‘Slemmer Squad’ looking to take out ‘Team Dahms’ in Bulldogs flag rematch
2024 Berks football coverage
presented by UECU
Many of the greatest names in Wilson football history are set to return home Saturday for the second Alumni Flag Football Game, at Gurski Stadium at 6, celebrating the program’s 80th season.
Former Bulldogs head coach Gerry Slemmer and current head coach Doug Dahms will coach the respective squads, which are composed of players from the 1960’s and 1970’s all the way up to recent years.
More than 50 players are expected to return, including 1978 grad Greg Storr, who played with the Miami Dolphins; 2001 grad Andy Roland, who played at Duke; and 2009 grad Pat Zerbe, who played at Penn State.
“Having players from six different decades return for an alumni game shows the longstanding impact of being a part of this football team,” said former Bulldogs linebacker Joe Mays, who organized the event. “And for them to be coached once more by Gerry Slemmer and Doug Dahms while playing at John Gurski Stadium really highlights the longevity and history of the program.”
Players will be paired with others of their era. In the first quarter, players from 1997 and prior will play. The second quarter is reserved for players from 1998-2005, the third quarter for players from 2006-19. In the fourth quarter any players still able may opt to take the field.
Assistant coaches for the Slemmer Squad will be former All-State lineman Harold Slemmer and Steve Yeager. The Team Dahms coaching staff is composed of current assistant coaches: Jeremy Palm, Ernie Wolber, and Chad Henne.
In the inaugural game 2019, celebrating the 75th season of Wilson football, Slemmer Squad won 35-18. Todd Mays, a 2001 grad, was named MVP.
Gerry Slemmer was Wilson’s head coach from 1983-97, winning eight Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 1 titles. Dahms, an assistant coach during each of Slemmer’s 15 seasons, has been Wilson head coach since 2006; with 187 victories he is the winningest coach in program history.
“The tradition of the Wilson football program was built on the backs of thousands of young men over the course of the last 80 years,” Mays said. “It’s exciting to welcome a few of them back to celebrate the success they helped cultivate.”
