Mercury Week 8 Football Review: Daniel Boone’s Vanderslice recaps historic night

From the moment he woke up Friday morning, something just felt different to Tanner Vanderslice.

“I knew it was going to be a special night,” said the senior Daniel Boone running back. “And after I scored on the second play, I just knew I had a long night of running ahead of me.”

How long? Vanderslice’s 27 carries traversed 403 yards, setting a new Berks County record to power Daniel Boone’s second win of the season, a 42-19 decision over Muhlenberg.

Vanderslice, who had no idea he’d broken the county rushing record until he was lifted from the contest with under three minutes to play, eclipsed the mark set by Central Catholic’s Joey Rys back in 2010 (379 yards). Along the way, he broke Nate Romig’s school record of 330 rushing yards that’s stood since 2005.

The aforementioned first carry, a 45-yard touchdown run, set the stage, but it wasn’t the longest of his evening (that would be the 87-yarder just before halftime) or his most memorable run.

“My final touchdown (57 yards) sticks out the most to me,” Vanderslice recalled. “The play was to the right, but after I started in that direction, I saw massive cutback lane to the left. Once I took it, I knew I was gone.

“When I reached the 10-yard line, I took a look back, and saw about three guys 3-5 yards behind me. I knew I was in, and after that my night felt complete.”

But it wouldn’t be finished until a 12-yard run late in the fourth quarter moved Vanderslice over 400 yards, at which point he was removed from the game, setting off a weekend-long celebration of his historical accomplishment.

“It’s been pretty crazy since Friday night,” Vanderslice agreed. “My phone’s been blowing up – I’ve talked to more people these past couple days than I have in a while.”

The group doing the blocking for the new record holder – Brian Hollis, Tony Rulli, Jake Dwinchick, Logan Dallas, and Colin Leahy – features only one senior, an obviously encouraging fact to Boone coach Rob Flowers.

“When you have a super-young team like we have, you’re only looking one play ahead, or one game ahead,” said Flowers. “That’s how you develop young players and ultimately, get to your goals.

“But this was a special night for a tough kid, a hard-working kid and a good teammate who everyone enjoys being around.”

Once the disbelief subsided, Vanderslice was able to take account of his accomplishment. After nearly doubling his season total to 904 yards, he’s now easily within striking distance of a 1,000-yard season and sits in second place among the rushing leaders in the Mercury area.

Vanderslice, who also plays baseball at Daniel Boone, says he plans to continue his athletic career in college. While he’s undecided on the particular school or whether he’ll have to choose one sport or the other, he’ll arrive at his next destination as part of Berks County football history.

“A lot of the credit for this needs to go to my offensive line,” Vanderslice concluded, “as well as my running back coach, Pete Gilmore, for pushing me day in and day out.”

Around the Area >> Pope John Paul II claimed its first Pioneer Athletic Conference Frontier Division championship with a 28-0 shutout of Pottstown on Saturday afternoon. Holding the Trojans to only 88 yards of total offense, PJP racked up its third shutout of the 2019 campaign. Perhaps more impressively, the Golden Panthers have allowed a total of 22 points in their last seven contests since surrendering 47 in their sole loss to Roman Catholic in Week 1.

Rocco DiRico and Justin Kormos had interceptions for PJP, while Kamal Gray’s three touchdown passes led the Golden Panthers’ offense.

Pope John Paul II’s opponent in the PAC championship game on Oct. 25 will be determined in what’s become the usual manner – a winner-take-all tilt between Spring-Ford and Perkiomen Valley at Thomas J. Keenan Stadium this Friday. Spring-Ford eliminated Owen J. Roberts from Liberty Division title contention with a 35-21 Homecoming victory Saturday, overcoming a 13-0 deficit in the process.

The resurgent Rams’ run game passed its first test against playoff-caliber competition with flying colors, going for 237 yards to the tune of almost eight yards per carry. QB Ryan Engro accounted for all five touchdowns (three passing, two rushing).

For their part, the Vikings showed off their big-play abilities in a 48-6 win over Boyertown, scoring touchdowns of 50-plus yards through the air, on the ground, and on a kickoff return. Rasheem Grayson accounted for the latter two scores, while a 73-yard connection between QB Ethan Kohler and WR Randy Washington provided the passing tally. Perk Valley will celebrate Senior Night before the Liberty Division-deciding tilt on Friday.

While Boone’s Vanderslice certainly stole the show, his was not the only game-changing rushing performance in Week 8. Phoenixville sophomore Owen Koch loudly announced his return to the lineup with a 26-carry, 237-yard performance as the Phantoms ran away from Upper Perkiomen, 40-14. Koch led the way to Phoenixville’s most prolific offensive performance this season, as the Phantoms improved to 3-5 and kept hope alive in their quest for a District 1 Class 5A playoff berth.

Pottsgrove’s Isaiah Taylor, the PAC’s leading rusher, eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark for the second straight year and scored both of the game’s touchdowns in a 14-0 win over Upper Merion. The senior rushed for 132 yards on the Falcons’ senior night.

A Look Ahead >> Week 9 is the final round of divisional, round-robin contests in the PAC, but will set the stage for Week 10’s Crossover games, where each Liberty Division team hosts their competitive counterpart from the Frontier Division (first-place Liberty vs. first-place Frontier, second-place Liberty vs. second-place Frontier, and so forth). There are also playoff positioning considerations for many area squads.

Spring-Ford and Perkiomen Valley meet for the Liberty Division title, with the winner to host Pope John Paul for the PAC Championship on Oct. 25. If Pottsgrove can defeat Phoenixville, the Falcons would play the loser of SF/PV in Week 10.

The rest of the picture is fairly muddy. Owen J. Roberts hosts Methacton for Senior Night, looking to lock up third place in the Liberty while also all but clinching their spot in the District 1-6A playoffs. Boyertown and Norristown will tussle for Liberty Division positioning.

The team with the most to gain or lose may be Pottstown, who hosts Upper Perkiomen with a chance to move back into contention for a Class 4A playoff spot in an extremely tight race. Upper Merion tries to snap its two-game losing streak when it hosts newly crowned division champs Pope John Paul II.

Twin Valley travels to Daniel Boone for the Blazers’ final home game of 2019.