Jeff DeSantes’ final game in a Burrell Bucs uniform turned out to be the start of one of the Alle-Kiski Valley’s best football rivalries.
To close out the 1980 regular season, the Bucs took the short bus ride on the Route 56 bypass to play at Valley, in the first football meeting between the neighboring schools.
“I lived right on the border with New Kensington,” said DeSantes, a standout senior fullback-linebacker on that team. “I probably hung around with more Valley guys than Burrell guys. I remember telling one of my best friends how much I was hyped for the game.”
The inaugural Burrell-Valley matchup certainly lived up to the hype.
DeSantes and the rest of the Bucs defense kept the favored Vikings and star running back Bill Callahan in check for most of the game.
Still, Valley led 6-0 late into the fourth quarter.
As time ran out on the clock, Bucs quarterback Paul Serluco connected with Chris Kennedy on the tying touchdown pass.
Burrell then kicked the extra point for a 7-6 victory, knocking Valley out of the WPIAL playoff race.
“They were supposed to kill us, but we upset them on the final play of the game,” said DeSantes, who now lives in Valencia. “I’ve had people tell me it was one of the most exciting games they ever watched.”
While DeSantes ended a stellar scholastic career that night, he went on to even greater success playing linebacker at Geneva College in Beaver Falls.
For his efforts on the gridiron, DeSantes will be honored at the Alle-Kiski Valley Sports Hall of Fame’s 55th induction banquet on May 16 at the Pittsburgh Shriners Center, Harmar.
Among those joining DeSantes in the A-K Hall’s Class of 2026 will be an old friend and foe — Callahan.
“We were good buddies in high school,” the 63-year-old DeSantes said. “Billy was a year younger than me.”
While the Burrell-Valley contest was special, DeSantes recalls that every week felt like a rivalry game in high school.
“The schools we played, like Freeport, Leechburg and Kittanning, were all so close,” he said. “The atmosphere at the games was electric.”
With the Bucs, DeSantes earned all-conference honors following his junior and senior seasons.
“I was an intense player,” he said. “I prided myself on being a workaholic. I was always in the weight room or conditioning. I think that’s what separated me from other players. I wasn’t the biggest or fastest, but I was so passionate about training.”
Coming out of Burrell, DeSantes had a handful of options to play college football.
“At the time, Geneva was an NAIA school, so it could give (athletic) scholarships,” he said. “The first time I visited the school, I fell in love with it. The coach told me I had a chance to play as a freshman.”
Geneva recruited DeSantes as a fullback, but he received a defensive playbook when he arrived for preseason camp.
“I told the coach it must be a mistake, but he said they had moved me to linebacker because they already had six or seven fullbacks,” DeSantes said. “I asked how many linebackers they had, and he said 13. I didn’t see the advantage in the math, but I moved to linebacker and the rest was history.”
A four-year letter winner and three-year starter at linebacker, DeSantes developed into a tackling machine in Geneva’s 3-4 defense. As a sophomore, he set the school’s single-game record with 26 stops against Waynesburg.
“I was just clicking that game,” he said. “I was seeing the field and reading my keys. It was almost like I knew what play the other team was going to run.”
In 1985, DeSantes closed out his college career in style, earning NAIA All-American honors and being named Geneva Athlete of the Year. He also won NAIA District 18 Defensive Player of the Week three times.
Forty years later, DeSantes still ranks seventh in career tackles (309) and second in single-game tackles (26) in the Geneva record book.
“It’s hard to believe how long it’s been,” said DeSantes, who works in national field development for NSS Life.
DeSantes stays connected to football by helping to coach at Pine-Richland. He also is a certified strength and conditioning coach.
As in his younger days, DeSantes practices what he preaches.
“Every day, I get up at 4:30 to get to the gym to work out,” he said.
Tickets for the A-K banquet are $40 and can be purchased by visiting akhof.com.