Ironmen put together an unprecedented perfect season while defeating all 15 of their opponents via mercy rule in 2016, DeWayne Murray was the star running back who racked up more than 2,000 yards on the ground with 46 touchdowns. Now, eight years later, Steel Valley star Donald Barksdale is etching his own name in the history books right alongside his older brother.
“It’s a big thing in my family,” Barksdale said. “My brother, DeWayne Murray, he hit [5,000 yards] his senior year, with all four years to play running back, and I only did it in three.”
When he graduated in 2016, Murray ranked as the No. 6 rusher in WPIAL history with 6,503 career yards on the ground — a total Barksdale admitted is likely out of reach. Murray also scored a whopping 114 TDs while rushing for more than 1,000 yards in four consecutive seasons, powering the Ironmen to WPIAL and PIAA Class 2A titles as a senior before going on to play at Duquesne.
As for Barksdale, he didn’t become a starter at tailback until his sophomore season, but he sure has done a tremendous job making up for lost time.
Barskdale spent his freshman year watching from the sideline as NiJhay Burt ran for 2,044 yards and 35 TDs, then he narrowly missed out on a 1,000-yard season as a sophomore while helping Steel Valley capture a WPIAL Class 2A title. Barksdale rushed for 924 yards with 16 TDs on only 79 carries in his first year as a starter, as dual-threat quarterback Cruce Brookins led the team with 1,625 yards and 34 scores. Then, with Brookins moving on to play at Pitt, Barksdale finally became the team’s centerpiece on offense last season, rushing for 2,061 yards with 37 TDs on his way to earning PUP All-Star honors.
“Donald tries to kind of outdo his older brother,” said Ironmen coach Ray Braszo. “He’s having a great year again, and he has had a great career.”
Despite his prolific junior year, a gut-wrenching defeat against Beaver Falls in the WPIAL championship game left a sour taste in Barksdale’s mouth heading into his final season. And with only one more year to play alongside his younger brother, Da’Ron, Barksdale was determined to make the most of it in order to leave his own lasting legacy at Steel Valley.
The Ironmen got off to a bumpy start while stumbling to a 1-3 record to open up the season, but their brutal non-conference schedule included losses against Class 1A No. 2 Clairton, Class 1A No. 3 Bishop Canevin and Class 2A No. 2 South Park. Plus, the younger Barksdale was still recovering from a knee injury that caused him to miss almost the entire 2023 season, and he didn’t make his season debut until Steel Valley’s 7-0 defeat against the Eagles on Sept. 13.
The following week, Braszo moved Da’Ron from receiver to quarterback to share the backfield with his older brother, and it has been smooth sailing for the Ironmen ever since.
“Those first couple of losses made our team. We were used to just winning every single time every game,” Barksdale said. “It gave us more discipline. Everybody is playing their part and playing their own role instead of everybody else’s role.”
No. 4 Steel Valley has won seven consecutive games entering Friday’s showdown at Moon with No. 5 Western Beaver for a spot in the WPIAL Class 2A semifinals. During that seven-game span, Donald Barksdale has scored 25 total touchdowns while accounting for at least three TDs in every game. He is now up to 1,985 yards rushing with 30 TDs on 160 carries, and his 224-yard outburst in a 49-28 first-round win against Washington last Friday made him the 27th player in WPIAL history to surpass 5,000 yards rushing for his career.
Making it even sweeter, Barksdale hit the exclusive milestone while playing his final career game at Campbell Field in Munhall — a stadium in which he hasn’t lost a game since he was 10 years old.
“He’s a difference maker in every game, for sure,” Braszo said. “Hopefully he and his brother can keep leading us on.”
With his younger brother generating more buzz on the recruiting trail and receiving more interest from Power Four schools, many wondered why Barksdale wasn’t receiving similar offers, especially after his spectacular season in 2023. But he never allowed the doubts to creep into his mind, assuring himself that his time would come as long as he continued to put in the work — and sure enough, Barksdale now holds nearly a dozen scholarship offers of his own, including Bowling Green, Memphis, Robert Morris, and his older brother’s Duquesne Dukes.
“I was waiting, but I knew the offers were going to come,” Barksdale said. “It was just God’s timing.”
The time for him to make his college decision is just around the corner, but for now, Barksdale’s sole focus lies on leading the Ironmen back to Acrisure Stadium for a third consecutive WPIAL championship appearance — and with Western Beaver and top-seeded Seton LaSalle on their side of the bracket, it certainly won’t be easy getting there. Then again, if it were easy, it wouldn’t be fun, would it?
“Knowing any of these games could be my last, it’s heartbreaking,” Barksdale said. “I believe everybody wrote us off [at 1-3]. We’re just showing what we can do.”
Mitchell powering Penn Hills’ playoff push
After playing in the shadow of star quarterback Julian Dugger and standout running back Amir Key for his first three seasons at Penn Hills while focusing most of his energy on defense, Naytel Mitchell has burst onto the scene this fall as one of the most impactful two-way players in the area.
A senior captain who brings an unmatched level of ferocity to the field week in and week out, Mitchell has developed a reputation for the intense nature of his staredowns during the pregame coin toss at midfield. Of course, his intimidating tactics wouldn’t have much of an effect if he couldn’t back them up with his play — and Mitchell has been at his best for the Indians when they need him most.
Earlier this season, Mitchell helped seal Penn Hills’ eye-opening 21-13 win against three-time defending WPIAL Class 4A champion Aliquippa with a highlight-reel 56-yard rushing TD — one of several big-time performances put on by Mitchell on his way to surpassing 1,000 yards rushing during the regular season. For the season, he is now up to 1,281 yards rushing and 18 TDs on 201 carries. Still, it appears Mitchell was saving his best for last.
In the No. 7 Indians’ action-packed 30-27 win against No. 10 Moon last week in the first round of the Class 5A playoffs, Mitchell rushed for a career-high 254 yards and three TDs while laying down a handful of punishing hits on defense. His efforts propelled Penn Hills into the WPIAL quarterfinals for a marquee matchup at unbeaten No. 2 Upper St. Clair on Friday at 7 p.m.
Crosby taking center stage for Greensburg C.C.
Junior quarterback Samir Crosby has enjoyed a stellar career so far at Greensburg Central Catholic — and although he’s far from finished, it might be tough for him to top his performance in the No. 5 Centurions’ 54-38 shootout win against No. 12 Monessen in the first round of the Class 1A playoffs last Friday.
In a back-and-forth affair that featured 65 combined points in the first half alone, Crosby accounted for six touchdowns in three different ways, passing for 164 yards and four TDs while tacking on 73 yards and a rushing TD to go with a 70-yard kick return touchdown. That gives Crosby an even 1,000 yards rushing with 18 TDs on 136 carries, and he has completed 73-of-130 attempts for 1,335 yards and 19 TDs with only three interceptions.
Believe it or not, this is Crosby’s first season as the full-time starter at quarterback after spending most of his first two seasons at wide receiver for Greensburg Central. As a freshman, Crosby hauled in a team-high 30 receptions for 473 yards while rushing for 351 yards on 31 carries with 15 total TDs. He then led the team with 31 catches for 623 yards as a sophomore while rushing for 634 yards on 69 carries and scoring 20 total TDs.
Crosby now finds himself in an ultra-exclusive club as one of the few players in WPIAL history to surpass 1,000 career yards as a passer, rusher and receiver. For his career, Crosby has passed for 1,760 yards, rushed for 1,985 yards and caught 61 passes for 1,096 yards while accounting for 72 total TDs.
Steve is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at srotstein@unionprogress.com.
