Football, Basketball
Favorite athlete: Josh Allen
Favorite team: Denver Broncos
Favorite memory competing in sports: Winning the district championship sophomore year.
Most embarrassing/funniest moment competing in sports: During a rainy peewee game, the ball slipped through my hands and hit my helmet, and the ball went straight in the air and into my teammate’s hands.
Music on playlist: Lil Baby, NBA Youngboy, Rod Wave.
Future plans: Attend college to study education.
Words to live by: “Do you know what my favorite part of the game is? The opportunity to play.” - Mike Singletary.”
One goal before turning 30: To have a successful career and family
By GORDON GLANTZ
As Hurricane Ian made its way up on the Eastern Seaboard, another storm erupted Friday night.
Let’s call it Hurricane Jared – as in senior Souderton quarterback Jared Zimmerman, who was at the epicenter of his team’s offense this past weekend.
In his first full season as a starter under center, Zimmerman had the best game of his career – so far, at least – completing 13 of 24 passes for 179 yards and a score, while running 9 times for 69 yards and another touchdown, in a 34-20 win against rival Quakertown.
In the process, he moved a step closer to earning his advanced degree in the run-pass option (RPO) attack that Eagles fans are now seeing with Jalen Hurts (although his personal idol is Peyton Manning).
“Jared had an outstanding game,” said Souderton coach Ed Gallagher, pointing out that the connection with receiver Danny Dyches (8 catches, 118 yards, TD) was virtually unstoppable, especially in the game. “It’s funny, too. He’s probably kicking himself because there were a couple of times that he ran the ball when he probably could have thrown it. He probably could have had over 200 yards passing for the first time in his career.
“But, yeah, he had a really solid game. He had really good reads. We ran about 5-6 RPOs in the first two possessions. He made very good reads, in terms of when to run it and when to pass it. He really did have a good game.”
For Zimmerman, the winning effort was vindication.
“Last year, we played Quakertown two times – once in the regular season and once in the playoffs – and we lost both times,” he said. “This year, we really wanted to get that win.
“There was a lot of trust, between our coaches and our players. On our first drive, we had our RPO called and it kept working – like every single time. Throughout the game, we went from passing to running the ball more.”
Moment of Truth
Surrounded by weapons, much like Hurts now and Manning in his prime, Zimmerman can just stay within himself and let the offense click
“It depends on what kind of players you have,” said Gallagher. “Right now, we have some athletes that he can get the ball to out in space, and he is doing a really good job of doing that. He’s not the biggest kid or the strongest kid, but he’s just good. He fits the role well and does everything that we ask him to do.”
Zimmerman’s play this year, with his peak performance last Friday, did not come out of thin air. He was thrust into the lineup last year, starting the last three games of the season (including a playoff loss to Quakertown) after spending most of the season in the secondary.
It was a moment he felt like he had been waiting for, and preparing for, his whole life.
“Honestly, it felt amazing,” he said. “I wanted to show the coaches, and show everybody else, what I could do.
“Once the quarterback position opened up, I was so ready to take that spot.”
In his first start last season, which was against Cheltenham, he had two passing touchdown and ran for two others.
Still, coming into his senior year, nothing was guaranteed. Zimmerman made sure to use every available minute of the offseason to prepare.
“I was determined to just show it on the practice field, determined to show I was ready for the spot,” he said. “We started doing 7-on-7 (drills) in April. From April to July, I just used that to prove to them that I could throw the ball and could be the starting quarterback for our team. Once minicamp and real camp came around, that’s where I showed my leadership and proved to them that I could do this.”
The coaches couldn’t help but take notice.
“He owned it over the offseason, and he has blossomed into his role,” said Gallagher, who admitted to considering other options at the all-important position. “It’s funny. Sean Purvy is probably our best athlete, and we have played him at quarterback here and there. Jared almost got a little bit offended. He said, ‘I can do all the things he is doing, and he has.’ All the things we thought we could tailor toward Sean, Jared has stepped in and done, too. He has done a really good job with them. It’s been a nice luxury for us.”
The throwing ability he displayed in the offseason has only improved.
“He’s throwing the ball really well,” Gallagher added. “He’s also making good decisions. When he has to run, he can run. When he can pull the ball down, he is definitely a threat – as teams are starting to find out. They have to do something to spy him and keep him in the pocket. When he gets outside, he can be pretty dangerous.”
Zimmerman clearly believes that his work has paid off, as he grows increasingly at one in the offense.
“I feel very comfortable,” he said. “I think I make the right reads about 90 percent of the time. When you make the right reads, everything just tends to work. You really don’t have much time to think, so it’s pretty much just instinct for me now.”
Playing Big
While Zimmerman stepping up and owning the quarterback position as a senior has maybe been bonus that has allowed him to play others at other positions, Gallagher has been well aware of him for a while.
“As is the case with a lot of the kids who come through our program, I remember Jared when he was 8-9 years old,” said the coach. “He would come to my youth camp in the summer and I would see him there.
“He could always throw the ball, but he was more of an athlete. He could also have been a receiver, and he started five games in the secondary for us last year. He is just a good athlete. He plays basketball. He throws javelin. He’s that type of an all-around athlete.”
Last winter, Zimmerman was a swing player for the basketball team.
“He played varsity sparingly, but he played big for us,” Souderton coach Okotech Sackitey said. “I started using him a bit at the end of the season. In the last game of the year against CB West, he finished the first half for us and played outstanding defense. He hit a transition three in the right corner, and that was huge for us. He’s just a gamer, a competitor.
“When I watch him kill it on the football field this year, I do question – dang, should I have played him more? I’m excited for this coming year. He’s probably our best on-ball defender. He’s going to have a big role this year.”
Measuring in at 5-11 and 165 pounds, not prototypical “football” size, only enhances the chip on Zimmerman’s shoulder.
“He’s not that big, but he just competes,” said Gallagher. “He gets offended if you slight him because of his size. He wants to prove you wrong. I love the edge he plays with.
“He’s just a great kid who is very competitive. I’m looking forward to watching him play the rest of the year.”
Leadership Role
Taking over under center as a senior brought with a certain amount of responsibility, and Zimmerman feels he has risen to the challenge.
“I feel like it’s been pretty good,” he said. “When I say something to my teammates, they will listen. If I tell them to keep their heads up, they’ll keep their heads up. If I tell them to keep going, or not to get too down on themselves, they will.
“It’s all about that positive reinforcement.”
Gallagher, who taught Zimmerman in math class, knows it goes against personality type a bit, but he appreciates him coming out of his shell for the sake of the team.
“He’s one of our captains,” said Gallagher. “He’s really quiet, though. There are still times at practice when I put the defense into a different position because I just want to hear him talk. He’s a quiet kid. He’s soft-spoken. He’s humble. At the same time, he’s very competitive.”
While the epitome of a self-motivator, Zimmerman knows he did not get their alone.
“My coaches, they really helped me a lot,” he said. “And, you know, my whole family (parents Jodi and Tom and sister Jordan, now at Lebanon Valley). They always told me to keep my head up and keep pushing. My friends and teammates always told me I was ready for this.”
Next Level
While some student-athletes get caught in No Man’s Land and opt to go to a bigger school and play at the club level, or not at all, Zimmerman is hoping to still compete as a Division III athlete.
“I was thinking that if I was offered to play at a bigger school, I would get my degree like that,” said Zimmerman, who will be moving up to the varsity hardwood this winter as a guard. “After talking to some coaches, like at Division III, I would just go play for them. Hopefully, they’ll start calling me.”
Beyond that, he hopes to get into education.
“Originally, I was thinking high school, but now I’m leaning more toward elementary,” he said. “This year, I’m doing an internship at an elementary school (West Broad Street) and I’m having a lot of fun with it.”
Gallagher mentioned Lebanon Valley, while Zimmerman added that Ursinus has been in touch for javelin and he may try to parlay that into football as well.
Before all that, though, there is a lot of season yet to be played.
Souderton is now 5-1 and 3-0 in the league. A pending date down the road – Week 9 -- with Upper Dublin is circled on the calendar. A year ago, the Cardinals eked out a 10-7 win over Gallagher’s team that was missing some players due to injury.
“They’re 6-0 and we’re 5-1, so I think that’s the game that everyone is talking about,” said Gallagher. “That should be our league championship this year. We’ll see how healthy they are, and how healthy we are, when we get to that week.”
Added Zimmerman: “We all know what a good team Upper Dublin is, so we just have to come ready and focused. As leaders, we just have to make sure the team is ready to go.”
