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

• 0:08
  SPEAKER_01: Welcome to Cover Four.
• 0:10
  SPEAKER_01: If you're a Section Four football fan, you're in the right place.
• 0:15
  SPEAKER_01: This is your podcast.
• 0:16
  SPEAKER_01: I'm Coach Smith, and I'll be your host.
• 0:19
  SPEAKER_01: Buckle up.
• 0:21
  SPEAKER_01: Let's go.
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_01: Joining us today in the Cover Four podcast studio is Andrew Laguerre, award-winning sports writer for the Almira Star Gazette.
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_01: Andrew is one of our football analysts.
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_01: He covers the Western Section 4 football teams.
• 0:41
  SPEAKER_01: Today, Andrew will share his insight and preview the Western teams for the upcoming season.
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_01: Welcome, Andrew.
• 0:53
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks, Tim.
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_00: Good to be back with you this year.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_00: Looking at the uh Almira Corning region for football, we got six schools I want to discuss.
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_00: And uh I guess it makes the most sense to start with Almira.
• 1:06
  SPEAKER_00: Uh coming off a six and five season that they won a third straight section for class double-A title.
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_00: Um one little tidbit about the Express.
• 1:16
  SPEAKER_00: They have 98 wins as a program since they got going in 2011, which was the year after Corning's combined program started.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_00: So two wins from 100 as a program.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_00: Head coach Jimmy McCaulay got there the second year.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_00: He has 95 wins, so we might have some milestone wins coming up.
• 1:33
  SPEAKER_00: I'm coming up for sure for the Express, maybe early in the season.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_00: Um a lot of talent was lost.
• 1:39
  SPEAKER_00: Uh most of their yardage and touchdowns, they all graduated, but you know, the Express have some good kids back.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_00: Uh Willie Walker and Ryan Gobel were alternating snaps in the preseason at quarterback.
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_00: Uh Gobel, people might remember, quarterback the Express to a win over Vestel midway through the 2025 season.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_00: Then the next game, first series of the game, he suffered a season and ending injury.
• 2:06
  SPEAKER_00: So that was unfortunate.
• 2:07
  SPEAKER_00: But McCaulay really high on what Ryan gave them last season in an interesting spot.
• 2:13
  SPEAKER_00: Uh Walker also delivered a lot of big plays.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: You know, the one thing that interests me with Jimmy is uh, you know, with a lot of talented kids, but he doesn't like to pigeonhole anyone into any position necessarily on offense.
• 2:28
  SPEAKER_00: And uh as he told me, he finds what guys do and puts them in spots to have them do what they do.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: So uh some other quality kids back for the express.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_00: Uh Darien Baby Harris, the baby nickname is uh they had a another older kid named Dayshawn Dash Harris, so that sort of helped them uh differentiate the Harrises.
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_00: Um Leon Og Liam Ogden is the senior, he's back.
• 2:56
  SPEAKER_00: Mason Mack is a two-way lineman, he's also back.
• 3:00
  SPEAKER_00: So um, you know, the a lot lost to graduation, but as we've seen in recent years with this program, uh they've been able to rebuild pretty quickly and at least be in contention for the sectional title.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_00: You know, one thing Jimmy McCaulay told me is you know, sectional titles are great, but they want to be more competitive at in the state tournament if they get back there this year.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_00: So uh taking a look at the Corning Hawks, Mike Johnson Jr.
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_00: back is coach of that team, and people remember he was a longtime offensive coordinator for some of the better Elmira Express teams, including the one that made it to the state semifinals.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_00: Uh Corning four and six last season, played a tough schedule, ended up losing both games to Almira.
• 3:48
  SPEAKER_00: So that you know, though it feels like the Elmira Corning results are gonna differentiate how those seasons go for those two programs.
• 3:57
  SPEAKER_00: Like Almira, a lot of kids who gained big yardage and scored touchdowns were lost to graduation.
• 4:05
  SPEAKER_00: Uh the only three-year starter back is a kid named Cam Anderson, senior offensive guard and defensive end.
• 4:12
  SPEAKER_00: Johnny Graham, you know, Corning runs that uh double wing and has run it really well forever.
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_00: Corning West ran it forever with Johnston there.
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_00: So they've had a lot of success.
• 4:22
  SPEAKER_00: One of the kids who gave them some big production last season, who's back is Johnny Graham, who ran for 442 yards, five touchdowns last year.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_00: Uh he was the fourth the fourth leading rusher on the team, so that sort of gives you an indication that uh what was lost.
• 4:40
  SPEAKER_00: Uh Gunnar Stevens Jr.
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_00: is back at tackle.
• 4:44
  SPEAKER_00: Uh Casey Hale at fullback.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_00: Paul Santora is a tight end.
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_00: Grayson Rasou played some wing back and middle linebacker for him last season.
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_00: Uh Ryan Yeoman is you know one of those kids who didn't play last year for Johnston, but he's back in the football fold.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_00: And Johnston said he's a big, strong player who helped on the who will help on the defensive front.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_00: Uh Mike is also high on junior nose guard Jonah Goldwyn.
• 5:11
  SPEAKER_00: Johnston says a power lifter who's put on 20 to 30 pounds of muscle and looks really good.
• 5:15
  SPEAKER_00: So he's certainly going to be a player to watch for this season.
• 5:21
  SPEAKER_00: Uh down the road at Horseheads.
• 5:25
  SPEAKER_00: What horse heads did last season is almost impossible to do.
• 5:29
  SPEAKER_00: 7-4 record, had a great season, lost to Union Endicott 21-20 in overtime in the Section 4 Class A final, and those four losses were combined by a combined six points.
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_00: So I don't even know if you could do that if you tried.
• 5:43
  SPEAKER_00: And certainly they weren't trying to do that.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_00: Good news for Horseheads is they got some uh really talented kids back.
• 5:51
  SPEAKER_00: And it it starts with a uh Bryce Thomas, senior running back, defensive back now, fifth team all-state last season.
• 5:59
  SPEAKER_00: He missed two games and uh quite a bit of another.
• 6:02
  SPEAKER_00: It still finished with 1,193 yards and 11 touchdowns on 186 carries.
• 6:08
  SPEAKER_00: And uh, as Hillman said, we all know what he is, and that includes uh some teams and coaches around section four in the state.
• 6:16
  SPEAKER_00: Another big-time player is uh Elijah Miller, who's a senior tight end, gonna play linebacker.
• 6:23
  SPEAKER_00: Um he's moved around for them since joining the program as a sophomore.
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_00: And but uh you know, Hillman said he expects Miller to be real special this season with his impact on the defensive side.
• 6:36
  SPEAKER_00: And you know, from my perspective, he's gonna be one of the top defensive players in the section this year.
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_00: Um one player who really speedy and talented kid, Jackson Burchard, missed most of last season with an injury.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_00: Unfortunately, you know, I think Hillman told me he basically ran into another player uh this the summer, clavicle injury, but he's hoping to have him back at some point early in the season.
• 7:04
  SPEAKER_00: So but if you end up with Burchard and Thomas in that backfield, look out because both are super quick and talented and physical kids.
• 7:12
  SPEAKER_00: Um quarterback now is uh Lincoln Bennett.
• 7:17
  SPEAKER_00: Uh many of you know might know his dad, Mike, longtime coach, uh administrator Edison, and a St.
• 7:24
  SPEAKER_00: Bonaventure Hall of Famer for baseball.
• 7:27
  SPEAKER_00: Uh Lincoln uh all-state baseball pick in spring, and uh as Hellman said, great arm, smart kid.
• 7:34
  SPEAKER_00: And uh, you know, I think the only thing early in the season is getting Lincoln getting adjusted to his reads and going through progressions.
• 7:43
  SPEAKER_00: But uh, you know, he he should fill the void at quarterback for them pretty nicely.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_00: Uh receiving targets include Jack Patchett, uh kid named Javier Meisner, who's up from the JV.
• 7:57
  SPEAKER_00: Up front, you got James Towsley and Logan Sowers.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, but as Hillman said, they're gonna be young on the offensive line in some spots, and that's kind of the question mark as they start the season.
• 8:08
  SPEAKER_00: Saturday, they get eight time state champion Rochester Aquinas on the road to open their season.
• 8:13
  SPEAKER_00: So uh that will be a good test for them early on.
• 8:19
  SPEAKER_00: And down to Almyra Heights.
• 8:23
  SPEAKER_00: Uh some excitement there for Edison.
• 8:26
  SPEAKER_00: They've had two really strong seasons.
• 8:27
  SPEAKER_00: They were seven and two last year, made it to the Section 4 8-man semifinals.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_00: Uh probably you know, the best season, one of the best seasons this century for that program.
• 8:39
  SPEAKER_00: And uh Kyle Erickson, uh who's a correctional officer, big guy.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_00: Not a surprise that he he sat down to the core.
• 8:47
  SPEAKER_00: He he's an offensive line coach at heart, and uh he played offensive line in high school, and he's really excited because the entire offensive line is back for the Spartans.
• 8:57
  SPEAKER_00: And he also said they've got some new blood coming up and from Modified, who will help up front, and that includes uh his son Colton.
• 9:05
  SPEAKER_00: So he's looking forward to coaching Colton at the varsity level.
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_00: You know, some other kids to watch for up front include Luke No Dafonso, Connor McNeely, Mike Grow, Landon Baumgartner, Ethan Barrett.
• 9:18
  SPEAKER_00: You know, it's always a good thing when you have a lot of names you can reel off who were part of your offensive line the previous year.
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_00: Uh first team All-State quarterback last season, Jace Schiller.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_00: He's also back.
• 9:29
  SPEAKER_00: Completed 52 passes for 879 yards and 12 touchdowns, but he's one of those dual threat guys because he ran for 856 yards and 12 touchdowns as well.
• 9:40
  SPEAKER_00: Uh you go to the Edison eight-man game.
• 9:44
  SPEAKER_00: Physically, one of the kids is going to stand out as Paxton Hoover, six foot four, big target for Jace as a receiver, huge hitter on the defensive side, had 41 tackles last season.
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, so Paxton's gonna be a real impact player and you know uh also uh a stud in baseball as a pitcher.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_00: Tanner Buchanan Buchanan was an all-state baseball player last season, and he decided to join Addison's football.
• 10:11
  SPEAKER_00: That's a nice addition.
• 10:12
  SPEAKER_00: Connor Lasco, uh one of the better track and field athletes in the section, also decided to come out for football.
• 10:19
  SPEAKER_00: So you add some athleticism with his addition, and you know, Kyle is certainly high on the impact both of those two are gonna make.
• 10:28
  SPEAKER_00: Uh got a freshman named James Haskins who's shown he'll be an impact player.
• 10:33
  SPEAKER_00: And you know, as Erickson said, you not necessarily don't bring up freshmen a lot.
• 10:38
  SPEAKER_00: He's James is being brought up because he's gonna be an impact player at the barcede level.
• 10:43
  SPEAKER_00: Um you know, one player, Zaquan Mosley, was one of their better players last season.
• 10:49
  SPEAKER_00: He had suffered a knee injury in the sectionals.
• 10:53
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, and Erickson hoping he'll be cleared at some point this season.
• 10:56
  SPEAKER_00: And if he is, that's gonna be a major addition for Edison as well.
• 11:01
  SPEAKER_00: Uh Edison first game of the season is at Almire Notre Dame, which has a new head coach, Don Wainwright.
• 11:09
  SPEAKER_00: Uh he was previously a modified coach at Edison.
• 11:13
  SPEAKER_00: Uh he takes over from Mike Johnston Sr., who's now coaching modified football with his son over in Corning.
• 11:19
  SPEAKER_00: Uh Wainwright works for NASCAR through Watkins Glenn International.
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_00: So perhaps no surprise he's looking for Notre Dame to really push the pace this season.
• 11:27
  SPEAKER_00: He also said he has a great deal of respect for the tradition laid out by coaches such as Mike Deluiso and Mike Johnston Sr.
• 11:34
  SPEAKER_00: But he added he's looking for this team and the ones on the horizon to add to that history.
• 11:38
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, Addison or Notre Dame struggled last season, didn't win a game, and you know, it was hard for them to keep pace for most of their games, but uh they're looking for some better things this year.
• 11:50
  SPEAKER_00: Among those back is quarterback Archer Troy, uh Luca Clark, and Dominic Capariccio, who's their top offensive threat a year ago.
• 12:00
  SPEAKER_00: And down to uh part of my alma mater, which is uh Odessa Montour, Watkins Bun Odessa Montour, also now known as the Skylar Storm, if you prefer.
• 12:10
  SPEAKER_00: Uh they started last season 0-4 and ended up with a four and five record.
• 12:15
  SPEAKER_00: So maybe building on that a little bit.
• 12:17
  SPEAKER_00: Trevor Holland, I you know, I went to their practice.
• 12:20
  SPEAKER_00: I just love the energy Trevor and his coaches bring to their practices.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_00: This is his 11th season as coach, and the program got it started a year before because of numbers issues at Odessa Montour and Watkins Glen.
• 12:33
  SPEAKER_00: Um, some of the players to watch for the storm, quarterbacks Hunter Maori, Isaac Rumsey, uh Jared Watson, Noah Wright, Mason Upay, also going to be key players.
• 12:44
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, Jacob Carnes, Nikolai Holmes, Bryce Backelkamp, Caden Garabrant, uh, those would be some of the faces you'll see up front for them.
• 12:54
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and you know, one thing uh about Watkins, Glenn Odessa Montor is very good numbers, both at the varsity and modified levels.
• 13:05
  SPEAKER_00: You're looking at 34 or so for each.
• 13:07
  SPEAKER_00: And uh, you know, one thing that stands out is talking with uh Steve Grandin from the state.
• 13:15
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I think we have 10 schools across New York that were planning to have football this season.
• 13:19
  SPEAKER_00: Either that they canceled outright, they ended up merging with other schools.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_00: And Section 40, you know, Dale Valley is you know, for eight man, they merged um with another school.
• 13:30
  SPEAKER_00: But uh the one thing that stood out in my travels around these camps is the numbers for everybody seem really good at the varsity and modified level.
• 13:39
  SPEAKER_00: So it's a strong indicator of where we are now, my recording football and uh maybe section four as a whole.
• 13:47
  SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
• 13:49
  SPEAKER_01: And uh that that wraps up your teams, uh Andrew.
• 13:53
  SPEAKER_01: A really uh excellent job and uh really appreciate what you're doing out there.
• 13:57
  SPEAKER_01: And I know our listeners, you know, not just the coaches and the student athletes, but all uh section four football fans really uh appreciate these previews and uh you know what you as part of our uh I call it a stable of uh Section Four football analysts do a great job.
• 14:16
  SPEAKER_01: So thank you for everything you do, Andrew.
• 14:18
  SPEAKER_01: Appreciate it.
• 14:19
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, thanks, Tim.
• 14:20
  SPEAKER_00: Always a pleasure chatting with you and talking Section 4 high school football.
• 14:24
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• 14:28
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• 14:33
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• 14:37
  SPEAKER_01: In football and life, it's not where we line up, it's where we wind up.
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you for listening to the Cover 4 podcast.