Hempfield grad Justin Sliwoski helps St. Francis earn trip to FCS football playoffs

LORETTO — He just might have received the most rousing ovation of anyone on the team when Justin Sliwoski heard his name announced over the public address system as among the seniors on the St. Francis (Pa.) football team being honored.

A host of players smiled broadly and held out their hands to congratulate the quarterback who has been quite instrumental in the surging Red Flash cementing their second trip to the FCS playoffs after clinching the Northeast Conference championship two weeks earlier.

“I’ve had an important role this year,” Sliwoski said.

But has it been an ideal situation for Hempfield High School’s career leader in passing yards (4,004) and touchdown passes (40)? Sliwoski has split time at quarterback with sophomore Cole Doyle a year after experiencing a similar situation with Jyron Russell, who since has transferred to Division II Edward Waters.

“The thing that keeps me going are my biggest supporters, my teammates,” Sliwoski said.

“I came in last year and was very influential. You know you can do it if you get the opportunity to go out and do it.”

Following a redshirt season as a walk-on at Pitt, Sliwoski entered the transfer portal and found himself staying in Pennsylvania at nearby St. Francis. It was a chance to play more and an opportunity to explore the medical side of things by studying to be a physician’s assistant.

“The stars aligned and I got into their P.A. program here and I think it’s (rated) second in the state,” he said.

On the field, it’s been a mixed bag of emotions for Sliwoski, who hasn’t been able to nail down the starter’s job for very long since arriving on campus in 2019. After playing in just one game as a sophomore, Sliwoski in the past two seasons has split time behind center in coach Chris Villareal’s scheme.

Still, he’s just 74 yards shy of giving St. Francis two 1,000-yard passers this year. Doyle has thrown for 1,437 yards and rushed for 310, while Sliwoski has thrown for 926 yards.

St. Francis (8-2) on Saturday rolled to its eighth consecutive victory by trouncing Duquesne, 51-14, in a NEC game that saw Sliwoski play the entire second half and throw a 27-yard touchdown pass to Elijah Sarratt after the Red Flash had taken a 30-0 halftime lead behind Doyle’s four first-half touchdown passes.

A week earlier, with Doyle hobbled, Sliwoski guided St. Francis to a 38-24 nonconference victory at Georgetown, passing for 257 yards and three touchdowns.

Doyle’s performance against Duquesne earned him NEC Offensive Player of the Week. The redshirt sophomore, who passed for 1,882 yards a year ago at College of the Canyons (Calif.), leads the NEC with a 66.3 completion percentage and 16 touchdowns.

“We support each other,” Sliwoski said. “It’s been a good relationship. Everybody wants to be the guy out there, but you want to win and see the points on the scoreboard.”

Sliwoski took part in the postgame Senior Day activities at St. Francis, even though he will have another year of eligibility. He said he just wanted to be sure to experience the day with his teammates.”

“They all support me, so it’s important they know I support them,” he said.

Sliwoski, who has played in all but one game this season, starting five, is maintaining a positive focus, even though he’d like to be on the field more. Because of his uncertainty, will he return to St. Francis next season?

“Good question,” Sliwoski said, smiling.

The transfer portal likely could come into play again for Sliwoski, but for now, he wants to be ready if his name is called again.

St. Francis concludes the regular season Saturday at Merrimack.

The two teams enter the game tied for first place in the NEC, but Merrimack, formerly a Division II school, is ineligible for the postseason while it abides by a four-year NCAA postseason moratorium for schools that transition to Division I.

Following the game, St. Francis will learn its FCS opponent. In their only other playoff appearance, the Red Flash dropped a 2016 first-round decision to Villanova, 31-21.

Sliwoski is joined on the St. Francis roster by five other players from Westmoreland County schools.

They are sophomore offensive linemen Cole Graham (Hempfield) and Wylie Spiker (Ligonier Valley), redshirt sophomore wide receiver Aaron Tutino (Ligonier Valley) and redshirt freshman defensive backs Nathaniel and Mason Frye (Penn-Trafford).

With another season of experience, Sliwoski looked back at his time at Pitt and the relationship he developed with former Panthers quarterback Kenny Pickett.

“It’s been invaluable. It’s how I learned to really prepare,” he said. “Kenny Pickett was the guy. Look at him, a Heisman finalist, first-round pick, starter for the Steelers. You can’t have a better role model.”

Sliwoski knows he’s being watched by younger players, much like he observed Pickett at Pitt.

“Whenever I was the backup here in 2019, I prepared the same way because you’ve got to be ready for your opportunity,” Sliwoski said.

“If you take a week off, or slack or say, ‘Hey, I’m not playing this week,’ that’s when it catches up to you and you’re letting the team down. No matter your role, you have to go out and prepare Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. You watch film with the same attitude.

“You never know. With a blink of an eye, you’re back out there.”