Game of the Week: Wyomissing vs. Southern Columbia, presented by Kevin Miller of Berkshire Investment Group
Wyomissing (10-3) vs. Southern Columbia (7-5)
(2024 records)
Kick: Friday, 7, at Tiger Stadium, Catawissa.
Series: Wyomissing leads 2-0.
Last meeting: Justice Hardy ran for three first-half touchdowns as Wyomissing built a 28-0 halftime lead en route to a 35-21 victory at Wolfrum Field last season. Hardy finished with four TDs and 119 rushing yards on 12 carries.
Coaches: Southern Columbia: Jim Roth, 41st season, 506-73-2; Wyomissing: Bob Wolfrum, 39th season, 372-92-1.
Fast fact: When they met last season Southern Columbia was ranked No. 1 in the state in Class 2A; Wyomissing was No. 5 in Class 4A.
Spartans update: All-State pick Justice Hardy fronts an explosive backfield that includes all-league FB Chase Eisenhower, HB Tyler Niedrowski, and HB Danny Fleischood. . . Sophomore Brady Eisenhower won the starting QB job after missing his entire freshman season due to a shoulder injury. . . Junior Teddy White, the full-time starter at QB last year, will see time on defense at S and OLB. . . Andrew Bresnahan, a second-team all-league pick at TE last year, moves to T in a revamped O-line that includes five new starters. . . Eisenhower is a four-year starter and two-time all-league pick at ILB. . . Niedrowski is a three-year starter, was the Berks Defensive Player of the Year as a junior, and is regarded as one of the best field-side linebackers in program history. . . The rangy, athletic Bresnahan moves to DE end and should be a force on the edge. . . Hardy, a shutdown CB and the Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 5 Defensive Back of the Year, moves to the middle of the field at S where he’ll be more involved in stopping the run game. . . Special teams will again be a strength, with Hardy, a track star and true game-breaker, returning kicks and all-league punter and placekicker Keegan Maher handling those duties. . . All told, 11 all-league players return from team that reached District 3 Class 4A title game. . . No. 5 in the state in Class 4A preseason rankings by PennLive.com.
Did you know? Southern Columbia saw its streak of seven consecutive PIAA championships snapped last year when it lost to Troy Area in a District 4 Class 2A semifinal. The Tigers have claimed a PIAA-record 14 championships overall.
Tigers update: Expected to make big bounce-back after disappointing season which saw them drop them opener and fall to 3-4 at midseason. . . 16 starters return, including QB Ayden Hockenbroch, who passed for 1,358 yards and 16 TDs as a sophomore, and all-league RB Brayden Andrews, who rushed for 1,054 yards and 14 TDs as a junior. . . Strength of the team is expected to be defensive line, with return of three starters and addition of DT John Quinton, an all-league offensive linemen a year ago when he was restricted to playing one way due to injury. . . Also back is all-league TE Jace Malakoski. . . Hockenbroch came off the bench to throw for 133 yards and a pair of touchdowns in last year’s game at Wyomissing. . . He replaced Anthony Marino, who fumbled the first two snaps he took from center and was quickly removed from the game. . . Entered last year’s game needing to replace nine starters on defense and playing without All-State LG Jude Bremigen. . . . Ended up 3-3 in Division 2 of the Heartland Conference, behind Danville (13-1) and Mount Carmel (8-4). . . Ended last season with a 69-28 loss to Troy, the most points ever allowed in program history. . . Ranked No. 7 in the state in PennLive.com Class 2A preseason rankings.
Series flashback: Amory Thompson returned a kickoff 98 yards for a score, Drew Eisenhower took a fumble back 66 yards for a TD, and Wyomissing dominated unbeaten Southern Columbia 41-21 in a Week 6 at Catawissa in 2021. The victory snapped the longest winning streak in the nation at 65 and the Tigers’ 93-game regular season winning streak.
Four of a kind: Sophomore RB Grady Garcia follows in the footsteps of three brothers who played at Southern Columbia, each of them an All-State pick: Gaige (2019), Gavin (2021), and Garrett (2023). Gaige played at Michigan, Gavin is at Kent State, and Garrett is at Bloomsburg. Senior LB Tyler Niedrowski is the fourth brother to play at Wyomissing. He follows all-league picks Hunter, Evan, and Collin.
Fast fact: Wyomissing has the highest winning percentage (.820) of any football program in District 3 during the 2000’s; only Steel-High (14) and Bishop McDevitt (13) have more district titles than the Spartans’ nine.
Quotable: “(Wyomissing doesn’t) throw a lot, but you have to be prepared to account for (Justice) Hardy on every play, and the potential of him getting down the field and getting open for a big play on a deep pass. He’s a very good player; just watching the scrimmage (against Cocalico) he looks like he’s raised his level and looks really explosive running the football.” – Southern Columbia coach Jim Roth.
