La Salle High School Thriving Under Brett Gordon, With Penn State Football Watching
Penn State Football fans might know of La Salle because of a certain linebacker turned edge rusher who went there just a few short years ago. However, La Salle College High School’s success runs much deeper than just Abdul Carter.
“Every year we had a legitimate chance and were competing for district and state championships. Which in my opinion is where the program belongs,” Coach Brett Gordon told NittanyCentral.
Philadelphia native and La Salle alum Brett Gordon recently spoke with NittanyCentral about his program, Penn State recruits, and much more during a wide-ranging conversation.
After leaving the staff for other business ventures in 2019, Brett Gordon was hired in January of 2024 as the head varsity football coach at La Salle College High School. Situated almost exactly three hours east of Happy Valley, La Salle High School has had a storied history.
When Gordon took over at La Salle, they were just an O.K. football program, going .500 in the two years prior to Coach Gordon taking the reins.
This past fall was different, though.
La Salle went a perfect 10-0 in the regular season, and things look to only be getting better under Gordon.
“For me, coming back was to make sure that we set a standard that lives up to what La Salle should be,” Gordon told NittanyCentral. “To have the success that we had in year one and get the visibility and the respect of the program back was very important to me… However, my expectations for us moving forward is for us to be consistently competing for state championships.”
How does setting that standard look for Gordon?
“We gotta continue to work, improve, and innovate as a staff and find new and better ways to do things,” Gordon continued. “When I first took over, one of the main focuses from day one was this concept of extreme ownership… It [comes from] a former Navy SEAL. [It] basically means from the top [to] bottom, whether it’s a sports organization, a high school team, a business. If you adopt the mindset of extreme ownership from the top down and focus on accountability at the individual level… Rid excuses out of your vocabulary… [and] if we have good energy, have a good attitude, that leads to a successful team.”
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La Salle projects to be a contender next season.
“We certainly have a good core of guys back from last year’s team that are going to be rising seniors this year,” Gordon explained. “So, I think if you were to look at us and say ‘where does this team project’ I would say most that follow us and follow high school football are gonna say La Salle should be in the mix this year.”
Gordon added that his job as the head coach is to not get bogged down in how La Salle projects. “I don’t wanna focus on what our potential is. I wanna make sure that we continue to evolve, develop, and get better…”
La Salle in James Franklin’s Crosshairs
One thing that should help La Salle accomplish those goals is having three Penn State Football recruiting targets on the team: Class of 2026 S Joey O’Brien, LT Grayson McKeogh, and QB Gavin Sidwar.
O’Brien is arguably the most important recruit in this class for Penn State.
O’Brien plans to take official visits to Penn State, Clemson, Tennessee, Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Oregon this summer.
“Yeah, Joey is just a unique combination of size and athleticism for the positions he plays,” Gordon said, describing O’Brien’s versatility. “I think he’s at least 6-4, might be pushing 6-5 now. Because he plays in the secondary, there’s just not a lot of guys at any level of football including the pros that see that type of size and athleticism in the secondary.”
Gordon noted that O’Brien projects as a safety at the next level but also explained O’Brien’s prowess at the wide receiver position.
“He is also, in my opinion, the best wide receiver in the state of Pennsylvania,” Gordon says. “O’Brien is a special talent … For being as big as he is, he is a very smart, savvy football player that knows what to do all the time and he competes.”
Another Penn State target playing for La Salle is offensive lineman Grayson McKeogh.
Gordon was quick to offer praise for McKeogh.
“He’s only scratched the surface,” Gordon says. “Of what he’s gonna become, you know, just his frame alone. He’s 50 pounds heavier than he was a year ago… 6-8, probably 285 right now. He’s only played the left tackle position for one year, so again he’s only scratching the surface.”
Gordon also pointed out that McKeogh has a 4.2 grade point average. That is someone who can get it done in the classroom and on the field.
The third key player that La Salle has is QB Gavin Sidwar.
With QB commit Troy Huhn already on board, it will be interesting to track Penn State’s activity with the rising in-state signal caller. Sidwar recently visited Ole Miss and put on a good performance at OT7, 7-on-7 this weekend. Coach Gordon believes Sidwar is the best QB in Pennsylvania.
Penn State Football fans can continue to root for the high school that produced Abdul Carter. It appears that Gordon has the ship sailing in the right direction.
As far as recruiting goes, Penn State Football will continue to be in the mix for the La Salle products, including Joey O’Brien.
MORE Penn State Football News from NittanyCentral:
- Top Penn State WR Target Opens Up About Recruitment, Nittany Lions Visit
- Nittany Lions’ Five Breakout Stars to Watch This Spring
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Purdy was born and raised in central Ohio and served for four years writing for his high school's newsletter. Currently studying Biblical Studies at Lancaster Bible College in Pennsylvania, Ian has been a lifelong Nittany Lion fan.
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