What’s next for the . . . Exeter Eagles?
2026 Berks football coverage presented by
Utilities Employees Credit Union
What’s next for the . . . Wilson Bulldogs?
What’s next for the . . . Wyomissing Spartans?
What’s next for the . . . Twin Valley Raiders?
(This is the fourth of a series as MikeDragoSports.com takes an offseason dive into Berks’ top programs.)
One of the bedrocks of Exeter’s football program during Matt Bauer’s 17 highly successful seasons has been quarterback development. The Eagles have always been able to produce a top player at that critical position and have a younger one waiting in the wings.
That started with Bauer’s first quarterback, Kyle Yocum, a four-year starter. It continued with his younger brother Chase, and then with Brandon Unterkoefler, Gavin McCusker and most recently Riley Martinez.
When McCusker was injured Colin Payne was there to step in; when Martinez went down in each of the past two seasons Jake Hafer moved behind center and the Eagles barely missed a beat, winning 12 and then 10 games.
So, who’s next?
Martinez is done and so is Hafer. The other quarterbacks on the roster had all of four passing attempts last season.
“That’s our biggest question mark right now,” Bauer admits.
There are no groomed, rising seniors ready to step in for a season, as Colby Haag did so well in 2018 or as Mason Rotelli did in 2022, when Exeter won its only Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 2 championship.
The three top contenders right now are each sophomores: Stephon Fuller, Aiden Gerhart, and Xavier Mercado. They’ll spend the next five months competing for that coveted key spot, during winter workouts, spring drills, summer 7-on-7’s and finally in August when camp opens and the hitting begins.
“It’s unnerving,” Bauer said of the selection process, which could come down to a few pressurized snaps in the summer heat. “They might look great in 7-on-7’s but until you get to that first scrimmage you really don’t know how they’re gonna react.”
No matter how that position plays out over the next several months Bauer feels confident he’ll again have a strong presence behind center, one ready to lead the Eagles back to the playoffs.
History provides that confidence. The Eagles have enjoyed 15 straight winning seasons – easily the best run of success in program history. They’ve qualified for the district playoffs every year since 2011 (with the exception of Covid-impacted 2020); they have reached the district championship game three times in the last five years.
The Eagles’ massive offensive line inspires Bauer’s confidence, as well. Dominant line play has been a staple during his tenure and it will be again.
Three all-league picks return up front, each at least 6-4 and 250 pounds. That kind of size, talent and experience is sure to provide comfort and confidence, even after seeing record-setting tailback Leo Brown and 13 other all-league picks move on.
“I feel really good,” Bauer said of his returning line pieces. “I really think they’re going to be the core of our team once again. They work hard, they’re unselfish and they know how important their job is.”
The returning group includes first-team all-league guard Kevin Oswalt, who played at 6-5, 235 as a junior; second-team all-league left tackle Matt Lis, listed as 6-5, 280 as a junior; and second-team all-league right tackle Wyatt Richard, listed at 6-6, 245 as a junior.
Eddie Farrar, who will be a senior, is expected to move into one of the guard spots. He was good enough last season, Bauer says, to have started for most other teams.
Lis will move to center, taking over for Section 2 Lineman of the Year Joel Ummarino. The key will be filling the spot vacated by first-team all-league pick Andre Osborne.
That O-line group aided Brown rushing for a Berks-record 2,444 yards over 13 games; a couple of them were around the year before to help Jayden Zandier become the Eagles’ first 2,000-yard rusher.
Exeter became the first Berks program to produce 2,000-yard rushers in back-to-back seasons. Can it go for a three-peat?
It certainly has the makings of another outstanding tailback in Josh Jackson, who averaged 8.4 yards in a backup role last season. He did many of same things Brown did a year earlier as Zandier’s apprentice. Jackson got a better chance to show off his athleticism as a starting outside linebacker, where he was fifth on the team in tackles as a junior.
“He’s a slashing type running back, and such a bright student of the game,” Bauer said. “He has a lot of Jayden-like characteristics.”
One thing that might stop Jackson from putting up huge numbers is Donovyn Alvarez, another skilled back who Bauer is anxious see run with the ball. He could earn a chunk of carries, too. Alvarez was outstanding at outside linebacker as a junior, when he was second on the team with 86 tackles.
“Donovyn is going to turn some heads this year,” Bauer predicted.
Braylon Reinert did that last year as a tight end and linebacker. He didn’t get targeted much because of the presence of tight end Aidan Dauble and all-league receiver Jayden Ware, and because the Eagles didn’t throw a lot after Martinez went out early in the year with a shoulder injury. (Reinert did, however, score four times on two-point conversion passes.)
At 6-4, 225-pounds, with power and explosion, Reinert will be an inviting target in the pass game and another force up front as an in-line blocker in the run game. He has all-league potential there as well as at inside linebacker, where he was fourth on the team as a junior with 58 tackles.
Reinert showed off his game-changing skills in a 35-0 playoff win over Lower Dauphin when he returned a fumble 26 yards for a touchdown and had a Pick-Six.
The Eagles took a big hit at receiver but Bauer likes the possibilities coming back. He’s confident Nick Pashley, who was an all-league safety as a junior, can bring those same skills to wide receiver. He’s also high on Nick Kozik, who saw time in four games as a freshmen last season.
“He’s a special, dynamic athlete,” Bauer said.
Things look even better on the defensive side where five starters return from a unit that ranked No. 1 in the Lancaster-Lebanon League against the rush and No. 3 in total defense and scoring defense.
The line will again be big and strong, with Oswalt, Lis and Wyatt helping form a deep unit, as will 6-4, 193-pound Caden Reinert, who saw a lot of time there last year as a freshman.
“He’s very dynamic for his size,” Bauer said of the younger Reinert.
The linebacking crew should again be a strength, with the return of Alvarez and Jackson on the outside and Braylon Reinert inside. Faym Pruitt, also vying for time at tight end, could be a key part of that mix.
Pashley returns to his role as quarterback of the defense at safety. Fuller, one of the best athletes on the team, could claim one of the cornerback spots, even if he’s the starting QB.
Exeter has averaged 10 wins per season over the last five years and appears positioned to do that again, though the schedule figures to play much tougher. Gone are mercy-rule candidates Daniel Boone and Pleasant Valley, as well as Boyertown.
In their place are Class 6A programs Norristown, Spring-Ford and York High; the latter two qualified for districts last season.
The biggest challenge will come in Week 9 when the Eagles meet Section 4 favorite Twin Valley. Those programs had avoided each other but can’t now that the Lancaster-Lebanon League has instituted mandated crossovers between Section 2 and 3 teams.
