Daniel Boone among three L-L schools searching for head coaches
2026 Berks football coverage presented by
Utilities Employees Credit Union
Daniel Boone administrators will begin interviews next week for the vacant head football coaching position with hopes a candidate can be identified in time to be approved by the next school board meeting on Jan. 19.
Boone is one of three Lancaster-Lebanon League teams looking for a new coach, along with Donegal and Northern Lebanon.
All three schools, coincidentally, played in Section 4, which has produced four consecutive District 3 Class 4A champions: Wyomissing in 2022 and 2023, Lampeter-Strasburg in 2024, and Twin Valley this season.
Boone’s head coaching spot opened in mid-November when former Blazers quarterback J.D. Okuniewski resigned after three difficult seasons. The Blazers finished 1-9 in each of his three seasons.
The Donegal job opened in November when Anthony Sottasante resigned after three seasons as head coach, according to a report on lancasteronline.com. Donegal finished 4-6 this season and went 8-22 over the last three seasons.
Interim athletic director Ron Kennedy told Jeff Reinhart of lancasteronline.com last month that interviews are underway and that he hopes to submit a candidate to Donegal’s school board for its Jan. 9 meeting.
Sottasante previously was a head coach at Columbia, Tussey Mountain, and Mount Union.
Jason Rice wasted little time resigning at Northern Lebanon; his opening was reported just days after the Vikings’ final game on Oct. 24. Rice left after a 1-9 season, his fifth with the Vikings. The Vikings went 14-37 under Rice.
Northern Lebanon beat Pine Grove in the season opener before losing its final nine games this season.
Rice’s best season was his first. In 2021, the Vikings won four games and advanced to the District 3 Class 3A playoffs. They ran headlong into Section 4 rival Wyomissing, losing 65-3.
Daniel Boone and the other Section 4 teams struggling to find a foothold will have it a little easier for the 2026 and 2027 seasons, what with Twin Valley moving to Section 3 for at least the next two seasons.
Conrad Weiser moves to Section 4, from Section 3, following league realignment, which was announced in October.
Twin Valley won its first 14 games this season en route to the PIAA Class 4A championship game. It beat Daniel Boone 71-7, Donegal 49-14 and Northern Lebanon 67-0 this season.
