High School Grid Preview, week 2
As of Thursday evening, Norwich’s home game with Owego tonight was postponed. A make-up date is pending, said head coach John Martinson. “It’s all dependent upon Owego’s ability to get safe transportation,” the Norwich coach said.
Martinson said that Norwich may reschedule the game to either Saturday, Sunday or Monday night, and we will proceed with our weekly game previews under the presumption that ever game will be played.
When the Tornado do tee it up for kickoff against the Indians, it will be an opportunity to avenge last year’s Section IV Class B playoff loss. Owego dominated the Tornado winning by four touchdown in a game where Norwich was never really in it after the opening quarter. “Teams usually get better as the season goes on, and I was not pleased with last year’s game,” Martinson said of his playoff loss. “We’re trying to focus more on ourselves and play Norwich football instead of worry about the other team.”
From a defensive standpoint, last week’s NHS win over Sus Valley was vintage Norwich. The Purple defenders recorded eight tackles for a loss led by Kegan Levesque and first-year starting linebacker, Jaden MacRabie. Norwich’s offense also put three touchdowns on the board. Last season, Norwich had just two contests where it scored as many as three touchdowns in a game. “We only scored six points in our first game last year, so from that standpoint, we’re ahead of where we were last year on offense,” Martinson said. “However, looking at film, we still have some work to do.”
Owego dropped its opening game to Union-Endicott in a non-league game. The Tigers are led by strong-armed quarterback Nick Larrabee, who threw three TD passes against the Tornado in a 32-6 win. Also back this year are key returning backs Derek Knapp and Dylan Angulus. “Owego is all about misdirection, and they played well against us last year,” Martinson said.
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UV-Edmeston coach Brian Banks had technical difficulties last weekend, ill-timed injuries, and his opening game against Bainbridge-Guilford was the first time his players hit someone other than a teammate in practice.
Banks said his headsets during the game were not working, and his scout that video-taped this week’s opponent, Oxford, was given a corrupted disk that proved worthless. To top it all off, two starting linemen suffered injuries last week, and two more are out for this weekend’s scheduled game with Oxford.
UV-Edmeston and Oxford will not play this evening due to the school cancellation at Oxford, but that game may be moved to Saturday night. When the game is played makes little difference to Banks, who said he knows very little about the Oxford team since his scouting film was destroyed. “We don’t have much to go on, but we know we have to stop Wonka (Paul),” Banks said. “They like to run and throw the ball, that type of stuff we know. We’ll just have to play it by ear. I’ve never had to face Oxford (as a coach), and it’s not like we’re playing Delhi or Walton, who have got their set ways.”
Banks said that for much of last week’s game, he was continually making adjustments. After a strong start, B-G dominated the middle periods and the first part of the fourth quarter. At that point, Banks said his offense began to click with quarterback Brandon Miles throwing a pair of touchdown passes.
“We kind of figured out what to do on offense, but it was a too late,” Banks said. “We have athleticim but we’re still young. We have a lot of guys that had not seen the speed and strength of the varsity game. It was a real eye-opener for those kids. With a game under their belt, they know more what to expect.”
Note: Oxford’s athletics department said the reschedule date for the UV-Edmeston game is undetermined. Please check the Oxford school website at www.oxac.org and click on the athletics link.
Elsewhere this weekend:
Greene (1-0) at Chenango Forks (1-0), Saturday, 1:30 p.m.
Any school in proximity to the Chenango and Susquehanna River was at risk for flood damage to its field, so tomorrow’s game at Forks remains a question mark as of press time.
When these two teams do meet, it could be a preview of the Section IV playoffs two months down the road. The Blue Devils added another Section IV title to its already long list beating Sidney in last year’s championship game. Along the way, Forks pulled away from a tight game against Greene sprinkling in some well executed pass plays. “They kind of caught us with a couple of plays they don’t usually run,” said Greene coach Tim Paske. “We will need to take away their big plays.”
Forks was its typical self in dealing Windsor a 33-8 loss last week. Fullback Lukas Aston appears to be the go-to guy, Paske said, smallish Jacob Green is an elusive running back who picked up big yards last week, and Zach Jeske mans the controls as the starting quarterback. Jeske was a backup a year ago, but came on in the second half of last year’s state playoff game against General Brown, and nearly led his team to victory. “They do a nice job of running their offense,” Paske said. “It seems like they really want to feature the fullback, and if they need something done, (Aston) is the guy they’ll give the ball to.”
Paske said his team’s number one key to success is take care of the ball. “Number two, when we have the ball, we need to sustain drives and score,” the Greene coach said. “With the kids we have, we want to commit to the running game. If we can do that, we’ll limit (Chenango Forks’) opportunities.”
The Trojans only attempted three passes last week, and really didn’t need that aspect of the game. Quarterback Joe Beckwith handles the ball well out of the “Pistol” formation, and Paske said his team is more than capable of completing some passes. “We might have to do that, and we’re willing to give that a shot,” Paske said. “We have some good kids in our skill positions, and we need to get them the ball.”
Clinton (0-1) at Sherburne-Earlville (0-1), Saturday, 2 p.m.
The Marauders’ game was shifted to Saturday afternoon with a tentative 2 p.m. starting time. The return to the field could not come soon enough, said head coach Mike Jasper. His team led for the majority of last week’s 28-21 loss to Frankfort-Schuyler. Mistakes mounted in the second half, and S-E was unable to thwart a last-minute F-S drive. “We’re trying to take whatever positives we can out of that game,” Jasper said. “We matched up physically, and did a lot of good things from that standpoint. Offensively, we put some points on the board, and we’re probably a little ahead of last year on offense.”
Clinton dropped a 20-16 final to Morrisville-Hamilton last week. Quarterback Jordan Chroback leads the Clinton offense. He is able to throw on the run, although Jasper thinks Chroback is more dangerous scrambling and running for extra years. “If he gets free outside the pocket,” Jasper said of Chroback, “it could be a long day for the defense.”
Another positive for S-E was the zero turnovers, another big improvement over last year. Starting running backs Cory Musician, Devven Ferris, and Austin Jasper helped S-E run for 210 yards, while the defense only gave up 117 net rushing yards. “We moved the ball and were able to score points,” Jasper said. “We just didn’t do the little things right. We still have to close the deal and not make mistakes in crucial moments.”
B-G (1-0) at Whitney Point (0-1), Saturday, 1:30 p.m.
Pending the weather, B-G will play its second non-league game of the season tomorrow against a Golden Eagles club that may have lost top returning rusher – Wyatt Soeffing – for the season due to injury. “We’ll see what happens (with Soeffing),” said B-G coach Tim Mattingly. “They have some big offensive linemen, and their quarterback is pretty good. He throws it well and seems to be a good athlete.”
Harpursville won the physical battle with Whitney Point last week, and that’s the type of performance Mattingly expects from his team this week. The lack of practice time this week, may hamper the overall execution. “It’s a non-division game, and that helps,” Mattingly said. “We went over the scouting report and films on Monday. We’re aware of what we’ll see defensively.”
Martinson said that Norwich may reschedule the game to either Saturday, Sunday or Monday night, and we will proceed with our weekly game previews under the presumption that ever game will be played.
When the Tornado do tee it up for kickoff against the Indians, it will be an opportunity to avenge last year’s Section IV Class B playoff loss. Owego dominated the Tornado winning by four touchdown in a game where Norwich was never really in it after the opening quarter. “Teams usually get better as the season goes on, and I was not pleased with last year’s game,” Martinson said of his playoff loss. “We’re trying to focus more on ourselves and play Norwich football instead of worry about the other team.”
From a defensive standpoint, last week’s NHS win over Sus Valley was vintage Norwich. The Purple defenders recorded eight tackles for a loss led by Kegan Levesque and first-year starting linebacker, Jaden MacRabie. Norwich’s offense also put three touchdowns on the board. Last season, Norwich had just two contests where it scored as many as three touchdowns in a game. “We only scored six points in our first game last year, so from that standpoint, we’re ahead of where we were last year on offense,” Martinson said. “However, looking at film, we still have some work to do.”
Owego dropped its opening game to Union-Endicott in a non-league game. The Tigers are led by strong-armed quarterback Nick Larrabee, who threw three TD passes against the Tornado in a 32-6 win. Also back this year are key returning backs Derek Knapp and Dylan Angulus. “Owego is all about misdirection, and they played well against us last year,” Martinson said.
––
UV-Edmeston coach Brian Banks had technical difficulties last weekend, ill-timed injuries, and his opening game against Bainbridge-Guilford was the first time his players hit someone other than a teammate in practice.
Banks said his headsets during the game were not working, and his scout that video-taped this week’s opponent, Oxford, was given a corrupted disk that proved worthless. To top it all off, two starting linemen suffered injuries last week, and two more are out for this weekend’s scheduled game with Oxford.
UV-Edmeston and Oxford will not play this evening due to the school cancellation at Oxford, but that game may be moved to Saturday night. When the game is played makes little difference to Banks, who said he knows very little about the Oxford team since his scouting film was destroyed. “We don’t have much to go on, but we know we have to stop Wonka (Paul),” Banks said. “They like to run and throw the ball, that type of stuff we know. We’ll just have to play it by ear. I’ve never had to face Oxford (as a coach), and it’s not like we’re playing Delhi or Walton, who have got their set ways.”
Banks said that for much of last week’s game, he was continually making adjustments. After a strong start, B-G dominated the middle periods and the first part of the fourth quarter. At that point, Banks said his offense began to click with quarterback Brandon Miles throwing a pair of touchdown passes.
“We kind of figured out what to do on offense, but it was a too late,” Banks said. “We have athleticim but we’re still young. We have a lot of guys that had not seen the speed and strength of the varsity game. It was a real eye-opener for those kids. With a game under their belt, they know more what to expect.”
Note: Oxford’s athletics department said the reschedule date for the UV-Edmeston game is undetermined. Please check the Oxford school website at www.oxac.org and click on the athletics link.
Elsewhere this weekend:
Greene (1-0) at Chenango Forks (1-0), Saturday, 1:30 p.m.
Any school in proximity to the Chenango and Susquehanna River was at risk for flood damage to its field, so tomorrow’s game at Forks remains a question mark as of press time.
When these two teams do meet, it could be a preview of the Section IV playoffs two months down the road. The Blue Devils added another Section IV title to its already long list beating Sidney in last year’s championship game. Along the way, Forks pulled away from a tight game against Greene sprinkling in some well executed pass plays. “They kind of caught us with a couple of plays they don’t usually run,” said Greene coach Tim Paske. “We will need to take away their big plays.”
Forks was its typical self in dealing Windsor a 33-8 loss last week. Fullback Lukas Aston appears to be the go-to guy, Paske said, smallish Jacob Green is an elusive running back who picked up big yards last week, and Zach Jeske mans the controls as the starting quarterback. Jeske was a backup a year ago, but came on in the second half of last year’s state playoff game against General Brown, and nearly led his team to victory. “They do a nice job of running their offense,” Paske said. “It seems like they really want to feature the fullback, and if they need something done, (Aston) is the guy they’ll give the ball to.”
Paske said his team’s number one key to success is take care of the ball. “Number two, when we have the ball, we need to sustain drives and score,” the Greene coach said. “With the kids we have, we want to commit to the running game. If we can do that, we’ll limit (Chenango Forks’) opportunities.”
The Trojans only attempted three passes last week, and really didn’t need that aspect of the game. Quarterback Joe Beckwith handles the ball well out of the “Pistol” formation, and Paske said his team is more than capable of completing some passes. “We might have to do that, and we’re willing to give that a shot,” Paske said. “We have some good kids in our skill positions, and we need to get them the ball.”
Clinton (0-1) at Sherburne-Earlville (0-1), Saturday, 2 p.m.
The Marauders’ game was shifted to Saturday afternoon with a tentative 2 p.m. starting time. The return to the field could not come soon enough, said head coach Mike Jasper. His team led for the majority of last week’s 28-21 loss to Frankfort-Schuyler. Mistakes mounted in the second half, and S-E was unable to thwart a last-minute F-S drive. “We’re trying to take whatever positives we can out of that game,” Jasper said. “We matched up physically, and did a lot of good things from that standpoint. Offensively, we put some points on the board, and we’re probably a little ahead of last year on offense.”
Clinton dropped a 20-16 final to Morrisville-Hamilton last week. Quarterback Jordan Chroback leads the Clinton offense. He is able to throw on the run, although Jasper thinks Chroback is more dangerous scrambling and running for extra years. “If he gets free outside the pocket,” Jasper said of Chroback, “it could be a long day for the defense.”
Another positive for S-E was the zero turnovers, another big improvement over last year. Starting running backs Cory Musician, Devven Ferris, and Austin Jasper helped S-E run for 210 yards, while the defense only gave up 117 net rushing yards. “We moved the ball and were able to score points,” Jasper said. “We just didn’t do the little things right. We still have to close the deal and not make mistakes in crucial moments.”
B-G (1-0) at Whitney Point (0-1), Saturday, 1:30 p.m.
Pending the weather, B-G will play its second non-league game of the season tomorrow against a Golden Eagles club that may have lost top returning rusher – Wyatt Soeffing – for the season due to injury. “We’ll see what happens (with Soeffing),” said B-G coach Tim Mattingly. “They have some big offensive linemen, and their quarterback is pretty good. He throws it well and seems to be a good athlete.”
Harpursville won the physical battle with Whitney Point last week, and that’s the type of performance Mattingly expects from his team this week. The lack of practice time this week, may hamper the overall execution. “It’s a non-division game, and that helps,” Mattingly said. “We went over the scouting report and films on Monday. We’re aware of what we’ll see defensively.”
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