Wheeling Central’s Nico Kusic (left) and Max Olejasz (right) celebrate a touchdown during the Maroon Knights’ playoff victory over Tolsia. Central will face Pendleton County on Friday in a Class A state semifinal game.

CHARLESTON — The Wheeling Central Maroon Knights opted to stay in town until the very day of the state championship.

“We’ll be going down on Friday around 11 or so,” Wheeling Central head coach Mike Young said.

“The new committee of championship weekend is in Charleston now. And, you know, we’re used to going across the river for three miles and now we gotta go down the interstate to Charleston, which is a little bit different. But it is an opportunity for us to bond on that bus ride down, it’s an opportunity for us to continue to know each other and take advantage of the quality time together.”

When they do depart for Laidley Field in Charleston, to take on Clay-Battelle in a 7 p.m. Class A championship showdown, they’ll be leaving in the rearview a rich history of success, and hoping to bring back a new piece of history of their own.

Wheeling Central has won 12 WVSSAC state championships, most recently coming in 2019 inside Wheeling Island Stadium, and dating all the way back to 1979 in Charleston.

Central also won titles in 2000, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2011, 2017 and 2018.

In his 21 years as head coach, Mike Young has stewarded Wheeling Central to 11 of those championships.

His assistants are no less experienced– Young spoke highly of his staff which includes Jason Rine, Shannon Kuchinski, Mario DiBias, Phil Pest, Jim Wolfe, John Tankovits, Dylan Baker and John Burkhalter, while his team prepared for the CeeBees in what will be the first-ever meeting between the two programs.

“Well, I definitely have a veteran staff that’s been there before,” Young said. “I’ve been there since ’97 and from 2000 to now we have played in 12 state championship finals, that in itself is a pretty high plateau of success. But we’re Wheeling Central. We say and have a motto of ‘that’s where championships lives begin.'”

Young, a Wheeling Central graduate and player on the 1967 state Catholic championship team, knows too well the pride of being a Maroon Knight.

“You see it on the walls in the gym. There’s a lot of truth to that in terms of championship lives. Because those trophies are great, but we want championship families and we hope that that carries over to have successful lives and go on and have great careers and wonderful families.”

With a team eager to secure lucky number 13 for Wheeling Central, the Maroon Knights may soon have more championship lives on their hands.