Reboot of my feature on an amazing prep QB from Wasatch

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Pictured above is James Delacenserie, Wasatch High's senior quarterback who was just selected 2nd Team All-State by the Deseret News and below is the feature I wrote on him back in October.  It must have been an amazing year for qb's in Utah's 3A class for Delacenserie to fall to second team.  His individual numbers were comparable to that of the 3A MVP and better than the two young men selected first team.  No offense to them, they had amazing seasons and their teams went deeper into the post season than Delacenserie's Wasps.  Football is a team game, as we all know, so winning is the most important statistic.  James, however, led his Wasps to an 8-2 regular season record and a playoff berth where they unfortunately lost in the first round.  Still an incredible year by an outstanding young quarterback.  Congrats to James on his All State selection.

 ALL THE RIGHT MOVES

Choosing Wasatch Two Years Ago

The Right Call For Wasp Quarterback

BY KENNY BRISTOW

Wave Sports Writer

It’s starts with the name.  Delacenserie.  It can be a mouthful at first, but the more you say it, the easier it becomes.  Just ask Wright-Tree Stadium PA announcer, Brent Kelly, who has had to say the name hundreds of times this season.

James Delacenserie is the starting quarterback for the Wasatch Wasps.  He is currently Utah’s 3A leader in yards passing (2,257), average yards per completion (16.1), average yards per game (250.8) and touchdown passes with 30.  His offensive coordinator Craig Davis quips that the only thing he has more of than touchdown passes is girl friends.  On the surface that’s just a little ribbing between a player and one of his coaches, but underneath it’s a testament to how comfortable the fit has become for Delacenserie and his Wasatch football team.

James stands 6 foot 3, and weighs in at a solid 225 pounds.  He throws a football with such zip you can hear it whistle through the air.  In addition to the astounding numbers, the status of being the quarterback for a very good 7-2 team, the bigger-than-life size – even the girlfriends – this young man carries a near 4.0 GPA.  He is a true total package of a student athlete.  It is no surprise that he is being widely recruited by universities from coast to coast.

The path the senior quarterback took to Wasatch was a bit unconventional.  In the spring of 2011, after circumstances beyond his control would force him to leave Judge Memorial, Delacenserie, a Park City resident, would chose to attend Wasatch High School and bring his football talents to Heber.  Not an easy choice considering he had lived in Park City since his family moved to Utah from Wisconsin when he was 10 years old.  He went to elementary school in Park City, his friends were all there and he cut his teeth as a quarterback in the Miner’s youth leagues there.  It would take a big heart and a sound mind to decide to wear the black and gold when simply staying at home would have been the easy choice.  “I just liked everything about Wasatch,” he said with a smile, recalling the time he made his choice.  “I came here for the second semester of my sophomore year when it wasn’t during the football season.  So there wasn’t a lot of pressure at first, trying to get to know everyone and a new team at the same time,” he added.

Delacenserie’s first full year at Wasatch could have been a tumultuous one, but the new kid on campus made the best of it.  Davis had taken on the role of head coach after Steve North left.  “I had Coach North for weights when I first came and I liked him a lot and was looking forward to playing for him,” said Delacenserie.  “What happened with Coach North was unfortunate, but it was totally cool with Coach Davis last year.  We had a lot of fun and learned a lot about each other.”  That has obviously translated well into this season, where the Wasatch offense has had some explosive passing moments.  Three of the Wasp’s receivers Gavin Nebeker, Kayden Conner and Jake Larson are right there with Delacenserie among 3A division leaders.  Together, they have become a well-oiled scoring machine averaging over 250 yards passing per game.  “This year has been so much fun so far.  I love playing for (new Head) Coach Coburn.  He’s been tough, but you don’t get better if you aren’t challenged.  Or yelled at a lot,” James added with a laugh.   “He’s taught me a lot about the game and about being a leader.  He’s been a big help talking to me about playing at the next level.  I respect him a lot.“ 

The 2012 season, under the guidance of Coburn, has been very successful for Delacenserie and his Wasps.  After starting with a 6-point loss to Grantsville, Wasatch rattled off six straight wins where Delacenserie’s numbers were off the charts.  Two weeks ago when then 13^th-ranked Juan Diego came to Heber, the senior quarterback, along with his team, were brought to Earth a bit with a dud of an offensive night.  “We couldn’t really seem to get anything going.  It was just a bad game,” he said.  The Wasps bounced back quickly, however, with a dominating road performance over Union last Thursday with Delacenserie running for a touchdown and throwing for four more while completing a near perfect 17 of 18 passes.  

This weekend, the high-powered Wasatch offense heads up Highway 40, to meet rival Park City.  Wasatch has not beaten the Miners since 2002 and although Delacenserie would love to get a win up there, he downplays any extra incentive for himself.  “I believe in our team and our coaches,” he said.  “We’ll be prepared to play and we’ll go for the win.”  Spoken like a true leader with a knack for making all the right moves.