Time to Shine for Seneca Valley Coach, Students at Upcoming Steelers Game

When the Pittsburgh Steelers take on the rival Cincinnati Bengals Dec. 4 at Heinz Field there will be plenty of Terrible Towels waving in the stands, but in between all the black and gold madness there also will be a few loyal Raiders.

And no, we’re not talking about the Oakland Raiders.

of theRaiders football team, will be honored at the two-minute warning during the game’s first half as the Steelers high school coach of the week for his team’s Nov. 4 in the first round WPIAL playoffs.

Coincidentally, brothers Chris Hart, a sixth-grader at , and Brian Hart, a fourth-grade student at, will be at the same game to with other regional winners from across the greater Pittsburgh area.

If they win their age divisions, the brothers will represent the Steelers during the national Punt, Pass & Kick competition in January at the AFC Championship game.

“That was unique this year,” said Susan Hart, the boys’ mothers of having both her sons in the state competition.

Chris and Brian’s high scores from a regional competition in October at Franklin Park’s Blueberry Hill earned them the trip to Heinz Field. This will be Chris’s second trip to Heinz Field for the competition and the first for Brian.

“Chris has already gone through it, so I don’t think he's as excited as my younger one,” Susan Hart said. “It probably relieves the tension a little.”

The skills portion of the competition will take place prior to the game at the Steelers workout facility on the Southside and be shown during halftime on the big screen at Heinz Field. While the boys will be wearing the Punt, Pass & Kick jerseys that the NFL provides on game day, Susan Hart said underneath it will be their black and Columbia-blue Seneca Valley Raiders gear.

As for Erie native Holl, this will be the second time in his life attending a Steelers game. As the coach of the week, Stan Savran will interview him on the big screen, and he will receive a Steelers Coach of the Week cap and a framed certificate that Steelers coach Mike Tomlin and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell signed.

The NFL also will make a $1,000 donation to the Raiders football program.

While he is flattered by the recognition, Holl said the real credit should go to his players. The 2011 season was the first time the Raiders -- who in the quarterfinals -- made it past the first round of the WPIAL Playoffs since 2002.

“At the end of the day, you win games because you have talented players,” Holl said. “It’s always about your team.”

Holl said he is taking his brother-in-law, a diehard Steelers fan, as his guest to the game. Although he grew up a Buffalo Bills fan (his uncle once was a trainer for the team), Holl said he has great respect for the black and gold.

“I didn’t grow up a Steelers fan, but it's hard not to appreciate the passion and the support and the love for the Steelers you have down here,” he said. “I still have heart for the Bills, but no one has support and is loved around the country like the Steelers.”