HS Football: 6 area players named to PA Football Writers’ Class AA All-State Team
Dante Carr rumbles for one of his four touchdowns in Minersville's 35-27 win over Pen Argyl in a District 11 Class AA quarterfinal (Photo by Kelly Wiley).
Shomper, Carr, LaPoint, Reber, Williams, Castillo honored
High school football coaches love to hype up their players when being considered for postseason honors.
The six area players selected to the Pennsylvania Football Writers’ Class AA All-State Team didn’t need any hype.
Their play on the gridiron spoke volumes.
Williams Valley quarterback Brady Shomper, Minersville quarterback Dante Carr and wide receiver Paiten LaPoint and three players from Schuylkill Haven — running back Colton Reber, offensive lineman Chase Williams and linebacker Niko Castillo — were named to the 42-player Class AA squad unveiled Wednesday morning.
The Pennsylvania Football Writers’ All-State teams are selected through nominations and voting done by sports writers and broadcasters from across the state, including T102 Sports Now.
The Class A, 3A and 5A teams were announced Tuesday, with Tri-Valley’s Cole Gemberling, Marian’s Rory Dixon and the North Schuylkill tandem of Luke Miller and Aiden Zilker being honored. The Class AA, 4A and 6A teams are unveiled Wednesday. There are no local players named to the Class 4A and 6A squads.
For Shomper and Carr, it’s the second straight year the dual-threat quarterbacks were named to the Class AA All-State team. Shomper’s selection marks the 10th straight year a Williams Valley player has been chosen to the Pennsylvania Football Writers’ All-State team … he’s the 25th player to be honored in that span.
A 5-foot-11, 180-pound senior, Shomper directed Williams Valley to a 12-2 record, a third straight District 11 Class AA title and a third straight trip to the PIAA playoffs. Over the past three seasons, he was 34-7 as a starter.
This season, Shomper threw for more than 2,000 yards for the second straight year, completing 101-of-160 passes for 2,080 yards and 30 touchdowns. He also rushed 159 times for 954 yards and 16 TDs.
Shomper finished his career as Williams Valley’s all-time leader in passing yards (5,073) and passing touchdowns (74) and the single-season record-holder in yards (2,413) and passing TDs (35).
“We’ve been fortunate to have some outstanding quarterbacks at Williams Valley over the years, but in my opinion, Brady is the best we’ve ever had,” Williams Valley coach and athletic director Ben Ancheff said Tuesday. “What separates Brady most, though, is his toughness and competitiveness — he’s the kind of leader every coach hopes to have under center.”
Carr and LaPoint have caused nightmares for opposing defenses the past four years and it’s a fitting ending to their careers that they were both named to the All-State team as seniors.
Heading to UCF, Carr re-wrote Minersville’s entire record book during his stellar four-year career, breaking every single-season mark and finishing as the school’s all-time leader in passing completions (340), passing attempts (645), passing yards (5,891) and passing touchdowns (79).
This season, the 6-4, 225-pounder completed 116-of-181 passes for 1,822 yards and a single-season record 29 touchdowns. The American Remodeling T102 Sports Now Tremendous 33 Player of the Year, Carr also rushed 135 times for 1,396 yards and 19 touchdowns.
“Dante is probably the best all-around football player in Minersville history,” Minersville coach Justin Frantz said. “I can’t wait to see him make plays at UCF like he’s made for us the past four seasons.”
LaPoint hauled in 47 passes this season for an area-best 733 yards and a Minersville single-season record 12 touchdowns. The 2025 PIAA Class AA track champion in the 200 meters, LaPoint collected 16 TDs overall this season.
He finished as Minersville’s all-time leader in receptions (122), receiving yards (2,085) and receiving touchdowns (27).
“Paiten used his state champion sprinter speed to be a dynamic receiver and returner,” Frantz said. “Consistently double-teamed and still set records for receptions, yards and touchdowns.
“Two of the most explosive athletes in the state and that I’ve ever coached,” Frantz continued on about his two stars. “Both had the ability to score every single time they touched the ball. Dante has every quarterback record in school history and Paiten has every receiving and return record.”
Reber, the only junior of the six local All-State picks, had a breakout season for the Hurricanes, rushing 197 times for an area-best 2,875 times and 38 TDs. He finished second in District 11 in rushing yards behind Class 4A Player of the Year Sean Steckert of Southern Lehigh.
Reber averaged 14.6 yards per carry and 221.2 yards per game. The 6-1, 210-pounder had seven games with 200 or more rushing yards, including 395 yards in a District 11 Class AA semifinal win over Northern Lehigh that broke a 71-year District 11 record for average yards per carry (39.5) in a 200-plus game.
He had seven games with four or more TDs, including a school-record eight Oct. 3 vs. Marian. He also caught 14 passes for 364 yards and seven TDs, finishing the season as the area’s scoring leader with 47 touchdowns and 310 points.
A running back on the T102 Sports Now Tremendous 33 Team, Reber was named the Schuylkill County Football Coaches Association Small School Offensive Player of the Year, beating both Shomper and Carr for that honor.
“Colton is a great running back,” Schuylkill Haven coach Mike Farr said. “He has all the intangibles … speed, power and vision. He also has great hands in the pass game.”
Being named to the PA Football Writers’ All-State Team is the latest postseason honor for both Williams and Castillo.
The 6-3, 342-pound Williams was named the SCFCA Small School Offensive Lineman of the Year and the Biros Septic & Drain T102 Sports Now Tremendous 33 Lineman of the Year. He was a big reason the Hurricanes averaged 386.3 yards rushing, 475.5 total yards and 53.4 points per game. Defensively, he collected 64 tackles and an area-best 27 tackles for loss.
