NTL FOOTBALL: VETERAN TOWANDA EYES STRONG 2024 CAMPAIGN (2024-08-18)

BY CHRIS MANNING
Northern Tier Sports Report
No team returns as many starters from last year’s squad as Towanda football does this year, thanks to a large and talented senior class. That has them excited for what they can do on the gridiron.

“I can’t wait to come back and just start playing football with the team,” said Riley Vanderpool.

The Knights return double digit starters on both sides of the ball, led by All-state returnee, Vanderpool, at quarterback and safety.

Under center he ran for 1,481 yards and 13 touchdowns on 192 carries, while through the air he passed for 985 yards with .379 completion percentage, with five touchdowns against seven interceptions. 

“I feel like I’ve been able to throw the ball better,” he said. “First it starts with the line, you have to have a good snap, and then good blocks to pass the ball. They’ve been working hard, so I’m giving props to the line first, they’ve been doing a lot this year, and everybody else has been working there, too, so it feels more comfortable this year.”

Pretty much all of his receivers return, including Tahshon Garner (429 yards, two touchdowns), Rylee Sluyter (179 yards, one touchdown), and Will Shrawder (75 yards).

Shrawder believes they can get their passing game to match their running game this season.

“All of our skill positions are seniors,” he said. “We have all been in positions like that. We’ve all been playing since our freshman, we’ve all been getting in the time. We’re very comfortable with what we have, we know our strengths, we know our weaknesses, but we’re very comfortable with what we have. I think with our athletes out there I think we’re definitely going to look to spread it out a little bit more, and get those guys involved.”

New head coach Jamie Wecker would like to see more players get involved in the offense to take a little bit of the load off Vanderpool.

“I think we have a pretty good group of athletes,” he said. “If everything goes right hopefully they won’t be able to key on Riley like they could last year, because we have a lot of skilled kids in the slot. I thin our running backs room is better than it has been in a couple years. I think we have more speed that we’ve had, and I think our kids are just stronger, too. I think we can do a lot more stuff, more options this year offensively, so maybe that will make the defense play more honest.”

On defense Vanderpool made his biggest impact with  77 tackles and five interceptions.

“It’s like playing center field out there,” Vanderpool said about safety. “Knock the ball down if I’m on defense, and run up and tackle the kid if it’s a run play.”

Shrawder led the team with eight interceptions while other key returnees are Varrius Farrell (46 tackles, 13 for loss, nine sacks), Sawyer Robinson (69 tackles, six for loss), and Eden Flynn (49 tackles, five for loss).

“I just want to pick up where I left off,” Shrawder said about his performance last year, which included a hat trick in one game. “I think the playing with Riley, and my other corner, Hayden Space, it just makes me that much more comfortable. Having my guys out there that I’ve been playing with since junior high, it makes me comfortable, and when I’m comfortable I succeed.”

Wecker believes they might have to change some things up on that side of the ball this season.

“With the personnel that we lost we lost some size,” he said. “Our defense is going to be a little bit different this year, it’s going to be more speed, more aggression, so our kids have to be very, very sound, and they really have to understand what we’re doing defensively. We have to play within the system, there’s going to be a lot of gap responsibility, and all those type of things, where if one player doesn’t do the assignment correctly, we could have a big play. What we’re looking for is really intelligent, sound, fast, physical kids.”

Towanda went 6-4 in the regular last year, but lost the Bronze Helmet to Wyalusing, and then lost in the first round of district play to Line Mountain, so they have plenty of motivation going into this season.

“Towards the end of the season we all felt like we didn’t give it our all,” said Shrawder. “Everyone played so hard, and everyone did so well, but I think, especially with strong senior leadership this year, we want something more than what we got. Everyone puts in 100-percent effort in every practice, every game, every pre-game, we always put 100-percent in it, and we’re so ready - we are so unbelievably ready.”

The playoffs will look a little differently this year - Mt. Carmel and Line Mountain are gone, but Loyalsock and South Williamsport (defending Class A district champions) join the fray. 

League wise everybody is still looking up at Troy, who also returns much of their roster, but if anybody has the personnel to give them a game it would be Towanda.

“You just have to go one at a time,” Vanderpool said. “Honestly, just one at a time until you win.”

Wecker returns to the varsity ranks after a strong stint in junior high, which included coaching this year’s seniors back in eighth grade, so he knows what he has.

“They know they have the ability, they believe in themselves,” he said. “Hungry? Yes, absolutely. This summer we had great production in voluntary workouts, we had kids showing up daily, so we got in a lot of stuff this summer that the last few summers they weren’t getting as much.”

These group of kids are also looking beyond this year, too. Last season was a big bounce back for Towanda, who had fallen on hard times for a few seasons before.

“We look every single day to leave a positive mark on those younger kids,” Shrawder said. “I think that’s important. When we’re gone I want these freshmen to remember us. I still remember the senior group from my freshman year. Upperclassmen leadership is important, so hopefully leaving a positive mark like that for those kids will keep carrying over into other seasons.”

SCHEDULE

Aug. 23 vs CV, 7 p.m.

Aug. 30 at Hughesville, 7 p.m.

Sep. 6 vs NPM, 7 p.m.

Sep. 13 vs Wellsboro, 7 p.m.

Sep. 20 vs Troy, 7 p.m.

Sep. 26 vs Canton, 7 p.m.

Oct. 5 at Athens

Oct. 12 at Sayre, 7 p.m.

Oct. 18 at Tunkhannock, 7 p.m.

Oct. 25 vs Wyalusing, 7 p.m.

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