Event News - 2022 Quarterback Classic

The 2022 Quarterback Classic will be held on Friday, May 20, 2022 at 7:00 am at the Downingtown Country Club in Downingtown, PA.

The price for an individual golfer is $200, a foursome is $800, and other sponsorship opportunities are available, with all proceeds from the event going directly into the football scholarship fund. Anyone interested in attending or sponsoring the event is asked to use the online registration center.

2022 Spring Game Report - Gold 27 - Purple 10

Some observations from Friday's Purple-Gold game which was won by Gold by a score of 27-10:

• There was a nice crowd on hand for the first spring game since 2019. The pre-game tailgate, great weather, and post-game freworks also helped.
• Gold featured the first team offense while Purple was manned by the first team defense.
• With Shane Dooley, last year's starting quarterback not dressed, Desman Johnson played for Gold while Yahmir Wilkerson played for Purple.
• The passing game wasn't particularly successful. Johnson was 5 of 12 for 76 yards with most of the yards coming on a 52-yard bomb to Mari Wright. Wilkerson was 7 of 16 for 114 yards with 47 yards coming on a pass to David Burnshaw. Wilkerson did pick up 56 yards on the ground while Johnson had two rushing touchdowns.
• Dan Grozozski, who's generously listed at 5-10, played quarterback for both teams. One of the most entertaining plays was a reverse flea flicker that ended with Daquan Robinson completing a 13-yard pass back to Grozozski.
• Defensively, Ben Marsico and Matt Checchia each had an interception for Gold. Matt Marshall almost had two picks for Gold, but was credited for two pass breakups.
• Defensive lineman Daniel Hicks had five tackles including one TFL for a seven-yard loss.
• Some new names that stood out on defense for Purple were Oscar Uduma (7 tackles), Zebbie Zarwie (6 tackles), and Tom Burns (6 tackles).
• Sean Henry made his only field goal attempt and Brayden Basile converted from 32- and 34-yards.
• Besides Dooley, also not dressed for the contest were defensive back Sterlen Barr, defensive back Nyeem Jones, defensive back Shamar Edwards, defensive back Ronnie James, running back Phil Poquie, wide receiver Seth Degree, and left tackle Brendan Ruskowski.

Finished off a great spring season with our annual Purple and Gold Spring Game! Here is the play of the game by standout Zack Breiner! #abc6 #rampride🐏 pic.twitter.com/d0DYNMbArp

— West Chester Golden Rams Football (@WCUGoldenRamsFB) April 23, 2022

Box Score

West Chester Athletic Site - Gold Tops Purple in Spring Game

Daily Local News - With a bunch of key players absent, WCU wraps up Spring Football

Team News - 2022 WCU Football Schedule

Here's what we know about the Golden Rams 2022 football schedule so far.

West Chester will have their work cut out for them as they are scheduled to face four teams that participated in the 2021 playoffs (Kutztown, Shepherd, Bentley, Slippery Rock), including reigning regional champion Shepherd.

When the Golden Rams open the season against Bentley, West Chester will play a Friday night game at Farrell Stadium for the first time since 2005, which was a 43-14 victory over Clarion.

West Chester will face Slippery Rock for the first time since the Golden Rams captured the PSAC championship in 2018. This will be the Rock's first visit to West Chester since 2016.

West Chester will travel to Erie for the third consecutive season when they face Gannon. Their past two trips were successful as they toppled the Golden Knights in 2019 and Mercyhurst in 2021.

In a rather unusual circumstance, West Chester's game at Bloomsburg is scheduled to kickoff at 6:00pm.

Shippensburg will be West Chester's homecoming opponent for the first time since 2014, a 55-28 victory for the Golden Rams. The last time West Chester lost on homecoming was 2012, to those Shippensburg Raiders.

Although West Chester has faced the Shepherd Rams three times, including twice since Shepherd joined the PSAC, this will be their first ever visit to Farrell Stadium.

The Golden Rams are scheduled to play another unfamiliar foe in the last week of the season, as they haven't faced Clarion since 2016. If West Chester happens to win the PSAC East, the Golden Rams will travel to the winner of the PSAC West instead of facing the Golden Eagles.

Day	Date	Opponent	Time	Notes
Friday	September 2	vs Bentley	6:00 pm
Saturday	September 10	vs Slippery Rock	12:00 pm
Saturday	September 17	at Gannon	12:00 pm
Saturday	September 24	vs Millersville	12:00 pm	Family Day
Saturday	October 1	at Bloomsburg	6:00 pm
Saturday	October 8	vs Shippensburg	2:00 pm	Homecoming
Saturday	October 15	at East Stroudsburg	2:00 pm	ESU's Homecoming
Saturday	October 22	vs Shepherd	12:00 pm
Saturday	October 29	vs Lock Haven	12:00 pm	Senior Day
Saturday	November 6	at Kutztown	12:00 pm	Kutztown Senior Day
Saturday	November 13	at Clarion	12:00 pm	Clarion Senior Day

Player News - Eight Golden Rams Receive Academic Recognition

The National Football Foundation (NFF) has named eight West Chester football players as members of the 2021 Hampshire Honor Society. Senior offensive lineman Jacob Colby, senior punter John George, senior quarterback Zach Gilbert, senior defensive lineman Michael Gobora, senior defensive lineman Joe Janick, senior offensive lineman Jonathan Miller, senior offensive lineman Brendan Ruskowski, and senior linebacker Cole Zapf were all recognized.

Membership is granted to senior or graduate student football players that have a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale, have outstanding football ability, and demonstrate strong leadership and citizenship. Among the 31 student-athletes from PSAC schools, West Chester had 8 representatives, Shippensburg 8, Slippery Rock 7, East Stroudsburg 3, Shepherd 3, and California 2.

National Football Foundation Site - 2022 NFF Hampshire Honor Society Membership Announced

Event News - Another Future Golden Ram to Play in 2022 Big33 Game

Future Golden Ram defensive tackle Giovanni Graham (Imhotep) has been selected to replace Dylan Jones (Bishop Shanahan) in the Pennsylvania Scholastic Football Coaches Association (PSFCA) Big33 Football Classic on Monday, May 30 at Rocco Ortenzio Stadium in Harrisburg.

Pennsylvania, which will be coached by John Franco of Tyrone, is 6-2 against Maryland, including a 20-0 win in 2021. This will be the 65th Annual Game. From 1993 to 2012, Pennsylvania played an all-star squad from Ohio.
Kick-off is set for 2:00 pm.

Welcome to the Big 33 @TepFootball DT @GinoGraham3 ! pic.twitter.com/pjnn04duyt

— PSFCA BIG33 Football Classic (@psfcabig33) April 8, 2022

pennlive - Imhotep Charter DT Giovanni Graham added to Pa. Big 33 team

PSFCA - Introducing The 2022 PSFCA Big 33 Team PA Squad

Event News - Future Golden Ram to Play in 2022 Big33 Game

Future Golden Ram defensive back Maurice Beverly (Imhotep) has been selected to replace Cade Yacamelli (Penn Trafford) in the Pennsylvania Scholastic Football Coaches Association (PSFCA) Big33 Football Classic on Monday, May 30 at Rocco Ortenzio Stadium in Harrisburg.

Pennsylvania, which will be coached by John Franco of Tyrone, is 6-2 against Maryland, including a 20-0 win in 2021. This will be the 65th Annual Game. From 1993 to 2012, Pennsylvania played an all-star squad from Ohio.
Kick-off is set for 2:00 pm.

pennlive - Imhotep Charter outside linebacker Maurice Beverly joins Pa. Big 33 roster

PSFCA - Introducing The 2022 PSFCA Big 33 Team PA Squad

Team News - Golden Rams Start Spring Practice

Spring practice for the Golden Rams starts Monday. The team is scheduled to practice Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 4:00pm from March 28 through April 20. Saturday sessions will be at 10:00am with April 2 being a practice, while April 9 and April 16 will be intrasquad scrimmages. The Purple-Gold Spring Game is scheduled for Friday April 22 at 7:00 pm.

Going into the spring, the biggest question for fans is who is even on the team. Between the transfer portal and the COVID year of eligibility that some players choose to take while others do not, there may be significant changes.

One unit that will surely have the most new faces is the defensive line. Although he only played two seasons for the Golden Rams, Michael Gobora (42 tackles, 17.4 TFL) is on track to graduate this spring and enter the professional workforce. Other defensive linemen that have exhausted their eligibility are Omar Peterkin (40 tackles, 8.0 TFL), Joe DeSanto (14 tackles, 2.0 TFL), and Fulani Freeman (9 tackles, 3.0 sacks). Linebacker Cole Zapf (72 tackles, 15.5 TFL), strong safety Jordan Burney (50 tackles, 2.0 TFL) and linebacker Nick Chapman (10 tackles) are also departed. Zapf, Burney, Gobora and Peterkin ranked two through four on the West Chester 2021 tackle list while Zapf, Gobora and Peterkin were three of West Chester's four All-PSAC East defenders from last season. Top tackler and PSAC East Defensive Player of the Year Jackson Taylor returns at his linebacker position.

While the Golden Ram offense ranked only 13th in the PSAC in passing yards per game, the receiving area will also undergo changes. Exhausting eligibility are receiver Rasheem James (40 catches, 603 yards, 4 TD's) and tight ends Dan Neuhaus (22 catches, 482 yards, 5 TD's) and Jalen Jackson (4 catches, 73 yards, 3 TD's). Those three accounted for 60% of the Golden Rams' receiving yards and touchdowns in 2021.

Alumni News - Shane Griffin Drafted by Michigan Panthers

Former Golden Ram long snapper Shane Griffin has been drafted in the tenth round of the supplemental draft by the Michigan Panthers of the USFL.

At West Chester, Griffin played his first three years as a defensive end before flipping to the offensive side of the ball and playing center as a senior. However, he served as the Golden Rams long snapper in all four seasons. He had a workout with the Las Vegas Raiders in the fall of 2020.

The Panthers will play their games in Protective Stadium in Birmingham, AL and their first game is Sunday, April 17 at noon against the Houston Gamblers.

With our last pick in the Supplementary Draft, we've selected Shane Griffin. #USFLDraft pic.twitter.com/73sUXghJz9

— Michigan Panthers (@USFLPanthers) March 11, 2022

FoxSports - Michigan Panthers 2022 schedule revealed, season opener slated for April 17 vs. Houston

West Chester Athletic Site - Pair of Golden Rams Selected in USFL Supplemental Draft

Alumni News - Jarey Elder Drafted by New Orleans Breakers

Former Golden Ram safety Jarey Elder has been drafted in the eighth round of the supplemental draft by the New Orleans Breakers of the USFL.

In his senior season at West Chester, the team captain led the Golden Rams in interceptions with three, pass breakups with eight, forced fumbles with two and fumbles recovered with two. His 60 total tackles was good for fourth on the team. Elder was named PSAC East Defensive Athlete of the Week after posting six tackles and a 37-yard pick-six against East Stroudsburg. He was also named ECAC Defensive Player of the Month for October, first team All-PSAC East, PSAC East Defensive Athlete of the Year, second team Division 2 CCA All-Super Region 1, first team Don Hansen Football Gazette Super Region 1, second team D2Football.com All-American, and a Cliff Harris Award nominee. At West Chester, he received the Geoff Ruth Memorial Defensive Player of the Year Award and the WCU Football Athlete of the Year Award.

After West Chester, Elder played last year for the Milano Seamen in Italy and for the Blues in the Spring League.

The Breakers will play their games in Protective Stadium in Birmingham, AL and their first game is Sunday, April 17 at 4:00pm against the Philadelphia Stars.

WHO LET US GET THIS SECONDARY? 😮‍💨🌊

Jarey Elder, welcome to the Breakers! pic.twitter.com/PKbQ2PSq1M

— New Orleans Breakers (@USFLBreakers) March 11, 2022

FoxSports - New Orleans Breakers' Pick-by-Pick Supplemental Draft Results

West Chester Athletic Site - Pair of Golden Rams Selected in USFL Supplemental Draft

Team News - 2022 Unofficial Recruiting Class

Name	Pos	Ht	Wt	School
Maurice Beverly	DB	6-0	215	Imhotep
Damien Bogsch	DE	6-3	220	Marple Newtown
Nick Bozzetto	OL	6-3	285	Bonner-Pendergast
Levi Carroll	WR	6-4	185	North Penn
Alex Checchia	TE	6-5	240	Council Rock South
Mike Darcy	TE	6-2	222	Long Island University/North Penn
Ricardo Delgado	LB	6-1	215	Archibishop Wood
Aidan Dooley	QB	6-1	190	Springside Chestnut Hill
Shane Drobinski	OL	6-4	255	Smyrna
Zack Gillen	WR	5-9	170	Wilson
Giovonni Graham	DL	6-2	280	Imhotep
Cayden Hess	WR	6-1	205	Jersey Shore
Dayshawn Jacobs	RB	5-9	170	West Chester Rustin
Deshawn Johnson	OL	6-4	290	Interboro
Cooper Jordan	QB	5-11	165	Bishop Shanahan
Tyzeem Kinney	DB	6-1	210	Cheltenham
Ethan Kohler	QB	6-2	215	Perkiomen Valley
Zach Liberatore	K/P	6-1	180	Garnet Valley
Robby Longo	WR	5-11	165	Springfield
Armon Mapp	DB	5-10	180	Bonner-Prendergast
Darren Miller	OL	6-1	300	North Penn
Emmanuel Nukah	LB	6-2	200	Conwell-Egan
Jake Phipps	OL	6-3	285	Appoquinimink
Chris Thompson	LB	6-3	230	LaSalle
Ethan Vargas	OL	6-4	290	Dallastown
Marcus Williams	ATH	5-11	172	Easton
Damir Williams-Bey	S	5-11	185	Bonner-Prendergast

2021 Unofficial Recruiting Class
2020 Unofficial Recruiting Class
2019 Unofficial Recruiting Class
2018 Unofficial Recruiting Class
2017 Unofficial Recruiting Class

Daily Local News - Local high school football stars dot WCU’s 2022 recruiting class