Mercury Football Week 9 Review: Haynes emerges from difficult journey to lift Spring-Ford to PAC Liberty crown

Over the course of Friday night’s Pioneer Athletic Conference Liberty Division-clinching victory over Perkiomen Valley, the evolution of the Rams’ 2019 offense became apparent.

While early-season games saw quarterback Ryan Engro attempt 40-plus passes in consecutive weeks, the Rams put up 40 points Friday on a tough Perk Valley defense despite Engro attempting only 11 passes.

The reason? The emergence of running back Armante Haynes, averaging almost 130 rushing yards per contest in conference play. Haynes led SF’s offense Friday night with an 18-carry, 118-yard performance that also featured a pair of touchdowns in a program-defining 40-35 win over Perkiomen Valley for the PAC Liberty Division title. In his ‘spare time,’ Haynes featured prominently as an outside linebacker on the undermanned Rams’ defense, contributing nine tackles in the victory.

“We have been waiting three years,” Brubaker said last week, “to see this from Armante.”

Indeed, Haynes took an unconventional path to Friday’s night’s on-field heroics – his talent always apparent, but his commitment to football the question.

Those questions need not be asked any longer. Haynes’ trajectory through high school has taken him away from and later back to football in trying times, ultimately delivering the senior running back/linebacker back to his athletic origins, emerging as an indispensable part of Spring-Ford’s first Liberty Division championship squad.

“He’s had it tough in life, but he’s a great kid with an enormous heart,” said Brubaker after Friday’s victory, his affection for the senior running back apparent. “Honestly? I think we wore him down over time… we just kept trying to love him. He did a complete 180 in terms of accountability this offseason. He deserves everything he’s getting (in praise Friday night).”

* * *

It wasn’t an easy start to life for Haynes, who lost his mother when he was only 9 and only recently resumed contact with his father. Armante’s grandmother and siblings – including his brother Brandyn Smith, a sophomore defensive lineman for Spring-Ford – remain a strong presence in his life, but in tough times, he often turns to his ‘football family.’

“Ryan (Engro) and I have been friends for a long time. We were very close when we were younger, and his father (Mike) looked after me a lot,” said Haynes. “And (Spring-Ford WR/CB) Blaize Scarcelle, he’s been there as a friend even before football. His father (Mike) used to take me along to camps, tournaments … anytime I needed them.”

After a successful ninth-grade season on the field, loss struck Armante once more when his close friend and Spring-Ford classmate Julia Morath took her life in April 2017.

“She was a very close friend to me,” said Armante, “and I guess I just took a break from football.”

That break took Armante through a year-long journey of self-discovery. Family considerations meant a brief transfer out of district before he would return to Spring-Ford near the end of his sophomore year and decide to resume his football career. But in Brubaker’s program, it isn’t as simple as signing up and collecting a uniform.

“I fear for the future of sports, when all that will matter is how good you are on the field,” the coach lamented. “We see it now, there are examples all over (professional sports). We will try to continue working with kids, holding them accountable for things that go beyond athletic ability. Armante always had ability, but at the time he was a little entitled because people always wanted him on their team.

“His football friends never stopped trying to pull him back, though. We just needed more reliability, more accountability from Armante.”

Physically, the time away cost Haynes as well as he was noticeably smaller and slower.

“It took me some time to get all the way back,” Haynes allowed.

But the memory of his friend Julia pushed Haynes to keep fighting.

“Instead of getting away from football,” he explained, “I decided I wanted to make her proud through football. I decided to trust my coaches and apply myself because Julia would want that.”

Haynes’ primary role was at linebacker his junior season, when he was credited with 36 tackles. But he received only 14 carries, falling as low as fourth on the Spring-Ford depth chart. The season ended with a playoff loss to Downingtown East, but for Armante Haynes it was just the beginning.

“He played well,” said Brubaker, “but after the season, he did a complete 180. His grades went up, he was always here on time. I know it’s a cliché, when we say someone is ‘the last guy in the weight room,’ but Armante IS the last guy in the weight room. Sometimes he works out by himself because very few people can keep up with him.”

Haynes says the light went on after a pair of conversations this past summer. The first was with quarterback Engro and his father Mike.

“This year was something my teammates have wanted since we were in eighth grade,” said Haynes. “Ryan was telling me all the things he and I could accomplish together, and then Mr. Engro said that we were the team that could beat Perkiomen Valley.”

“Ryan and I have been friends for so long,” he continued, “and (Mike) Engro said he looked at me as a son. I respect both of them so much, and I consider (Mike) like a father figure. They have always been there for me, even when I wasn’t ready to be a part of the team.”

The second conversation was via text message with Coach Brubaker.

“All he said was, ‘We want you on the team, we want you to trust us and be a part of this thing.’ I read it, and I felt … I would just say it woke me up,” said an emotional Haynes.

* * *

The rest is quickly becoming Spring-Ford football history. A breakout game at Norristown saw Haynes rumble for 226 yards on only 16 carries as the Rams opened PAC play, and the next week Haynes played in front of his father for the first time as the Rams shut out Methacton. But it all led to Friday night at Perkiomen Valley, where Haynes and the rest of the Rams cemented their spot as the team that ended the drought against Perkiomen Valley.

For the Spring-Ford program, the theme may have been ‘victory’ or even ‘redemption,’ but for Armante Haynes it was all about gratitude.

“So many people… coach (Jim) Mich looks after me, makes sure I’m doing OK, makes sure I know the game plan,” Haynes said. “Coach [linebackers coach Steve] Schein, we got closer when I started playing linebacker, and he wrote me a letter before our Father’s Day brunch this year.”
Haynes chose to keep the contents of Schein’s letter private, but it clearly impacted him.

“We’ve gotten much closer,” he said of his position coach. “I look up to him as a role model.”

“I just let him know I was proud of him,” Schein said. “Over the past two years, Armante’s really committed himself to become a great football player and even more importantly, a great person.”

For all the gratitude Haynes shows towards the Spring-Ford football community, its members say they are equally fortunate to have Haynes in their lives.

“I’ve been playing football with Armante since we were 10 years old,” said Ryan Engro. “Having someone like him in the backfield beside me is huge – I trust him 100 percent, and that chemistry we build is paying dividends, especially as we try to make a championship run.”

“I’ve told Armante that life can deal you some pretty tough hands – but those don’t have to define you,” added Mike Engro. “You can’t help but love a kid like that, especially when he lets you see his personality.

“I got to hug him after that PV game, and I told him, ‘When you were 10 years old, I told you this day would come!’”

The Engros and the Spring-Ford coaches never gave up on Armante Haynes, but Haynes’ inspiration still comes from the memory of his late friend.

“After (Julia’s passing), it took a while, but I realized if I put every drop of everything I’ve got into everything I do, I’ve got no reason to worry,” Haynes said. “Set my mind to something, stay focused. She’s the one who helped me realize that.”

Haynes admits he wasn’t always the most diligent student, but thinks his mother would be proudest of his vastly improved GPA since sophomore year.

After graduation, Haynes hopes to continue playing football in college. He’s had conversations with several schools, but wherever he goes next, you can bet it won’t be too far.

“I will never forget where I’ve come from,” said Haynes, “And wherever I go, I’ll always want to come back home to Spring-Ford.”

Around the Area

During Friday night’s game with Boyertown, the Bears wore “ND” decals on their jerseys in support of Nathanael Davenport, an East Earl Elementary student currently undergoing cancer treatments. Nathanael is the son of Josh Davenport, who helps the Bears out with processing game films.

“Nate’s been out to our practices, we gave him a jersey and made him an honorary captain,” said coach TJ Miller. “He really is a part of the team. We consider his support for us as important as our support for him.”

The Bears hope Nathanael will be in attendance when they host Phoenixville this Friday in the last home game of the season.

The game itself saw Norristown stage a second-half rally to get into the win column with a 32-27 victory. Elijah Thyman’s pair of second-half touchdown runs helped to provide the final margin.

Spring-Ford’s Haynes wasn’t the only senior running back to have a big night Friday. Pottsgrove’s Isaiah Taylor maintained the area rushing lead with 194 yards and two scores in the Falcons’ win over Phoenixville, while Boyertown’s Jamie Moccia put up 142 yards and three scores in the loss to Norristown.

Daniel Boone’s Tanner Vanderslice followed his Berks County-record breaking performance of week 8 with another 160 yards in a loss to Twin Valley, while Upper Merion’s Ty Lobban’s 251 total yards (186 rushing, 65 receiving, three total touchdowns) allowed the Vikings to take Frontier Division champs Pope John Paul II to the limit before falling, 28-21.

Pottstown and Upper Perkiomen set the standard for defensive slugfests, taking a scoreless tie into overtime before the Trojans answered an Upper Perk score with a Joneil Oister TD run, followed by a conversion pass to Gabe Hicks for the 8-7 win. The scenario was identical to Pottstown’s season-opening win, when Oister found Hicks for a two-point play that topped Octorara, 14-13.

A Look Ahead

The week 10 PAC divisional crossover matchups are set. All games are hosted by Liberty Division schools, and kick off at 7 p.m. Friday:
Pope John Paul II at Spring-Ford (PAC Championship game)
Pottsgrove at Perkiomen Valley
Pottstown at Owen J. Roberts
Upper Merion at Methacton
Upper Perkiomen at Norristown
Phoenixville at Boyertown

Daniel Boone wraps up 2019 with a game at Exeter on Thursday, while Hill School hosts Kiski School Saturday afternoon.

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