Apr 12
Football
March 7, 2013 – David Murello tapped as Ballston Spa football coach
Courtesy DAVID M. JOHNSON djohnson@saratogaian.com Twitter.com/davidmichael10
BALLSTON SPA — Ballston Spa art teacher David Murello is familiar with intricate design.
Next fall, the Clifton Park resident has designs to turn Ballston Spa football program into a masterpiece.
Murello was named head football coach at Ballston Spa Wednesday filling the position John Bowen vacated in after the 2012 season.
“I’ve been here since 2007 and with John stepping down I saw as an opportunity to become more involved,” Murello said. “With coach (David) Sunkes’ help, I was ready for next step … keep us going in the right direction.”
Murello, a 1999 Shenendehowa alum, played four years of football at Alfred University before beginning his coaching career as a student assistant with the team. He went on to become an assistant coach at Hudson Valley Community College in 2004 and a graduate assistant at McDaniel College in Westminster, Md.
He joined the Scotties’ football program as the freshman coach in 2007 before assisting the varsity directly in 2009.
“We’re going to continue to fight that battle of being one of the smaller (Class) AA teams,” Murello said. “We’ve been one of the more successful programs, playing meaningful games in Week 8 and Week 9.”
Ballston Spa made the playoffs the past seven seasons under Bowen, who was named head football coach of Schuylerville in February.
Murello expects to bring his personal touch to the Scotties’ football tradition.
“I bring my enthusiasm and knowledge of ‘X’s and ‘O’s,” Murello said. “But, the fact is winning is not the endgame. I’ve rather instill character, good vales (and) prepare them for the next step.
“Yeah we’d like to win, but we turned out a lot of seniors who are going to be very productive young men no matter what they do in life.”
R.J. Wait, a 2011 Ballston Spa alum, was coached by Murello on the freshman team in 2007, then again on the 2009 varsity team that went to the Class AA Super Bowl. Murello was a big proponent of Bowen’s flexbone triple option offense when Wait was on the team.
“He’s very motivational, high intensity very much like coach Bowen,” Wait said. “I think he’s going to bring some good talent to the team. People in Ballston Spa need someone who’s tough not soft.”
Feb. 12 – Former Ballston Spa coach John Bowen to take over Schuylerville
Courtesy TYLER MICHAUD tmichaud@saratogian.com Twitter.com/TheSensAsian
SCHUYLERVILLE — When John Bowen resigned as head football coach at Ballston Spa Dec. 20, many thought he may have been drained after his Scotties suffered a 2-7 season. A 2-7 season where Bowen experienced the heartbreak and frustration of losing their first three games in the closing minutes by a total of nine points.
That turned out to be far from the truth as of Monday, when he was named head coach of the Class B Schuylerville Black Horses.
“I didn’t step down at Ballston Spa because I was tired or needed to be recharged,” Bowen said. “There’s no story outside this being a family decision.”
Upon is resignation at Ballston Spa, Bowen cited becoming a better family man as the determining factor in his decision. But as the last few months have come and gone, Bowen’s feeling on his decision began to change, and O’Connor’s resignation opened up a new opportunity for Bowen, a Schuylerville native.
“It was some what surprising,” Bowen said on his change of heart. “My feelings changed over the past few months. I talked it over with my wife. We made the decision with the understanding that I would be around more in the fall, in closer proximity to my children. In Ballston Spa, it was difficult to do both jobs well — being a football coach and a dad to my sons.”
“None of the reason that I left Ballston Spa were a reason that I could not coach (in Schuylerville).”
Bowen’s sons — Tyler, Zachary and Joshua ages 6, 9, and 11 — all attend Schuylerville Elementary and play football in the Schuylerville youth program. In his resignation press release, Bowen stated that, “Stepping down at this time will enable me to be available for my sons as they continue their young football careers at Schuylerville.” With that being said, Bowen will be as big a part of the youth football program as the organization wants him to be.
“I will keep my hand in (the youth football system) as much as I did in Ballston Spa,” Bowen said. “That is something I look to foster as much as the youth program wants me to. Whatever level they want, I’ll be here for them. It was an effort at Ballston Spa, and it’s an effort here (in Schuylerville) now.”
When asked if the opportunity to one day coach his sons was a draw to the position, the 42-year-old said, “Not necessarily. That was something my wife and I talked about, and is something that would be a challenge in itself.”
As for the Black Horses’ football program as a whole, Bowen deployed the flex-bone offense at Ballston Spa last fall, which is also the same scheme O’Connor ran with his Shane Lyon-led 2012 Schuylerville squad. The only concern is how returning players may react to the change at the team’s helm.
“We as football coaches (and players) are creatures of habit. I’m sure the boys feel some level of uncertainty. Football guys hate change,” Bowen said of the beginning of his era at Schuylerville. “But we have worked closely with the staff at Schuylerville over the years, so there is a lot of familiarity there. So that should bode well as far as making the transition as seamless as possible.”
But when it’s all said and done, Bowen will always be a father first. Now as coach at Schuylerville, Bowen has an opportunity he never really had coaching the Scotties, and is one he has wanted since he started coaching over two decades ago.
“Something I envisioned 20 years ago when I first started coaching was to have my kids around on the sideline as water boys and towel boys, and that was a driving point for me,” Bowen said. “Ultimately, I want my sons to be close to the team so that they can look up to and find role models in the guys playing for me. That is my hope.”
Nov. 20 – TW3 bringing all five NYSPHSAA games to you
Time Warner Cable Sports TW3 will bring all five New York State Public High School Athletic Association championship games from the Syracuse Carrier Dome this weekend for all high school fans.
The local cable programmer will then follow-up with a plethora of college basketball including Syracuse University, Siena and UAlbany.
Wednesday, November 21st
College Basketball
7 PM – Princeton at Syracuse
#TWCS
Friday, November 23rd
High School Football
NYSPHSAA Class D Championship
Noon – Tuckahoe vs. Randolph
#TWCS
High School Football
NYSPHSAA Class A Championship
3 PM – Burnt Hills vs. Sweet Home
#TWCS
AHL Hockey
7 PM – Albany at Rochester
#TWCS
Saturday, November 24th
High School Football
NYSPHSAA Class C Championship
Noon – Hoosick Falls vs. Hornell
#TWCS
College Football – Channel 1
Noon – TBA at TBA
High School Football
NYSPHSAA Class B Championship
3 PM – Glens Falls vs. Maine Endwell
#TWCS
High School Football
NYSPHSAA Class AA Championship
6 PM – New Rochelle vs. Orchard Park
#TWCS
Sunday, November 25th
College Basketball
1 PM – Colgate at Syracuse
#TWCS
Monday, November 26th
College Basketball
7 PM – Wagner at UAlbany
#TWCS
Tuesday, November 27th
Women’s College Basketball
7 PM – Canisius at Binghamton
#TWCS
Wednesday, November 28th
College Basketball
7 PM – UMass at Siena
#TWCS
College Basketball – Channel 1
7 PM – Temple at Buffalo
Friday, November 30th
College Hockey
7 PM – St. Lawrence at Colgate
#TWCS
College Hockey – Channel 1
7 PM – Sacred Heart at Niagara
Saturday, December 1st
College Basketball
7 PM – UAlbany at Siena
#TWCS
College Hockey – Channel 1
7 PM – Buffalo St. at Utica
*Game available on TWC SportsChannel On Demand (Time Warner Cable, Channel 1003) two (2) to three (3) days after the original air date.
# Available on Time Warner Cable, Channel 50 in Albany (1803 HD), Channel 413 in the Hudson Valley (461 HD), Channel 14 in Ticonderoga, and on Channel 45 in Massachusetts.
For more information on Time Warner Cable SportsChannel please visit www.twcablesports.com.
Nov. 15 – Local lineman Tyler Hurd lines up against UAlbany Saturday
Saratoga Springs resident Tyler Hurd will again be in the starting line-up at offensive left tackle Saturday afternoon when Central Connecticut State faces the University at Albany at 1 p.m.
The 6-foot 4-inch 290 pound local product attended Vermont Academy before committing to Central Connecticut State University. He has competed in eight of the Blue Devils 10 games in his freshman season.
Nov. 14 Class B, C and D football rankings
Courtesy of www.newyorksportswriters.org
Nov. 14 rankings Class B, C and D
Class B
1. Maine-Endwell-4 (11-0)
2. Alden-6 (11-0)
3. Marlboro-9 (11-0)
4. Our Lady of Lourdes-1 (9-1)
5. Glens Falls-2 (10-1)
6. Cazenovia-3 (9-2)
7. East Rochester-Gananda-5 (9-2)
8. Peru-7 (9-2)
9. Chittenango-3 (9-1)
10. Schalmont-2 (8-2)
11. Roosevelt-8 (7-2)
12. Livonia-5 (7-3)
13. Geneva-5 (8-1)
14. Pleasantville-1 (6-3)
15. Depew-6 (8-1)
16. Lansingburgh-2 (8-1)
17. Spackenkill-9 (7-3)
18. Cheektowaga-6 (8-1)
19. Malone-10 (8-2)
20. Hackley-AIS (7-1)
HONORABLE MENTION: Ardsley 5-3, Beekmantown 6-3, Broadalbin-Perth 5-3, Buffalo Burgard 6-3, Camden 6-3, Chenango Valley 6-4, Eden 6-3, Evander Childs-PSAL 6-3, Hampton Bays 6-3, Homer 6-2, Franklin Lane-PSAL 7-1, Lutheran-AIS 7-0, Mineola 5-4, Nanuet 5-3, New Paltz 6-3, Newark 6-3, Oneida 6-3, Petrides-PSAL 6-3, Ravena-Coeymns-Selkirk 7-2, Afred Smith 7-2, Springville 5-5, Stuyvesant-PSAL 6-2.
Class C
1. Hornell-5 (11-0)
2. Hoosick Falls-2 (11-0)
3. Chenango Forks-4 (1!-0)
4. Waverly-4 (9-1)
5. Babylon-11 (9-0)
6. James I. O’Neill-9 (9-2)
7. Saranac Lake-7 (10-1)
8. Skaneateles-3 (10-1)
9. Woodlands-1 (9-1)
10. Cleveland Hill-6 (8-3)
11. Le Roy-5 (8-2)
12. Rye Neck-1 (8-1)
13. Chatham-2 (9-1)
14. Herkimer-3 (8-2)
15. Fredonia-6 (7-3)
16. Bishop Ludden-3 (7-2)
17. General Brown-3 (7-1)
18. Cheektowaga JFK-6 (7-2)
19. Sidney-4 (6-3)
20. (tie) Attica-5 (6-3)
20. (tie) Mercy-11 (7-2)
HONORABLE MENTION: Albertus Magnus 6-2, Canastota 6-2, Dobbs Ferry 5-3, Dover 5-3, Elba/Byron-Bergen 6-2, Frankfort-Schuyler 5-3, Greene 6-3, Lansing 6-3, Liberty 7-3, Lowville 6-3, Mechanicville 6-3, Millbrook 6-3, Mynderse 5-3, Salamanca 7-2, Sullivan West 6-3, Tully 5-3, Wilson 6-3.
Class D
1. Tioga-4 (10-1)
2. Randolph-6 (9-2)
3. Rensselaer-2 (10-1)
4. Tuckahoe-1 (7-2-1)
5. Maple Grove-6 (9-1)
6. Avon-5 (9-2)
7. Sandy Creek-3 (10-1)
8. Westmoreland-3 (7-3)
9. Cambridge-2 (8-1)
10. Batavia Notre Dame-5 (8-2)
11. Red Jacket-5 (8-1)
12. West Canada-3 (8-1)
13. Unatego-4 (6-3)
14. Clyde-Savannah-5 (7-2)
15. Weedsport-3 (7-2)
16. Greenwich-2 (6-2)
17. Groton-4 (7-3)
18. Port Byron-3 (6-2)
19. Harpursville-4 (7-2)
20. Perry-5 (5-3)
HONORABLE MENTION: Canajoharie 5-3, Chester 7-4, Clymer 7-2, Dolgeville 5-3, Ellicottville 7-2, Elmira Notre Dame 5-3, Letchworth 5-3, Moriah 5-5, Portville 5-4, Salem 5-5, Sauquoit Valley 5-3, Silver Creek 5-4, Spencer-Van Etten 7-2, Stony Brook 5-3, Union Springs 5-2, York 5-3.
Nov. 14 – Class AA and A NYSSWA rankings
Courtesy of www.newyorksportswriters.org
Class AA
1. Shaker-2 (10-0)
2. Canisius-MMA (10-0)
3. Syracuse CBA-3 (11-0)
4. Tottenville-PSAL (8-1)
5. Iona Prep-CHSFL (7-1)
6. St. Anthony’s-CHSFL (6-2)
7. New Rochelle-1 (9-1)
8. Orchard Park-6 (10-1)
9. Erasmus Hall-PSAL (9-0)
10. Chaminade-CHSFL (7-1)
11. Farmingdale-8 (8-1)
12. Aquinas-5 (7-4)
13. Jamestown-6 (8-2)
14. Shenendehowa-2 (8-2)
15. Pittsford-5 (8-2)
16. Pine Bush-9 (9-2)
17. North Rockland-1 (7-2)
18. Baldwinsville-3 (8-2)
19. Rush-Henrietta-5 (8-1)
20. Oceanside-8 (8-1)
21. Sachem North-11 (7-2)
22. Abraham Lincoln-PSAL (7-2)
23. Connetquot-11 (8-1)
24. Fayetteville-Manlius-3 (7-2)
25. East Islip (8-1)
26. Boys & Girls-PSAL (8-1)
27. Hilton-5 (7-2)
28. St. Joe’s by the Sea-CHSFL (7-1)
29. Monroe-Woodbury-9 (7-3)
30. Brooklyn Tech-PSAL (7-2)
HONORABLE MENTION: Albany CBA 7-2, Baldwin 7-2, Binghamton 8-3, Buffalo St. Joseph 8-3, Clarkstown North 5-3, Commack 6-3, Corning 6-3, Curtis-PSAL 6-3, East Meadow 6-3, Frontier 6-3, John Jay East Fishkill 5-3, Lockport 6-3, MacArthur 8-1, Mamaroneck 6-2, Massapequa 6-3, Minisink Valley 6-3, Northport 6-3, North Babylon 6-3, Port Richmond-PSAL 7-2, Riverhead 7-2, Schenectady 6-3, Smithtown East 5-4, Syracuse Henninger 6-3, Thomas Jefferson-PSAL 6-2, Ward Melville 5-4, Warwick Valley 5-3, Washingtonville 5-3, West Islip 8-1, William Floyd 7-2.
Class A
1. Lawrence-8 (9-0)
2. Sweet Home-6 (11-0)
3. Sayville-11 (9-0)
4. Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake-2 (10-1)
5. Cornwall-9 (11-0)
6. Eastridge-5 (10-1)
7. Union-Endicott-4 (9-1)
8. Somers-1 (9-1)
9. Harrison-1 (8-1)
10. Seaford-8 (9-0)
11. Miller Place-11 (8-1)
12. Grady-PSAL (9-0)
13. Sleepy Hollow-1 (8-2)
14. Syracuse Nottingham-3 (8-3)
15. West Hempstead-8 (8-1)
16. Jamesville-DeWitt-3 (9-1)
17. West Seneca East-6 (9-1)
18. St. Francis Prep-CHS (7-1)
19. Brewster-1 (8-1)
20. Mount Sinai-11 (8-1)
21. Garden City-8 (8-1)
22. Poughkeepsie-1 (6-2)
23. Grand Island-6 (7-2)
24. Indian River-3 (7-2)
25. Troy-2 (6-3)
26. St. John the Baptist-CHSFL (7-1)
27. South Shore-PSAL (8-1)
28. Canandaigua-5 (6-4)
29. Brockport-5 (8-1)
30. Victor-5 (6-2)
HONORABLE MENTION: Amsterdam 6-4, Bayside-PSAL 6-3, Carey 7-2 Glen Cove 8-1, Huntington 7-2, Iroquois 7-2, John Jay Cross River 5-3, Kings Park 5-4, Lafayette-PSAL 7-2, Long Beach 5-4, Plainedge 7-2, Potsdam 9-2, Shoreham-Wading River 7-2, Spencerport 6-2, Samuel Tilden-PSAL 7-2, Wallkill 6-4, Walter Panas 5-3, Wantagh 7-2, Whitesboro 6-3, Yonkers Saunders 6-2, Yorktown 6-2, Xavier-CHSFL 6-2.
Shaker shuts out Shenendehowa in Class AA Super Bowl, 14-0
CLIFTON PARK — Defense wins championships.
The Shaker varsity football team proved that, posting two big plays and never letting its defense rest, shutting out Shenendehowa 14-0 to claim its first-ever Section II Class AA Super Bowl title Friday night at Shenendehowa.
The Bison proved to be superior in week five of the regular season, defeating the Plainsmen, 35-8, but were on a mission to quiet the naysayers that it wasn’t a fluke.
“We didn’t get a lot of respect from that and every one said how Shen was going to be different this game, so we still had a lot of prove and that was out goal, Section II champions, not to beat Shen week five,” Shaker running back Ryan Griffin said.
The senior back rushed or a paltry six yards in the first half before exploding for 119 additional yards, including a game-changing 41 yard run with six minutes remaining in the contest to give Shaker the precious 14-0 lead.
We made a few adjustments within our offensive line, how we were going to block, but it was all him finding seams and our offensive lines getting a good push,” Shaker head coach Greg Sheeler said.
“It wasn’t me. It was my line, it was my team, my coaches and I just ran like I always do,” Griffin said.
Shaker struck first, putting Shenendehowa back on its heels when quarterback Chris Landers hit Michael Mainella for an 80-yard catch and run for a touchdown less than one minute into the contest.
The quick strike deflated the Plainsmen fans and elated the Bison fans who traveled well to Brent T. Steuerwald Stadium Friday night.
The pressure remained on Shenendehowa’s offense to break through the Shaker defense.
“The defense battled in the first half, the whole game, we battled, we just couldn’t’ seem to get over the hump offensively,” Shenendehowa coach Brian Clawson said. “We had some opportunities over the 50-yard line and it just seemed that we were in those long down and distance situations and we thought we could move the ball in the second half, and we started to do that, but we shot ourselves in the foot and we couldn’t overcome that.”
Shaker sacked Plainsmen quarterback Ryan Buss four times on the night and the Plainsmen turned the ball over twice, the most miscues it has had in a single game all season.
“Their defense was fast, we tough, we could get to the outside a little bit on them, but they have very good defensive speed on the outside and that limited us to running between the tackles,” Clawson said. “We tried to throw the ball and they just brought the house and we had trouble finding time to get rid of the ball.”
The defense earned the game ball Friday night and that was without Griffin’s services on the other side of the ball.
“I got a little nicked up last game and my team needed me on offense, so whatever they needed me for I had to focus on,” Griffin said.
He was able to focus on the job at hand, following his blockers throughout the second half and keeping the ball out of the Shen offense.
“The line, they opened the holes up and it was going to be a four quarter fight and whatever team fought the longest was going to win the game,” Griffin said. “The fourth quarter we came out in the Hammer-I formation and just pounded them. The line did their job and it allowed me to do mine.”
For Shaker, the first-ever Super Bowl appearance was a sequel to the regular season victory.
“It was important for us to get over the hump,” Sheeler said. “Shen has been the class of Section II for a long time.
“We haven’t had success for the last several years and for us to have success in week five going into this game was huge going into this game.
“We knew that this was going to be tough,” Sheeler said. “This is week 10, they got here for a reason, they are an excellent football team, they are very well coached, and we knew it would be a dog fight. I felt good when I got the water over my head, other than that I just wanted to get out of that game.”
For Sheeler, the ice cold water cooler shower was his reward for his squad’s accomplishments Friday night.
“I couldn’t be any more proud of our kids,” Sheeler said. “They did an outstanding job, our defense did an outstanding job today, our kids kept grinding and that touchdown by Ryan Griffin in the fourth quarter was huge for us.
“We were battling and Shen did a great job of mixing up their fronts, their coaches did a great job preparing them,” Sheeler said. “We knew that if we could get the game into the fourth quarter we could take them up front.”
The Class AA Super Bowl was guaranteed to be a first for one of the coaches, a sectional title for Shaker or the first title for Shenendehowa’s Clawson.
“I’m so lucky to have this group of seniors as my first senior class,” Clawson said. “I think the world of them; they mean the world to this football program.
“Right from the beginning, when I got hired, they were at the press conference and they have been with us the entire season,” Clawson said. “They give their heart and soul to this program and you never want this day to come and it did”
Shen drops Columbia in Section II Class A playoff opener
CLIFTON PARK — Five-foot-10 Shenendehowa senior running back Corey Acker was able to out-duel Columbia’s Chris Smith as the Plainsmen advanced to a 34-12 Section II Class AA win over the Blue Devils at Brent T. Steuerwald Stadium Friday night.
Acker rushed for 151 yards on just seven carries and scored three touchdowns in addition to hauling in a clutch 56-yard touchdown pass in the closing seconds of the first half.
Smith rushed for 178 yards on 29 carries, including a dazzling 77-yard run late in the first quarter to knot the contest 6-6 as Columbia’s wildcat offense kept the Plainsmen defense at bay in the first half.
“Chris has had an unbelievable career for us, he’s done a tremendous amount for us,” Columbia coach Craig Cavotta said. “It’s great to see our last game, but its great to see him go out with such a great game against a great team. “
Acker’s first score with 4:35 left in the first quarter was innocent enough, a nine-yard run over the left side, giving Shenendehowa an early 6-0 lead.
Smith continued to carry the Blue Devils on his shoulder pads, carrying the ball 10 times for 39 yards on a 78-yard scoring drive that also saw him complete a jump pass to Jacob Faas on a fourth-and-four at mid-field for a 30-yard completion to take a 12-6 lead.
“We came out with a good game plan, our kids came out and executed hard,” Cavotta said. “A couple of guys got hurt in the first half that we couldn’t account for and they were able to wear us down and get to us in the second half.”
The Blue Devils saw senior Kenny Mathieu go down with a right leg injury midway through the second quarter. He was assisted off the field, not putting any weight on his right leg and had ice taped to his knee and was on crutches for the remainder of the contest.
The Wildcat was a unique offense to defend for the Plainsmen.
We did it more with Matthew (Drum) as the quarterback in our practice, not as much with (Jeremiah) Smith, but they had a little bit more of a different formation in the Wildcat also,” Shenendehowa coach Brian Clawson said. “We were prepare for it, but when you have two running backs the quality of Matthew and Smith against our first-team defense it’s tough to simulate.
“Our scout team did a great job and our defense did a great job in preparation for it was great,” Clawson said. “It was a battle in the first half.”
Acker proceeded to catch a Ryan Buss 56-yard strike with 28 seconds left in the half with Anthony Vilardi converting the PAT for the 13-12 lead.
“That long pass from Ryan (Buss) to Corey Acker to put us up by one going into the half was such a momentum-changer, it was absolutely huge,” Clawson said. “Every single person on our team, including the staff, we had a great deal of confidence coming in from there.
“Mark McQuade, Ryan Fenton and Jim Ward all made some great adjustments at halftime defensively,” Clawson said. “We came out in the second half and we completely shut them down and that was very impressive.”
Corey Acker’s night wasn’t over.
With the contest hanging in the balance in the third quarter, Acker completed his Invisible Man to Flash impersonation, getting lost in a plethora of bodies at the line of scrimmage to streak down the sideline for a 75-yard touchdown run with 36 seconds left in the third quarter.
After Columbia fumbled the football deep in their own territory on the next possession, senior tailback Marcelino Christie ran in from nine yards out to give Shenendehowa breathing room, 27-12.
Acker then put the game away, capping his highlight reel with a 64-yard touchdown run with 8:12 left in the fourth quarter to put Shen ahead, 34-12.
“We were just planning on runs, five-yards at a time, trying to chip away,” Corey Acker said. “Our line was doing a great job getting push off the ball and we had great downfield blocking so one or two cuts here and there and it just opened up. We were very determined tonight.”
SHENENDEHOWA 34, COLUMBIA 12
Columbia 6 6 0 0 — 12
Shenendehowa 6 7 7 14 — 34
First Quarter
SH – Corey Acker 9 run. Kick failed. 4:35.
C – Chris Smith 77 run. Run failed. 3:36
Second Quarter
C – Smith 2 run. Run failed. 6:31
SH – Ryan Buss 56 pass Corey Acker. Anthony Vilardi kick. :28
Third Quarter
SH – Acker 75 run. Kick good. :30
Fourth Quarter
SH – Marcelino Christie 1 run. Vilardi kick. 11:24
SH – Acker 64 run. Vilardi kick. 8:12
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing
COLUMBIA – Chris Smith 29-178, Kenny Mathieu 3-3, Austin Lobban 3-5. SHENENDEHOWA – Marcelino Christie 14-80 TD, Corey Acker 7-151 3 TD, Kyle Buss 3-19, Christopher Miller 3-6, Ryan Buss 3-(-8), Oliver Robinson 3-11.
Receiving
COLUMBIA – Jacob Faas 1-30, Logan Marschner 1-17, Anthony Maney 2-11, Chris Smith 1-(-4). SHENENDEHOWA – Corey Acker 2-67 TD, Kyle Buss 1-19.
Passing
COLUMBIA – Chris Smith 1-2-0 30, Austin Lobban 4-9-1 24 yards.
Shen wins Empire Division title with 14-0 win at CBA
LATHAM — As much as some things change, they remain the same.
The Shenendehowa football squad saw the season bring a new coach, new wrinkles to its offensive play book, but it was its traditional defense that brought it another title, the Empire Division title, Friday night with a 14-0 win on the road at Christian Brothers Academy.
The Plainsmen (6-1) scored when it had to, took advantage of a key turnover by the Brothers (6-1) and posted its fourth shutout of the year.
“We had some struggles offensively tonight,” Shenendehowa defensive line coach Mark McQuade said. “CBA had an outstanding game plan against us, but we gave them some fits tonight as well.”
“I’m really proud of these guys,” McQuade said. “We had a game plan we stuck with and they played extremely well and extremely well at key times. That’s a sign of a really good football team when they can do that.”
Both squads exchanged punts throughout the first quarter before Shenendehowa senior quarterback Ryan Buss connected with senior wide out Corey Acker for an eight-yard toss in the corner of the end zone to open the second quarter.
CBA was unable to sustain any offensive drives and it proved costly when the Brothers fumbled the second half kickoff at its own 13-yard line and saw it recovered by Shenendehowa’s Anthony Lee. Just four plays later, senior tailback Marcelino Christie ran over the middle from three-yards out to give the Plainsmen some breathing room in the close contest, 14-0.
“We battled right to the end,” CBA coach Joe Burke said. “We mixed up the coverage on the first touchdown down there near the end zone, but I’m very proud of the kids.
The Shenendehowa defense kept Brothers senior quarterback Troy Anthony scrambling and held senior backs Cameron Wynn and Spencer Hall to just 68 yards rushing.
“They did a great job mixing up their defensive fronts and their coverages,” Burke said. “We have to get better at offense in these types of football games.
“We had some opportunities to get first downs and then we had some that we didn’t get it done,” Burke said. “We’ll work on that, next week is a different match-up, quite different from these guys.”
The Plainsmen defense went back to work after it was embarrassed by Shaker, giving up more than 400 yards on the ground, posting its second consecutive shutout this season.
“We prepared really well,” Shenendehowa senior defensive captain Christopher Miller said. “We filled every gap we could and got a good push on the line.
“Our D-line did great, our secondary did great covering the pass and Kyle (Buss) came up with a huge interception when they were driving down on us,” Miller said. “Our goal on the defense is to ‘get it, get off.’ Just every play, do your best, try to make that big play and I think we did that tonight.”
As the No. 1 seed in the Empire Division, Shenendehowa will host Colonie as the No. 4 Liberty Division squad 7 p.m. Friday at Steuerwald Stadium.
Shenendehowa 0 7 7 0 — 14
CBA 0 0 0 0 — 0
Second quarter
SH — Ryan Buss 8 pass to Corey Acker. Anthony Vilardi kick, 11:53.
Third quarter
SH —Marcelino Christie 3 run. Vilardki kick, 10:19.
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING
SHENENDEHOWA — Marcelino Christie 12-22 TD, Kyle Buss 7-39, Ryan Buss 4-(-6), Corey Acker 6-44, Christopher Miller 1-1, Oliver Robinson 5-37. Totals: 35-137. CBA — Cameron Wynn 12-55, Spencer Hall 6-13, Max Anthony 5-18, Elliot Croskey 4-9, Drew Brundige 1-0, Troy Anthony 3-0. Totals: 31-95.
RECEIVING
SHENENDEHOWA — Kyle Buss 5-49, Christopher Miller 1-5, Corey Acker 1-8 TD. CBA — Cameron Wynn 1-6.
PASSING
SHENENDEHOWA — Ryan Buss 7-15-1 62 yards. CBA — Troy Anthony 1-10-1 6 yards.
Adam Erno – Mechanicville tailback – Athlete of the Week
Mechanicville football player was selected as the Community News football Athlete of the Week.
Erno answered a Corinth score on the very next play, returning kickoff 86-yards for a score in the rain on a muddy field to put the Red Raiders ahead for good.
“We knew sooner or later the way the kicks were going that we would move the second line up and ran middle wall and it paid off,” Mechanicville coach Kevin Collins said.
Erno would finish with three touchdowns on the night —a 15-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Sal Cimino III, a run in from inside the five and his 86-yard jaunt through the Tomahawks special team.
“It felt great to be back out there, but my legs were not used to it, they were cramping up the whole game long,” Erno said. “(On the kickoff) I saw my lineman take some kid out and I just cut right up the side of him.”
His return was timely, propelling the Red Raiders to a 4-1 record and poised for a spot in the playoffs.
“It’s hard because we haven’t had him,” Collins said. “We felt comfortable putting him back in this week; this is what we were shooting for.”
Getting cleared to play couldn’t come sooner for Erno.
“Watching I hated it, it was awful,” Erno said. “The game against Tamarac, the game went into overtime and I know my team probably could have needed me, but I wasn’t there.”Stillwater retains Indian Bowl with win over Mechanicville
MECHANICVILLE — Two big plays by Mechanicville spelled doom for Corinth Friday night in a 25-13 Class C match-up on a muddy, sloppy Red Raider field.
A 63-yard scamper by Adam Dunn on the first play from scrimmage for Mechanicville and Adam Erno’s 86-yard kickoff return immediately after a Tomahawk score in the second quarter was too much for the Tomahawks to overcome in the rain.
“We gave up the kickoff return in the first half and that was a huge play for them,” Corinth coach Jeff Higgins said. “The kid made a great play. Then the opening play, that long of a run, you can’t give up those types of plays.
“Those two plays were huge for them,” Higgins repeated. “They hit us hard. Other than that, our defense played well, they are well coached team and they made plays when they had to.”
Both surprising scoring runs weren’t a happy mistake made by the Red Raiders Friday night.
“That first play from scrimmage we had worked on all week,” Mechanicville head coach Kevin Collins said. “We thought it would be open if he was going to be playing what he was playing defensively and it worked for us.
“We knew sooner or later the way the kicks were going that we would move the second line up and ran middle wall and it paid off,” Collins said.
Dunn would finish with 120 yards on 12 carries and it was Erno who had a career night, returning from a back injury suffered during week one.
“I wasn’t really sure (about yards), it is whatever coach calls,” Dunn said. “Our new system, this is what is all about and it was on a muddy field, it was tough to get your footing.
“We’d get a lot more on better fields,” Dunn said. “It was like swimming out there, it was a swamp.”
Erno was happy to contribute again for his Red Raider teammates.
“It felt great to be out there,” Erno said. “My legs were not ready, they were cramping up all night long.”
That didn’t stop him from taking it to the house from his own 14-yard line immediately after Corinth cut the Mechanicville lead, 18-13.
“I saw my lineman take some kid out and I just cut inside of him,” Erno said.”
A win next week by Mechanicville at Stillwater in the Indian Bowl will give the Red Raiders the No. 2 seed in the post-season playoffs.
MECHANICVILLE 25,CORINTH 13
Corinth 7 6 0 0 — 13
Mechanicville 12 13 0 0 — 25
First Quarter
MECH – Sal Cimino 2 run. PAT kick failed. 9:24.
COR – Blake Basmajian 15 pass to Zac Lucia. Andrew Jenkins kick. 3:40
MECH – Cimino 15 pass to Adam Erno. Run failed. :46
Second Quarter
MECH – Erno run. Pass failed. 8:06
COR – Basmajian 1 run. Kick failed. 5:38.
MECH – Erno 86 kick return. Louis Dinino kick. 5:19.
Third Quarter
No scoring.
Fourth Quarter
No scoring.
Corinth Mechanicville
First Downs 8 13
Rushes-Yards 37-143 36263
Passing 49 51
Comp-Att-Int 2-8-0 4-12-0
Records 1-4 4-1
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING
CORINTH — Kyle Mulcahy 21-63, Caleb Tucker 6-61, Blake Basmajian 10-19. Total: 37-143. Mechanicville — Adam Dunn 12-120, Sal Cimino 9-57, Adam Erno 3-12, Chris Provander 3-23, Chase Delossantos 9-48. Totals 36-263.
RECEIVING
CORINTH — Zac Lucia 1-15 TD, Caleb Tucker 1-34. Totals: 2-49. MECHANICVILLE — Adam Erno 1-15, Chase Delossantos 1-26, Noah Harpe 1-10, Adam Dunn 1-0. Totals: 4-51 TD.
PASSING
CORINTH — Blake Basmajian 2-49-0 TD. MECHANICVILLE — Sal Cimino 4-12-0 TD.
Sept. 21 – Shen rolls past Ballston Spa, 49-7
CLIFTON PARK — Shenendehowa senior Christopher Fama couldn’t have made his starting quarterback debut in front of a bigger audience Friday night at Steuerwald Stadium.
The undefeated Plainsmen faced rival Ballston Spa in the annual homecoming game in front of more than 4,000 fans and others watching at home as Time Warner Cable’s high school game of the week.
He didn’t disappoint.
Fama proved that he was a credible replacement to classmate Ryan Buss who went down with an ankle injury last week at Bethlehem, leading the Plainsmen to a 49-7 rout of Ballston Spa Friday night.
Fama was impressive with his 5-for-6 passing night that included three touchdown throws to three different receivers. He followed in the Plainsmen signal caller tradition of handing the ball off to his stable of backs without incident who also ran for four scores on the night.
“There was a lot of pressure,” Christopher Fama said. “There were thousands of people here. I was the last quarterback we have because everyone else is basically hurt. I just knew that I was ready.
“This week I got to run plays with the first team and I stayed after to work with the receivers,” Fama said. “That first pass I was a little nervous and just getting the cobwebs out. After that I settled down.”
That settling down included two touchdown strikes to Shenendehowa tailback Kyle Buss, one for 35-yards and a corner throw with 14 seconds left in the half.
“That was the plan,” Fama said. “In the huddle I told Kyle (Buss) that I was going to throw it to him, I knew that he was going to be open.”
Fama’s accuracy was a challenge for the Scotties.
“He put some balls in places that I’m sure if he could have had it back he would have brought them back three or four feet one way or another,” Ballston Spa coach John Bowen said. “Those kids made some great catches. Those receivers run some nice, crisp routs and not a lot of wasted motion and that makes it more difficult for our D’backs to get out of their breaks.”
Slated at No. 2 on the Plainsmen depth chart, Fama had to be ready for his chance to start for the injured Ryan Buss.
“He’s a great example of you just never know when your chance is going to come, and when it’s your chance you have to perform well,” Shenendehowa coach Brian Clawson said. “Chris has great composure, is an even-keeled personality.
“He never gets too high, he never gets too low and takes everything in stride,” Clawson said. “We were extremely proud under that pressure the way he played quarterback tonight.”
He also received praise from his new favorite receiver, Buss.
“If you watch him during practice you know he could start for any other team in Section II,” Buss said. “He stepped up and we believe in him. He’s been over the plays a thousand times and he got it done.”
The loss put the Scotties scrapping for a way into the Class AA playoff picture with four straight losses.
“Tonight wasn’t as close as we would have liked and didn’t put up the type of fight we would expect,” Bowen said. “That’s a great football team over there. We needed to have our ‘A’ game, Shen has a way of taking you out of your ‘A’ game.”
While the Shenendehowa offense gets the glory, Plainsmen coach Brian Clawson credited his defense with containing the Ballston Spa triple-option threat led by quarterback John McDonald.
“All 11 defense are strong,” Clawson said. “You look at our defense, our one through 11 are strong. There is not a weak link.
“Mark McQuade the defensive coordinator, Jim Ward the secondary coach and Ryan Fenton the linebacker coach, they together put an outstanding game plan against Ballston Spa and they worked really hard at it,” Clawson said. “They communicated that to the kids and the kids executed that top notch.”
SHENENDEHOWA 49, BALLSTON SPA 7
Ballston Spa 0 0 7 0 — 7
Shenendehowa 21 21 7 0 — 49
First Quarter
SH – Marcelino Christie 1 run. Anthony Vilardi kick, 6:12.
SH – Christie 3 run. Vilardi kick, 3:20.
SH – Christopher Fama 3 pass to Eric Hurd. Vilardi kick. :44
Second Quarter
SH – Fama 30 pass Kyle Buss. Vilardi kick, 8:17.
SH – Kyle Buss 48 run. Vilardi kick. 6:26
SH – Fama 18 pass to Buss. Vilardi kick. :14.5
Third Quarter
SH – Jared Allen 10 run. Vilardi kick. 9:40
BS – Matt Hommel 19 run. Ryan Keefe kick. 1:38
Fourth Quarter
No scoring.
Records: Ballston Spa 0-4, Shenendehowa 4-0
Sept. 20 – Preview: Ballston Spa at Shenendehowa – two roads converge
CLIFTON PARK — Success tonight in the Class AA Empire Division tilt between Ballston Spa and Shenendehowa could put the two programs on two different paths.
For the Scotties (0-3) a win against the Plainsmen (3-0) would right the ship for the Ballston Spa squad, while a loss would upend their season with several weeks left with little hope for a playoff run.
For Shenendehowa, it would be their fourth consecutive divisional win, another step towards a successful season for its new coach, Brian Clawson and the first win of a four-game gauntlet at season’s end.
For either team to be successful, focus will be the key.
“We’ve talked all week about focus,” Shenendehowa coach Brian Clawson said. “With this being homecoming week and everything that goes with it we have talked about focus.
“The players need to focus each day in practice, they need to focus when they are in school and they need to focus on their jobs Friday night,” Clawson said. “You can’t get caught up in the excitement of homecoming during the week and make mistakes against Ballston Spa or we could find ourselves in a negative situation Friday night.”
Defensive linebacker Lucas Buckley understands the role of focus against the Scotties tonight.
“It’s the predominant triple-option, simple, but complex at the same time,” Buckley said. “It’s assignment football. You can’t get caught looking in the backfield. You have to play your assignment and it’s up to us to follow through.”
Ballston Spa is the only opponent Shenendehowa is scheduled to face that runs the triple option and under Bowen, the Scotties have perfected it.
“If you guess, you’re probably going to make the wrong read,” Buckley said. “If you are on quarterback, you can’t get caught looking at the fullback running up the middle because it looks like he has the ball every play and the quarterback looks like he has the ball every play.”
Last year the Scotties shocked Class AA, scoring against the previously un-scored upon Plainsmen on their opening drive and provided some hits on the running backs that senior Marcelino Christie hasn’t forgotten.
“They are a tough team that has great conditioning, great heart and it shows in the way they play,” Christie said. “They are going to play hard, they are going to play hard, we need to match that and we need to beat them with speed. I’m very confident with our speed and very confident in each other to make each other’s blocks.”
Shenendehowa will also have a new look on offense, as Alex Plastini will be in his second week at center, filling in for injured starting center Brian Shellenback and starting quarterback Ryan Buss is on the mend after injuring his ankle last week at Bethlehem. He will be a game-time decision for Clawson and his staff who will determine his status, but senior Christopher Fama didn’t miss a beat in the second half last week on the road.
Sept. 21 – Athlete of the of Week – Shen’s Kyle Buss
CLIFTON PARK — Shenendehowa senior running back and defensive back Kyle Buss proved that his performance in the Plainsmen home opener wasn’t just a fluke as he continued his success Friday night at Bethlehem in a 57-0 Shenendehowa rout.
Buss scored on a 33-yard pass from his brother, Ryan Buss, finally reaching the end zone on the connection. Last week he just missed the pylon on a the opening pass play against Guilderland, deprived of his first brotherly scoring connection.
“It was great, not only for me, but for both of us,” Kyle Buss said. “I’m not thinking about that, I’m just thinking of putting points on the board for our team, but again it was special.”
He also scored on a seven-yard run early in the second quarter on a handoff from his brother and picked off a Bethlehem pass from Dan Robeson late in the second quarter.
He finished with two carriers for 38 yards and a touchdown along with two catches for 48 yards and another score.
“We have playmakers on our football team and so far up until this season we didn’t play Kyle a whole lot of offense and he was kind of our secret weapon,” Clawson said. “There’s no secret any more how good of an offensive player Kyle Buss is.
“He’s a shutdown corner on defense,” Clawson said. “It gives us another element to our offense that we haven’t shown yet and Kyle really stepped it up and did some great things tonight. We’re really looking forward to that three-pronged attack of Marcelino (Christie), Ryan and Kyle (Buss).
Sept. 14 – Shen rolls through little town of Bethlehem, 57-0
DELMAR — The Shenendehowa varsity football team marched through the Bethlehem defense, but had to limp to the bus after a 57-0 rout on the road against the Eagles Friday night.
The Plainsmen (3-0) started the contest without starting center Brian Shellenback to a high ankle sprain in Thursday’s practice and lost quarterback Ryan Buss early in the third quarter with an ankle injury with a 21-0 lead.
Shenendehowa didn’t miss a beat in the second half as four different depth chart running back scored in the rout.
“It’s scary,” Shenendehowa coach Brian Clawson said. “I didn’t know who was down at first and when someone yelled over ‘Ryan’, my heart sunk.
To go out there and not know what is wrong, there is a little hesitation, uncertainty,” Clawson said. “It was nice get him off the field. The team loves him so much, they came over to him after the game and we’ll see what happens with the x-rays. We’re holding our breath; we’re hoping he comes back strong.”
Back-up quarterback Christopher Fama picked up where his classmate left off, handing off the ball to Marcelino Christie for a three-yard touchdown run on the next play and started his next offensive series with a 15-yard completion to Kyle Buss.
Kyle Buss had a career night, officially connecting with his brother, Ryan, for a 33-yard touchdown strike to open the scoring for the Plainsmen in the first quarter. Last week, Kyle caught a 59-yard toss from his brother, but was knocked out of bounds at the goal line. On Friday, he made sure he crossed the goal line.
“It was great, not only for me, but for both of us,” Kyle Buss said. “I’m not thinking about that, I’m just thinking of putting points on the board for our team, but again it was special.”
Kyle Buss wasn’t finished after the opening drive. He scored on a seven-yard run early in the second quarter on a handoff from his brother and picked off a Bethlehem pass from Dan Robeson late in the second quarter.
He returned to the offensive side of the ball and took off for 31 yards before pitching the ball back to Corey Acker for another 10 yards. Six plays later, Acker would take the ball in from five-yards out as, Shenendehowa stood tall at halftime, 21-0.
“It feels great, any way I can help my team win,” Kyle Buss said. “It was a total team effort. Especially in the second half with the line, linebackers and defense did great. I’m really proud of everybody.”
He also held his breath when his brother went down in pain on the opening drive of the third quarter.
“It’s hard, especially when it’s my brother,” Kyle Buss said. “You never want to see one of your teammates go down, let alone one of our captains. It was a scary moment, but we think he’ll be O.K, he’ll just have to take it easy.”
With a commanding lead, Clawson put in his second and third-string players giving them the opportunity to prove themselves and they didn’t disappoint as the reserve running back corps of Oliver Robinson, Jeremiah Smith, Jared Allen and Ben Hoffman all found the end zone against Bethlehem, continuing to add to its hefty lead.
“Now that we are in week three, we don’t have juniors and seniors anymore,” Clawson said. “We have a football team. We are 46 strong, with seven coaches and three equipment managers.
“It’s an opportunity for these guys to step into the game and play is awesome,” Clawson said. “They showed that they can do some big things and the juniors aren’t juniors anymore.”
Shenendehowa 7 14 21 15 — 57
Bethlehem 0 0 0 0 — 0
First quarter
SH — Ryan Buss 33 pass Kyle Buss. Anthony Vilardi kick, 7:13.
Second quarter
SH — Kyle Buss 7 run. Vilardi kick, 10:18.
SH — Corey Acker 5 run. Vilardi kick, :58.
Third quarter
SH — Marcelino Christie 3 run. Vilardi kick, 9:45.
SH — Oliver Robinson 12 run. Vilardki kick, 7:33.
SH — Jeremiah Smith 18 run. Vilardi kick, 5:16.
Fourth quarter
SH — Jared Allen 50 run. DJ Edick to Jared Allen pass, 11:48.
SH — Ben Hoffman 10 run. Vilardi kick, 3:55.
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING
Shenendehowa — Marcelino Christie 9-118 TD, Corey Acker 7-50 TD, Lucas Buckley 2-6, Ryan Buss 1-(-7), Kyle Buss 2-38 TD, Christopher Miller 1-5, Jaremiah Smith 2-32 TD, Oliver Robinson 5-44 TD, Jared Allen 3-76 TD, Ben Hoffman 4-36 TD. Totals: 36-398 yards. Bethlehem — Dan Robinson 2-(-4), Jason Clas 7-16, R.J. Diego 12-36, Mike Graves 9-10, Josh Martinez 1-(-3), Austin Hermann 2-1, Vincenzo Ferrara 1-(-1), Pat Curran 3-14. Totals: 37-69.
RECEIVING
Shenendehowa — Kyle Buss 2-48 TD, Marcelino Christie 1-16, Corey Acker 1-11, Kory Feliz 1-10. Totals: 5-65 TD. Bethlehem — Mike Anziano 1-4, Josh Martinez 1-6, Jason Clas 1-8, Pat Carran 1-5. Totals: 4-23.
PASSING
Shenendehowa — Ryan Buss 4-for-5 50 TD. Christopher Fama 1-for-1 15 yards. Bethlehem — Dan Robeson 3-for-5 18 yards. Austin Hermann 1-for-1 5 yards.
Sept. 14 – Athlete of the Week – Shen’s Corey Acker
CLIFTON PARK — Shenendehowa senior tailback Corey Acker scored three touchdowns Friday night during the Plainsmen home opener against Guilderland.
He stopped the Dutchmen’s opening drive with an interception, scored on an 83-yard punt return and crossed the goal line twice from his tailback position, once from 12 yards out and his most exciting run of the night, a 45-yard jaunt back and forth between the sidelines and north and south to the house.
“I just went out there having fun, doing what the coaches assign me to do,” Acker said. “It was my teammates; they were pushing me through it.”
His vision paid off during his 45-yard scamper back and forth through the Dutchmen defense.
“I had a good feeling,” Acker said. “Coach told us at halftime that the cut back was there, so I was looking for it. I’m pretty confident in my speed and my blocking downfield, so I was confident I was going to get in.”
It capped his evening that included the 83-yard score on a Guilderland punt.
“Coach Ward told me to fair catch it and I didn’t hear it until the last second,” Acker said. “I caught it and was trying to get what I could, get us the ball. I had a couple of big blocks down field by D.J. Edick and they just sprung me and I beat the last guy.”
Last year’s backfield was dominated by senior Tony Fusco and junior Marcelino Christie, this year Christie was expected to be the No. 1 back, but Friday night belonged to Acker.
“Corey is such a phenomenal reader,” Shenendehowa coach Brian Clawson said. “When he gets the football, his vision is incredible. When he gets into the open field, he’s going to take it to the house and he showed that he can do that tonight.”
Sept. 7 – Shen rolls past Guilderland in home opener
CLIFTON PARK — The Shenendehowa varsity football team proved that it will be dangerous throughout the 2012 campaign on the ground and in the air, rolling past Guilderland, 34-0 at Brent T. Steuerwald Stadium on the Shenendehowa campus Friday night.
After holding the Dutchmen on their opening drive, ending it on a Corey Acker interception, Shenendehowa quarterback Ryan Buss hit his brother, Kyle Buss for a 59-yard strike on the first play from the line of scrimmage to set the tone Friday night. Kyle Buss was taken out at the pylon and saw senior Marcelino Christie finish the two-play drive with a one-yard run.
“Growing up when we were five- and six-years-old our dad is out back having us throw to each other just getting better,” Ryan Buss said. “When he’s here and we can do it on the field, our first home game, our senior year, we can connect as brother’s is pretty unbelievable.”
The play was scripted by their coach, Brian Clawson, helping make a dream come true.
“That was something we practiced all week and we didn’t make the decision that we were going to run it as the first play until this afternoon,” Clawson said. “I came in this afternoon at 4:30 and I say Ryan first and told him and then I told Kyle. He was confident, he said ‘Coach that could be a touchdown.’”
Christie would finish with 86 yards on 13 carries, but the night belonged to the other senior speedster, Acker.
Acker picked off Frank Gallo’s pass to negate the first drive, he returned a Dutchmen punt 83 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter and scored a pair of touchdowns rushing, including a 45-yard zig zagging effort on the Shenendehowa turf for his biggest night of his career.
“I just went out there having fun, doing what the coaches assign me to do,” Acker said. “It was my teammates; they were pushing me through it.”
While the Buss brothers play was scripted, Acker’s daring punt return for a touchdown certainly wasn’t.
“Coach Ward told me to fair catch it and I didn’t hear it until the last second,” Acker said. “I caught it and was trying to get what I could, get us the ball. I had a couple of big blocks down field by D.J. Edick and they just sprung me and I beat the last guy.”
His vision paid off during his 45-yard scamper back and forth through the Dutchmen defense.
“I had a good feeling,” Acker said. “Coach told us at halftime that the cut back was there, so I was looking for it. I’m pretty confident in my speed and my blocking downfield, so I was confident I was going to get in.”
With Tony Fusco graduating and red-shirting at University at Albany, Clawson took the speed of his two backs, Christie and Acker and switched to a flex bone offense.
“We have a lot weapons in the tailback position this year,” Clawson said. “We have to tailbacks instead of one, which one are you going to key on?
Both are phenomenal football players, they’ve really stepped up tonight,” Clawson said.
Christie ran for two Plainsmen scores on the night, the initial 1-yard run after the Buss reception and a 22-yard jaunt with 3:36 left in the second quarter.
Shenendehowa closed out the evening’s scoring in the third quarter on another two-play scoring drive by the Plainsmen.
Ryan Buss hit senior Christopher Miller for a 51-yard pass, set up a simple over the middle dump that the big senior captain corralled and rumbled down the left sideline. On the next play he handed the ball to Acker for his third touchdown of the contest.
Shenendehowa had an opportunity to extend the lead even more as the Plainsmen substitutes also made quick work of Guilderland as Ben Hoffman ran for 27 yards on three carries and Jared Allen ran for 65 yards on his four touches in the final minutes bringing the ball to the goal line.
The Shenendehowa staff called for the victory formation with the quarterback taking a knee at the goal line and allowing time to run out.
The win puts the Plainsmen at 2-0 under new coach Brian Clawson with wins on the road at Albany and at home versus Guilderland.
“It feels great,” Acker said. “We can’t take too much time off, we have another big game on the road next week at Bethlehem, so we have to get back to business.”
SHENENDEHOWA 34, GUILDERLAND 0
Guilderland 0 0 0 0 — 0
Shenendehowa 7 14 13 0 — 34
First quarter
SH — Marcelino Christie 1 run. Anthony Vilardi kick, 8:35
Second quarter
SH — Corey Acker 83 yard punt return. Vilardi kick, 7:20
SH — Christie 22 run. Vilardi kick, 3:36.
Third quarter
SH — Acker 45 run. Kick failed, 9:47
SH — Acker 12 run. Vilardi kick, 2:14
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING
Guilderland — Connor Gallup 9-24, Stephen Posinelli 5-20, Micaiah Henningham 10-15, Frank Gallo 3- (-5), Joseph Cornell 5-32. Totals: 32-86. Shenendehowa — Marcelino Christie 13-86 2 TD, Corey Acker 6-91 2 TD, Ryan Buss 6-25, Christopher Miller 4-20, Lucas Buckley 1-2, Ben Hoffman 3-27, Jared Allen 4-65. Totals: 37-316.
RECEIVING
Guilderland — Micaiah Henningham 3-29, Jacob Smith 2-19, Stephen Posinelli 2-50, Zachary Formica 2-18, Adam Bowers 2-21. Totals: 11-137. Shenendehowa — Kyle Buss 2-72, Eric Kromer 1-18, Chris Miller 1-51. Totals: 4-141.
PASSING
Guilderland — Frank Gallo 11-22-2 137 yards. Shenendehowa — Ryan Buss 4-6-1 141 yards.
Missed field goals: Shenendehowa, Vilardi, 37 yards.
Aug. 31 – Kickoff 2012: Week 1 Shen routs Albany, 58-6
ALBANY — The Shenendehowa football team re-wrote a page in the Plainsmen history books to open the Brian Clawson coaching era Friday night against Albany High at Bleeker Stadium.
Instead of Paul Revere’s request of “If one by land, two if by sea,” Shenendehowa exploded for 58 points, six by land and two by air in a 58-6 rout of the Falcons for Clawson’s first varsity coaching victory.
“It’s nice to come out here in our first game and get a win under our belt,” Clawson said. “It feels really great tonight.”
The Plainsmen (1-0 Class AA Empire Division) didn’t run Albany directly off the field, kicker Anthony Vilardi will enter the record book as scoring the first points under Clawson with his 22-yard field goal in the first quarter.
Once the repetitions were set, senior running back Marcelino Christie picked up where he left off last year behind Tony Fusco but still heading right to the house.
The senior tailback ran for 169 yards on 12 carries including two touchdowns. His most impressive being back-to-back runs of 27 and then 50-yards for the Plainsmen’s second touchdown of the night.
“Coach said we needed 12 yards I said ‘I got you coach,’” Christie said. “At that point I knew it was time to turn it on and there was no question, no doubts, I had to take it all the way, as far as I could.”
Shenendehowa graduated its entire offensive line and the speedy Christie allowed his new earth movers time to create the space he needed.
“It felt good,” Christie said. “I knew my linemen and my other backs were out there blocking for me and I was running for them. I felt the connection and it felt great.”
Much was made about Fusco’s graduation and collegiate future at the University at Albany, but the future is bright with Christie as the heir apparent to Fusco’s rushing prowess.
“Marcelino Christie is a man on a mission, he is so internally focused on what he needs to do to perform every single practice and every game,” Clawson said. “It’s pretty incredible. He’s a very special person, he’s an incredible kid, he’s very talented as a tailback and we’re going to put the rock in his hands quite a few times this season because we can trust that he can get the job done.”
Senior quarterback Ryan Buss did more than just hand the ball off to Christie throughout the night, he found senior Corey Acker on the run and on the passing plays.
“The pocket in the line was forming and Ryan (Buss) is doing a great job stepping in for Teddy (Van Galen) last year,” Acker said. “He’s doing a great job delivering the ball. Now we have two threats with the ball, not only by land, but by air also.
Acker scored on a 23-yard handoff running up the middle of the Albany defense and then was on the receiving end of a picture perfect pass from Buss.
“They (Albany) called a time out right before and we had a previous play called and Coach Clawson came in and he saw the way the safety was sitting,” Acker said. “He called a play because I have a post and it was wide open. Ryan (Buss) made a perfect throw right over the shoulder.”
The pressure was on the senior wide receiver during the play.
“It’s almost harder than when someone is in your face because you are just so wide open,” Acker said. “You are like ‘I have to catch this ball. I’m so wide open if I don’t catch this ball I’m going to look stupid.’”
The Plainsmen shared the ball throughout the night with Acker scoring three times along with Eric Hurd catching a 16-yard pass in the closing minutes of the first half.
“We decided with three minutes to go before the half that we were going to go with our two minute offense, we worked on it this week,” Clawson said. “Ryan Buss is such an intelligent quarterback that we’re giving him some freedom in the two minute drill.
We have what we want in practice, but in that game, he has the opportunity to go out there and call some of those plays and he really did a great job with it,” Clawson said. “Ryan is going to be a really special quarter back this year. He showed tonight that he has a lot of talent and played well.”
Colton Robtoy and Matthew Drum also found the end zone in the third quarter for Shenendehowa.
Shenendehowa prepared for Albany’s defense, allowing its offense to shine, out-rushing the Falcons, 331 yards to 94, respectively.
“They are a tough football team,” Clawson said. “We talked about containing their quarterback and I think we did that with our defensive ends, Eric Hurd and Eric Kromer did a great job of stringing them out to the sideline to allow our other defensive players to stream to the ball or keep that quarterback in the pocket. I think defensively it was a stellar effort by the entire defense.”
For the Shenendehowa skilled players, Clawson got his first of hopefully many ice water baths as the horn sounded, signaling his first varsity coaching victory.
“We’ve (Acker and Christie) been with each other since middle school, we’ve known Coach Clawson for so long,” Acker said. “He’s been with the program so long; he deserves every opportunity he’s getting right now. To get his first win is real exciting.”
SHENENDEHOWA 58, ALBANY 6
SHEN 10 28 20 0 — 58
ALBANY 0 0 0 6 — 6
First quarter
SH —Anthony Vilardi 22 yard field goal. 5:36
SH — Marcelino Christie 8 run. (Vilardi kick), 2:32
Second quarter
SH —Christie 50 run. (Vilardi kick), 10:03
SH — Corey Acker 23 run. (Vilardi kick), 7:23
SH — Ryan Buss 30 pass to Acker. (Vilardi kick), 2:39
SH — Buss 16 pass to Eric Hurd. (Vilardi kick), 1:46
Third quarter
SH —Acker 36 run. (Vilardi kick), 11:03
SH — Colton Robtoy 11 run. Kick failed. 7:53
SH —Matthew Drum 1 run. (Vilardi kick), :31
Fourth quarter
ALB — Justin Holmberg 8 pass to Chris Wolcott. Run failed. 2:43
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING
Shenendehowa — Ryan Buss 1-1, Marcelino Christie 12-167 2TD, Oliver Robinson 1-1, Christopher Miller 2-5, Corey Acker 2-59 2TD, Jared Allen 2-35, Colton Robtoy 2-11, Jeremiah Smith 2-8, Antonio Rossi 2-10, Matthew Drum 2-34 TD. Albany — Chris Wolcott 11-16, Justin Holmberg 10-47, Brock Leno 1-0, Jalon Roberts 3-9, Dysheek Sanders 1-0, Johnny Randolf 8-10.
RECEIVING
Shenendehowa — Kyle Buss 2-32, Corey Acker 1-30 TD, Eric Hurd 1-16 TD. Albany — Chris Wilcott 2-34 TD, Dysheek Sanders 2-37, Tysheen Morris 2-12.
PASSING
Shenendehowa — Ryan Buss 5-6-0 67 yards 2TD. Albany — Justin Holmberg 6-16-2 83 yards TD.
Aug. 31 – Kickoff 2012: Week 1 preview Shen at Albany High
Eyes up, knees up. Running backs go through a running drill during one of the pre-season sessions. STAN HUDY/shudy@saratogian.com
CLIFTON PARK — The Brian Clawson era kicks off for the Shenendehowa varsity football team this evening when the Plainsmen travel to take on Albany 7 p.m. at Bleeker Stadium and he has no guarantees of a victory in week one.
“Albany is a very good football team, they are very improved with a new offense, and they are running the pistol offense,” Brian Clawson said. “They have some playmakers, their quarterback is a very good athlete, and their ace back is a very talented runner. They have some very good team speed. They have some playmakers at receiver.”
Speed is a common theme for the Falcons and something the Plainsmen have to be wary of.
“On defense we were impressed with their team speed and their ability to get to the football with reckless abandon,” Clawson said. “We know we are in for a tough test on week one.”
Clawson’s keys to victory simple.
“Offensively it’s just about execution across the board,” Clawson said. “All 11 have to do their job on every single play to be successful.
“Defensively we have to stop the run, first and foremost,” Clawson said. “We have to improve on our ability to defend the pass. I thought our pursing of the football and tackling was extremely well and we are going to continue to look to get the ball from the opponent also.”
Shenendehowa quarterback Ryan Buss looks at a play diagram with coach Brian Clawson during the first day of practice. STAN HUDY/shudy@saratogian.com
Senior captain Christopher Stewart has his defensive line prepared to face the Falcons.
“Their new pistol offense is really hard to prepare for, they can do a lot out of that, run either way and can go play action pass,” Stewart said. “We have to protect the outside, not get reached on our (defensive) ends and contain and get pressure on their quarterback from our tackles.
“Our defensive backs have to cover the pass well and be ready to cover the outside if the quarterback gets into space,” Stewart said.
Shenendehowa quarterback Ryan Buss may get an up-close and personal look at the Falcon defense quickly.
“Their defensive line, especially their defensive ends get up the field very quick and their secondary is very quick,” Buss said. “The coaches have reminded me that they have a couple of linebackers who like to hit and to fill hard and hopefully they won’t be coming off the edge.”
Buss may not have any time to enjoy his first start in the Brian Clawson era.
“You are going to be a little bit nervous, Coach Steuerwald is not here and for Coach Clawson it is his first game as the head coach for Shenendehowa,” Buss said. “I think after the first play, get that out of the way and play a solid game after that.”
Despite only securing one win in the past five years, Albany is looking to surprise some competitors in the Empire division in 2012.
“Sometimes teams have a tendency to take their first game lightly, not be ready for the varsity experience,” Stewart said. “We like having this type of game; they have definitely stepped up their game from where they were the last couple years.
“Their line is really big, so we have to be prepare for that to take on blocks, shed blocks, and get sacks on the quarterbacks whenever we can,” Stewart said. “They are whole new team and we have to be prepared to play them for the first game this year.”
Aug. 30 – Kickoff 2012: A new era begins for Shenendehowa football
CLIFTON PARK — When Shenendehowa opens up its 2012 campaign there will be more than just a new coach on the sidelines, the Plainsmen are anxious about the new wrinkles in its offense.Brian Clawson takes over the Shenendehowa program, replacing Brent Steuerwald as only the second coach of the Plainsmen for the program’s first 43-years.
“Offensively we are going to be the same offense with some new wrinkles,” Clawson said. “We’re going to strive to be balanced offensively and depend on our opponent how we run or how we run on a week to week basis based on the opponent that we are playing and how we want to attack them.
“Defensively we are going to stay with our attack-style blitzing defense and special teams we talked about it this morning,” Clawson said. “We have a couple special team goals; basically we want to be consistent and make the big play on special teams and make a difference.”
Despite graduating 10 seniors from his offensive unit, the current senior class is excited about the 2012 season and its re-tuned offense.
“It’s like a dream come true, especially with this new offense,” Shenendehowa senior quarterback Ryan Buss said. “I came up through the program and heard Coach Steuerwald didn’t throw the ball too much, go up through my freshman, sophomore and junior years and now Coach Clawson is now the head coach and we’re definitely going to open it up. The quarterbacks are definitely going to have more fun passing.”
Part of that transition is his twin brother, running back Kyle Buss.
“As a running back we can show what we can do in different ways,” Kyle Buss said. “In years past it was original, it’s different now and I think it’s going to be great, not just at running back, but at all positions.”
The role also changes for the fullbacks with senior Chris Miller taking on new responsibilities.
“It’s a variety of things, passes, I’m getting a lot more passes, a lot more running plays, it’s going to be a fun year for the fullbacks,” Miller said. “We weren’t just be blocking; we’ll be touching the ball a lot more.”
Shenendehowa coach Brian Clawson goes over plays with the offense during a night practice at Steuerwald Stadium during the first day of practices. STAN HUDY/shudy@saratogian.com
The three seniors are looking to have the new playbook play off in their final and Clawson’s first year.
“We learned a lot of new things and ate up everything we learned and we’re loving everything we’re doing right now. It’s a lot of fun,” Miller said. “This is the first chapter of his coaching career and it’s our last chapter of our senior year so we’re trying to make it special.”
Aug. 30 – Kickoff 2012: Experience will lead Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake to another title
Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake captains, Ryan McDonnell, Eric Dillon and Nicholas Marchesiello look to lead the Spartans back to the NYSPHSAA Class A title game at the Syracuse Carrier Dome. STAN HUDY/shudy@saratogian.com
That was last season, but his 20 returning seniors remember the disappointment in last year’s final.
“As soon as the season ended last year and I agree with (Coach Shell) we don’t want to talk too much about last year, what’s in the past is in the past, now is now,” senior quarterback Ryan McDonnell said. “As soon as last year ended, a little disappointment there, but our minds switched to this year, what we have to look forward, who is coming back, what good things we did and build on that.”
McDonnell spent his off-season preparing for the 2012 season.
“I went to a few camps this summer and worked on the play of quarterback,” McDonnell said. “I got faster and stronger over the summer. I worked on some throws that may not have been my strongest, but I think I’m getting there.”
The necessary focus for Burnt Hills will be provided by the upperclassmen.
“We expect a lot out of all the kids and the seniors realize that,” Burnt Hills coach Matt Shell said. “The seniors push the younger kids, not only of themselves and a lot comes from the seniors and it should.
“There are only so many things that we can say and do as coaches, but when you have the benefit of a group of players doing the same types of things,” Shell said. “I think it gets everyone on the same page and going in the right direction.”
Keying part of the high powered Spartan offense will be junior Dan Porter looking to make a return trip to the artificial turf at Dietz Stadium and the Carrier Dome.
“It is a new year, it is a new team, a lot of great guys, but there is a chip on my shoulder, I want to get over that hump,” Porter said. “I’m hoping to have a good year. It’s only if my line has a good year, I’ll have a good year.”
Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake coach Matt Shell talks to his team during the pre-season. STAN HUDY/shudy@saratogian.com
Whether part of the large senior class or underclassmen looking to make their mark, the past has provided a road map for the Spartans to return to a title game.
“The kids realize what it takes to get back, they realize what it takes, the hard work and the preparation does pay off,” Shell said. “They understand that it’s a short season until playoffs, there isn’t a lot of football to be played,” Shell said. “You look at the end of September and teams are jockeying for playoff positions and people are talking about playoffs.”
Aug. 30 – Kickoff 2012: Mechanicville introduces a new offense
The Mechanicville backfield will be key to the new offense. Left to right: Adam Erno, Chase Delossantos, Adam Dunn and Sal Cimino III. STAN HUDY/shudy@saratogian.com
Mechanicville has introduced a new playbook for its offense, converting from its traditional Power-I offense to a flex-bone triple option.
“We just felt that it was time for a change,” head Coach Kevin Collins said. “With the group of athletes that we have from quarterback to running back to wide receiver and the group of linemen we had coming through that this is going to be a good thing for us.
“Coming from an option team (Springfield College), it is always something that we tried to incorporate in our offense anyway and we talked about it a number of times last year,” Collins said. “This off season we decided to go to Springfield, talk to some of my old coaches; let’s see if it’s something that will work for us.”
The entire offense will be keyed by returning senior quarterback Sal Cimino
“We feel very comfortable breaking out of the flex-bone and throwing the ball as well,” Collins said. “A lot of this is going to fall on Sal’s shoulders but he’s definitely prepared for it.”
The two-sport star dove into the new playbook.
“The whole offense is so fun to run because you can trick people, every play you are involved,” Cimino said. “It’s just awesome to learn, awesome to run and when it works its unstoppable.
“We ran it at the end of last year and I loved it,” Cimino III said. “We started talking about it and Coach (Kevin Collins) asked me if I would be on board with it and I said ‘Yes.’”
There is pressure on Cimino and he has adjusted.
“I have to make better reads on my handoffs and I have to be quicker on my feet,” Cimino said. “Different blitzes, if they blitz right, they can mess up the mesh and if the defensive end makes a good read. It depends on my pitching and reading what the defense does.”
Mechanicville opponents will have to get past Red Raider offensive line big man Dan Robens, a 6-foot 5-inch junior if it has any hopes of getting to the backfield. STAN HUDY/shudy@saratogian.com
Senior captain Nate Hatalsky appreciates the challenges of the flex-bone triple option from his linebacker position, but is looking forward to catching passes from Cimino at his tight end position.
“You can be a Division I player and you have four reads to make and only one decision to make, you can only go to one spot at once,” Hatalsky said. “(Cimino) he can throw a cannon, AAU proved it, we won the championship and if Sal throws it to me I’ll try to catch it.”
Aug. 13 Sights and Sounds: First day of Shen football practice
A new era began at Steuerwald Stadium Monday, Aug. 13 when Brian Clawson took the Plainsmen out for its first session of the fall football season as the second varsity coach in the program history that began in 1968.
Coach Brent Steuerwald retired after 43 years on the sidelines for the Plainsmen and will be missed by many, including this sportswriter.
The day was filled with hope and vision of another successful season by the coaches and the players.
Here are some of the takeaways from the morning and afternoon session with the Plainsmen.
Aug. 13 – Shenendehowa coach Brian Clawson’s first day on the job
Shenendehowa head football coach Brian Clawson shows his offense a play during the second session Monday night at Steuerwald Stadium. It was Clawson's first day on the job for the Plainsmen.
“(Last night) was probably the longest night of the year for me,” Clawson said after the Plainsmen’s first session of the 2012 season at Steuerwald Stadium. “I got a lot less sleep than normal, it’s been a long seven months since I got the position and I’ve been counting down the days since I was hired to this day.”
Clawson was named as the successor to Brent Steuerwald who retired after 43 years at the helm of the Shenendehowa football program and was the only coach the program has ever known.
“It just feels great to get back onto the football field, to have the team,” Clawson said. “We went through a 20-minute meeting before practice, came out here and everyone was so enthused, excited. The players have shown great commitment during the off-season, in the weight room and the camps that we went to.”
Clawson got a taste of what being the head football coach was like at Shenendehowa at the press conference where he was introduced to a standing-room only media-filled library in early February.
“When I was the head JV coach, it was very easy in a sense in that all I had to focus on in-season was breaking down film, putting together tendencies of the opponent, scripting practice, planning practice, doing everything of that nature,” Clawson explained. “To have that combined with being the head football varsity coach such as working with the press, all the emails, the vendors calling, the college coaches coming in and dealing with all the day-to-day of that has made it all consuming, but it’s all about organization of your time and not wasting one single minute.”
His success over the past seven months is similar to football, it takes a team and it has been Team Clawson that has made his first day a thrilling, but calm first day.
“I have three young boys, Jason, Jack and Connor, five-, three-year-old and eighth months,” Clawson said. “I have a great wife in Stephanie who is just does everything around the house and is a great wife and mother.
“Preparation negates nervousness and with being as well prepared as our coaching staff was and by the commitment of working out in the weight room by the players I wasn’t all that nervous coming into today,” Clawson said. “It was just great to get back out here.”
Clawson and his coaching staff have worked with this year’s group of football candidates and spent a week at the University at Albany in a team camp, putting some of the new-era pieces together for the players, energizing the first day of practice.
“We’ve seen that excitement throughout the school, through the weight room participation and the camps that we have done,” Clawson said. “I think the anticipation was great leading up to this day and to be able to get there and get this season started and started on the right note this morning was great.”
With a change at the helm of the Plainsmen, the most common question asked during the impromptu media exchange was “What offense will Shenendehowa run?”
“Offensively we are going to be the same offense with some new wrinkles,” Clawson said. “We’re going to strive to be balanced offensively and depending on our opponent, what we run or how we run on a week to week basis will be based on the opponent that we are playing and how we want to attack them.
“Defensively we are going to stay with our attack-style blitzing defense and special teams we talked about it this morning,” Clawson said. “We have a couple special team goals; basically we want to be consistent and make the big play on special teams and make a difference.”
Clawson and his staff were optimistic on the first day’s session, but still tipped a hat to the man who tapped him as a junior varsity head coach and then his offensive assistant on the Plainsmen staff.
“We have a wealth of knowledge within our staff,” Clawson said. “Coach (Mark) McQuade has been here 18 years, I’m in my 12th year, Coach (Jim) Ward has been here 10 years and Coach (Ryan) Fenton nine years.
“Even though we are losing 53 years of experience, I think if you combine us all we’re still short of Coach Steuerwald,” Clawson laughed. “But we’ve been here, we’ve been around.”
Shenendehowa will open its season Friday, Aug. 31 at Albany High. The Plainsmen home opener is Friday, Sept. 7 when they host Guilderland.
College Bound: Shen’s Tony Fusco chooses UAlbany and football
Shenendehowa senior running back Tony Fusco committed to the University at Albany, celebrating his decision in the High School East Library in late March. He is supported by his parents, Janine and Tony Fusco along with coaches, standing, left to right: Brian Clawson, Brent Steuerwald and Jim Ward.
Shenendehowa star running back Tony Fusco made two major announcements in less than a month. He retired from high school wrestling after his consolation final at the state tournament and committed to continue to play football, beginning this fall at the University of Albany.
“I love how close it was and I love the coaching staff there,” Fusco said. “They really seemed to take a liking to me and the players there are really great. I feel that something special could happen there and it was a great fit for me.”
His decision came down to both near and far, playing football for the University of Maine or at the University at Albany.
“I loved both places, they were both really great,” Fusco said. “It came down to being closer to home. I want to be able to come home on the weekends and see my family and stuff if like that. If I went to Maine I wouldn’t be able to.”
His mother, Janine, couldn’t be happier with his decision.
“I’m thrilled that he was going to choose something that close to home,” Janine Fusco said. “It just makes it easier to go see the games, just knowing that he’s close by and he can come home whenever he wants. It’s comforting.”
Fusco will join the Division I-AA Great Danes next fall, almost reaching his ultimate goal of playing Division I football.
“I always wanted to go to a huge school, that’s everyone’s dream,” Fusco said. “It just doesn’t happen sometimes and you don’t get seen or they don’t think you are good enough.
“You have to prove it to them and I think UAlbany will be great because all the people that are going to support me because I’m from the area and just to be able play at a high level,” Fusco said. “They do play great football and it’s just going to be great there.”
What was a loss for other Division I schools was a huge gain for UAlbany and their coaching staff, led by legend Bob Ford.
“I remember his first year at the Albany team camp and the coaches right away were asking us ‘Who’s number 25 over there?’” newly appointed Shenendehowa head coach Brian Clawson said. “We said it’s Tony Fusco and they said they liked him as a football player and Coach Ford followed him throughout his junior and senior year and all those Albany coaches work our Section II football camp, so they got to know Tony on a personal level there.
“He decided a long time ago that he wanted to be a college football player and go to seven or eight football camps in the summer, just to get his name out there to different colleges,” Clawson said. “There were a lot of coaches one year ago that came, recruiting Tony and he was very highly touted player coming out of Shenendehowa and a lot of coaches wanted Tony.”
His path to the University at Albany started at Queensbury High School before transferring to Shenendehowa prior to his junior year. The Plainsmen gained a top three-sport athlete and the senior learned a few important lessons along the way.
“Even if it didn’t help with colleges, it helped me personally, just to become a better player, learn what to expect,” Fusco said. “It’s kind of like going to college. You come to a new place, I thought I was the toughest kid in Queensbury, but that didn’t happen when you come to Shen. You have to prove yourself and that’s what it’s going to be like in college.”
One decision he won’t have to make is whether to be a walk-on to the UAlbany wrestling program. The Great Danes only have a club-level team, not competing at the Division I level.
“I might go in there once and while to see, so I don’t get rusty,” Fusco said.
He also had some contact from different schools regarding wrestling, but everyone around him knew about his intention to play football in college.
“I got a lot of interest in wrestling, but I didn’t hear a lot of them because Coach (Rob) Weeks and Coach (Frank) Popolizio would always let them know that I was in love with football, so they helped me out with that,” Fusco said.
The football decision was made early in his life.
“He was such a good athlete, he was even a great baseball player, as he was growing, and we had to make choices so that he would be conducive to his sports,” his dad, Tony Fusco Sr. said. “At his age, he was always so developed that the contact sports was where he wanted to be and it was either football or wrestling. Football has been his love since he was a little guy.”
Now he prepares himself for Coach Ford and the Great Danes program.
“I’m going to come in shape, ready to go, ready to make a big impact for the team,” Fusco said. “It might not happen that I’m not a starter or a player my first year, but if that happens, that’s OK.
“I’ll red shirt and get stronger, faster, learn the playbook, whatever they need me to do,” Fusco said. “If I do get the spot or able to prove myself that would be very exciting.”
He has already impressed Coach Bob Ford with his running style and could make an immediate impact at the Albany campus.
“He always stressed how patient I was as a runner and that’s every important in college,” Fusco said. “The holes won’t always be wide open and you have to wait for the play to develop in front of you.”
Fusco continues planning his life, looking to combine his studies with a history and education major to return to the classroom and on the sidelines when he’s done at UAlbany.
“He loves to be around sports and one way to do that is by teaching and for him to become a coach that is probably the quickest route,” Tony Fusco Sr. said. “After all the coaches that he has had, the mentors he has had, made an impact on his life, he wants to do the same thing for other kids.”