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Western Team's Preview with Andrew Legare · Cover IV Podcast

• 0:09
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to Cover Four.
• 0:12
  SPEAKER_00: If you're a Section 4 football fan, this is your podcast.
• 0:16
  SPEAKER_00: I'm Coach Smith, and I'll be your host.
• 0:24
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• 0:57
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to our 2023 Western Teams Preview.
• 1:01
  SPEAKER_00: I'm joined by one of our football analysts, Andrew Laguerre, the longtime sports writer for the Elmira Star Gazette.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_00: Andrew will give us an update on the Western teams in Section 4.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_00: Take it away, Andrew.
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_01: Well, uh, Tim, good to be back.
• 1:16
  SPEAKER_01: And we'll, you know, I guess uh in all fairness, we'll start everything with Corning, which has won the last three Section 4 AA titles.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_01: Uh Mike Johnston has been around for all three.
• 1:27
  SPEAKER_01: This is his third season as head coach.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_01: They were young last year, and I think they'd probably surprise some people with what they did.
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, you know, but Corning is Corning.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_01: They'll they'll run the double wing, they play physical football, and uh they got some good athletes.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_01: You know, AJ Thomas, fullback, inside linebacker, really tough kid.
• 1:47
  SPEAKER_01: Uh both their wing backs are back.
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_01: They have Brody Wolf back, who also plays safety for them, and James Freeman, who some of you may know as big brother Max, who's uh a stud at Alfred University.
• 1:59
  SPEAKER_01: And then uh Jack Beerman, one of those typical tough corning kids who plays two ways, tight end, inside linebacker.
• 2:07
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, that's really the core of the team.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_01: But uh, you know, they've got some other uh good kids back.
• 2:13
  SPEAKER_01: They had a lot of sophomores they played last year, a lot of young kids they played because of injuries and because of graduation.
• 2:19
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, you know, I think corning is always going to be competitive.
• 2:24
  SPEAKER_01: You know, a lot of that comes down to consistency, the consistency with coaching, consistency with what they want to do with the double wing, and that goes a long way.
• 2:33
  SPEAKER_01: And that you know, they have kids who know the offense and they run it very well.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, always expect corning to be competitive.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, I don't know how competitive, you know, if they're gonna be a championship contender, but that they'll certainly be in the mix this year.
• 2:50
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, they come out with a litmus test in their third game.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_00: That's against Maine Enwell at home.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I talked with Mike Johnston uh a little bit about that, and I I know I've been doing this 30 years or so.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_01: I don't remember a team having that type of schedule, especially the first three weeks, where you've got CNS, which is in the state quarterfinals, semifinals every year, CBA, which two years ago was a state champion, I believe in Class A two years ago, and then Maine Anwell, which was Maine Anwell, two-time defending champion.
• 3:21
  SPEAKER_01: I think they've they're up to seven state titles overall now.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, exactly.
• 3:26
  SPEAKER_01: You know, that's that's a heck of a test for Corning early on.
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_01: And I think uh, you know, it it's not inconceivable that a very good corning team could be 0-3, but you know, don't count them out.
• 3:39
  SPEAKER_01: Um interesting, the CNS game is a rematch of last year's state quarterfinal, and CNS ran away a bit with that one.
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, but Corning had been competitive with them uh over the years, and now Myra the same way with when Mike Johnson was an assistant there.
• 3:54
  SPEAKER_01: So I think last year was uh just one of those games that got away from Corning.
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_01: They had some turnovers, and you know, sometimes that happens in football where a lopsided score is just the result of things going bad versus a mismatch.
• 4:09
  SPEAKER_01: And I don't think it was a mismatch last year.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_01: I just think things went sour for Corning.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_01: You know, and one thing to remember about Corning last year is early in the year they beat Newburgh, which ended up the state runner up in class double A after losing to Corning.
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_01: Uh and I I you know always sort of pair Corning and Almyra.
• 4:33
  SPEAKER_01: They've had a heck of a rivalry over the years, and uh you know, I think Almira has some great talent back.
• 4:40
  SPEAKER_01: Amir Williams, uh fullback, he plays DN, is as tough a kid as you're gonna see in section four.
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, you know, thousand-yard rusher, he missed uh some games last year, you know, got hurt in the sectional final.
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_01: But, you know, I love watching that kid play.
• 4:56
  SPEAKER_01: And I I remember the Yui game, the first game at the new Hurley athletic complex when Amir carried about six Union Endicott tacklers, maybe 15 yards.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_01: And uh he had some runs like that throughout the year.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_01: He's he's an impressive uh specimen.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_01: Um but they you know Almira, I think the success often comes down to I mean, it comes down to the offensive line and then the ability for their wing backs to break big plays.
• 5:27
  SPEAKER_01: And they got a kid named Johnny Garcia who can do that.
• 5:31
  SPEAKER_01: Um another excellent season for him last year.
• 5:35
  SPEAKER_01: And the one kid that sort of gets lost in the shuffle is the quarterback, Evan Garvin, who um his brother Darius was a star athlete at Almira Notre Dame.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_01: His dad, Johnny, used to be the all-time leading rusher at Almire Free Academy until I think Orlando Smith passed Johnny, but yes, he did.
• 5:55
  SPEAKER_00: My dad coached uh uh Johnny Garvin in uh high school football.
• 6:00
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, Johnny was a heck of a player, and uh, you know, so the bloodlines are pretty impressive with Evan, but uh he's very adept at beating you with a big pass, and he's very accurate, left-hander.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so he adds a really exciting dimension to that offense because they can hit the big play, and he's an excellent quarterback.
• 6:22
  SPEAKER_01: I I mean, he's the type of kid who's throwing for 2,000 yards if he's in a system where they want to do that.
• 6:27
  SPEAKER_01: But uh, you know, and they got some very good linemen back, they got John Overton, they got Ryan Place.
• 6:34
  SPEAKER_01: Chris Woodard got hurt playing AAU hoops in the spring.
• 6:38
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, but he was outstanding pass rusher for them last year.
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_01: And uh he's been cleared to play football, and Coach Jimmy McCauley is expecting big things from Chris, and he's another specimen.
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_01: He's a big kid and can really get after it.
• 6:53
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, it I think it's been a while because I think Corning's beat Almyra the last seven times they played, and that includes three sectional finals.
• 7:03
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, Binghamton's the other double A this year, but the expectation is Almira Corning are gonna be fighting it out for that double A championship.
• 7:12
  SPEAKER_01: And Almira's hungry.
• 7:13
  SPEAKER_01: It's been it's been a while, and they be they become used to being a sectional championship team.
• 7:18
  SPEAKER_01: So uh it'll be fun to watch what they do.
• 7:21
  SPEAKER_01: Um and also you gotta you gotta mention uh Jimmy McCauley.
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_01: Uh Almira's first year was 2011, but Jimmy's first year was 2012, along with Dave Holleran and you know, he's had Mike Johnston there, Jeff Edwards, really good coaching staff.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_01: 78 and 31 career record now from Jimmy and his program there.
• 7:42
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, you know, he I think uh maybe doesn't get the credit he deserves because excellent coach, and you know Elmira Corning, a lot of what they do well is because the the coaching staff that goes a long way.
• 7:56
  SPEAKER_01: So exactly and then also in Shimon County you know you know what's fun about Shimon County is the stadiums now.
• 8:07
  SPEAKER_01: We got Elmira's a new stadium, Horsehead Stadium is electric since they've uh become they've had their new stadium.
• 8:15
  SPEAKER_01: This will be the third year they moved to night football.
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_01: It's just such an exciting environment there.
• 8:21
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, you know, they had afternoon games, it was you know, they had their moments.
• 8:26
  SPEAKER_01: I remember, you know, they've packed that place, but uh, I feel like every Friday night now it's packed.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, you know, last year Horseheads um struggled to score some points.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_01: I think they end up four and six, uh, lost their last four.
• 8:42
  SPEAKER_01: But Kevin Hillman has turned that team, that program into one that expects to be contending every year, expects to have a winning record every year.
• 8:52
  SPEAKER_01: And uh I think he's pretty excited about what they have.
• 8:54
  SPEAKER_01: He expects the offense to be much better than it was last year.
• 8:58
  SPEAKER_01: I I think the last four games they scored one or zero touchdowns in those four games.
• 9:04
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so offense has been a focus for them, and just you know, scoring more points.
• 9:10
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, they got Braddock Salisbury who made some big plays last year, Josh McCauley, uh other guys on the team, Robert Packham, Dylan Chalk.
• 9:20
  SPEAKER_01: Finn Scanlon last year returned two picks for touchdowns in the same game against Ithaca.
• 9:25
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so they got they got some kids who can play, and uh they're in class A with uh Union Endicott and Vestal.
• 9:33
  SPEAKER_01: It's funny you get three schools in there, but they're all physical, well-coached programs.
• 9:39
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, you're like, oh, you're only got two other teams, but it doesn't make it easy because uh all three programs are excellent and uh you know have competed for sectional titles.
• 9:49
  SPEAKER_01: Uh I think Horse Sudes hasn't won one though in uh I think maybe '98 when they won three in a row.
• 9:56
  SPEAKER_01: I think that that's last time, and that's always something that that program would like to return to in terms of being a sectional championship team.
• 10:04
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and one the one common denominator of the first three teams that you talked about, Corney, painted post, Elmira, and Horseheads, is consistency at leadership.
• 10:14
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, the leader of the team, the head coach.
• 10:16
  SPEAKER_00: That consistency, um, as you can see, over time it's made these programs um, not that they were respectable, but they're they're year after year after year.
• 10:26
  SPEAKER_00: They don't have really super big lulls like some some places when they're always changing coaches.
• 10:32
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, so there's a lot to be said for the consistency of the leader, which is the head coach and leading their programs.
• 10:38
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and horse has Damian Sachs helping out, who was a former head coach, and the assistants are integral as well.
• 10:46
  SPEAKER_01: And if you have experienced coaches that who are on your staff, it uh it makes a humongous difference.
• 10:52
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that benefits all three of those programs that you mentioned.
• 10:57
  SPEAKER_01: We've also got the the eight-man program at Thomas A.
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_01: Edison.
• 11:01
  SPEAKER_01: You know, we had two down here.
• 11:02
  SPEAKER_01: Almira Notre Dame is, you know, there's no football there right now.
• 11:05
  SPEAKER_01: And uh whether that returns or not will remains to be seen.
• 11:09
  SPEAKER_01: But you know, they've got football at Almira Heights, which has a really strong tradition dating back, I don't know, close to 100 years now with guys like Northrop and McNellis and Mike Bennett coach this team.
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_01: So there's a lot of tradition that people may not be aware of at Edison.
• 11:27
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, you know, I got to see them a two or three times, I think, last year.
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_01: They're a fun team to watch.
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_01: They got kids who can make big plays.
• 11:36
  SPEAKER_01: The thing they ran into is you know, turnovers sometimes or just penalties, you know, so they hurt themselves at times.
• 11:44
  SPEAKER_01: But uh, you know, Kyle Erickson is pretty excited about the group he has there, and you know, they've got some returning pieces who I think could go a long way.
• 11:55
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, his goal is to you know, contend for the eight-man title, to contend for the playoffs.
• 12:02
  SPEAKER_01: For a few years at Edison, it's been let's let's get two or three wins, you know.
• 12:06
  SPEAKER_01: And I think he's trying to change that mindset.
• 12:09
  SPEAKER_01: And I think they have some people who can do that.
• 12:12
  SPEAKER_01: Um, Rey S Mackie played quarterback last year, but he also played running back and you know, really quick kid who made some huge runs for them.
• 12:20
  SPEAKER_01: Um they got some big linemen, Bryson Gwynn up and tail on the plant.
• 12:26
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, he's really excited about them.
• 12:28
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, eight-man football, when you get two big physical guys like that, that's a pretty rare thing.
• 12:33
  SPEAKER_01: So he uh coach Erickson is liking what he's seeing from the line, particularly.
• 12:40
  SPEAKER_01: Mason Maurer, Maurer's a name that everyone knows in Almire Heights.
• 12:43
  SPEAKER_01: Uh he's back at middle linebacker.
• 12:45
  SPEAKER_01: Blake Cobb plays tight end for them, very good athlete, did some great things for them last year.
• 12:51
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so I think the excitement level at in Elmire Heights is pretty high.
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, you know, uh looking forward to see what they do this season.
• 13:01
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, their sixth game is going to be against Groton, who had the best record in the eight-player classification last year.
• 13:08
  SPEAKER_00: And that's gonna be a real test for them at that point.
• 13:11
  SPEAKER_00: So they've got five games to iron things out, get things meshing, and then at that particular point, both of those teams should be at peak performance.
• 13:22
  SPEAKER_00: And uh that will be a good test to see where uh not only Thomas A.
• 13:26
  SPEAKER_00: Edison is at, but where Groton is at as well.
• 13:28
  SPEAKER_00: Because they think, you know, sometimes teams will be very dominant one year and not so much the next, but they tend to hold that through.
• 13:35
  SPEAKER_00: So that will be a good litmus test for Edison, Thomas A.
• 13:38
  SPEAKER_00: Edison at their sixth game.
• 13:40
  SPEAKER_01: I was gonna say eight-player football in section four hasn't been around very long, but it's become very competitive.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_01: And I think there's almost a perception, like it's some some for some people, that it's not the same as 11-man in terms of the competitiveness, but but in some ways it can be more competitive.
• 13:58
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, you know, we've seen teams with 25, 30, 30 kids, and that just becomes a result of you you don't know how many kids you're gonna have, or you need stability with a program playing eight-man football.
• 14:11
  SPEAKER_01: We've seen some great teams over the last few years, and you mentioned Droughton.
• 14:15
  SPEAKER_01: So it's not an easy schedule for anybody.
• 14:18
  SPEAKER_01: It's uh a lot of competitive games, and you know, if you've seen eight-player football, it's open and it's pretty exciting to watch.
• 14:25
  SPEAKER_00: Right.
• 14:25
  SPEAKER_00: And you uh you're your um the game itself demands higher cardio.
• 14:31
  SPEAKER_00: You you need to be, you know, uh in shape, not that you aren't playing football, but there's just so much open space, it seems like, in that particular game.
• 14:40
  SPEAKER_00: And also your techniques have to be very sound, uh, specifically your tackling techniques, because maybe you know you got somebody lined up to tackle and you miss that student athlete.
• 14:50
  SPEAKER_00: And usually you have uh one or two backers behind you, maybe you don't in the eight-player game, and then that uh that individuals off to the races.
• 14:59
  SPEAKER_00: So it it makes you have your uh your techniques much more sound, you know, reach blocking, uh, like I said, tackling, uh all you know, coverages, things like that.
• 15:09
  SPEAKER_00: It uh it's just a real interesting, more a little more fast-paced game.
• 15:13
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's scaled in terms of the number of players, just like an arena game.
• 15:18
  SPEAKER_00: And uh, you know, in arena football, you you I don't think they've ever held anybody to zero points.
• 15:24
  SPEAKER_00: And my point is that it's typically uh an open uh kind of game and a little more scoring and typically long scoring.
• 15:32
  SPEAKER_00: So you miss a block, you miss a tackle, and typically the individual student athletes off to the races.
• 15:38
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and that makes those defensive performances all the more impressive because I've I've seen a few of those at a couple like defensive focus clashes, and you're like, wow, yeah.
• 15:53
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, very worthy of uh credit.
• 15:57
  SPEAKER_00: Now, the last uh school actually they're they've come together for football, and you know a little bit about these schools and the rivalry.
• 16:04
  SPEAKER_00: So tell us about Watkins Glenn Odessa Montour.
• 16:07
  SPEAKER_01: Back in the day, I played for Odessa Montour, so I I know what the rivalry was about, and now obviously I think we're I don't know, seven years, eight years or whatever with the combined program.
• 16:19
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, they've gone from rivals to a cohesive pair of school districts, and they had a great season last year playing independent football.
• 16:28
  SPEAKER_01: I think final record was nine and one, and uh they won the independent postseason title with a win over Dryden.
• 16:35
  SPEAKER_01: Um you know, Trevor Holland, a Watkins Glenn guy who played at Watkins Glenn back in the day, is a you know again.
• 16:44
  SPEAKER_01: We talk about stability with coaches.
• 16:45
  SPEAKER_01: Trevor has offered that with his coaching staff.
• 16:48
  SPEAKER_01: Watkins Glenn was some montour.
• 16:50
  SPEAKER_01: They like to run the ball, but you know, they've shown that they can hit you with the big passing play last year, especially um Ryan Willett 823 yards last year.
• 17:02
  SPEAKER_01: He's back.
• 17:02
  SPEAKER_01: Bradley Gillis ran for 755 yards last year, he's back.
• 17:07
  SPEAKER_01: Thomas Snow ran for 486 yards last year, he's back.
• 17:10
  SPEAKER_01: All three play defense, all three excellent defenders as well.
• 17:14
  SPEAKER_01: So they got some very good kids back.
• 17:16
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, you know, they're big thing for them is they're back in class C.
• 17:22
  SPEAKER_01: They got a tough schedule.
• 17:24
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, I think Trevor's optimistic his kids can uh make that transition back.
• 17:31
  SPEAKER_01: They've been there before.
• 17:32
  SPEAKER_01: We've seen them in the postseason before, and you know, uh they've competed with the likes of Waverly and Susquehanna Valley when they've had great teams and they've given them all they can handle.
• 17:45
  SPEAKER_01: So you know, looking at the kids they they have back, they got quite a few really good athletes.
• 17:50
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, you know, I think they're gonna at least hold their own within class C this year, and you know, we'll see if they can make a run at the postseason.
• 17:58
  SPEAKER_00: Andrew, that wraps up the uh the five teams there.
• 18:01
  SPEAKER_00: One out of, well, actually, one out of Stuben, one out of Skylar, and the other three out of Shimong.
• 18:07
  SPEAKER_00: Um, that was an excellent uh preseason preview and continue to keep doing the good things that you're doing down there in Elmira.
• 18:16
  SPEAKER_00: And uh we'll look forward to having you on later in the season to go over some uh key matchups that are going to materialize over the season.
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks again, Andrew.
• 18:25
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, thanks, Tim.
• 18:26
  SPEAKER_00: I appreciate it.
• 18:27
  SPEAKER_00: Always good to talk to you.
• 18:29
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• 18:33
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• 18:38
  SPEAKER_00: Your inputs are never out of bounds.
• 18:42
  SPEAKER_00: In football and life, it's not where we line up, it's where we wind up.
• 18:48
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for listening to the Cover 4 podcast.