“The guys had a great week of practice; they came out with a chip on their shoulder.” Gettysburg High School football coach Jake Johnson was very proud of how his team responded after a tough loss last week at Northern York. The Warriors came back with a vengeance, gashing the Mechanicsburg Wildcats for over 300 yards on the ground; Gettysburg came away with a 33-14 victory. The home team controlled much of the first half until Mechanicsburg made it a game.
The first score of the game came from the Warriors’ defense, with Senior Nolan Reinhart taking away a pitch to the running back and running it 30 yards for a quick touchdown. Number 99 (Reinert) is another stellar athlete who has helped this defense make a complete 180 from previous years. After another Mechanicsburg turnover, Trevor Cunningham found paydirt with a 28-yard scamper. He surpassed 100 yards again with over 130 yards on the ground.
Gettysburg High School football players celebrate with coaches following Friday night’s win.
Photo by Zach Thomas
The Warriors opened the second quarter with a 12-0 lead and swapped multiple possessions with the visiting team before they struck up the band again. A drive full of Cunningham and Grant Johnson runs was punctuated with a 1-yd pass connection between the two juniors, taking the home team into halftime with a 19-0 lead.
The Wildcats showed some fight after the second-half kick, marching down the field and finally reaching the end zone on a pass from Landon Zimmerman to Danny Kurtz. Another touchdown from Jyree Bellamy brought Mechanicsburg within one score, 19-14, to start the fourth quarter.
With momentum fully with the visitors, coach Johnson decided to go for it on a fourth-and-one around midfield. Grant Johnson took a keeper and ripped off a 36-yard gain, bringing the energy back into Warrior Stadium. Another Cunningham score, this time from seven yards out, put the Warriors up for good. The final score of the game came from a Johnson pass to sophomore Jayden Spencer to make the final 33-14.
The duo of Cunningham and Johnson was on display again, as the two combined for over 300 yards on the ground. Despite his legs being the showcase tonight, Johnson also tossed two touchdown passes.
Gettysburg (4-1, 3-1) will travel north for another Mid-Penn bout against Lower Dauphin (2-3, 2-2), who squeaked out a victory 27-26 over Red Land.
The 2026 Warriors appear to be taking it one game at a time, refusing to let previous weeks or seasons define who they are or what they’re capable of. Defensive line coach Devin McIntosh reiterated that his defense is sharks, and when they smell blood in the water, it’s game over.
“Dogs bite, horses run, fish swim, sharks kill, 1-0”
