Timmy Fleischood Jr. took a chance with his football future, and it paid off

The last time Timmy Fleischood Jr. touched a football in a high school game he showed off his speed and skills by returning a kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown.

After that he had to watch as his senior classmates Evan Niedrowski, Zach Zechman and Darren Brunner cruised through the playoffs on the way to the 2020 PIAA Class 3A championship game.

Fleischood was stuck on the sidelines, ineligible to play because he had transferred from Berks Catholic before his senior season.

“It was hard not being able to play in the playoffs and watching all my friends play,” said Fleischood, “knowing I could’ve helped them win.”

Fleischood played at Wyomissing through ninth grade, then went to Berks Catholic for his sophomore and junior seasons. He said he missed playing with his friends and returned to Wyo for his senior year, but he had to be content with backup time.

The effects of COVID-19 limited Wyomissing’s regular season — and Fleischood’s entire season — to five games. He didn’t get the kind of college offers he wanted. He opted to play a graduate season at Fork Union Military Academy, had success and got noticed.

Earlier this month he was offered a partial scholarship and chance to play at Southern Utah University, a member of the Western Athletic Conference, which plays at the FCS (formerly Division I-AA) level.

Fleischood said he had some PSAC offers coming out of high school but felt he could play at a higher level after strong showings at college camps prior to his senior year.

“During the one-v-ones, I was beating most of the kids,” he said. “I knew I could play right with them, so I took the risk to go to Fork Union.”

The move paid off. He earned a starting spot at strong safety on a team that went 8-0 last season.

“From Day 1, he showed his athleticism, his talent,” said Fork Union head coach Frank Arritt. “Every day he kept pushing to get better. He hung in there with it, understood our concepts; we were able to put him in there and he made some pretty good plays for us.

“He reacted to the ball, got a couple interceptions, had some tackles for loss, was able to read the bubble real well and react to it. With his speed he was able to help us out there.”

“It was crazy,” Fleischood said. “We had a bunch of three-star recruits (at Fork Union). It showed me that I could play with the top-level kids. I won the starting job right away.”

Fleischood, who goes 6-2, 207 pounds, ran a 4.47 in the 40 last summer. That, and his hitting ability, attracted the new coaching staff at Southern Utah. He’ll head there in early June to take part in summer workouts.

Fleischood said he’s grown a lot at Fork Union.

“It definitely boosted my confidence and helped me with my football skills a lot, being coached by them,” he said. “They helped my skills, and taught me new things.”

He said he also grew a lot by going through adversity.

Arritt had nothing but high praise for Fleischood.

“He came in here with the mindset ‘I’ve got to come down here, develop an opportunity for myself,’ ” Arritt said. “He’s a great person, helped us out in our barracks, did a great job in the classroom. He was professional in everything he did; I wish I had some more (like him).”

Southern Utah won the Big Sky Conference in 2015 and 2017 but has fallen off in recent years. The Thunderbirds were 1-10 last season and 1-5 last spring, after the 2020 season was canceled due to COVID. That led to the exit of head coach Demario Warren, who went 6-34 following the 2017 championship season.

He was replaced by Delane Fitzgerald, who took Frostburg State to New Jersey Athletic Conference championships in 2016 and 2018 and made NCAA Division III playoff appearances in 2017 and 2018.

Wyomissing dominated in the 2020 playoffs, beating Boiling Springs 47-7 in the District 3 Class 3A semifinals and Middletown 38-16 for the championship. In the state tournament it won 47-0 and 44-14 before running into Central Valley in the title game; the Spartans lost that one 35-21.

Despite not being able to play during that playoff run Fleischood said he’s glad he returned to Wyomissing.

“I wanted to be back with my friends one last time before we all graduated,” he said. “It was fun playing with the kids I grew up with one last time. Even though I couldn’t play in the playoffs and state championship, I still practiced with them every week. I love those guys; they’re really fun to be around.”