With Mason Rotelli behind the wheel Exeter on course for perfect finish

When Matt Bauer handed Mason Rotelli the keys to the car he just wanted the kid to take it out for a spin. He wasn’t asking him to set any kind of land speed records.

The senior quarterback floored it, instead. Not only has he driven the Eagles to a perfect start and a No. 2 ranking in the state but he’s done it at a breakneck pace. He’s the top-rated passer in the 37-team Lancaster-Lebanon League and on a Berks-record pace for completion percentage and passing efficiency.

“Maybe early on they thought he was a (game-manager),” said Manheim Central coach Dave Hahn, “(especially compared to) what they lost (at quarterback).”

The Eagles had record-setting Colin Payne, a savvy competitor and slick passer, behind center as they drove to a District 3 Class 5A championship last year.

Bauer wasn’t looking for Payne 2.0. With veteran offensive and defensive lines he knew would carry the team and Penn State recruit Joey Schlaffer as an offensive anchor Bauer just needed someone to hold down the QB position, call the plays correctly and get the ball in the right hands.

Rotelli’s done more than that, much more. He is completing 73.5 percent of his passes and has thrown 16 touchdowns, with just three interceptions. He’s averaging a league-best 12.2 yards per passing attempt.

The 6-1, 170-pounder is one of the key reasons the Eagles (5-0, 9-0) head to Manheim Friday night with a chance at their first Section 2 title.

They’ll play the state-ranked Barons (5-0, 9-0) in a regular season finale everyone has been waiting for since the first ball was teed up in August.

Long before that, actually. The Barons, who own more District 3 hardware than anyone else, have been waiting for a rematch for 11 long months. They were humbled on their home turf last season in the Class 5A quarterfinals. They trailed 36-0 en route to a 42-26 loss.

While the Barons spent the offseason brooding Rotelli spent it working to have a chance to get on the field.

He’s played quarterback in the Exeter system for years but was never considered the heir apparent as was Payne, or Gavin McCusker or Chase Yocum before him.

He only became the top quarterback in his class as a sophomore, and only after the guy who split reps with him as a freshman, Chase Cupitt, left football to concentrate on baseball, where he’s now the Eagles’ starting catcher.

Even as the only quarterback in his class getting the starting job wasn’t automatic. Bauer considered moving Schlaffer, a quarterback in junior high, back to his old position.

The two competed for the spot throughout the spring and summer. Based soley on athletic ability, Schlaffer would’ve won out. Rotelli impressed his coaches with his work ethic and dedication and earned a shot to start.

“He showed us that he can manage the game, and that’s what we’re asking him to do,” Bauer said before the season-opener against Daniel Boone.

A few days later Rotelli completed 12-of-16 passes, three of them for touchdowns, and also ran for a score. That squashed any chance for a quarterback “controversy” at Exeter.

“We’ve asked him to do a lot, come in and lead us, and he hasn’t taken a single day off,” said Schlaffer. “He comes prepared every day. There’s no uncertainties going into games, and that’s how it has to be as the leader of the offense.”

Rotelli may qualify as one of the biggest surprises in Berks football — but not to the guys he plays with.

“People who are surprised didn’t see how much much he prepared for this in the offseason,” Schlaffer said. “The numbers speak for themselve. It doesn’t happen without preparation.”

What has set Rotelli apart, and what’s really made the Eagles’ offense so dangerous, is the quarterback’s ability to run with the ball. That wasn’t expected, but it’s been a bonus.

“They’ve done a really good job of using his legs to open up the offense,” Hahn said.

Rotelli ran out of the pocket when a passing play broke down and went 76 yards for a touchdown against Warwick. He’s second on the team in rushing and is averaging 6.2 yards per carry.

“He’s deceptive and faster than you think,” said Bauer.

Rotelli didn’t let the noise distract him in the offseason. It didn’t bother him, he said, when he had to compete for the job with Schlaffer. They worked together and made each other better, he said.

“We just wanted the best for each other,” he said.

Rotelli remained confident and focused on his goal to become the Eagles starter, no matter how he was thought of.

“Game-manager’s not a horrible thing to be called,” he said, scrunching up his face a bit when told of his initial label.

“We worked all summer for this,” Rotelli said of his success, and the team’s. “The team has had my back; that’s made me even more comfortable. We’re doing good. I’m making the right reads, and Coach (J.P.) Gibbons (the offensive coordinator) is helping me each week. I couldn’t be happier with the coaches, and the great receiving corps. I couldn’t do it without them.”

Rotelli’s not only proven himself to his teammates and opponents but to college coaches. Last week he got a game-day invite to Robert Morris University, a Division 1 FCS program that competes in the Northeast Division.

He wasn’t on anyone’s radar in July. Now this.

“He’s the definition of a program kid,” Bauer said. “He’s paid his dues, he’s getting his opportunity and he’s making the most of it. He’s playing at a high level. I’m proud of him and thrilled he’s having the senior year he’s having.”

Rotelli sounds like a game-manager when he says he’s only concerned with one stat.

“The main goal for me is just to come out with a win each week,” he said. “I just want to keep winning.”