Saints’ Mitchell Gatz making the most of his chance now that it’s here
GoBigRecruiting.com Game of the Week
Mitchell Gatz waited a long time to get under center at Berks Catholic.
Now the senior finds himself in the middle of one of the biggest games of the season as the Saints play Exeter Friday in a Berks Football League Section 1 game at Forino Complex.
The Saints are one of only two unbeatens in Section 1, along with Gov. Mifflin. They need to get past a tough Exeter team in the GoBigRecruiting.com Game of the Week if they want their season finale against the Mustangs to be a true championship game.
Gatz has been preparing for a moment like this.
“I’ve been working for the past three years for this job,” said the 6-foot, 195-pound Gatz. “I’ve been wanting it since freshman year.”
Brad Hoffman transferred to Berks Catholic in 2019 and held the starting quarterback job that season and last. When Hoffman transferred to Wilson earlier this year, a window of opportunity opened for Gatz. But not completely. At about the same time Ryan Scheivert, who had started at quarterback for Twin Valley the past two seasons, transferred into BC.
Gatz emerged as the starter in the summer and has played well, helping the Saints to the top spot in the District 3 Class 4A rankings.
“I worked out five days a week over the summer, went to camps on the weekends, got better and better,” he said, “and when I learned I got the job I knew all my work was worth it.
“I knew I was gonna have my time. I knew I put work in. And when my time had come, I came out here to play.”
Saints coach Rick Keeley was hoping Gatz would be a game-manager, but he’s been more than that. He’s helped spark the passing game, completing 67 percent of his throws with 11 touchdowns and only one interception.
Gatz knows he’s fortunate to have play-making halfbacks Christian Cacchione and Josiah Jordan, who are just as dangerous in the passing game as they are running out of the backfield. They’re averaging 25.9 and 22.7 yards per catch, respectively.
“With our offense, and the way we get our backs into the flat,” Keeley said, “the sooner you get the ball to Christian the sooner the magic begins. I told Mitchell you don’t have to be throwing it deep all the time to be good for the offense. With ‘JayJay’ and Christian coming out of the backfield, magic can happen; all you have to do is get them the ball.”
The Saints (2-0, 5-2) will need all the big scoring plays they can muster because the Eagles (1-1, 4-3) are sure to put points on the board. They’re averaging 30.5 points and have big-time play-makers of their own in tailback Eric Nangle, fullback Ty Yocum, tight end J.R. Strauss and wide receiver Joey Schlaffer.
“They have a nice set of receivers,” Keeley said of the Eagles. “The quarterback (Colin Payne) is very good at throwing the ball and finding the open guy. They make you adjust to a lot of formations. They’re gonna make you defend the whole field.”
Like Gatz, Payne waited a long time to start at quarterback. He was behind all-league pick Gavin McCusker the past two seasons and Kolby Haag, also an all-league pick, the year before that.
Payne showed as a freshman he could lead the team, and he’s done it again this season as a senior. He’s the top-ranked passer in Berks with 1,195 yards, 11 touchdowns and just two interceptions.
Gatz’s passing efficiency rating, 247.5, would lead all Berks passers but he hasn’t thrown enough to qualify for the leader board. The Saints like to keep the ball on the ground in their Wing-T.
They put the ball in the air just eight times last season in beating the Eagles 56-28.
Keeley believes the Saints need to throw the ball more this season in order to compete with the top teams, such as Exeter, Mifflin and the teams they’ll face in the playoffs. Gatz, who has a firm grasp of the offense, gives BC the ability to do that.
“He’s a senior who’s been waiting his turn, and he really appreciates that,” Keeley said. “He knows we don’t have to rely on his him to win ballgames. He controls the offense, knows who to give it to and knows how to carry out his fakes. He just has a good overall control of the offense and that’s important.”
The game’s an important one for both sides. Exeter is coming off a 54-21 loss to Gov. Mifflin and finds itself ranked 12th in the District 3 Class 5A power ratings. Only the top 14 qualify, so a loss could leave the Eagles on the bubble with just two weeks remaining.
Plus, they have lost four straight to the Saints and might not get another chance to play them for a while. When the teams head to the Lancaster-Lebanon League next season they’ll be in different sections and aren’t scheduled to meet.
If the Saints hope to win the Section 1 title they need this game. Plus, with a loss, and with Mifflin looming in two weeks, they could tumble in the district rankings and possibly lose a chance to host a first-round game.
