Deer Lakes' Rossi growing up with Edinboro football team

Nick Rossi remembers the first time he walked onto the field for practice with the Deer Lakes football team. He was a sophomore, a little over 6 feet tall and about 215 pounds.

The first person he noticed was fellow lineman John Lisotto, a year older, 2 inches taller and considerably heavier than Rossi.

“I’m just like, ‘holy crap,’ ” Rossi said, “ ‘This is really going to suck.’ ”

Rossi and Lisotto still joke about that meeting. Teammates again at Edinboro, the pair had a photo taken of them lining up against each other during the Fighting Scots’ media day.

Suffice it to say Rossi has come a long way from being that apprehensive high school sophomore. As a freshman at Edinboro last season, he played in all 11 games, recording 12 total tackles that included a half sack.

In the Fighting Scots’ 2025 season opener, Rossi started on the interior of the defensive line and recorded a pair of solo stops and one assisted tackle in a 29-14 victory over East Stroudsburg. Edinboro held the PSAC East foe to only 78 yards rushing.

“And a lot of those (rushing yards) were, to be honest with you, some quarterback scrambles,” said first-year Scots coach Matt Scott, a West Allegheny grad. “Then there was a couple runs there in the second half where we were playing a light box in order to stop the pass and not give up any big plays with the lead.

“That’s really where you’re going to see (Rossi) pay a lot of dividends for us up front is just creating havoc in the run game.”

Though he hasn’t quite caught up to Lisotto in size, Rossi said one of his focal points in the offseason was to put on weight.

During his freshman season, he said, he wasn’t sure where he would play on the defensive line. Once it became apparent his home would be on the interior, he focused on building his body.

“Personally, I think I played a little light last year,” said Rossi, who is listed at 6-foot-2, 265 pounds, though he said he is closer to 280. “I figured I needed to put on some serious mass. … I feel like that’s really helped to elevate my game, and I also feel like I haven’t lost much of a step on the speed side of it.”

The other adjustment, of course, was adapting to a new coaching staff. Rossi admitted he harbored a bit of uncertainty. It wasn’t so much about Scott, but, with the transfer portal giving players such an easy way out, he was unsure who would return.

Fortunately, he said, most of the players decided to stay the course at Edinboro. The early returns have been positive.

“(Scott) has just made the game a lot simpler as a defensive unit,” Rossi said. “He always tells us, for our game plan, that he wants to keep them short and simple with elite execution. … He stresses the details, and it’s showing.”

Scott also introduced a deeper rotation on the defensive line, a welcome change for Rossi.

“There was a point in the fourth quarter (against East Stroudsburg) where I was like, I could play another one if I had to,” he said. “I just remember the feeling last year walking into film the next day, and you realize you just played 65 snaps of college defensive ball, and you’re like, ‘Crap. I feel like I got hit by a truck.’ ”

Scott said it will be Rossi who is doing a lot of the hitting this year. Though there are still parts of Rossi’s game that need to develop, Scott said he believes he is a sky’s-the-limit player.

“Sometimes you forget he’s a true sophomore,” Scott said. “He has developed so much in a short amount of time from spring ball to now. … He’s been lights out so far.”