Josh Burnett is the
hit man of the Pioneers

By Joe Mason
For the Times

Josh Burnett might not look like a punishing hitter.
Burnett, a senior on the Frankford High School football team, stands just 5-feet-8 and weighs 165 pounds.
But when Burnett gets his hands on a ball-carrier, the result is rather predictable. That runner is going down, and chances are, he’ll feel the jolt of Burnett’s takedown.
"Being the smaller guy out there, you have to hit hard," said Burnett, who also sees spot duty at halfback and fullback. "I love popping people. I think when I first got up to varsity — it was during my sophomore year and I’d get in when we were winning by a lot — people didn’t know I could hit. Now I think most people know I can tackle.
"It’s great when you see a big guy coming at you and you take him down," he continued. "That’s the best part about playing football."
Well, almost the best part.
Burnett’s favorite thing about the sport is winning championships. And this year, the Pioneers are going for their third title in as many years.
During his sophomore year, Burnett was little more than a deep reserve. But last year, when Frankford won its second straight title by downing George Washington in the championship game, Burnett was one of the defensive stars.
But many of last year’s studs graduated in June.
No problem, right?
"No, we lost a lot of really good players that we’re still trying to replace," Burnett said. "But we also have a lot of guys who were there. Our defense has a lot of guys back, and that’s really important because we know what we’re going to do, how we’re going to play and what it’s like to play with the guy next to you.
"But we still can’t come out and just expect to win. We have to battle."
On Saturday, Burnett helped his Pioneers roll over Dougherty, 25-0, in a non-league game.
With Burnett leading the way, Dougherty was limited to 74 yards of total offense, and 30 of those came on a quarterback-keeper late in the fourth quarter.
The Pioneers defense starred, at least for the second half, without the help of all-everything linebacker Chris Spence, who suffered a leg injury late in the first half.
But by then, Frankford enjoyed a huge lead and refused to let the Cardinals generate anything on offense.
Frankford was led by Akeem Whipple, who rushed for nearly 100 yards. Ervin Goodson scored a pair of touchdowns, one on the ground and another on a long pass from Kalif Walker that ate up 37 yards.
"It was fun to beat those guys because I know some of them and they were talking on MySpace," Burnett said. "Some of those guys are my friends, and they’re a good team. It was good for us to come out and play like that.
"And it was great to put up the (shutout)," Burnett added. "That’s our goal every game, and when you achieve it, it’s great."
"This team is a great group," said Frankford coach Mike Capriotti. "They’re a real cohesive group. They know they got something special going here, and they’ve been doing their best to keep it going."
Burnett’s next goal is to have a strong senior year. Next year he’s hoping to continue his career on the football field while studying law.
It seems he’s just as aggressive off the field as he is on it.
"I love to argue," he said, hoping it’s a virtue for a law career. "I love to argue, and that kind of stuff really interests me. I know it’s hard and all that, but it’s something I always have fun doing, so I’ll just give it a shot and see how it goes." ••
Joe Mason can be reached at joemason70@hotmail.com