While at Nazareth Area High School, Sean Kinney won just about every award a high school student-athlete can win.
He was a three-time wrestling state champ, and in football, he was all-league, all-area, all-state, lineman of the year, athlete of the year, and on and on it went.
As the starting center on Lafayette College’s football team, Kinney may not be getting the same notoriety he received at Nazareth.
But those who study film know that Kinney has remained as dominant as ever.
The 6-foot-2, 305-pound sophomore is a big reason why the Leopards are 6-3, 4-0 in the Patriot League as they return home to face Colgate at 12:30 p.m. Saturday. They are tied with Lehigh for first place in the league and could be on a collision course with the Mountain Hawks for a winner-take-all showdown on Nov. 22.
Lafayette is averaging 30.8 points and 410.3 yards per game — 195.2 on the ground. Kinney’s offensive line has allowed just nine sacks. If you take out tough outings against FBS members Bowling Green and Oregon State and those numbers would be even better.
The Leopards set a school record with 670 yards of total offense in a 62-24 win over Bucknell on Oct. 11, which was the team’s last home game.
At Holy Cross last Saturday, Lafayette got 215 yards on the ground, including 146 yards and two TDs in a 21-13 win.
Kinney is one of the biggest reasons for the team’s success, and not just because of his physical presence in the middle of the offensive front.
“Obviously, I’m biased because he’s here, but I really truly believe he is the best center in the league, hands down,” said Lafayette coach John Troxell. “He’s physical, he’s athletic, and can move and get to the second level of the defense. You can see that his wrestling career has helped him become a great football player because of his leverage and strength. I can’t say enough about him. I really believe that at the end of this, he’ll have a chance to go and play at the next level.”
Troxell said that everyone on the team loves Kinney.
“That’s because he works hard every day,” Troxell said. “There’s just nothing bad you can say about him. He’s he type of kid you want in your program. He started 11 games as a freshman and has started every game this year so far. He’ll probably end up breaking the record for games started in a career. He’s a part of that solid sophomore class along with [Kinney’s Nazareth teammate], Mason Kuehner and a couple of other guys who have been leading even though they’re among the younger guys. That has been great to see as well.”
Kinney said continuity has been the key to the offensive line’s success.
“Last year we had so many injuries that it felt like the O-line was a different five guys every week,” Kinney said. “This year we’ve been lucky to have the same five guys every week. We have two running backs back there who are really explosive and can bail us out when we’re not playing that well. We’ve been able to open up holes and block for them, and they do the rest.”
Kinney starts alongside left tackle Sean Wilson, an Easton High grad, left guard Brian Baucia, right guard Spencer Adams, and right tackle Reed Collins. Allentown Central Catholic grad Ethan Hosak starts at tight end.
After playing every position on both the offensive and defensive lines at Nazareth, Kinney has settled in at center on College Hill.
“I love playing center now that I have it figured out,” he said. “Last year it was a little touch-and-go because I never played it before, and I had to make all the calls, and it was a little iffy. But now I have it down pat, and it’s fun being in control. The key has been watching a lot of film, and I am lucky because I have two senior guards, and if anything is going wrong, they have my back.”
Kinney said he is proud of the way the team has kept grinding through the ups and downs of the season.
“There have been wins where we were clicking and it looks pretty good, and there have been some wins where it looks pretty ugly and we just got through it,” Kinney said. “With the losses, the FBS games were what they were, and the Princeton game, we didn’t really show up. But we’re focused on what lies ahead, and we have put ourselves in a position to play meaningful games in November, and that’s all we really wanted to do.”
Kinney said he’s having a blast being at Lafayette and being close to home.
“Of course, I am still paying attention to what Nazareth is doing,” he said. “With Peyton [Falzone] being hurt, it’s a little iffy. I know they have a big one at Parkland Friday night and I might try to go there and stay for the first half. My brother Tim is on the coaching staff and helping out with the offensive line. So, the whole family is involved, and if I am not doing anything, I will stop by practice. I stay in touch because there’s nothing better than Lehigh Valley high school football on a Friday night. There’s nothing more fun.”
He also misses the camaraderie of wrestling, but typical of his approach, he said, “Right now I am just focused on one thing. That’s Colgate.”
Colgate (4-5, 2-2) at Lafayette (6-3, 4-0)
When/where: 12:30 p.m. Saturday at Fisher Stadium, Easton
The storylines: Lafayette is tied with Lehigh for first place in the Patriot League with both having two games to play before they welcome Lehigh to College Hill on Nov. 22. The Leopards are trying to get to 5-0 in the league for the first time since 1994. Colgate upset Lafayette in Easton two years ago when the Leopards won the league title and advanced to the FCS playoffs. The Leopards haven’t forgotten that. Colgate is coming off a 23-20 overtime win over Merrimack, and the Raiders have won two in a row. Two of their losses were to nationally ranked FCS teams Monmouth and Villanova, and they also fell to FBS member Syracuse.
Players to watch: Lafayette junior running back Kente Edwards was the Patriot League offensive player of the week after getting a career-high 28 carries and rushing for 145 yards at Holy Cross. It was his fourth 100-yard game of the season. Senior quarterback Dean DeNobile is third all-time at Lafayette in completion percentage at 66.5% and fifth in Patriot League history. This season, DeNobile is 165 for 261 for 1,896 yards with 12 touchdowns and five interceptions. Colgate is led by junior quarterback Jake Kearney, who has completed 134 of 237 passes (56.6%) for 1,732 yards and 14 TDs with just four interceptions. Parkland graduate Andrew Khalife is a senior outside linebacker for Colgate.
Keith Groller’s pick: Lafayette 30-20
