Staff photo / Brian Yauger Kennedy senior Thomas Valent hugs an Eagles assistant coach after JFK’s state semifinal win over Newark Catholic last week.

WARREN — Patrick and Thomas Valent have been around the Warren John F. Kennedy football program for most of their lives.

When they were kids, the Valent brothers were Kennedy’s water boys and ball boys, so they were at every practice and every game.

As part of the team, they saw their cousin be part of a state runner-up team in 2006 and watched their older brother win a state title with the Eagles in 2016.

“They were tiny little guys, even Pat — he wasn’t tiny, but he wasn’t big (yet),” said JFK head coach Dom Prologo. “They used to drive our Gator around out here and they were here everyday, so I’ve known the Valents since the day I walked into this place (in 2015). For me, this is a special time with those two because I’ve known them since they got here. They bleed blue and they’ve become great leaders and great ambassadors for our program.”

As legacy students, “playing for the K” is something that is in Patrick and Thomas’ blood, literally.

Now, both Patrick and Thomas want to end their high school football careers with a state championship of their own, as JFK is set to face New Bremen at 3 p.m. on Saturday in the Division VII state title game.

“From a young age, we learned what Kennedy means and what it means to be able to put this jersey on every week,” Patrick said. “You understand what that means and you dream about it as a little kid. We both dreamed of getting to this point. You dream about that K on your helmet, you dream about playing at Mollenkopf and representing the school. Then, to actually be here senior year and have a chance to write our own history and be a big part of that history, it’s huge. It’s really special to be able to do this at a place that means a lot to my family, with my family.”

As twins, albeit fraternal since Patrick is 6-foot-4 and Thomas is 5-foot-11, their already strong bond has only been strengthened by football.

“Playing with your twin, it means everything to me,” Thomas said. “We’ve gotten so close — I think football brings us even closer together. They say that twins have an inseparable bond and we really do. We have a unique bond and we’re really close, even if we may not admit it at times.”

During the Division VII regional final against Danville, Thomas had to come out of the game towards the end due to an injury. There was speculation on the Kennedy sidelines that the Danville players were targeting some of the Eagles’ players to try to get them out of the game.

When Thomas came out, JFK’s offense was about to retake the field down a touchdown in the final minutes. An assistant coach and several Eagles swarmed Patrick to fire him up as he prepared to retake the field.

“They came for your brother, man!” one of them shouted.

“When a team like that takes a shot at your brother, it hits close to home,” Patrick said. “I’m not going to say exactly what was going through my mind (at the time). But when someone takes a shot at your brother that isn’t warranted, you take it personally. I got 10 brothers out there, so it doesn’t matter that it was my blood that it was happening to, that’s any guy out there.”

Patrick took to the field on the offensive line, helped the Eagles proceed to drive down and score a touchdown and was one of the lead blockers on the game-winning two-point conversion run.

“You feel something inside you and you have to rally for them,” Patrick said. “You got to put a drive together and stack plays together. Going on the field for that last drive in that game, it was for my brother — I was rallying for my brothers.”

For that final play, Thomas was able to return to the field and lined up next to his brother to help lead the blocking surge for JFK’s go-ahead score.

Such an instance is emblematic of the relationship the brothers have.

“We didn’t know whether the season was over or not,” Thomas said. “But I had faith, 100 percent. When I got in the huddle (for that last play), I fist bumped Patrick and I fist bumped Ambrose (Hoso) and my brothers, but mainly Patrick and I fist bumped and I said ‘I love you.’ Caleb (Hadley), our quarterback, texted me that night, he said that was really the spark I needed to get me over that to play well on that last drive. I think that just speaks to how close we are as a team because like Patrick said, I have 10 other brothers on that field.”

Despite their similarities as fraternal twin brothers, Patrick and Thomas each have their own ways that they approach and play the game. One of the key differences comes in each of their respective leadership qualities as seniors.

“Tommy’s more of an emotional leader, while Pat, he’s a demanding leader,” Prologo said. “I think you need both of those guys (on a team). Tommy does a great job of getting our guys’ emotions in the right places, and Pat demands that there’s a level of commitment from everybody on every play. Their play also helps them with that because they play so hard.”

If JFK manages to pull off the win Saturday against New Bremen and capture a state championship, it would really be a full circle moment for the brothers and the entire Valent family.

“It would mean so much to me and my brother,” Thomas said. “My oldest brother won in 2016, my cousin played here and at Miami (OH), he lost in 2006. I lost in 2020. To be able to finish this, our whole story would come together. We’re excited for Saturday because we’ve been here and we know how it feels and we’re going to be ready to play.”