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Class AAAA: Five players to watch

TINO SUNSERI -- CENTRAL CATHOLIC QB

Seems the football world is enthralled by the long, tall quarterback. Yes, college recruiters can't get enough of the lean, 6-foot-4 kids who can wing it downfield.

Central Catholic senior quarterback Tino Sunseri likes those guys, too, but he also knows, at 6 feet 11/2, that the ultimate measure for quarterbacks might not be how far the top of their head is from the ground.

"Nowadays, you have the 6-4 quarterbacks that everyone loves," Sunseri said. "Because of how big I am, I kind of get the second seat. I think I make up for it with my accuracy and my arm strength and, now, I have been studying film a lot more. It doesn't bother me that those big kids get noticed so much because I know what I can do."

And what the Louisville recruit did last year opened more than a few eyes. He tossed 14 touchdowns and completed 86 of 151 passes for over 1,400 yards as he stampeded Central Catholic to a 10-2 record and the WPIAL Class AAAA semifinals.

Last year at this time, the scuttlebutt was about his highly-publicized transfer from a North Carolina school to Central Catholic. But this year ...

"Everyone is just talking about football, not all that other stuff," said Sunseri, flashing his signature smile. "I like it a lot better that the focus is on football, where it should be."

-- By Colin Dunlap