Season preview: Wilson Bulldogs
2024 Berks football coverage
presented by UECU
Classification: Class 6A.
League: Lancaster-Lebanon Section 1.
Last season: 5-1 Section 1, 7-4 overall..
Schedule: Click here.
Last District 3 playoff appearance: 2023.
Head coach: Doug Dahms, 19th season, 185-42.
Key losses: QB Tommy Hunsicker, RB/LB Nick Fiorini, all-league WR and second-team DB Edison Case, WR Austin Valukevich, Section 1 Outstanding Lineman Jack Dendall, all-league C Logan Kurzweg, CB Jonah Pertet.
Top offensive players: QB and second-team all-league WR Madyx Gruber (28 receptions, 10 TDs), QB Mason Young, RB Correll Akings (30 receptions, 478 rushing yards, 7 TDs), RB Monty Greer, WR Jaiden Carpenter, TE Brady Kline (14 receptions), TE/WR/PK Christo Hunsicker, TE Cam Zullinger, TE Michael Glover, G Derek Reiniger, G Junior Catul, T Avery Manera, T Jesse Etchberger.
Top defensive players: Second-team all-league E Cam Zullinger, E/LB Michael Glover, E/LB Brady Kline, E Rahmel Gaston, T Derek Reiniger, T Junior Catul, T Malachi Toles, second-team all-league LB Christo Hunsicker, LB EJ Brownback, LB Ethan Harding, S Monty Greer, S Chase Herb, CB Madyx Gruber, CB Correll Akings.
Fast fact: This is Wilson’s 80th season. The program debuted in 1945 with a 1-4 record. It has not had a losing record since 1981. It has enjoyed 60 consecutive non-losing seasons and 48 straight winning seasons, the longest active streak in the state.
Did you know? Doug Dahms is a combined 65-0 vs. Section 1 rivals Penn Manor (20-0), McCaskey (19-0), Cedar Crest (16-0) and Reading High (10-0).
For the record: Tommy Hunsicker’s 170.3 passing efficiency rating last season ranks third-best in program history behind Tony Cipolla’s 185.2 (1999) and Eric Hetrich’s 175.8 (2004).
On schedule: Wilson’s 32-0 series record vs. Penn Manor is the most lopsided in Berks football history. Only Wyomissing, with a 16-0 mark vs. Fleetwood, is unbeaten in a series of 10 or more games. The Bulldogs and Comets have met almost every season since 1992. They meet in Week 8 this season.
Quotable: “Our younger kids are talented, they’re athletic, but football’s a game of mistakes: whoever makes the least mistakes (wins). They’ve gotta get up to game speed with their decision-making.” – Bulldogs coach Doug Dahms.
Outlook: The Bulldogs had success last season with an elusive quarterback who made as many plays with his feet as with his arm and they make take that route again this season. They’re moving all-league wide receiver and basketball standout Madyx Gruber behind center; he enters camp battling for the starting QB spot.
Gruber could serve as the blueprint for this team; like many of his teammates he has talent but not much on-the-job experience – at least not at this particular position. He proved to be a top threat as a receiver and a shutdown corner but QB is a relatively new venture for him.
This Bulldogs team is mostly unproven, with just seven starters back, and only three on defense – a unit that needs to play better than it did a year ago. Wilson made another run for a section title and returned to the postseason last year but in their biggest games the Bulldogs couldn’t stop the other guys: They allowed 49 or more points twice in the same season for the first time in nearly 75 years and allowed an average of 25.5 points per game, second-worst in program history.
Some keys pieces return on that side, but not many: Gruber in the defensive backfield, Christo Hunsicker at an outside linebacker spot, and Derek Reiniger at tackle. Brady Kline, Ethan Brownback, and Ethan Harding join Hunsicker at LB, which should be the strength of the defense. The guys in front of them and behind them are mostly untested.
Offense should be a stronger suit, though it’ll be more run-oriented and certainly more smashmouth than a year ago. There’s no replacing record-setting passer Tommy Hunsicker; most of his best receivers graduated with him, too. The receiving crew will be completely new if Gruber’s lined up in the backfield and not split wide.
The run game figures to be strong with the return of Correll Akings, an athletic tailback and capable receiver, and the introduction of Monty Greer, who has impressed with his offseason work.
The O-line requires a mini-rebuild after losing three starters but there are a wealth of tight end/H-back types – Kline, Cam Zullinger, Michael Glover and Hunsicker. They are among the best athletes on the team and will be utilized in different roles, maybe split wide or coming out of the backfield.
The senior class is the smallest on the team and only several of them saw significant time last season. If the Bulldogs are to return to form they’ll need several first-time starters to step up.
It’s been three years since Wilson last won a league title. At most programs that wouldn’t be a big deal but Wilson isn’t most programs. It hasn’t experienced a drought or this sort in more than 30 years.
At the wire: Section 1 always seems to come down to Wilson and Manheim Township and it will again this season. Expect the title to be on the line when they meet Week 10 at Neffsville.