Saints’ Zach Suski has been on target like no other
2024 Berks football coverage presented by
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In the lead-up to a new season football coaches often express plans to throw the football more often, though they rarely do.
Dave Stahler suggested as much as he prepared for his first season as Berks Catholic’s head coach. It sounded like so much preseason hyperbole at the time, especially coming from someone who grew up in the run-oriented Wing-T offense, at Holy Name and with the Saints.
Three months later Stahler has been true to his word as first-year starter Zach Suski goes about re-writing the Saints’ record book.
Suski enters Friday’s District 3 Class 3A semifinal at Bermudian Springs having already set program records for completions and passing yards in a season and chasing a Berks record for passing accuracy.
He could end up with several more program records before the Saints are finished.
“He’s been accurate throwing the ball, we’ve been able to protect him pretty well, and he’s had some receivers who can get open and make difficult catches,” Stahler said of the Saints’ newfound success through the air. “Everybody working together.”
Stahler knew going in that some of the best athletes on the team played receiver and that it was important to find someone to get the ball to them. Suski has.
The 6-foot senior has completed a staggering 72.4 percent of his passes through 11 games, a success rate that would qualify as the highest in Berks history – by a mile.
The season isn’t over yet – the fifth-seeded Saints (7-4) have a big challenge Friday on the road against top-seeded Bermudian Springs (9-1), then a championship game the week after if they win.
No Berks quarterback has ever completed 70 percent of his passes over an entire season. Wilson’s Tony Cipolla set the Berks record with a 68.4 percent completion rate in 1999; no one’s touched that for a quarter century.
This season has been unlike any others. Suski’s well above the record rate, but he’s not the only Berks passer who’s been on target. Conrad Weiser’s Donovan Gingrich is completing 68.7 percent of his throws, just above the record. Schuylkill Valley’s Logan Nawrocki is right there, too, hitting on 68.2 percent.
Passes get tougher to complete at this time of the year, in part because of the weather – though that won’t be the case Friday – in part because the competition keeps getting better.
Suski didn’t find that to be the case last week when he was perfect against Biglerville, completing all eight of his throws for a career-high 238 yards and two touchdowns as the Saints won their fifth straight game.
One week earlier, against Annville-Cleona, he as good on 12-of-14 passes for 228 yards and four TDs.
He’s been good all season – his 219.8 passing efficiency rating is above the Berks record of 216.9 — but has had an incredible stretch over the last four games. He has completed 30-of-34 passes for 762 yards with 11 TDs and no interceptions. That computes to an off-the-charts 383.3 passing efficiency rate.
“He’s been able to put the ball where it needs to be,” Stahler said.
Nawrocki and Gingrich, like most of the Lancaster-Lebanon League’s top passers, are two- and three-year starters, respectively. Before this season Suski had started just one game; in fact, he didn’t become a full-time quarterback until 10th grade. That makes his success story all the more remarkable.
“We saw (in 10th grade) that he can throw the ball pretty well, and he’s developed that over the last couple years and has gotten better at it,” Stahler said. “He’s been consistently developing (his accuracy) over three years; I’ve seen it get better and better and better.”
It has helped Suski, Stahler said, that the Saints are now running mostly out of the Shotgun. Traditionally Wing-T quarterbacks line up under center but the Shotgun helps cut down on the footwork and Suski has proven to be a more accurate thrower from the pocket rather than rolling out on waggles, generally a large part of the Wing-T passing scheme.
It’s helped that he’s had good receivers who can make plays after the catch. Senior Scott Duffy is averaging nearly 28 yards on his 16 catches, with five TDs. Junior Gavin Welker has 17 catches with five TDs. Running back Bryce Gumby, a senior, lines up as a receiver at times, too; he has 15 catches.
Gumby will do more of that this week as Welker, who played at Daniel Boone last year, is ineligible for the postseason due to PIAA transfer rules.
Junior Jackson Kozik has a team-best 20 receptions, the most ever by a Berks Catholic tight end.
The newfound passing game hasn’t come at the expense of the run game: Gumby and Nathaniel Rose, a junior, have both rushed for over 800 yards and junior Xavier Gerald is averaging 12 yards per carry.
“Zach’s found open guys and done a really good job,” Stahler said. “Our offensive line’s played well and kept him upright to be able to throw the ball, and our receivers have been able to make plays.”
Berks single-season completion percentage leaders
| Zach Suski | Berks Catholic | 72.4 | 2024 |
| Tony Cipolla | Wilson | 68.4 | 1999 |
| Donovan Gingrich | Conrad Weiser | 68.7 | 2024 |
| Logan Nawrocki | Schuylkill Valley | 68.2 | 2024 |
| Logan Klitsch | Conrad Weiser | 67.6 | 2021 |
| Austin Costenbader | Conrad Weiser | 66.6 | 2016 |
| Charlie Tonneslan | Wyomissing | 66.0 | 2015 |
| Patrick Causa | Berks Catholic | 65.6 | 2014 |
| Terrance Derr | Berks Catholic | 65.4 | 2016 |
| Grayson Helm | Wyomissing | 65.1 | 2011 |
| Clint Renninger | Conrad Weiser | 65.0 | 1994 |
| Zach Zechman | Wyomissing | 64.8 | 2020 |
| Chad Henne | Wilson | 64.4 | 2002 |
| Seth Klein | Wilson | 64.0 | 2011 |
| Kolby Haag | Exeter | 63.8 | 2018 |
| Connor Uhrig | Wilson | 63.8 | 2017 |
| Xander Menapace | Hamburg | 63.4 | 2022 |
| Tony Cipolla | Wilson | 63.3 | 1998 |
| Sean Riley | Schuylkill Valley | 63.2 | 1998 |
| Jared Rupert | Hamburg | 63.1 | 2008 |
(Leaders must average seven pass attempts per game to qualify for leaderboard.)
