NTL FOOTBALL: VETERAN TOWANDA HAS PLENTY OF SUCCESS IN 2024 SEASON (2024-11-19)

BY CHRIS MANNING
Northern Tier Sports Report
It looked like the Towanda football of old in 2024 as the Black Knights went 8-2 on the season and took the second seed in the District IV, Class AA playoff bracket.

“I thought we had a really good year,” said Towanda coach Jamie Wecker. “I’m really proud of how the kids continued improving throughout the season. Offense was really productive obviously and the defense got stingier and stingier as the season went on. Probably the thing I’m most proud of though, is that the boys really bought into the belief that the team was more important than any individual player.”

After a 3-2 start to the year that saw them 1-1 as waited for quarterback Riley Vanderpool to return, Towanda ripped off six straight wins, including a home playoff win, their first since 2011.

“I think the 2nd half of the Canton game really was the moment when our kids started to understand that idea,” remarked Wecker. “That first half of the game, we were making a lot of foolish penalties that hurt the team, and honestly, I think we lost focus a little bit as far as what our goals were. The kids at halftime reset mentally, and I think grew up a lot that night. For the rest of the season,  I think that bond just continued to grow. As an example, we went down to Tunkhannock and had I think 5 turnovers. If that was early in the season, I think we lose that game, but the kids just rallied around each other, stayed positive, and took care of business. And that energy continued into the playoffs.”

The Knights opened with a 24-6 win over CV, then fell on the road to Hughesville, 42-6.

Vanderpool came back in week three as they had back to back wins over NPM (21-6) and Wellsboro (36-16) at home.

They lost at eventual district champions Troy (56-13), then began their string of wins, beginning with a 40-14 win over Canton.

That was followed by three straight road wins over Athens (34-13), Sayre (56-14), and Tunkhannock (28-3) to keep the T-Bone.

They ended the regular season by beating Wyalusing (55-0) to bring back the Bronze Helmet.

The Knights opened the playoffs with a 42-20 win over Bloomsburg, which saw Vanderpool score all six of the team’s touchdowns.

However, their run came to an end with a 43-20 loss to Warrior Run in the semifinals.

Vanderpool threw for 1,000 yards and ran for 1,000 yards this season. He finished with 1,203 yards from the pocket with a 57-percent completion rating, with six touchdowns and six picks.

On the ground he ran for 1,538 yards and 24 touchdowns on 148 carries.

Freshman Reese Sluyter started the first two games of the year, throwing for 288 yards with a 61-percent completion rating with three touchdowns and three interceptions. Sluyter also ran for 258 yards and four touchdowns.

Caden Delamater added 382 yards and four touchdowns on 69 carries.

Tahshon Garner had 466 yards receiving and four touchdowns on 30 catches to lead Towanda, while Rylee Sluyter had 339 yards on 24 catches. Will Shrawder added 227 yards on 20 receptions.

Defensively Sawyer Robinson led the team with 85 tackles, 19 for loss, with a team high 11 sacks, while Edan Flynn had 58 tackles, 12 for loss, and eight sacks. 

Vanderpool had 49 tackles, while up front Varrius Farrell notched 40 tackles, 10 for loss, while adding five sacks. Jace Gunther chipped in with 44 tackles, four for a loss, while Tanner Vanderpool also had 44 tackles, three for a loss.

The Knights were about as senior loaded as a team an be, with practically every starter on both sides graduating this spring.

Still, future quarterback Reese Sluyter got some varsity time, while fellow freshman Gage Evans also saw experience. That’s the core they’ll be building around come next season.

“The Warrior Run game was a tough one, because I don’t think we played the way we wanted to and ended up getting beat by a really good team, but that happens sometimes,” said Wecker. “And that doesn’t diminish what these kids did. As their coach, one of the best feelings I experienced this year was watching the seniors after the Warrior Run game. A thing we do is allow our seniors some time to say good bye to our stadium after their last home game. Watching them with tears in their eyes hug each other and just walk around the field was pretty special. And then to have some of the younger kids come out to say thank you to them lets you know the kind of impact these seniors had on the program.”

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