Thoughts from the Road Trip & Press Box: Glens Falls overcomes deficit, season-wide injuries

When Glens Falls punched their ticket to make it into the State Championship with their win over Marlboro in Middletown in Week 12, my mind was set.  With a Noon kickoff in Syracuse, I wanted to stay the night Friday night to give myself the ability to ease my way into the broadcast on Saturday at the Carrier Dome.

My previous three trips to Syracuse (in 2012, 2013 and 2014) were day trips, arriving in Syracuse to do the game and then get out afterwards.  After the jump, a first person recount of the journey to Central New York, and of the State Championship game between the Glens Falls Indians and the Batavia Blue Devils.

Thoughts From The Press Box: The Sectional Quarterfinals

Here's my thoughts on the 12 Sectional Quarterfinal matches that were played out over the past two days.

CLASS A:
Scotia Tartans 7, Troy Flying Horses 14 - This surprised me.  Troy being pushed to the limit by a Scotia squad that wasn't great in 2018, but good enough to make the playoffs.  But Scotia was unable to capitalize on the Flying Horses mistakes. 

That being said, the Flying Horses need to tighten up their play, as they will now be hosting a Burnt Hills squad that is good at capitalizing on a team's miscues.  Burnt Hills has an array of weapons and the Flying Horses will not be able to get away with a soft effort.

Troy was not convincing of a team who could walk away with the Sectional Championship on Friday.  We'll have to see if they come better prepared for the match against Burnt Hills.

Columbia Blue Devils 16, Burnt Hills Spartans 49 - I'll admit, I don't know much about Columbia.  But Burnt Hills looked good, bouncing back from the Week 7 loss to the Queensbury Spartans.  Lapietro got back into rhythm, opening up the running game from Daverio and Lashley. 

Burnt Hills looks hungry to get back to the State Playoffs, but the road to the Sectional Championship will be tough with a road game against the Troy Flying Horses in the semifinals.  But if the Flying Horses have the miscues they did against Scotia, Burnt Hills will be heading to Shenendehowa for Week 10.

Ballston Spa Scotties 0, Averill Park Warriors 22 - Childrose is a smart quarterback, using his legs to give the Warriors the first score of the game against the Scotties.  The Warrior defense was on target on Friday night, as the Scotties couldn't generate any offense. 

The Warriors are hungry for revenge, and they will have the chance to do that on Saturday when they go to Queensbury for the semifinals.  Last year Queensbury came down to Rensselaer County and beat the Warriors on their home field in the semifinals, and the Warriors would love to return the favor in Queensbury this year.

LaSalle Cadets 6, Queensbury Spartans 62 - You mean there's a person who can score for Queensbury not named Liam O'Mara?  In serious, the Queensbury Spartans are red hot right now, topping the 60 point mark for the fourth time this season.  Queensbury's 444 points (that's 55.5 points per game!) is more than 6 touchdowns better than the #2 team in Section 2, the Cambridge Indians.  And twelve touchdowns better than the #3 team, Shaker. 

A strong defensive effort is going to be needed to slow down the Queensbury Spartans.  LaSalle got placed in a tough division for their first season in Class A, and didn't have the weapons needed to get past Queensbury.

CLASS B:
Ravena Indians 6, Glens Falls Indians 61 - The Ravena Indians entered the playoffs only beating one playoff team this year, and that was by forfeit after LaSalle revealed that they were playing with an ineligible player for the first two games of the season.  And they got outclassed by a Glens Falls Indians team that is getting healthy and starting to gel at just the right time.

The Glens Falls Indians scored on three of their first four plays, while Ravena had back-to-back-to-back three and outs.  Up 48-0, Glens Falls was able to get their backups some touches and Cooper Montgomery came away with two more touchdown.

The second half was all of three possessions, due to running clock with the score 55-0 at the half, and took 28 minutes to complete. 

Hudson Falls Tigers 40, Hudson Hawks 38 - That compared to the first half of this game that took 83 minutes to complete due to penalties and such.  Despite that, and the lights going out midway through the fourth quarter that made this game longer than some NFL games this season, this was the best game of the postseason by far.

These two teams traded leads in the second half, with Hudson Falls making some mistakes that gave Hudson the chance to come back from two scores down.  But the Hudson defense couldn't make the stop when they needed to in the fourth quarter. 

But the Hudson Falls Tigers have to sharpen up their ball control.  The miscues they had against Hudson will maim the Tigers against Glens Falls, who they lost to earlier this season in the Jug Game.  And they can't be handing the Indians bonus yards, like they did thanks to three straight Unsportsmanlike Conduct penalties that allowed Hudson to take the lead 38-32 in the fourth quarter.

Hudson Falls was the only road team to win this weekend. 

Schalmont Sabres 6, Schuylerville Black Horses 40 - The Black Horses dominated in their second match against the Schalmont Sabres this season, rolling to a 33-0 lead at the half thanks to a 27 point second quarter.  While fatigue could of been a possible explanation for Schalmont given their Tuesday game against Hudson that was required to be made up as playoff seeding depended on it, Schalmont looked flat for the second time against a Schuylerville team that has a lot of heart.

While Glens Falls may look like a #1 seed in Class B, Schuylerville has been quietly coming along as a serious team to watch out for as they travel to face the Reinfurt's #1 seed in Cobleskill.  John Bowen has his players gelling at the right time, which could make for an interesting Super Bowl...

Broadalbin-Perth Patriots 14, Cobleskill-Richmondville Bulldogs 34 - Back in week 2, Cobleskill showed that they could be a serious threat this season when they forced the Glens Falls Indians to play a full 48 minute game, only winning the game in the final 90 seconds on a Joe Girard III touchdown run. 

While the Bulldogs lead through much of the match against Broadalbin-Perth, it wasn't a wow kind of game that shows what the Bulldogs can do against a more explosive team like their next opponent in the Schuylerville Black Horses. 

CLASS C:
Lake George/Hadley-Luzerne WarEagles 6, Hoosick Falls Panthers 18 - The WarEagles got the early score, but offered the Panthers too many opportunities to get back into the game.  It was a good season for Lake George/Hadley-Luzerne, however, they were a step below the top two teams in the division this season.

Hoosick Falls moves onto a tough Semifinal match against a Cambridge squad they already once beat the Panthers this season.  While the Panthers put up the most any team has put up against Cambridge this season, it doesn't help with the Indians put up the second highest score of any team in Section 2, at just a shade under 50 points per game.  The Panthers defense will need to tighten up for that rematch.

Helderberg Valley 6, Cambridge Indians 59 - Doug Luke has way too many weapons for most teams in Section 2 to handle.  Whether it's Lindendoll, English, Sgambettera, Ogilvie ... the Indians have several options who can touch the ball and create magic.  Heldeberg Valley is still coming along and developing, but ran into a roadblock in the first round.

Stillwater Warriors 21, Chatham Cougars 26 - This was the second best game of the playoffs, with lead changes and a dramatic finish where you didn't know who was coming out on top in the end.  But in the end Chatham used their home field advantage to propel them into the next round.

It's a tough end for a Stillwater squad that went from being 6-0 and in consideration for a #2 seed to being 6-2 and out of the playoffs with losses to Holy Trinity and Chatham.

Voorheesville Blackbirds 18, Holy Trinity Pride 35 - I will admit, I know nothing of these two teams.  Holy Trinity lost soundly against a Cambridge squad in Week 2 that still could become a preview of the Sectional Championship in Lansingburgh in two weeks. 

But the Pride took care of business, pulling away from a Voorheesville Blackbird squad that earned their spot in the playoffs. 

Now that the playoffs are done, it's time for the Sectional Semifinals.  Let's hope that the Sectional Semifinals produce wild games like the ones seen in Columbia County in Week 8.

Thoughts From The Press Box - Glens Falls at Schalmont

ROTTERDAM - On the last gasp of summer, an electric crowd came to watch a great game.

A game that came down to the last possession.

A game that could be a preview of the playoffs.

Schalmont's 0-2 record doesn't matter.  In divisional play, they are 0-0.  Both of their losses were close, against the #1 and #2 teams in Class B last year.

The same could be said about Glens Falls's 2-0 record.  But wins over Ravena and Schalmont, especially given the injury situation on Friday night, could give the Indians a lot of momentum for the road ahead.

Those week 6 & 7 games could be very interesting for the Indians.  Especially once Aaron Sampson heals up.

The Glens Falls Indians didn't miss a beat without him, relying on a blend of run and pass plays to get their offense.  Girard's arm brought over 200 yards passing for the Indians, three for touchdowns.  His legs contributed to the 4th of Glens Falls's 5 touchdowns.

I noted this several times during the broadcast, but will bring it up here again.  He's a sophomore.  If he continues to play both football and basketball for the Indians, they will have amazing things to look forward to over the course of the next two years.

And if Cameron Brooks does to other teams what he did to Glens Falls, he is going to be a beast in the Running Back position for the Schalmont Sabres.  Those who made it down to Rotterdam was treated to a showcase of his abilities.  One of the best highlights came in the third quarter when he raced through the line of scrimmage, then in the secondary found two Indians ready to tackle him.  He jumped, danced and juked his way free, then found the end zone for the score.

It's the type of athleticism you expect to see from a veteran running back in the NFL.  Keep an eye on him.

Just like you need to keep an eye on Joe Girard III.  These two kids are why High School sports are great.  

Thoughts From The Press Box: Sectionals

Two games remain on the docket, with the Class AA Championships being held at the Times Union Center on Tuesday, but for us, our sectional season is over.

And what a fun sectional season it has been.

First, I was hoping to be able to write every day about the past day's activities, but other projects and home life prevented some of those blogs from being authored.

In addition, I was hoping to be able to recap my thoughts about the games I was at for broadcasts, but couldn't do that either, for the same reasons.

But I have some time now.  First, I'll offer my reflections on the games we were honored to be a part of, and then reflect upon the sectional tournament as a whole.

All that begins after the jump.

Thoughts From The Press Box: Foothills Council Championship

And the band plays on ... and on ... and on

First and foremost, congratulations to the Glens Falls Indians and the Scotia Tartans on their league championships.

With that being said, let's begin with the Girls Foothills Championship.

The Glens Falls Indians did what they needed to in order to avenge their loss to Amsterdam back in January.  They stayed out of foul trouble, which yielded the biggest statistical difference between the two games...

In the first meeting, Amsterdam made 30 free throws on their way to a 12 point win over the Indians at Glens Falls High School.  This time around, it was only 7.

Huge difference from the first time around, and it showed on the scoreboard by way of the 49-40 win for the Glens Falls Indians.

Amsterdam, to their credit, kept the game close.  After being down by 12, they tightened the gap.  When the Rams closed to within 6 points in the fourth quarter, the concern became whether or not the Glens Falls Indians would be able to seal the victory.  A steal prevented Amsterdam from closing any closer, as the Indians defense came up big when they needed to in the late stages of the game.

Glens Falls did something that no other Section 2 team was able to do this season, beat Amsterdam.  The Rams came into the game with a 16-2 record, with both of their losses coming north of the border, up in Montréal during the Thanksgiving weekend.

The win should help boost Glens Falls up to a #1 seed in the Class A sectionals.  The Indians would have been in consideration for a good seed for Sectionals, but having the league championship to their credentials helps set them up for a more favorable quarterfinal round matchup should they gain the first round bye.

SCOTIA: Fundamentals at its best

Having a single great player is good and all, and there are many teams out there who have a great scorer, but those teams will tell you that it takes more than one spectacular player in order to become a title contender.

The Scotia Tartans are five phenomenal athletes on the court.

People like to focus on Joe Cremo, the U-Albany bound senior for the Tartans.  And for good reason, the kid averages nearly 28 points per game, one of the best in Section 2, and is Scotia's greatest scorer ever.  But the reason why Scotia has won 45 straight games is because he isn't the only one making plays.

Scott Stopera used the long ball to help boost his stats on Friday.  Six threes shows what happens when you leave him unguarded outside the arch.  Mike Palleschi make the Queensbury Spartans for leaving him untagged inside the lane.  Diamond Corker has the speed to drive the lane with ease, and Joe Almond compliments the offense with another three point threat.

Those five make for trouble for opposing defenses.  When all five players are on the court, defenders have to stay on top of all five, otherwise they could give up the easy bucket.

When on offense, they pass the ball all over, looking for gaps in coverage to find an easy shot.  They're patient, not rushing to take the shot that might be unwise to take.

Watching the Scotia Tartans is a thrill.  It's fun watching them set up and do their thing.  That's why you should make the effort to catch them play at the Civic Center should ... no ... when they come back to play in March in the Sectional Semifinals and Finals.

Pep Band Party

Speaking of Scotia, special thanks to their pep band who made the journey up to Glens Falls.  As I stated on the air, having the pep band play during timeouts help increase the atmosphere at a game, something that's been missing at many high school venues across the area as funding for extracurricular activities such as band diminishes.

I grew up going to a high school that had a band at the home football games.  The energy from the band electrified the environment.

That's why it's great to see when a school has a pep band.  And judging by the response from the Scotia Pep Band on Twitter, they appreciated hearing the kind words that people had to say regarding their appearance at the Glens Falls Civic Center on Friday night.

@Shawn_Van_V @WSpringsteadPSV @PSVarsityBrett Thanks for the kind words guys, it means a lot. See you all at Sectionals! #scotia #sectionals
— SG PEP BAND (@SGPPPPB) February 14, 2015

The Pep Band is another reason why when Scotia comes back to play in March at the Glens Falls Civic Center, you should stop by and check them out.

Other Musings

Congratulations to the Lake George girls and boys, winners of the Adirondack League Championship on Saturday at Queensbury High School.  The girls win was a stunner, as Fort Edward entered the game undefeated and one of the top ranked teams in New York.

The boys was expected, as the Warriors defeated Fort Ann by 4 in overtime in the meeting on January 9th at Fort Ann.  Joe Wincowski inches closer to Jimmer Fredette, now 20 points behind the current New Orleans Pelican.

That Round of 16 game for Lake George may well be the most-attended Round of 16 game in sectional history as Wincowski looks to top Fredette's record of 2,404 career points scored.

And as we wait for the pairings to be released by the Section 2 seeding committee on Wednesday, we will have a prediction on where teams will get seeded on our blog on Tuesday.

After the pairings have been released, we will make it known where we will be next to cover local high school sports on FOX Sports Radio 1230.

Thoughts from the Press Box: "T" ignites Queensbury Spartans

Queensbury's Brett Rodriguez looks to inbound the ball
with Glens Fall's Dylan Balcom defending.

GLENS FALLS - For the first 12 minutes of Friday night's Foothills Council game between the Queensbury Spartans and the Glens Falls Indians, the Spartans found themselves called for foul after foul.

At one point in time, the scoreboard read 10 for the visitor to the home team's 2.

Doug Fraser was notably upset about something, which earned him a technical foul.

Joe Girard III sank both free throws, giving the Glens Falls Indians the 25-24 lead.

That technical seemed to ignite the Queensbury offense, who went on a 18-1 run to end the second quarter to lead 42-26 at the halftime break.

Queensbury would extend their lead to 20 before Glens Falls started chipping away the lead, getting it to within 7 before Glens Falls's foul troubles of the second half started eating their chances away, resulting in the Indians tallest player, Alex Wright, to foul out.

The game took many twists.  Up until that 18-1 run, it looked like the game was going to be close throughout, resembling the game played at Glens Falls High School two years prior where Sam Sax drove the lane and scored the game-winning lay-up with under three seconds left.

Then it seemed like a blowout was imminent. Credit the Indians, they never gave up, allowing them to chip away at the Spartans lead.  But as noted above, the foul troubles, which was the inverse of what the first half brought, saw Queensbury being in the double bonus instead.

The win makes Queensbury an early favorite to be the North Division winner in the new-look Foothills Council, which became a ten-team, two-division conference with the addition of Amsterdam and Schuylerville.

Queensbury improves to 3-0 in the council, and 3-1 overall.  Their one loss was to Green Tech, who are the defending state champions in Class AA.  The Spartans will begin their holiday schedule by traveling to Burnt Hills on Monday.  The Indians, who have lost two of their last three games, have no games scheduled during their holiday break, and will resume play on January 6th as they face the Schuylerville Black Horses.

The two teams will meet again at Queensbury on Tuesday, February 3rd.

***

LOOSE ENDS: Will Springstead noted it on his Post-Star blog, and I'll note this here... looks can be deceiving.  Queensbury's Bailey Dray doesn't have the look of a basketball player, but if you underestimate him, he's going to burn you from near and far.  He's got the quick step and the conscious ability to distribute the ball easily to the hands of an open teammate.

It's part of the reason why he scooped up a season-high 27 points in the victory.

Joe Girard III is going to give Jimmer Fredette's records a run.  The eight grader is averaging better than 23 points per game, and could have brought in more if the Glens Falls Indians weren't silenced during the second quarter.  Girard has fundamentals to work out, but could easily join the list of 30 point-per-game scorers in the years to come.

***

NEXT UP: Our next Friday Night Hoops broadcast will be on Friday, January 2nd, when we travel to Argyle for the Argyle Tournament.  The first game will feature Heatly taking on North Warren at 6:30PM, then Ticonderoga will play Argyle at 8PM.  

Our first hockey broadcast will hit the air on Monday, December 29th, when we air the first day of the Rivermen Tournament live from the Glens Falls Recreation Center.  The Queensbury Spartans will take on the Rye Garnets and the Glens Falls/Hudson Falls/South Glens Falls Rivermen will take on the Beekmantown Eagles.  Coverage begins at 5:20PM on FOX Sports Radio 1230.

And check here for the full winter schedule.

Thoughts from the Press Box: Kingston Musings

Last year, Cornwall made Queensbury fans sweat as Tyler Peddie was able to make it in to claw the Dragons within a point of the Spartans.

Especially when they went for two.

Mitchel Crispens batted the ball away and Queensbury was one step closer to their first state title.

This year, Cornwall made Queensbury sweat in a great renewal of a game between two teams that deserved to advance to the Dome.

This time, Queensbury came up with the defensive stops when they needed it most, and they were able to win 28-21 to advance to this Sunday's game at the Dome.

It was a game Queensbury really needed.  Very few times this season would Queensbury be required to give their starters a full 48 minute game.  Outside of the Scotia game in Week 9, the outcome wasn't really in doubt in any of their games entering the fourth quarter.  Some games were closer than others, but for the most part, Queensbury had a cushion entering the final frame.

But here, like last year, Cornwall forced Queensbury to have to play a full game with their #1 crew on the field.  It showed that the Spartans have the agility to play four full quarters if they need to.

It would seem like that's a minor thing, but when you get deeper into the tournament, and the teams get stronger, there lies the lingering question of whether or not a team will start to crumble the closer the clock reads 0:00 in the fourth quarter.

Queensbury didn't here.  And because of that, they should be ready to go for the Championship Game.

***

Penalties: The Queensbury Spartans and the Cornwall Green Dragons executed a mostly penalty-free game.  A lot of that can be at the result of John Irion's attempt to clean up some of the mental mistake penalties, like the holds that have called back several touchdowns during the season.

The Spartans had no holding calls on Friday.  

In fact, the first penalty flag flew in the second quarter, when Erik Wettersten was slapped with a "Hit to the Head" penalty that ultimately resulted in a Cornwall touchdown.   It was the first of two of those penalties for the junior, and Wettersten should be counting his blessings that he wasn't deemed ineligible for the championship.

Penalties like that are something Wettersten needs to watch out for, because in this era we live where concussions are a major concern, they are going to be flagging that more often on all levels of football from prep to the pros.  

After the game, I was outside taking some pictures while they were handing out the honors.  As Jeffrey Underhill was noted as the Defensive Player of the Game for Queensbury, there were people nearby muttering that Underhill "had a good game, but not as good as Erik's".

Not to take away from Underhill's game and award, but Erik Wettersten's name may have been dropped from consideration for that defensive award because of those two personal foul penalties.

***

Cambridge: The Cambridge Indians fumbled away their chances to play for the State Championship as their first three drives resulted in turnovers.

The Indians ran into a strong squad in the Hambletonians, and with a strong squad, you cannot give them special opportunities.  While the first turnover shouldn't have been called a turnover as the player was out of bounds before it happened, the second turnover on the throw by Ethan English was poorly-advised, and the third was a horrible ball exchange.

Cambridge had their opportunities, especially the one gifted to them when the refs missed a fumble deep in Hambletonian territory late in the game, which ultimately led to Caleb Rowland's touchdown to the right side.  

But the turnovers hurt.  Badly.

The Indians had a great season, making it one step deeper than they did last year when they were knocked off by the Moriah Vikings in the regional round.

***

Syracuse-bound: For the third time in as many years, we're heading to Syracuse to cover a State Championship.  It's something I never thought would happen when we made plans to start broadcasting local high school sports, and will reflect on that more on a special "Thoughts from the Press Box" come Sunday morning.

We'll be on the air live from the Carrier Dome approximately 2:45PM, when things wrap up after the Schalmont/Maine-Endwell game.

For those who expecting the Buffalo Bills on FOX Sports Radio 1230, be advised we are moving the Bills broadcast to our sister station, CBS Sports Radio 1410 (WENU) so that we can carry the Championship game.

Thoughts from the Press Box: Saying Goodbye

CLIFTON PARK - As the last of the fans began to leave Steuerwald Field, an empty feeling began to fill Shenendehowa High School.

It was twenty minutes after Queensbury finished the Burnt Hills Spartans season, winning the Class A Super Bowl 34-13 to advance to the State Tournament.

The custodial staff was cleaning up the debris left by the fans.

The Times Union reporter James Allen was interviewing coach Matt Shell for his newspaper article.

And one player, kneeing on the five yard line.

Like several of his teammates, Danny Maynard had his high school football career come to an end on Saturday night.  Unlike those other teammates, Maynard spent the last minutes before boarding the bus back to Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake High School kneeing on the field.

It's then when you realize.   It's tough saying "goodbye".

Even if you are a successful athlete who will be playing sports during his collegiate career.  Maynard signed a National Letter of Intent this week to play collegiate baseball at Notre Dame as a catcher.

Danny Maynard was a member of the 2012 Burnt Hills State Championship team.  In fact, he was the State Class A Most Valuable Player that year as a Sophomore, and has seen his game improved over the years.  Coach Shell, when I spoke to him prior to the first meeting in Week 7, had nothing but outstanding things to say about Maynard.

In fact ... maybe all those accolades he has earned made it harder to say "goodbye".

Danny Maynard did not play in the Exceptional Seniors bowl at Shenendehowa this week, which made this game his true exit from the game he played exceptionally well.

So the last image of him on the football field will be this.  Whatever comes of his baseball career moving onto Notre Dame after his senior year this upcoming Spring, we wish Danny Maynard a lot of success.

He's earned it.

And it's images like this that makes you realize what goes through the minds of our local athletes when they realize their high school football career comes to an end.

Thoughts From The Press Box: What Sportsmanship!

QUEENSBURY - You've seen the stories about bad sportsmanship.

From the brawls that took place two weeks ago at Amsterdam and Whitehall to the punch that landed one in jail in Schodack, we've seen examples of awful sportsmanship this month.

Here's a case of great sportsmanship, and it comes via the Queensbury and Averill Park cheerleaders.

After the game wrapped up, the Averill Park cheerleaders walked around the track from the north side of the field to the south end.  And there they stood, cheering their players as they made their way off the field and towards the bus.

They weren't alone.  The Queensbury cheerleaders joined in and cheered as well, offering support for the opposition.  But after the Warriors left the field, the Averill Park cheerleaders, with no obligation to stay on their side of the carpet, stood and continued to cheer as the Queensbury Spartans walked off and made their way towards the locker room.

It isn't a huge gesture, but it's very warming and uplifting to see in a sports world that is being dominated by case after case of awful sportsmanship by fans and players alike.

But it's a gesture we need to see more often.

***

The Averill Park Warriors first and only drive of the third quarter was long, lasting nearly 10 minutes of game clock and over 17 minutes real time.  

It was dominated by laundry as both teams got flagged several times during the drive.

The drive could have lasted even longer, if the drive didn't end with a fumble around the 20 yard line.

***

The 2014 Sectional Semifinals will be on FOX Sports Radio 1230 this weekend as the Queensbury Spartans host the Scotia Tartans.  The first time these two teams met, the Scotia Tartans made things close in the first half, taking advantage of some Queensbury miscues.

But the Scotia Tartans saw the Spartans begin to pull away late in the second quarter, capped with Brett Rodriguez's pass to Erik Wettersten for the final play of the half to extend the Spartans lead to 33-17.  

Scotia enters the game having won their last 4 straight since that loss, including last week's 14-12 win over the Bishop Maginn Golden Griffins. 

Coverage begins on FOX Sports Radio 1230 at 1:15PM.

Thoughts From The Press Box: One upset C-A fan at Corinth gets me thinking about the latest trend

CORINTH - The chess match that is the opening coin toss.

After listening to countless Buffalo Bills games, I question deferring to the third quarter.  Especially if a team has the ability to burn you on the opening drive.

On in the case of Corinth's 27-0 win over Coxsackie-Athens, the opening kick, which was returned in for a touchdown by Alex Jenkins.

Whoops.

I know there's a rhyme and reason for it.  Sometime teams want to show faith in their defense.  Sometimes teams, especially on a rough weather day, want to control what end of the field they defend.

But I digress.  As you can see by the title of the blog, this isn't about the coin toss.

This is about a fan who was on the Coxsackie-Athens side watching the game.  This fan made his presence known through the game, both to the fans and players at Kim Miller Memorial Field, but also those listening in on the radio broadcast, as his barking statements definitely got picked up by the microphones.

After Corinth scored the opening kickoff touchdown, the fan started screaming.  As the game progressed, his barking of support progressed.  Most of it was positive support - along the lines of "0-0, you still got this." and "We need a stop now."  However, he would become more vocal in the fourth quarter.

Midway through the fourth quarter, this fan got agitated after the Indians got flagged for a personal foul face mask penalty, costing the Indians 15 yards, and led to Alex Jenkins' second touchdown of the game to extend the Tomahawks lead to 27-0.

"We better dispute this game," he barked after the penalty was called by the official.  "Our AD will have our back.  This will get overturned."

For much of the remainder of the game, he was silent, but what he gets blogged for would come after the final whistle.  As the referees were making their way off the field, he would begin yelling at them for that call, making it difficult for the refs to leave the field in peace.  Then a skirmish nearly broke out on that end of the field, prompting head coach JP Huslander to stop the handshake line and scream at his sideline "Hey, show some class!"

I'm not sure if this fan was involved in the scrum, but wouldn't be surprised.

This isn't how Coxsackie-Athens needs to be remembered.  The school, 70 miles away from Corinth, had tremendous support from students, fans and family who made the drive up from the community on the banks of the Hudson River in Northern Greene County, about 30 miles south of Albany.  The players never gave cheap shots or tried to play unfair, and the coaching staff was helpful.  The majority of the fans continued cheering their players, never booing once when the call didn't go their way.

This behavior and mentality needs to stop.  This didn't result in anything -- no charges, no actual punches -- and my writing of this is the only press about what transpired after the clock read 0:00.  Both Brett Hudson of the Post-Star and Jeff Scott of the Saratogian notes nothing about it.  And that's good.  Because behavior like this doesn't need to be rewarded with a lot of discussion about it.

Why I am discussing this is because this has became a painful trend in high school sports in the last two weeks.  Most everybody reading this already knows of the mess that occurred in Whitehall on October 18th, with the melee between Whitehall and Rensselaer costing Justin Culligan his job as the Railroaders head coach, and Christian Poczobut having to sit out on Saturday against Holy Trinity.

That's one of four altercations reported here in Section 2 in the last two weeks.  All four, involving players, not fans.

The Amsterdam/Bishop Maginn game on Friday, October 17th was soiled as the teams came together for an altercation that saw players ejected and ineligible for the quarterfinals this past weekend.  In girls soccer, Queensbury and Scotia had a couple players getting a little annoyed with each other during the Foothills Council Championship at Schuylerville the following day.  And the latest incident coming from boys soccer, where a St. Johnsville player punched a Maple Hill player in the face, requiring stitches and resulting in a court appearance date for that St. Johnsville player.  That game was called in the closing seconds.

This needs to stop.

Whether it means the referees calling a tighter game and calling some penalties that would up until two weeks ago be no-calls, or players getting benched longer than one match for excessively bad behavior, something needs to be done to get the focus back on the sport itself, and less about the extracurricular activities that are going on between whistles.

Getting back to the fan who initially started this discussion ... that personal foul flag did not give Corinth the game.  In fact, because Coxsackie-Athens was unable to exploit Corinth's many holding penalties, this game was pretty much in hand for the Tomahawks by the time this incident occured.

I want to finish off by crediting JP Huslander and the 2014 Coxsackie-Athens Indians on a great season.  This is only the fifth winning season the team has seen in around 20 years.  And the first playoff game the Indians have played since 2006.

With quality returning players, we could be talking about the Indians again next year.  But hopefully, by then, this fan will have wised up and will control himself better at one of their games.

Thoughts from the Press Box are the thoughts and opinions of the writer, and is not reflective of the station's management, sponsors or other hosts.

Thoughts From The Press Box: A Special Thought about the Whitehall Issue

I sat here this morning, wondering what exactly I would write about here.

Would I talk about the Queensbury/Burnt Hills game, where Queensbury dominated and suffocated Burnt Hills into their first shutout since 2004?

Or would I talk about the other game we covered, where Warrensburg took advantage early and won their first over the Fort Edward Flying Forts. (A recap of that game still to come)

Nah.  Blog entries for both of those games are still to come.

I want to talk briefly about the mess up in Whitehall, where athletes came together and participated in extracurricular activities during their game with the Rensselaer Rams, forcing the officials to call the game short in the third quarter, with Whitehall leading 28-6.

After the game, there are accusations of racial name-calling and choking.  An assistant coach was ejected, and therefore will not be allowed to participate next week for Rensselaer.  And Christian Poczobut was ejected for Whitehall, making him ineligible for this Friday's game against Holy Trinity.

In addition, the Board of Education stripped head coach Justin Culligan of his job.

It should have never come to this.

Through my few times in contact with him for pregame interviews for our high school football broadcasts, Justin Culligan was a helpful man who would bend over backwards to get us the interview.  And the interviews always were very professional.  When he talked about the opposition, he never had a bad thought about them, or their coach.

That's why it's very shocking to me that all this has gone down.  And because of all this activity, Whitehall loses the most out of this.  Not Rensselaer, who is mostly quiet in the aftermath, but Whitehall.  Rensselaer is going to move onto the next opponent without any disruption to their daily routiene.  But Whitehall will have this distraction as they prepare for Holy Trinity.  The kids will have this weighing on their mind.  And their 100th season is now marred because of this fight.  Unless the postseason run turns out with a trophy the last weekend of November, more are going to remember this season for the melee over the 6-1 record that includes their first win over Cambridge since 1989.

And the team loses out on getting to play an old rival.  The C-D crossover week in Week 8 led to some speculation that Whitehall could renew their rivlary with Granville, an opponent whom the Railroaders have a history with, but saw that rivalry extinguish when Section 2 went to classification play in 2004.

I'm not finger pointing here.  I wasn't at Whitehall when this all went down.  I didn't get to see what the onlookers got to see.  But it seems to me like some of the reason why the game went sour was because the referees kept the laundry in their pocket, finally pulling it out when it was too late.  The referees seemed to lose control of the game, with a sign of this coming during the first incident in the second quarter.  The referees only ejected one, the Rensselaer assistant coach, leaving the players unaffected and allowed to still participate.

Then all hell broke loose in the third quarter, leading to the game being called.

You have to wonder if the refs made it known that this activity would not be allowed, and started sending kids to the showers instead of the sidelines, would this have happened?

It could have sent a message.

And maybe people would be talking about the 6-1 Railroaders instead.

Thoughts From The Press Box: A Friday Night in Moreau

SOUTH GLENS FALLS - Worried about Brett Rodriguez's health entering the season?

No need to worry.  After three special team touchdowns and two more rushing touchdowns, I think Rodriguez is fine.

With or without Rodriguez, the Spartans won the game on the first play of the game, when Juan Escamilla booted an onside kick that the Bulldogs were not prepared for, and the Spartans quickly cashed in with Tyrell Adams run up the middle for the score.

And what a run by Adams, going 97 yards to score to set up the craziest three minutes of football I've ever seen, with two kickoff returns for touchdowns to follow.

Queensbury got to feature their backups early, as some unfamiliar names started to show up in the second quarter for Coach John Irion.  These are the faces who you will be familiarizing yourself with next year, but getting valuable experience now.

In addition, the Spartans got to rest key starters for what's bound to be a 48 minute slugfest down in Burnt Hills, where the winner is guaranteed home dates for Weeks 8 and 9, and the loser may be forced to play on the road come Halloween night.

The Bulldogs have promise.  John Styzcynski has good running ability.  He kept with Tyrell Adams in pursuit during Adams 97 yard touchdown run and followed that up with an 85 yard effort on the ensuing kickoff to give the Bulldogs their first score of the game.

And the Bulldogs aren't out of the playoff chase yet.  With their win over Green Tech, it sets up a win-and-you're-in scenario at Gloversville this Friday.  The winner will claim the final seed in the playoffs, and the loser will be playing crossover games next week.

It's not something Coach Hammond wanted to talk much about in preparation for the game versus Queensbury, but it's something he's reminding the troops about this week at practice.

They still have a shot.

***

South Glens Falls, as well as Hudson Falls, is a school that gives you a great feeling when you're at a high school football game.

That's because they have something other schools don't have these days.  A pep band.  The sound of the horns and the drums helping electrify the crowd when a big play happens.  Like the feeling you have at a collegiate game, just with a more local, hometown feel.

It helps the atmosphere, and it's a shame schools have cut back on the budgets and forced school music departments to shed away their participation at games.  

Growing up that is one of the things I remember when I was at school at Hudson Falls.  The sound of the band when David Winters would break through the defensive line into the secondary for a huge gain.  Or the play that put the Tigers in for 6.

I just wish more schools that still have a music program would get them involved in their team's home games.  Even if it's for that team's homecoming game -- make the Friday night or Saturday afternoon even better with the sound of the band chiming in with their school spirit.

***

We had some technical difficulties during our broadcast that prevented us from playing the interviews we conducted with South Glens Falls coach Mike Hammond and Queensbury coach John Irion.

Even though some of these items discussed within these interviews deal with the game itself and therefore outdated, here are the interviews as they were intended to air on Friday night.

Queensbury coach John Irion:

Check this out on Chirbit
South Glens Falls coach Mike Hammond:

Check this out on Chirbit
NEXT BROADCAST: - FRIDAY - Queensbury at Burnt Hills - Coverage begins at 6:45PM

Thoughts from the Press Box: Unbeaten No More

WHITEHALL - One team had to experience their first loss of the season in the rain at Ambrose Gilligan Field on Saturday.

That team turned out to be the Cambridge Indians, who fumbled their way to a 21-19 loss against the Whitehall Railroaders to fall a game behind Whitehall for the top spot in Class D.

While the win gives Whitehall the edge in the playoff chase, it ultimately doesn't matter, as with Canajoharie's win over the Fort Edward/Argyle Flying Forts, it settled which four teams would be playing come November 1st at Schuylerville High.

Whitehall, Cambridge, Rensselaer and Canajoharie will make up the field for the Class D Sectional, with Fort Edward and Warrensburg playing in Week 7 to see which team will win their first game of the season.

It was a game that Whitehall got comfortable playing early, though we didn't see the magic that either team was known for through the first four weeks of the season.  With the rain, it made the passing game nearly extinct.

We didn't get to see Ethan English at his finest.  We didn't get to see Justin Hoagland at his finest.  Which is a shame, because on the top of their game, both quarterbacks would have electrified their offenses with their ability to both run and pass.

But maybe that makes this the appetizer for what could be another meeting between these teams on Saturday, November 8th in the Sectional Championship at Schuylerville.

Let's just hope for a dry day then.

The weather not only impacted the play on the field, it impacted our broadcast.  We were inside the press box, protected by the elements, however, thanks to a surprisingly good crowd that came out in support despite the rain, the elements made things hard for us.

The press box at Ambrose Gilligan Field is on even level with the top level of the bleachers, requiring us on several occasions to peek around supporters whose umbrellas were blocking our view.  If it wasn't for Tim Drawbridge or The Post-Star's Pete Tobey, I'm not sure how we would have made it through the broadcast with as much accuracy as we did.

We can write it off as just another challenge we have faced in our 33rd football broadcast in the last three years we've been doing this.

Thoughts From The Press Box: The Jug Game

GLENS FALLS - It was a beautiful night, with a beautiful atmosphere.  Under the whirl of portable lights, thousands made their way to the corner of Sherman and Clayton for the 42nd edition of this rivalry game against the Glens Falls Indians and the Hudson Falls Tigers.

It was an exciting game.  Two teams, fighting for their playoff lives, giving their all on the field.  One team managing two key injuries in-game, with their replacements performing very well.  The other pushed their running back into the record books for one of the most yards rushing in a single game.  And a great atmosphere too, with Glens Falls celebrating their homecoming with the parade of floats at the half.

But one play changed the path of the game, and it's a play that needs to be talked about.  If you heard our coverage, the other radio station's, or the television coverage that has aired this week, you know what play that is.

Glens Falls had a 21-20 lead heading into the final minute of the second half.  Hudson Falls is driving, and managed to get the ball up to the Glens Falls 8 yard line.  11 seconds left on the clock, clock stopped as the previous play went out of bounds.

The Hudson Falls Tigers took their time breaking huddle and got set with just a few seconds on the play clock.  That play clock went down 3 ... 2 ... 1 ... 0 ... and sat there for a second before Hudson Falls snapped the ball.  Dalton Hogan would pass it off to his left to an open Schuyler Eustis for the touchdown that put the Tigers ahead 26-20.

To the nine people inside the press box, immediately rose the inquiry of why it wasn't flagged for Delay of Game.  And it was a major play, too.  Hudson Falls took the lead for good with that play, and won their first jug since 1997 with their 43-35 win.

Now comes the "what if's?".  And the debate.  Is Hudson Falls's win legitimate?

In my mind, the win is.  Not because I'm a Hudson Falls alum and wanted to see the Tigers score the jug for the first time since the fall after I graduated.  But because of several factors.

First, and this is something that was mentioned on the television broadcast by Brian Delaney, as well as his partner, Bob Freeman, for LookTV. There were numerous Glens Falls defenders who did not play the full down because they were expecting the flag, allowing Eustis to get wide open for the touchdown score.  While there should have been the flag and a whistle to stop play, the players have got to know that no matter what, you have to play until you hear that whistle blow, meaning the lapse on D is partially theirs to blame there.

Second, we don't know how Hudson Falls would have played that down if they did get penalized and it was at the 13 yard line instead of the 8.  Would Geno Brancati, who was doing very well during that drive, continue to run it up the gut, or would Hogan try to pass like he did on the actual play?  Would Glens Falls stop him in time?  Would Hudson Falls have enough time to get into the end zone?  We don't know.

Third, Glens Falls had ample opportunities to get the touchdown back, including with 3 seconds left in the half.  Granted, with 60 yards to cover and one play to do it in, it would take a Hail Mary type play from a quarterback who was just thrown in because of the injury to the starter, but it was an avenue worth exploring if the Indians were hoping to get the touchdown back.

In addition, the Indians defense came up big on the first Hudson Falls drive of the 3rd quarter, forcing them to punt, but was unable to do anything offensively.

So, while it was a play that altered course, it was one which Glens Falls could have played differently, and could have gotten back.  But it still is a play that needs to be examined, and something that the regional associations of game officials need to talk about moving forward to make sure that it doesn't happen again, because it could one day be a critical mistake at an end of a game where the team affected won't have any time left on the clock.

And what a mess that will be.

Thoughts from the Press Box: Cohoes at Glens Falls

The Glens Falls Indians won their Week 4 game
against the Cohoes Tigers 40-20.

GLENS FALLS - Entering the half, I felt nervous for the hometown Glens Falls Indians.

They had surrendered a 12 point lead.  Shelton Alston was starting to blow through holes on the line for decent gains, leading to the Cohoes Tigers first score.

Then after the Indians had a chance to extend their lead before the half, the Tigers forced a turnover on downs inside their own 10 yard line.  With 50 seconds left on the clock, the Tigers had the Indians beat down field, leading to Shelton Alston's touchdown reception from Brandon LaForrest in a drive that burned all of 30 seconds off the clock.

As the Tigers were due to get the ball first to begin the second half, I was more than ready to define that the turning point of the game.

Then it happened.  On the first play from scrimmage in the third quarter, Shelton Alston fumbled the ball trying to go up the middle, leading to the Indians takeover, not only of the football, but the game itself.

They scored to make it 20-13.  A couple more miscues later, and the Glens Falls Indians would build to a 33-13 lead.

It was a game the Indians needed.  Not for divisional standing -- it was a non-divisional game against the Tigers, but for team morale.

The Indians line up for a 1st Down play in the Red Zone.

Coach Pat Lilac noted he was nervous about his Indians heading into the Week 3 game against Cobleskill.  The Indians had been beaten and battered in Weeks 1 and 2, losing to Schalmont and Broadalbin-Perth, and still have to face division-leading Schuylerville.

Plus the Jug Game more often than not turns into a battle where team records do not matter, especially in last year's edition when the winless Hudson Falls Tigers came close to claiming the prize.

The Cohoes Tigers have an uphill climb themselves, made easier with Schalmont already in their rear-view mirror.  They still have to face Ravena, but that homecoming battle will be made easier if they can rattle off victories against Ichabod Crane and Albany Academy in the two weeks ahead.

There are things that still need to be worked on for the Indians.  They fell victim on several occasions to the long pass, including one in the first quarter that went 95 yards for the score, but called back due to an ineligible receiver down field.  The Indians got lucky there, but allowed a couple other big passing plays from Brandon LaForrest, including that second quarter 55 yard score to Shelton Alston.

Shelton Alston got open on several occasions, denoting some coverage issues the Indians should work on with another team that can pass coming on Friday with the Hudson Falls Tigers.

* * *

UP NEXT: It's the first week of doubleheader football on FOX Sports Radio 1230, now that the Mets season has concluded.

In the first Friday Night Lights game of the season, we are back at Putt LaMay field in Glens Falls for the 2014 Jug Game.  The Hudson Falls Tigers are coming off a tough 42-6 loss to Schuylerville, who is in prime position to win the division.  The Tigers haven't won the jug since 1997, and last beat the Glens Falls Indians in a Sectional Game in 2000.

Coverage of the 42nd edition of the Jug Game begins at 6:45PM Friday Night.  Kickoff is at 7PM.

[NOTE: If you are planning on heading to the Jug Game, the Glens Falls School District has some parking information and suggestions for you]

Then on Saturday, it's a battle of the unbeatens.  The Whitehall Railroaders have been playing good football, leading to a 4-0 start to the season.  But that 4-0 record will be tested as they face last year's Sectional Champion Cambridge up at Whitehall Central School.  Cambridge jumped out early and soundly beat the Fort Edward/Argyle Flying Forts 54-0 on Saturday.

Coverage live from Whitehall Central School will begin at 12:45PM Saturday Afternoon, with kickoff at 1PM.

Thoughts From The Press Box: Hudson Falls 46, Ichabod Crane 27

In the pre-game write up, I noted that Hudson Falls needed to stop their mental mistakes if they were to take a run towards the Class B playoffs.

They didn't.  The Tigers made several miscues, but were saved by the Ichabod Crane mistakes as the Tigers won 46-27 to improve their record to 2-1.

I don't want to dwell much on those mistakes.  But with division-leading Schuylerville coming to town this Saturday, these are mistakes that Coach Bill Strong is going to have to get a handle on in order to make a mark in Class B West.  Schuylerville's coach John Bowen isn't going to be as forgiving as the Riders were on Saturday.

The biggest miscues came from Hudson Falls's Special Teams unit, which allowed five decent kickoff returns of 30-plus yards, which in turn led to points on the board for the Riders in several occasions.  And on one occasion, Ichabod Crane was given the ball with great field position after a fumble during a kickoff return by Hudson Falls.

Both of Ichabod Crane's scoring drives in the second quarter that pushed the Riders to within six at the half came thanks to great field position, and was aided by the golden laundry.

Hudson Falls was able to pull away in the third quarter thanks to two turnovers, and a critical third down where Ichabod Crane was flagged on holding on a play that would otherwise be a first down deep in Hudson Falls territory.  The Riders were unable to convert on fourth down, and Hudson Falls was soon able to blow the game open.

The point of this - Ichabod Crane was forgiving.  The Tigers might not be as lucky this Saturday when they face Schuylerville.

But that's the negative.  Let's take a look at the positives.

First, Hudson Falls showed that they do not always have to rely on Geno Brancati in order to put points on the board.  Heading into the game on Saturday, Brancati was responsible for 9 of the Tigers 10 touchdowns.  While Brancati scored three of the Tigers touchdowns, he was not alone in the offensive effort.

We saw a strong effort from Dalton Hogan, who passed for three touchdowns.  Hogan completed 9 of 10 passes for 192 yards.

On some aspects, it was a tough game for Ichabod Crane.  But there were bright spots.  Zack Herbst didn't get a lot on the ground, rushing 31 yards on 10 carries, but made quite the play in the first quarter to tie the game with his 47 yard option throw to Alden Bilinski.  Alex Lambert completed three of his first four passes, connecting twice for touchdowns in the second quarter to draw the Riders closer.

If the Riders didn't make the errors in the third quarter, including Lambert's interception by Geno Brancati, and Grove Cleveland's fumble return for a touchdown, this could have been a closer game.

It shows you how much turnovers can change the course of a game.  And how important field position is, and more importantly, defending the kickoff return.

NEXT WEEK: We're off to Glens Falls for the first of two games.  This Saturday at 1:30 P.M., the Glens Falls Indians host the Cohoes Tigers in a rematch of last year's quarterfinals game.  Then six days later under portable lights, it's our first Friday Night Lights as the Glens Falls Indians host the Hudson Falls Tigers in the 2014 renewal of the Jug Game.  Kickoff for that game is 7:00 P.M.

Thoughts from the Press Box: Week 2

I, like most of you, was hoping for pleasant weather for the Saturday afternoon games, especially after having to endure possible thunderstorms the week before. 

We didn't get that.

Light to moderate rain all afternoon long made for a mess in Fort Edward, where the home Flying Forts succumbed to several sloppy mistakes with the moist pigskin and quickly found themselves down to the Hoosic Valley Indians, eventually losing the game 47-14.

Sloppy games are tough to watch sometimes, because mother nature gets in the way of what should be a better rhythmic game.

Especially when it's not a close game.

Fort Edward couldn't get anything going offensively, except for a third quarter series that eventually resulted in the Flying Forts scoring 6 points in the early stages of the fourth quarter.  At that point, Kevin Stimpson had Dan Herring take the snaps, while Chris Boucher was running from the backfield in the "I" formation. 

But Hoosic Valley's attack was strong and consistent, and it resulted in a win for the Indians.  

As we talked about during the broadcast, the theme for both of these teams is building for the future.  Hoosic Valley is playoff ineligible, playing a D schedule as a team that qualifies for Class C.  Playing young bodies, Coach Pete Purcelli has some talent that will grow with the team.  In fact, they already have, winning four of their last five contests dating back to last season.

Meanwhile, Fort Edward is building with their new relationship with the kids who come from Argyle.  Only six are on the varsity squad, but several more line the J.V. and the Modified squads that are the building blocks for the future of football on top of the hill.  

A special thanks goes out to The Post-Star's sportswriter Pete Tobey, who came by and joined us during the broadcast.  He was taking refuge from the rain that was soaking the players and his clipboard.  You don't really get to appreciate all the hard work he puts into a game recap article until you see him in action, writing down furiously on every play.  Especially at various points when we put him on the air to get his insights about Section 2 football.

This Saturday we're at Hudson Falls High School, where the Tigers try to bounce back from their loss to the Johnstown Sir Bills.  They face the Ichabod Crane Riders, who have started the season 0-2 after losing to perennial playoff-bound Ravena.  We're on the air at 1:15PM, so listen along or join us at H. G. Moran Field for a good Saturday of football in the North Country.

---
Schedule Change: We got word late last week the the Queensbury/South Glens Falls game, originally scheduled for Saturday, October 11th at 1:30PM, has been moved and now will be played under the lights on Friday, October 10th at 7:00PM.

As such, we will not be broadcasting the Chatham/Lake George/Hadley-Luzurne game as originally intended.  The other station group in town will be broadcasting that game still, and thus we will broadcast the Queensbury/South Glens Falls game.  

With the open date on Saturday, we will now add the Warrensburg/Cambridge-Salem game on Saturday, October 11th, at 1PM.