The arrival of full padded practice this past week is another sign that football season in Schuylkill County is fast approaching.
A pair of first-year head coaches will take the sidelines on Friday nights in Blue Mountain’s Chuck Kutz and Mahanoy Area’s Mick Connelly. Williams Valley senior quarterback Brady Shomper returns after becoming the first-ever Viking to pass and rush for 1,000 yards in the same season. North Schuylkill’s dynamic backfield of Caden Mengel and Luke Miller return. Schuylkill Haven’s backfield of Niko Carestia, Niko Castillo and Colton Reber are back to stifle opposing defenses.
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Minersville’s Dante Carr committed to the University of Central Florida over the offseason and now enters his senior year. Tri-Valley’s Wyatt Snyder and Logan Troup return to lead a revamped offensive backfield. Pottsville will rely on senior running back Julian “Juju” Bainbridge often this fall. Marian junior running back Rory Dixon is back after becoming the first-ever freshman and sophomore to rush for back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons.
Here is a look at each team’s biggest strength and the biggest hurdle they face heading into the new season.
Division A
Blue Mountain
Strength: The Eagles should benefit most offensively with junior wide receiver and Division I recruit Chase Guers, senior running back Reese Miller and sophomore quarterback Cohen Kirby, who took over as the starter near the end of last season.
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Hurdle: Blue Mountain enters 2025 with a new head coach as Chuck Kutz starts his second stint at the program. He previously led Blue Mountain to six District 11 Class 3A Championships, and returned to the sidelines as an assistant last season, so he brings both experience and chemistry.
North Schuylkill
Strength: North Schuylkill’s high-powered backfield of Caden Mengel and Luke Miller are back to harass opposing defenses again this fall. In front of them will be an offensive line that features Temple commit Aidan Zilker, Kaiden Knox and Gavin Wall.
Hurdle: The Spartans are returning hungry to avenge a loss to Northwestern Lehigh in the District 11 3A Championship. North Schuylkill last won the District 11 3A Championship in 2021.
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Pottsville
Strength: Senior running back JuJu Bainbridge returns after rushing for 1,128 yards and 16 touchdowns last year.
Hurdle: Just like most other teams, the Crimson Tide are focused on a District 11 4A Championship title after falling to Southern Lehigh in the semifinals last year, 41-34.
TamaquaStrength: Senior center Luke Frohnheiser is back to lead a Tamaqua offense which lost a number of skill position players all over the field.
Hurdle: The toughest task this offseason for head coach Sam Bonner was finding replacements for quarterback Luke Kane and running back Bradley Whalen, who graduated with the class of 2025. Chase Serfass is vying to fill the role at quarterback after serving as Kane’s backup, and Terrence McDowell and Malachi Stewart should share playing time at running back.
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Division C
Mahanoy Area
Strength: Senior running back Kyler Quick returns for another season in Mahanoy Area’s backfield after going for 12 touchdowns and 1,084 yards a season ago.
Hurdle: The Golden Bears lost most of their production to graduation, including quarterback Levi Terry and running backs Michael Oblas and Brian Gallagher. With first-year head coach Mick Connolly now at the helm, he brings up a number of younger players who he coached at the junior high level the last two years.
Marian Catholic
Strength: Junior running back Rory Dixon will be back this fall in pursuit of his third straight 1,000-yard rushing season.
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Hurdle: Marian lost to Tri-Valley in the District 11 playoffs last season, but is seeking a deeper playoff run in 2025. The Colts will have to do so without wide receiver Michael Gelatko, who is now preparing for his first season of college football.
Minersville
Strength: Minersville’s offense will be led by University of Central Florida commit Dante Carr. He threw for 22 touchdowns and 1,757 yards a season ago, and ran for 23 more touchdowns and 1,182 yards.
Hurdle: The Battlin’ Miners lost 16 seniors to graduation, including receiver Logan Hutsko, lineman AJ Halford and running back Logan Rizzardi.
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Nativity BVM
Strength: Much of this year’s Green Wave roster played on last season’s undefeated JV squad. They will eye another strong start to the season after beginning last year at 6-1. A strong start to the season should give an edge to such a young team.
Hurdle: Nativity lost 16 seniors from last year’s team and returns just six seniors this year.
Panther Valley
Strength: Senior quarterback Brody Breiner, senior wide receiver Gavn Yuricheck, senior offensive lineman Marco Tessitore and senior fullback Marcus Rodriguez all return after an injury riddled 2-8 campaign.
Hurdle: The Panthers suffered massive injuries last season and finished the season with just two wins. They’ll have another gauntlet of a schedule on deck, including a tough matchup with Schuylkill Haven in Week 2 on August 29.
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Pine Grove
Strength: Junior running back Logan Troup and senior quarterback Wyatt Snyder will lead a revamped Pine Grove offensive backfield.
Hurdle: Head coach Dave Shiffer has instilled into his players the mindset of being the tougher and more disciplined team when they aren’t the biggest, fastest or most athletic team.
Schuylkill Haven
Strength: The Hurricanes return a three-headed monster backfield of Niko Carestia, Niko Castillo and Colton Reber, who combined to rush for 5,137 rushing yards a season ago. Haven also has 6-7 players who should be playing college football next year.
Hurdle: Like many other years, the biggest hurdle to winning a District 11 2A Championship is a revamped Williams Valley team right down the road.
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Shenandoah ValleyStrength: Quarterback Ethan Bench has had an offseason to get better, and much of the roster enters the 2025 season with varsity experience.
Hurdle: The Blue Devils closed last season at a winless 0-10 mark and are still working on building a new culture.
Tri-Valley
Strength: A backfield of Cole Gemberling and Parker Hatter combined for 1,980 rushing yards a season ago when the Bulldogs won the District 11 Class A Championship.
Hurdle: With the graduation of Blake Schwartz, the Bulldogs will have a new quarterback in either Remington Klinger or Chase Gemberling, who are battling for the starting job in camp.
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Williams Valley
Strength: Senior quarterback Brady Shomper became the first-ever Viking to pass and rush for 1,000 yards in the same season on the way to a District 11 Class 2A Championship title.
Hurdle: The loss of former wide receiver Kian Kryzanowski will be a big blow after he hauled in 67 passes for 1,260 yards and 17 touchdowns a season ago.
