Gary Carter believes the Chambersburg football program is on the right path.
Now starting his second year as head coach, Carter sees plenty of good signs for his team. Now the Trojans need to take that optimism and turn it into something more tangible, like wins.
They’ll get their first chance when the 2026 season begins with a non-league home game against Manheim Central on Friday night at 7.
Cam Green
Chambersburg was 4-6 and just missed making the District 3 Class 6A playoffs for the second straight season last year.
“I believe we’ve got a chance to be better and can be a playoff team,” Carter said. “We had seven games we could have won last year. But we just have to limit our injuries — we’re already a little banged up.”
Among the positive signs for Chambersburg:
— There are 105 kids on the roster. Carter: “If you can keep 20-30 kids in each class and have around five kids who can really play in each class, you should be competitive.”
— Eight players who played for the Trojans last year are playing college football this season.
— The Chambersburg staff has made headway in aligning the various youth football organizations to run the same offense and defense as the Trojans. That’s always been tough to do.
Brady Lohman
— The line has a lot more size then usual. Carter said the lifting program is the best it’s ever been and is starting to pay dividends. Among the players expected to see playing time on the offensive line are Raymond De Los Santos (6-6, 350), Brady Lohman (6-4, 280), Dondell Leonard (6-5, 320), Karter Daley (6-5, 300), Colton Kuhns (6-1, 260), Omar Hanchey (6-0, 240), Noah Moreno (5-9, 230), Rylan Pottle (5-10, 235), Noah Kish (6-3, 235) and Deakon Snavely (6-0, 220).
— The Trojans return a veteran quarterback in Cam Green. The 6-3, 205-pound junior put up some pretty good stats last year: 115-for-188 (61%), 1,264 yards, 9 touchdowns and 9 interceptions.
“He’s done some great things,” Carter said.
“I think the kids and coaches are more confident with offensive system,” Carter said. “We have a returning QB and running back and the O-line should be better because we have more depth and good experience. We’re more at ease with where we are, so I think we can do more things.”
Malachi Tasker (jr., 6-0, 190) returns as the lead back. He ran for 305 yards last year (only 2.4 yards per carry), caught 13 balls for 126 yards, and scored twice. Ashton Allen (sr., 5-7, 165), Devon Nalewak (sr., 6-1, 190) and Jyshawn Dixon (so., 5-7, 150) may also get some carries.
Seth Gilliam
The receiving corps from last year was wiped out by graduation, so Green will have a new set of teammates to throw to. The group includes Brock Chlebowski (jr., 6-5, 175), Jashaun Palmer (jr., 6-0, 160), Isaiah Ferguson (jr., 5-7, 150), Bryce Deneen (sr., 5-8, 160) and Cam McNew (jr., 5-6, 140).
Seth Gilliam (sr., 6-3, 220) will start at tight end, backed up by Cam Wadel (sr., 6-0, 210).
Carter said, “Seth is athletic, with good hands and he blocks well.”
The offensive line expects to start Kuhns (sr.) at center, Hanchey (sr.) and Moreno (jr.) at guard, Lohman (jr.) at one tackle and either De Los Santos (sr.) or Daley (jr.) at the other tackle. Lohman and Pottle (sr., who may be out with an injury) were both starters a year ago.
Carter said, “If we get everybody back, we should have some pretty good rotations available.”
The Trojan defense is still settling on personnel in some positions, mostly due to some injuries, but has a chance to be pretty good.
“We try to get the best kids on the field, and if they do their job and we stay healthy, we have good potential,” Carter said.
Devon Nalewak
Moreno is expected to be the nose guard, with Gilliam and Jayzee Menard (sr., 6-0, 225) or Derek Adams (jr., 6-4, 230) at the ends. Gilliam started last year.
The inside linebacker position will include Wadel, returning starter Snavely (so.) and Colton Horst (sr., 5-10, 180). Playing on the outside will likely be returner Mason Mowen (sr., 5-9, 185, 1 interception last year) and Nalewak, with Sebastian Laughlin (so., 5-8, 160), Allen and Chlebowski rotating in.
Nathan Chambers (jr., 5-9, 170) and Bryce Deneen could start at safety, and Isaiah Wright (sr., 5-9, 175) and Ferguson may start at cornerback.
Carter said, “We had a couple of games last year when we were in position to win, and we just needed to make the plays to give us a win. We’re getting there; we just need to be more positive.
“I think last year we made a big step and should have made the playoffs. It’s tough to build that winning culture when you’re always battling the mentality. We have to think like winners: winners expect to win, not hope to win.”
NOTES: Aaron Carillo (jr., 5-9, 180) is handling the kicking duties and Nalewak returns as the punter (he was on the Mid Penn Commonwealth all-star team) … Possible returners are Bryce Deneen, Chambers and Ferguson … Chambersburg will have to survive away trips to State College and Altoona.
Manheim Central at Chambersburg: Trojan Stadium will host the first meeting between these two schools on Friday.
The Barons were 5-5 last year and reside in Section III of the Lancaster-Lebanon League. The record last year was not normal for Manheim Central, which has a proud football history. But there was some turmoil in-season last year that played a big role and pushed out the coaching staff.
The Barons’ new coach is former Gettysburg coach Matt Heiser. Chambersburg has played the Warriors recently, so both staffs will have some knowledge of each other.
“Matt’s a great coach, although he’s only had about a month and a half with the team,” Carter said. “But he’s a winner and Manheim Central has been a powerhouse.
“They have a good running back (Jevin Carbonneau) and quarterback (Logan Kappel), and their defense likes to bring pressure.”
Xavier Oxceva is a veteran wideout and linebacker and Adrian Cruz my be the Barons’ top lineman.