TURTLE CREEK, Pa. — Kellen McDonough is an underrated player in the WPIAL. His leadership on the offensive and defensive line which is one of the biggest reasons why Woodland Hills has advanced to the WPIAL playoffs. He has opened holes for Frank Keyes and Brandon Jones in the running games and has helped protect freshman quarterback Cameron Walter and develop into potentially one of the best young quarterbacks in the WPIAL.
He has allowed Walter to develop a big play combination with fellow freshman William “Scoop” Smith as they provided a big play element to Woodland hills all season long. McDonough has been the anchor of a young offensive line that features junior offensive lineman Morgan Rose, who has an offer from Akron, as well as Pierce Cannon who has offers from Akron, Kent State, and Syracuse.
McDonough, who is a 6-foot-5, 267-pound former basketball player turned offensive lineman has received offers from Duquesne, Eastern Michigan, Howard, Navy, and Robert Morris among other schools had ad his recruiting cooled off due to a foot injury late last season, but he is healed and has bounced back for Woodland Hills to be a team that can surprise teams in the WPIAL playoffs.
McDonough spoke to Pittsburgh Sports Now about his versatility along the offensive line, his recruiting process, recovery from his foot injury, and his expectations for Woodland Hills in the Playoffs.
First PSN asked McDonough about how his recruiting process started and how he got his first offer back in March with one of the schools from the service academies, then local schools, a school in the Midwest, and then one of the premium HBCUs in the country.
“It started last March, when I got offered by the Navy, then a couple of weeks later I got offers from Duquesne and Robert Morris then my recruiting process cooled off until I got an offer from Indiana State and Sacred Heart and then I got an offer from Howard and most recently got an offer from Eastern Michigan University.”
McDonough during the interview that he already took an official visit to Howard, and he plans on taking an official visit to Eastern Michigan in December. He revealed that Eastern Michigan is one of his favorites along with Howard.
PSN also asked him how he has gotten, bigger and stronger in the offseason transitioning more from primarily a basketball player to a player who plays football in the trenches, and he said he worked on his upper body after he suffered a broken foot late last season that contributed to slowing down his recruiting process.
“Last season I had to get surgery right after the season, so I was working in the weight room every day sticking to a rigorous routine and it got me a lot stronger and my technique got better,” McDonough said. “I injured my foot, and I had two plates put into my foot, and as a result, a lot of schools held off on offering me, so I felt like I needed a little bit more, so I went to work and went out and worked for what I deserve.”
Next McDonough spoke to PSN about what position he is being recruited for and he spoke about position versatility, and he is recruited to play tackle, even though he played center in Friday’s game and contributed on the defensive line.
“Tonight, specifically I’ve been playing center, but I’ve been getting recruited to play offensive tackle, and coaches like that I can play anywhere on the offensive line, and I can play defensive end.”
Finally, PSN asked McDonough about his goals for the rest of this season and his goal is to try to advance as far as he can in the playoffs, and he is confident that his team can go all the way.
“The goal every year is to make it to the championship that’s the ultimate goal.” McDonogh said. “We are going to come in, work hard and see if we can get a playoff win.”
