Four Downs: 4 big takes from Week 3

By Mike Drago Last updated Sep 11, 2023

2023 Berks football coverage presented by

Utilities Employees Credit Union

Four biggest takeaways from Week 3 of the 2023 high school football season:

1ST DOWN

Bob Wolfrum had just one complaint after Wyomissing’s thrilling 35-34 comeback at Trinity: His Spartans don’t get enough games like this.

Heck, who does?

“These kinds of games are invaluable to you,” Wolfrum said after seeing his team battle back from a 20-point deficit against the state-ranked Shamrocks.

Wyomissing scored the go-ahead points with 14 seconds left, with freshman Justice Hardy providing a touchdown catch and Keegan Maher the PAT. That extended Wyomissing’s Berks-record regular season winning streak to 38.

Wyomissing Bob Wolfrum addresses his team after win over Trinity. (Tim Macrina photo)

“We can’t get enough teams like this,” said Wolfrum, who has had trouble scheduling quality opponents for years. “We’d like to have a tough game in all our non-league games.”

The Spartans’ biggest regular season challenge will come in four weeks at Cocalico. The defending District 3 Class 5A champion Eagles got everyone’s attention Saturday by dominating Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 2 champ Manheim Central, 48-28. The Eagles controlled the front line and ran at will against a team ranked No. 4 in the state in Class 4A.

2ND DOWN

Three games into his first season as a starter behind center Hamburg’s Tyler Shuey has made history: He’s the first Berks quarterback to pass for 300 yards in each of the first three games of a season.

Shuey threw for 347 yards Friday in a 48-28 win over Fairfield, 356 in his debut against Halifax and 314 last week against Warrior Run.

Only one quarterback in Berks history has thrown for 300 or more yards four times in a season: Daniel Boone’s Jon Monteiro, in 2008. Conrad Weiser’s Logan Klitsch, in 2021, is the only other Berks quarterback to register three 300-yard games in a single season.

Shuey has passed for 1,006 yards – 275 yards more than any other quarterback in the Lancaster-Lebanon League. He’s on pace for Dan Marino-like numbers.

Things get tougher going forward. Hamburg’s first three opponents are a combined 2-7. Annville-Cleona will be more of a challenge this week in the Hawks’ Section 5 opener, as will Lancaster Catholic and Schuylkill Valley deeper in the season.

Twin Valley coach Brett Myers makes a point to running back Evan Johnson. (PhilMarPhoto)

3RD DOWN

Some people have been slow to come around on Twin Valley, tabbed here in the preseason as the favorite to win Section 3 of the Lancaster-Lebanon League. Might be time to jump on the Raiders’ bandwagon because it’ll get crowded soon.

After a 49-0 win over Conrad Weiser they’re 3-0 for the first time in 14 years and just the second time in program history. There are a lot more wins in front of them.

The Raiders have a championship formula: Dominating offensive line, fast backs, smart quarterback play and top-shelf coaching. Second-year head coach Brett Myers did this sort of thing at Middletown, winning three straight district titles.

Twin Valley’s top rival in Section 3 appears to be Garden Spot and quarterback Kye Harting, one of the league’s most talented all-around players. The Spartans had to stop a two-point try by Conestoga Valley in the final minute Saturday to preserve a 27-26 victory and remain unbeaten.

4TH DOWN

After building a 26-point, first-quarter lead over Cheltenham Saturday Wilson won’t hear people talking about the possibility of an 0-3 start.

What the Bulldogs – and everyone else in Section 1 – need to worry about is Manheim Township. The Blue Streaks dismantled two-time defending District 3 Class 6A champ Harrisburg 38-6 Saturday; they led 31-0 in the second quarter.

The Blue Streaks came into the season as the clear favorite in Section 1. Now they have stamped themselves as the team to beat in District 3. They have outscored their first three opponents – all District 3 Class 6A programs – by a combined 129-12.

The Bulldogs still don’t have their first win. They’ll need to complete their game against Cheltenham Monday afternoon, starting at 4.

And they don’t have to worry about the Blue Streaks – at least not for a while. Those teams meet in the regular season finale at Gurski Stadium. Still a long way off.