Over the summer, two Waynesburg University alumni, Dakota Romantino and Joel Zellem, won the American Arena League 2 Championship that took place in Wheeling, West Virginia. 

Romantino and Zellem’s team, the Wheeling Miners, defeated the Peach State Cats by a score of 61-14. 

No less than one year ago, Romantino and Zellem were making plays for the Waynesburg University Yellow Jackets football team. Romantino led the Yellow Jackets in receiving yards with 528  accumulating over 2,000 receiving yards in his Yellow Jacket career. In Zellem’s Waynesburg career, he totaled 82 tackles, seven pass deflections and four fumble recoveries.

Romantino was on injured reserve for the entire season, while Zellem finished the year as an All-AAL2 team honorable mention. 

Waynesburg University’s Football Head Coach Cornelius Coleman, who coached Zellem for two seasons, attended the championship game and had a chance to watch Zellem play in person for the first time with his new team.

“The entire staff was absolutely proud of him. I had the opportunity to go watch him in person during his championship game, and joy surrounded the whole occasion,” Coleman said. 

Zellem had a unique role for the Miners in their championship push, playing several positions. 

“It was fun. I’ve been waiting for the last decade to be able to catch passes or play fullback, but I was always lineman size… they ended up tagging me with the nickname, ‘The Big Athlete’ and it ended up sticking,” Zellem said. 

Coleman described some facets of Zellem’s game that made him successful.  

“Joel possessed a genuine love for the sport,” Coleman said. “Whether it was in the locker room with his teammates, film session, weight lifting or the practice field, he embraced every aspect of the game. It was a great feeling coaching him because I know he cared and always gave his all.” 

Zellem believes he would not be where he is today without Coleman. 

“My first four years at Waynesburg I didn’t get a lot of playing time. But from the first game I played under Coach Coleman until the last, it was just a completely different experience. I’m glad he trusted me with the opportunity,” Zellem said. 

After their championship win, the Miners were promoted to the National Arena League, according to the teams website.