Zandier brothers have formed a winning team and an unbreakable bond
2023 Berks football coverage presented by
Utilities Employees Credit Union
Nicole and Brian Zandier eventually figured out how to make family game night go a little smoother.
It wasn’t like that at first for their blended family: If their sons Zack and Jayden were on opposite teams, well . . .
“It would turn the whole house upside down,” Nicole said. “They would be at each other’s throats. Oh, man. They’re too competitive.”
Now when Pictionary is pulled out Zack and Jayden are always paired on the same team; things work better that way.
That’s evident on Friday nights when they’re together on Exeter’s football team. Zack, a 6-6 senior, is a tight end and lineman. Jayden, who’s 6-2 and a junior, is a running back and defensive back.
Zack was an emerging star last season when he earned all-league honors at tight end. He was often in the shadow of Penn State recruit Joey Schlaffer but didn’t seem to mind. He went about the business of becoming an effective pass-catcher and strong blocker and was critical in the Eagles’ success.
He was so good he pulled in two dozen college offers and eventually committed to Coastal Carolina, a Division I school in South Carolina which competes in the Sun Belt Conference.
Jayden took all of that in and made it his goal to get a college offer, too. He’s looked up to Zack and has tried to emulate him ever since they became brothers 10 years ago, when Nicole and Brian married.
Their two families of three became one family of six: Nicole and her children, Jayden and Mariah, formed a team with Brian and his children, Zack and Chase. (Mariah and Chase are both 10th-graders.) The roster expanded to seven when Mia was born a few years later.
Zack and Jayden bonded quickly. The first time their families met there was a soccer ball in the yard and the boys started playing together. Later they started playing basketball; the one-on-one games became intense.
“It’s nothing crazy anymore,” Zack said of their personal competition, “but back then it was pretty competitive, for sure.”
“He’d just do post-ups (on me)” said Jayden. “I got around him, though.”
Jayden admits he didn’t care for the new family arrangement at first; he liked being the oldest. That changed quickly when he saw that he and Zack has such common interests and similar competitive spirits.
“If it was anyone besides him, I feel it would’ve been a different relationship,” Jayden said. “But we just clicked because of sports.”
Jayden was excited to see his brother excel and draw attention for his ability. Nicole was, too. She was apprehensive at the same time. Being a parent, she wanted each of her children to enjoy the same kind of success. It rarely happens that way.
“Jayden was in Zack’s shadow last year,” she said. “Zack was going to play in college; he was getting all this media attention. Jayden was working just as hard. My worst fear was that he would come in (this year) and things would not work out for him. Every part of me was terrified.”
Jayden didn’t get a lot of minutes as a sophomore; he missed several games late in the season with an ankle injury. He was a virtual unknown coming into the season. His coaches knew. They saw his natural athleticism during offseason workouts and saw him put that on display when he dominated the Chris Nunn Memorial Berks Football Combine in late May.
“I knew I wasn’t a big name,” Jayden said of the combine, “I was on the ‘low.’ I just had the mindset of coming out, being the best out of everyone that was there, and it showed.”
Earlier in the season Eagles coach Matt Bauer moved Jayden from wide receiver to running back so that he could get his hands on the ball more. In his first game in the backfield Jayden ran for 126 yards and a pair of touchdowns in a win over Gov. Mifflin; he also caught a long TD pass.
Ever since he’s been a fixture in the backfield; he has rushed for over 100 yards in each of his seven games there. He has sprinter’s speed and the kind of quick-cut ability good backs use to make defenders miss.
Jayden only seems to be getting better: He ran for 262 yards –most ever in a regular season game by an Exeter player — and scored four TDs in a Week 8 win over Hempfield. A week later against Conestoga Valley he had 189 yards and three scores. Last week, against state-ranked Manheim Central, he ran for 176 yards and a TD.
“He has the ability to take it to the house on every play,” Bauer said. “He’s electric.”
Despite getting only six carries in the first three games Jayden has rushed for 1,136 yards. He is averaging 11.1 yards per carry, second-best in the 37-team Lancaster-Lebanon League.
“I’ve always known he was a special athlete,” Zack said. “This year. . . he’s taken it (up), showing everybody what he can do.”
Zack mentioned back in August, when talking about the possibilities of this Exeter team, that Jayden was headed for a big year.
“I wasn’t thinking this big,” he admitted. “I always knew he was special, but. . . he’s definitely putting on a show for everybody.”
Nicole said Zack and Jayden are as different personally as they are as football players. Zack, she said, is much more outgoing and social; Jayden’s more reserved and does his own thing. Zack is organized, Jayden isn’t; Zack eats a lot, Jayden doesn’t.
The most important thing to her is that they see each other as brothers and fully support each other.
“Their friendship really started in junior high,” she said. “They latched onto each other and haven’t let go. They’re best friends. It’s such an incredible feeling to know that they’re not in competition with each other.”
Unpredictable things happen in sports; they have with the Zandier brothers. Now it’s Jayden who gets most of the headlines and accolades; that happens when you score touchdowns. Zack, who leads the team in receptions, is just as vital to his team. The work he does on the line, blocking for Jayden, doesn’t draw the same kind of attention. That’s the nature of football.
Jayden didn’t see this role reversal coming; Zack probably didn’t, either, but he’s fine with it.
“I love it, it’s great,” Zack said. “I love seeing him succeed and be great out there, keep doing what he’s doing.”
“When Zack was in the spotlight, Jayden was his biggest supporter,” Nicole said. “Now Zack is Jayden’s biggest supporter.”
Jayden understands how these things work. He doesn’t visit the end zone as much as he does and the team doesn’t win as often as it does without the big guys, like Zack, creating seams and space for him to run.
“It feels great,” Jayden said of his newfound success, “but the reason I’m getting a lot of attention is because Zach’s taking a lot of attention (from the defense), and that’s getting me the ball and the opportunities.”
