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FOLLOWING FOOTBALL: NV, OWEGO, SVEC LOOK TO BOUNCE BACK (2019-09-13)

BY TIM TAYLOR
Tioga County Sports Report
TIOGA COUNTY — It's Friday the 13th, but three Tioga County teams are hoping their misfortunes came a week early as they suffered season-opening losses last Friday night. 

SVEC fell behind early and couldn't overcome the Sidney passing game, Owego ran into a powerful offensive line at Chenango Forks and Newark Valley was the victim of a quarterback who threw the ball almost as well as he ran it.

This week, coaches Ted Hardenstine, Mike Chaffee, and Steve Virkler provide inputs about opening week as well as their Week 2 opponents. I will also give my predictions — let's hope I do better than my 2-3 start.

COACHES' COMMENTS

Ted Hardenstine — Newark Valley
• Positive takeaways from Week 1
Our kids played with effort for four quarters. We showed the ability to execute on offense with a number of big chunk gains. We were able to get a goal line stand on the first drive on defense. The development of our passing game was exciting to see as well. Lastly, our extra point team was a perfect 3-for-3, which was a great way for that special team to start the year with our new kicker Dawson Moncalari.

• Areas which need improvement
Defense and special teams. We gave up over 300 yards of rushing, struggled to defend passes and failed to get after the quarterback. We also had too many missed tackles. On special teams, we had poor execution on our kickoff team, and had a bad snap on a punt. We always take pride in the fact the we win close games on special teams, unfortunately Windsor was able to week 1.

• Players who stood out
Our offensive line started to do some good things, including excellent pass protection. Levi Arnold, Joey Woodmansee, Hunter Kelly, Matt Waterman, Deeken Frost and Tanner Tavelli all had a lot of reps. 

Raidyn Ford had a nice game. He had some explosive plays for us and made some good tackles on defense. Mike Wandell had a great game throwing the ball, as well as playing tough at LB alongside Connor Spoonhower. Jake Armstrong also had a good game on both sides of the ball. This was probably the best game Jake has had on offense in his career, not just catching the ball, but more importantly executing his blocking assignments alongside our offensive line.

• What to expect from next opponent
Tioga is always well-coached. We expect to see a fundamentally sound offensive attack as well as from their defense. They always have a great power running attack, but this year they have an additional offensive threat because their QB is a good runner as well. We expect they will use him in the option/read game. I think this week will be a well-played physical game

Mike Chaffee — SVEC
• Positive takeaways from Week 1
The number one takeaway from week 1 is that we came out of there healthy. Keeping our guys healthy is always a priority and we certainly don't want to lose anyone before we start division play. Another big takeaway is that we learned how much fight our guys have in them. We started out down 19-0 and our guys never gave up, we played right down to the last second. 

• Areas which need improvement
We need to be better on our assignments. After watching the film we could see where we made a lot of mental mistakes. A lot of times we were out of position and unable to stop the big plays or make the right blocks because we weren't doing what we were supposed to.

• Players who stood out
Alex Morse made some big plays for us on crucial downs. He had a couple big runs and some spectacular catches when we needed him. Marcus Rypkema led the team with tackles and did a great job rushing the passer all night. James Sutherlin came in at QB and was able to ignite our offense with his arm and legs. 

• What to expect from next opponent 
We are playing the defending state champs, Susquehanna Valley. They lost a lot to graduation but seem to have reloaded and look poised to make another run at a championship. They are very physical and well coached. We will have our hands full Friday night.

Steve Virkler — Owego
• Positive takeaways from Week 1
Sometimes it's tough to find positives in a game where you have high expectations and the opposite happens. The one good thing is we kept battling — we had many guys that kept fighting to the end — we just have to get everyone on the same page with that process.

• Areas which need improvement
The most glaring issue was our lack of physicality and toughness. They were big and strong and we battled for a little over a quarter and then we started to wear down — we have been working on that exact thing in practice this week — hopefully that doesn't happen again!

• Players who stood out
People might say Gio Fabi didn't have many tackles but I would argue it was one of his best games as he withstood many triple teams from their offensive line. There was not one play where he was one on one with an offensive lineman — we need to step up and be better around him so teams can't do that. I also thought Nate Bennett had a solid game for us at safety for his first full time varsity game — he's only going to get better each week.

• What to expect from next opponent
Norwich brings many athletes to the field along with size. They are physical and very athletic — starting with their quarterback. We will need to keep him contained in order to stop their offense — he was all over the field in Week 1 against Class A Indian River. Defensively they are very aggressive and play physical football — we need to be ready to match that intensity after the bus ride up there. We have had many good battles the last few years and I would hope this will be another one — it's early in the year but this is a very big match up for both teams.

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PREDICTIONS
• Newark Valley (0-1) at Tioga (1-0)
I don't care what any other media says, this is the premier game in Section IV just because it is so much fun to watch these two teams go at it. 

Everyone knows to beat Tioga you have to stop the run. The problem is, like most teams, NV will struggle to do so.

Emmett Wood is a workhorse out of the backfield, and pound for pound, he's as tough as any RB in the area (including Chenango Forks 250-pound FB, Lucas Scott). For lack of a better expression, QB Brady Worthing is simply slick as snot. 

NV was without speedy RB Caden Bennett last week. If he gets into the open field nobody in blue & gold will catch him. The ace of the team's pitching staff, Mike Wandell, and TE Jake Armstrong discovered last week they hook up well through the air. That's how you declaw the Tigers. Year after year, their pass defense is their Achilles' heel.

I may be a little biased, being a Tioga grad, but I believe the Tigers will snap their 4-game skid against the Cardinals (NV won three of those clashes by four points or less). 

PREDICTION: Tioga by 6.

• Sus Valley (1-0) at SVEC (0-1)
The Sabers are still the Class C state champions until somebody proves otherwise. SV may have lost most of last year's lineup to graduation, but do return some quality players — and brought up several players from a JV squad that was tough as nails.

The Eagles need to be able to throw and run effectively to have a chance. Somebody needs to emerge to lead the team and it needs to be their QB. The question is, will it be Matthew Byrne or James Sutherlin? Alex Morse and Marcuys Rypkema need to have big games too.

PREDICTION: Sus Valley by 15.

• Owego (0-1) at Norwich (0-1)
Mathematically, the Indians are still alive in the Class B race. Realistically, Chenango Forks has already locked up the title again. The Blue Devils are that dominant, but if Owego can start clicking on all cylinders it can beat the rest of the 8-team Division II field. 

The Indians need big games from Gio Fabi, Cam Bundy and Ben Miller on both sides of the ball. QB Nick Wasyln needs to step up his passing game, which means the offensive line has to play much better this week.

You can guarantee Fabi will get double- and triple-teamed again this week, so the other 10 guys on defense need to bring their "A" games.

The Purple Tornado have an impressive QB in Griffin Mills, but he's like half the size of Forks' Scott.

PREDICTION: Owego by 10.

• Johnson City (0-1) at Waverly (1-0)
Let's be honest. Both teams played very weak opponents last week, even if they did go up in class. 

I think the win over U-E has boosted everyone's confidence in 8th-grader Joey Tomasso, most importantly his own. He doesn't need to be sensational under center — he just needs to make plays and continue to be a leader.

Of course, it's not all about Joey T. Players like Jalen McCarty, Ethan Stotler, Scott Woodring, David Hallett, Thomas Price and Patrick Shay need big games too.

PREDICTION: Waverly by 9.

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IN PHOTO 1: Ted Hartenstine ... PHOTO 2: Mike Chaffee ... PHOTO 3: ... Steve Virkler


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