Brentaro Yamane

WPIAL & City League Football Player Preview: Don't Sleep On Neshannock's Spencer Perry

Neshannock football player Spencer Perry visited the University of Buffalo back on February 1, 2020.

One in a series on motivated high school football players in the WPIAL and City League.

Neshannock football player Spencer Perry is a WPIAL football player that needs more recognition because of the talent he has. Neshannock High School, located in Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, does not seem to be talked a lot about in the media that much. The fact that Neshannock is not the biggest school can hurt some of their big-time athletes and that could be a reason why not that many people are familiar with Spencer Perry.

Perry, who will be a senior in the fall, is considered one of the star football players on Neshannock's football team as he plays both defensive end and tight end. Perry's brothers and father all played football and that's how he started playing it at a naturally young age. Perry, who recorded seven receptions for 103 yards and scored two touchdowns as a tight end in 2019, is able to play on both sides of the ball, but the way he plays at the defensive end position is something special. For Perry, 10 blocked passes and one forced fumble in 2019 are key statistics that make him one of the team's best defensive players. With the way that he played and performed in his junior year in 2019, he is really looking forward to seeing how much better he can get in his senior year of football in the fall.

I'm very excited [for the upcoming football season], I’ve been waiting for my senior year for as long as I can remember," said Perry, an All-State Defensive End and MAC top 22 selection last season. "This upcoming season, I really want to win a WPIAL and State championship."

Perry currently has football offers from Robert Morris University and Clarion University. Both these colleges have offered him to play as a defensive end. With the way Perry played in 2019, it is shocking that he hasn't received more offers.

"Those offers were very special moments for me. It was an incredible feeling and it was a true honor to receive them. I’ve also spoken with Buffalo, UPenn, Lehigh, New Hampshire, and UConn," Perry said, a National Honor Society member at Neshannock. "When I received my first offer from Robert Morris, it hit me that I had potential to be something special."

Perry still has time to think of what he wants to major in at college. He said Business or Architectural Engineering are possible majors that he would want to pursue in college.

Perry, who currently has a job in cutting grass, said that one of his favorite high school memories up to this point was when his Neshannock football team won the section title in the Midwestern Conference last season with a 6-1 section record and an overall regular season record of 8-2. In the Neshannock's first game of the WPIAL 2A football playoffs in 2019, they defeated Serra Catholic in the first round by a score of 31-13. However, in the next playoff game, Neshannock would lose to Brentwood by a score of 20-0.

"Never underestimate a team and never quit. It was a tough playoff loss [against Brentwood] but it taught us a lot and we’ll be prepared for this season," Perry said.

After that loss from last season, Perry is constantly trying to get better and wants revenge from last season. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he has had a lot more time to get better.

"I work out 5-6 days a week," said Perry, who also plays on Neshannock's Boys basketball team. "My coaches are all a huge part of my training along with my brother Tyler."

Neshannock's football lost 11 seniors from the Class of 2020 that include players such as kicker Tristan Tuck and quarterback Jason Nativio. With the seniors from last season graduated, Perry knows that this is his time to take a bigger leadership role on the team and really make a push to help Neshannock get over the hump and win a WPIAL and PIAA title. Perry's Class of 2021 football teammates have been apart of one playoff football win and it was against Serra Catholic from last season. That win has helped all the players on the team realize that they have potential, they just have to play to the best ability and probably work even harder.

As the WPIAL football season starts in a little over a month, Perry will continue to practice and maybe even play some poker in his free time.

Brentaro Yamane: bkyamane@gmail.com and Twitter/Instagram @BYHilton13