Every local grid team but Greene coming off a loss
With the exception of Greene, Chenango County’s remaining roster of football teams are coming off opening-day losses. It’s not the way to start any season, but the positive is that none of those early defeats were a division battle.
Norwich plays a second straight non-leaguer, this time at Ithaca. John Martinson, first-year coach for the Tornado, knows NHS has had its way in the occasional meetings with the Little Red over the past two decades. In fact, it’s been at least 20 years since Norwich has lost to Ithaca, and the last meeting, a 42-12 NHS win to end the 2007, is an example of the Purple dominance.
“We’ve traditionally been successful against Ithaca, but we’ve had a chance to break down film, and Ithaca is a little atypical compared to what they used to be.”
Norwich’s opening-game performance was a tad on the atypical side as well. The powerful running exhibited only glimpses of its potential, and the passing attack -- often times utilizing the spread-out “polecat formation” – was hit or miss.
Five turnovers against Owego didn’t help the Purple Tornado’s cause either, but the bottom line was individual performance, position by position, Martinson said.
“The turnovers were a major cause, but we still didn’t play well enough at almost every position to win,” the coach said. “We’re getting our players to focus on doing their job, and doing it well.”
Greene did little wrong in a 35-0 victory over Oxford, and on the few occasions it did slip up, the Trojans rebounded.
“We turned it over twice, once in the red zone,” said Trojans head coach Tim Paske. “We were excited that we were able to hold them out of the end zone. It was a bend-but-not-break defense.”
This weekend, division battles include UV-Edmeston versus Greene; Oxford at Delhi; Clinton at Sherburne-Earlville; and Harpursville at Bainbridge-Guilford. Norwich’s trip to Ithaca tonight is the lone non-leaguer. Below are summaries of this week’s games:
Norwich (0-1) at Ithaca (1-0), Friday, 7 p.m.
As was mentioned above, Norwich has not lost to Ithaca in quite some time, and throughout this decade, the Little Red have found themselves on the short side of the .500 mark. A 15-7 opening win over Cornwall may have shifted Ithaca’s mindset. “They seem to be much more balanced and fundamentally sound this year,” Martinson said. “They made a lot of first-game mistakes, as we did, but they moved the ball well and the defense was stingy. They will be a formidable opponent.”
The injury bug has nipped at Norwich the past two weeks with at least three starters missing time last week and this week. “We’ve never make injuries an excuse, we just need to shore things up,” Martinson said.
Norwich amassed just 115 yards on the ground a week ago, a statistic it will need to improve if it hopes to even its mark on the season.
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Harpursville (1-0) at B-G (0-1), Friday, 7 p.m.
On paper, at least, it would seem that Harpursville’s one-point win over Unatego last weekend was somewhat of an upset. “A win’s a win, and with that, I’m sure they will come in here pretty excited,” said B-G coach Tim Mattingly.
The Bobcats did not play the Hornets last season, but the previous two years – Mattingly’s first two as head coach – B-G won by a pair of touchdowns in each contest.
Mattingly is guiding a club that contained the typically-powerful Sidney offense yielding less than 200 yards. “We didn’t play badly at all last week, and I think the defense will need to step up again,” he said.
Harpursville favors a running game, and runs out of a formation that is a mirror image to that of the Bobcats. Tyler Boudreau figures to get most of the carries, although the Hornets have athleticism and speedy throughout their skill positions, Mattingly said.
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UV-Edmeston (0-1) vs. Greene (1-0), Saturday, 7 p.m. at Norwich High School
The Storm’s task is to slow one of the most potent offenses in Section IV, and a team that was one win short of reaching the state playoffs a year ago.
UV-E did have success running the ball against Newfield a week ago getting a game-high 138 yards from senior back Ian Davis. Injuries, though, appear to be a concern for the Storm, who have little depth to back up an already slim roster.
For Greene, all appears well, especially after racking up nearly 400 yards of offense, while the defense recorded its second straight shutout of Oxford in as many years.
“We came out and executed well on both sides of the ball,” Paske said. “We were able to take advantage of some defensive breakdowns. They put eight or nine near the line of scrimmage, and were daring us to throw. We kind of had to do that, and we didn’t mind doing it.”
On paper, it would appear the Trojans are a big favorite. The Trojans have won 10 of 11 games, while UV-E has dropped 11 straight games. “We saw them play, and we felt they controlled the game against Newfield, they just didn’t convert in the red zone,” Paske said. “They’re big and physical, and they look to hit you. We can’t take them lightly, we know they will play hard for four quarters.”
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Clinton (0-1) at Sherburne-Earlville (0-1), Saturday, 7 p.m.
Clinton has won two of the last three meetings, but each contest has come down to the fourth quarter, and the aggregate score of the previous three meetings: 42-42.
“The games have all been tight, and I expect this year to be similar,” said S-E coach Mike Jaspar. “Both schools have young teams. They struggled last week, and we struggled.”
Sherburne-Earlville’s best weapon in a 35-15 win last weekend was running back Will Slentz. The junior had 191 yards and both S-E touchdowns. Unfortunately, Slentz and the rest of the S-E offense was not on the field enough as Hamilton racked up 444 total yards.
“We really need to bounce back on defense,” Jaspar said sizing up his defensive corps. “We did well stopping the runner at the point of attack, but we let them get away and break off big runs. We can’t allow that to happen this week.”
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Oxford (0-1) at Deposit (0-1), Saturday, 1:30 p.m.
Oxford and Deposit are each coming off lopsided losses, but both clubs can put those defeats in the rearview mirror quickly by winning Saturday’s division opener.
“For better or worse, I think we opened our season against the toughest team,” said Oxford coach Mike Chrystie. “It’s our first division game, and the intensity will be up. We’ve put the Greene game behind us, and we hope to get on a run in the division.”
The Lumberjacks scored three touchdowns against Sullivan West, but two of those scores came on returns. Nearly everything runs through senior quarterback Darin Wignall, who amassed big yardage throwing and running the ball a year ago. “We have to contain (Wignall) and win the battle up front,” Chrystie said.
Oxford, for its part, amassed 235 total yards against the Trojans in a shutout loss. Not a shabby total considering the Blackhawks had 11 fumbles.
Norwich plays a second straight non-leaguer, this time at Ithaca. John Martinson, first-year coach for the Tornado, knows NHS has had its way in the occasional meetings with the Little Red over the past two decades. In fact, it’s been at least 20 years since Norwich has lost to Ithaca, and the last meeting, a 42-12 NHS win to end the 2007, is an example of the Purple dominance.
“We’ve traditionally been successful against Ithaca, but we’ve had a chance to break down film, and Ithaca is a little atypical compared to what they used to be.”
Norwich’s opening-game performance was a tad on the atypical side as well. The powerful running exhibited only glimpses of its potential, and the passing attack -- often times utilizing the spread-out “polecat formation” – was hit or miss.
Five turnovers against Owego didn’t help the Purple Tornado’s cause either, but the bottom line was individual performance, position by position, Martinson said.
“The turnovers were a major cause, but we still didn’t play well enough at almost every position to win,” the coach said. “We’re getting our players to focus on doing their job, and doing it well.”
Greene did little wrong in a 35-0 victory over Oxford, and on the few occasions it did slip up, the Trojans rebounded.
“We turned it over twice, once in the red zone,” said Trojans head coach Tim Paske. “We were excited that we were able to hold them out of the end zone. It was a bend-but-not-break defense.”
This weekend, division battles include UV-Edmeston versus Greene; Oxford at Delhi; Clinton at Sherburne-Earlville; and Harpursville at Bainbridge-Guilford. Norwich’s trip to Ithaca tonight is the lone non-leaguer. Below are summaries of this week’s games:
Norwich (0-1) at Ithaca (1-0), Friday, 7 p.m.
As was mentioned above, Norwich has not lost to Ithaca in quite some time, and throughout this decade, the Little Red have found themselves on the short side of the .500 mark. A 15-7 opening win over Cornwall may have shifted Ithaca’s mindset. “They seem to be much more balanced and fundamentally sound this year,” Martinson said. “They made a lot of first-game mistakes, as we did, but they moved the ball well and the defense was stingy. They will be a formidable opponent.”
The injury bug has nipped at Norwich the past two weeks with at least three starters missing time last week and this week. “We’ve never make injuries an excuse, we just need to shore things up,” Martinson said.
Norwich amassed just 115 yards on the ground a week ago, a statistic it will need to improve if it hopes to even its mark on the season.
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Harpursville (1-0) at B-G (0-1), Friday, 7 p.m.
On paper, at least, it would seem that Harpursville’s one-point win over Unatego last weekend was somewhat of an upset. “A win’s a win, and with that, I’m sure they will come in here pretty excited,” said B-G coach Tim Mattingly.
The Bobcats did not play the Hornets last season, but the previous two years – Mattingly’s first two as head coach – B-G won by a pair of touchdowns in each contest.
Mattingly is guiding a club that contained the typically-powerful Sidney offense yielding less than 200 yards. “We didn’t play badly at all last week, and I think the defense will need to step up again,” he said.
Harpursville favors a running game, and runs out of a formation that is a mirror image to that of the Bobcats. Tyler Boudreau figures to get most of the carries, although the Hornets have athleticism and speedy throughout their skill positions, Mattingly said.
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UV-Edmeston (0-1) vs. Greene (1-0), Saturday, 7 p.m. at Norwich High School
The Storm’s task is to slow one of the most potent offenses in Section IV, and a team that was one win short of reaching the state playoffs a year ago.
UV-E did have success running the ball against Newfield a week ago getting a game-high 138 yards from senior back Ian Davis. Injuries, though, appear to be a concern for the Storm, who have little depth to back up an already slim roster.
For Greene, all appears well, especially after racking up nearly 400 yards of offense, while the defense recorded its second straight shutout of Oxford in as many years.
“We came out and executed well on both sides of the ball,” Paske said. “We were able to take advantage of some defensive breakdowns. They put eight or nine near the line of scrimmage, and were daring us to throw. We kind of had to do that, and we didn’t mind doing it.”
On paper, it would appear the Trojans are a big favorite. The Trojans have won 10 of 11 games, while UV-E has dropped 11 straight games. “We saw them play, and we felt they controlled the game against Newfield, they just didn’t convert in the red zone,” Paske said. “They’re big and physical, and they look to hit you. We can’t take them lightly, we know they will play hard for four quarters.”
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Clinton (0-1) at Sherburne-Earlville (0-1), Saturday, 7 p.m.
Clinton has won two of the last three meetings, but each contest has come down to the fourth quarter, and the aggregate score of the previous three meetings: 42-42.
“The games have all been tight, and I expect this year to be similar,” said S-E coach Mike Jaspar. “Both schools have young teams. They struggled last week, and we struggled.”
Sherburne-Earlville’s best weapon in a 35-15 win last weekend was running back Will Slentz. The junior had 191 yards and both S-E touchdowns. Unfortunately, Slentz and the rest of the S-E offense was not on the field enough as Hamilton racked up 444 total yards.
“We really need to bounce back on defense,” Jaspar said sizing up his defensive corps. “We did well stopping the runner at the point of attack, but we let them get away and break off big runs. We can’t allow that to happen this week.”
–––
Oxford (0-1) at Deposit (0-1), Saturday, 1:30 p.m.
Oxford and Deposit are each coming off lopsided losses, but both clubs can put those defeats in the rearview mirror quickly by winning Saturday’s division opener.
“For better or worse, I think we opened our season against the toughest team,” said Oxford coach Mike Chrystie. “It’s our first division game, and the intensity will be up. We’ve put the Greene game behind us, and we hope to get on a run in the division.”
The Lumberjacks scored three touchdowns against Sullivan West, but two of those scores came on returns. Nearly everything runs through senior quarterback Darin Wignall, who amassed big yardage throwing and running the ball a year ago. “We have to contain (Wignall) and win the battle up front,” Chrystie said.
Oxford, for its part, amassed 235 total yards against the Trojans in a shutout loss. Not a shabby total considering the Blackhawks had 11 fumbles.
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