LaPorte Pop Warner hits pay dirt

For the first time in La Porte Pop Warner history, the Junior Pee Wee team competed for a National Championship at Disney World on December 7th.

The Junior Pee Wee team unfortunately lost against Deer Valley out of Arizona 7 to 18 for the 63rd Pop Warner quarterfinals this past Saturday. And they also lost to the Souderton Braves out of Pennsylvania 26-12.

The road to Disney has been exciting for the Junior Pee Wee team. The Slicers were able to punch their ticket to Disney by beating Rockford Renegades 24-7.

The players are Gavin Ake, Julian Burnett, Keegan Dzomba, Timothy Jenkins, Bryce Jones, Timothy Knoll, Lucas Marshall, Jobe Meyer, Issac Moyer, Hunter Nelson, Nickolas Novak, Aiden Penziol, Gavin Phillips, Reed Raymond, Gavin Rees, Dawson Shreve, Jack Travis, and Xzavier Wilson. La Porte’s coaches are Mike Nelson, John Penziol, Rickie Jones, Leland Travis, and Jordan Gosciniak.

The La Porte Pop Warner program has accomplished big results this year with the 8U football team also winning State.

“I am so proud of each and every player, coach, cheerleader, volunteer on every team. The dedication by these young athletes and parents is tremendous,” Steve Forker, Pop Warner, and LPHS varsity coach said.

The Pop Warner roster has a total of 170 future Slicers on the roster with La Porte having eight teams of different divisions. The program has an overall record of 41-31-2.

Many Pop Warner players are getting an early introduction to the inner workings of Slicer Football. The coaches of a few of the teams also took some of Coach Lowery’s, LPHS head coach, Offensive playbook and simplified it for Pop Warner and they were able to execute and use them in their game tremendously.  

“I love teaching the game of football to young athletes. We are trying to build a great foundation for these athletes so they can grow, continue to learn, and prosper into future Slicers,” Forker said.

The La Porte Pop Warner team has made a statement for the future of La Porte Slicer Football.

“I feel like the football culture in LaPorte is growing and with the continued support of our parents, coaches, and volunteers, we are only going to get bigger and better,” Forker said.