Kicking off 2009 football talk

It may just be May, but for some of you out there, there are just two seasons: high school football season, and talking on the Prep Talk blog about high school football season.

This past Saturday was a big day for top juniors at the annual combine.

There is no Section VI master schedule online yet, but we'll have it up as soon as possible.

A few Monsignor Martin teams have posted their schedules, such as St. Joe's.

The Section VI site does have a basic calendar as well as an outline of the classes and divisions, which should be enough to get things started.

AA North	AA South	Class A
Nia. Falls	Lancaster	Sweet Home	Hamburg
Lockport	Frontier	Ken. East	Lake Shore
Ken. West	Orch. Park	Grand I.	W.S. East
N. Tona.	Clarence	Wmsv. S.	Iroquois
Nia.-Wheat.	Jamestown	Wmsv. E.	Amherst
Wmsv. N.	W.S. West	Starpoint

B North	B South	C North	C South
Albion	Pioneer	Eden	Fredonia
Cheektowaga	Olean	JFK	S'western
Lew-Port	E. Aurora	Clev. Hill	All.-Lime.
Maryvale	Springville	Roy-Hart	Falconer
Depew	Alden	Wilson	Cass. Val.
Newfane	Dunkirk	Akron	Salamanca
Medina	Lackawanna	Gowanda
Tonawanda

Class D
East	Central	West
Catt./ LV	Silver Creek	Maple Grove
Portville	Frewsburg	Westfield
Franklinville	Randolph	Chaut. Lake
Ellicottville	Pine Valley	Sherman/Ripley
West Valley	Brocton	Panama
Hinsdale	Forestville	Clymer

The blabber-ball has officially been kicked off ...

---Keith McShea

Comments

[chad]

I would love to see a future Cal-Mum vs Southwestern game and not in the state tourney. I would love to see SW add Cal-Mum (Section V) as a non-league game sometime in the future i bet this would draw a huuge crowd

[kruger]

All class C has is Southwestern and they will be lucky, very lucky to get by BK (section 5). Ther are 4-5 D teams that would give SW a much better game that CassValley. I truly think Frewsburg,MG and Rand. would play SW real c close. I hear Randolph stayed with them in scrimmage. I heard Frewsburg, Southwestern played SW even. C really stinks.

[wiser]

http://www.post-journal.com/page/category.detail/nav/5019/Page-One-Sports.html
nice article in local paper about the cassadaga valley kids and coachs

[Milt Latimer]

I don't know if Hamburg needed to make a "big turn around". They've had a couple lean years, but it wasn't that long ago that they were A South champs (2004 and 2005, amazing they didn't make the Ralph either year) and I believe they lost out on playoff berth in the October Storm shortened 2006 season where they lost to VI A Champs Iroquois 17-14. Hamburg is one of the larger "A" schools by enrollment, so reloading is a bit easier. Maybe they had a couple years where "a good line crop" didn't come through the system.

One other smaller factor, which could or could not come into play, is the lacrosse factor. There are instances across the state where schools with good lacrosse programs have good football teams, or vice versa (OP, West Genny, Corning East, Canandaigua, etc). Don't know if they're related, just an observation.

[bullsfan]

A few notes from week 2

Hamburg looks impressive, lets see if they can keep it up. someone give us some insight on the big turn around....I know they have a new field and all but what about the players....what changed????

Cheektowaga is not suprise, they get have some atheletes...

footballfan19 - Schuster has had 2 good games against 2 very average teams at best. next up is Lancaster and last 4 games are not walks in the park for Frontier. If he puts up same numbers against Frontiers last 5 opponets then he will have the ammo for all WNY...that is a big IF....

Newfane - Congrats on a great victory....

Will North - such a big school, how did they drop so far. Seen their 1st game vs. Frontier - Gronkowski had 2 TDs both against Frontiers 2nd string. I did like the QB Barrett, he looks like a player....

Would love to see Frannies play OP, NT, SweetHome or another powerful team and see how they match up....

Pin your ears back and get ready for Week #3

[Milt Latimer]

Gotta give kudos to Frewsburg fan smacking on the MG site, and calling for a victory, and the team making it happen.

Yeah, the Cheektowaga win did pop out (B over AA), but step back and realize that Niagara Wheatfield has had trouble making the playoffs recently in AA and will likely be A next year. Cheektowaga competed quite well in A during their 2 year stay, including an A South division title and trip to the Ralph. Nice win, though...and should give them confidence with the meat of their B North schedule to come.

Schuster is a good back and had an awesome game vs WSW, but I'm not naming him All-WNY yet...there's only 3 spots and one probably is already secured by Fluellen if he continues to be "Fluellen". He can be put on the list to consider.

Anyone notice Hamburg big over Grand Island? hmm...maybe Class A will get even more interesting after Will South's close game with GI last week. Its going to come down to matchups.

[smallschoolcoach]

Cheektowaga a B school destroys AA Niagara-Wheatfield. Please nobody use class size as a gauge any more. Small schools over the years have put that theory to rest.

[wiser]

frewsburg 12 maple grove 7
congrats to the bears of frewsburg!!

[footballfan19]

hey how come no one is paying any attnetion to mark shcuster from frontier? he one of the best backs in AA even tho AA is ALOT weaker than laster year he was still a force last year last year and will be one again this year. Theres no reason why he shouldnt be all wny. he will put up the numbers to prove it too.

[Cards]

This is funny. way to go Thor!

http://mgfootball.com/guestbook09.html

[bballfan1]

They will find out tonight, just how much Randolph, and Maple Grove, are better than everyone in D.

[larry]

A Frewsburg fan has predicted a Bear victory over Maple Grove on MG's team website.

Frewsburg 28 Maple Grove 7

was the prediction.

Is Frewsburg that good?

[M]

frontier is under rated!

[wiser]

fredonia may have had an off night hard to tell by the first game and maybe cassadaga had a good night but what i dont understand is no one is giving these kids from cassadaga any respect for what they did. they came out and played a great game. and i really dont think they will beat southwestern (which i never said)but they will not lose by 40 when they play.i hope everyone just let the season play out it should be interesting year as we can see by the scores of week 1!!!

[SWHITE]

BULLSFAN---AGREED ! OP CAN HAVE A ROUGHT TIME OF IT IF THEY DON'T GET THAT D-LINE GOING. TOO LIGHT AND INEXPERIENCED ON THE OUTSIDE. AN OVERATING ? HUMMMM

[SoTier FB 02]

FTS, i wasnt at the game but from what i heard the score could have been a TD or 2 worse. So thats a pretty bold prediction. Before we bash B lets wait and see how Lackawana holds up when they play SW.

[FTS]

FREDONIA WILL GIVE SOUTHWESTERN ALL THEY CAN HANDLE WHEN THEY PLAY FREDONIA JUST PLAIN AND SIMPLY HAD A BAD GAME AGAINST CASS VALLEY FREDONIA WILL BEAT CASS VALLEY IF THEY MEET AGAIN THIS YEAR

[Bri]

thank you Stier09-10,

comparing past years, scrimmages, common opponents is a futile attempt at making one team look better or worse then another. watch the games and let the season play out. the only teams, aside from your favorite team, you should be worrying about is the team that they play next.

[Stier09-10]

You people and your comparing of teams from common opponents and scrimmages and seasons gone past really need to back off and wait till the pads start popping and see how these teams really look...-

[Ryan]

Cassadaga was dominated by Maple grove 2 weeks ago. Cassadaga grad and Buffalo News blogger, Chaut_Co said it himself Maple Groves defense totally shut down Cassadagas starters. Maple Grove is a lowly D everybody. Fredonia must really stink if Cassadaga beat them by 30 one week after D Maple Grove totally shut down Cassadaga. B must be horrible if one year removed Fredonia gets killed by an average C team that Southwestern will beat by 40! Lackawanna loses much stock to me and a bunch of others!

[Bullsfan]

Just a few notes from the 1st week and also some thoughts for future weeks.

What happened to Fredonia, maybe they met a better coached team!!!
Coaching is so important in HS football and all sports.
Im saying it again - Eden will suprise alot of teams!!!!
Will South - will vie for a shot at playing at the Ralph if they are seeded so as they dont meet Sweet Home until the Ralph...Even then they have a shot at Sweet Home if they develop a run game....
Sweet Home - most athletic team in section 6 once again.
Iroquois - will be a force in "A" with speed and a good defensive backfield...
Grand Island - is very well coached and will make noise as always in "A"....
OP is OP...
NT is one team that can beat OP....
Lockport is for real...
Keep your chin straps on for a great week two....
Milt thanks for the links....

[wiser]

I dont think its as much as what Fredonia lost but what Cassadaga has! they have 11 or 12 seniors most of them playing since there 10th grade year some as freshmen. last year was very disappointing due to injuries and what i call some questionable coaching. this is a very quick and strong team and will due damage in class c if some team takes them lightly!!

[Stier09-10]

You missed OP last year and jamestown 2nd championship was in 95.

[Chaut_Co]

OP last year.

How much did fredonia lose from last year to this year. Because alot of people are using there blowout loss to Cassadaga as a reflection on B as a whole. From the way Fredonia people talked they thought they were going to be good enough to beat SW so there must of been some expectation. Can someone give me some insight.

[CM]

speak to me Franny. Who did I miss?

[Fran]

Your list is incomplete.

[CM]

Here is a list of total state Championships for all teams from section 6.

Jamestown AA 1994,1999,2000
Springville B 1996
Lackawanna B 1997,1998
Maple Grove D 1998,2008
Randolph D 2005
Southwestern C 2008
Sweet Home A 2008

who will we be able to add after the 2009 season is over?
I will say Southwestern 2009 as the only section 6 State Champion

[James]

They should have players playing in college. I mean they poach athletes from other teams.

[barts]

Steir:

While I agree with your reasoning/explanation about scheduling and with what Mike Ferrentino had to say about the Jamestown/Canisius game (except SF might be the favorite) your "know your place" comment is uncalled for.It seems you are implying that MMAA teams/players are second class citizens in the HS football world here. Based on the number of players from CHS and SF that went on to play college ball last year there is a pretty strong argument that "their place" is among, if not at the top of, WNY high school football's best teams.

[football99]

after week 1, sweet home is the best team in wny

[HS Football Update]

Lancaster vs Kenmore West

Lancaster won 49 to 7.

[cfootball]

hey fredonia welcome to real football.i hope his shuts you guys up for a season.

[kruiser]

Bishop Timon's first touchdown was scored by #20 Ian Kennedy. Kennedy picked up the fumble and ran 45 yards for the score.

[WF]

Riday Night Lights in WNY!!!!Alright, I got my fix. I am not shaking no more. Now I can do yard work. It's not fun being an addict.

[Class C]

heyy Bullsfan yes u are right eden will suprise alot of teams this year there new coach has a system which will suit there players all i can say is look out for Eden winning C North

[TML1000]

OP won 32-26 in 2 OT's

[Keith McShea]

Scroll down for a fantastic list of links to football games that Milt put up - it got stuck in the spam only because it was so many Web address. Everyone thank Milt when you get a chance.

[Milt Latimer]

St Mary's vs Bath game should be found here. Click on live feed on right side of page.

http://www.wvinbath.com/page.php?page_id=25763

[Milt Latimer]

bullsfan...Will South is not just Licata and Stasiak. They've got a stable of receivers, with Coppola being another target. Line play with Gallagher and Gerlach. Munschauer is a big boy! My only doubts concerning Will South are that they gave up 227 points last year. That's a big factor. If teams like Sweet Home, Iroquois, and GI can limit the pass and force a few 3 and outs, they'll still beat the Billies if their defensive philosophy hasn't changed. Not many teams have shut down secondaries, so Will South will be successful offensively. Maple Grove exploited that philosophy flawlessly in 2008, mainly because no one in Class D has a great secondary. South very well could be the breakout, surprise team this year (like Alden last year), but they haven't beaten the Big 3 yet. Their first chance will be at GI in 26 hours! I mention Licata and Stasiak the most, because when all is said and done, they'll probably have the numbers and press that people will be familiar with. If they can beat the big 3, their line and other players will have a huge part. But, getting by Nettles, Coleman, Sluberski, Parker, Klock will be a challenge. Let the fun of Class A begin!

[Bullsfan]

I was at the 7 team scrimmage at Will South lsst week and saw some great action. South looked good on "O" and "D". They have many game breakers on both sides of the ball. They are more then the one or two players Milt always talks about.
Was very suprised at the effort and results Eden had. A new coach and a new attitude. They will vastly improve from last year and will suprise alot of teams early in the season..........

[Vern]

Thank you. Any word on a HS Football recap show?

[Keith McShea]

Nice job Milt.

I dug this up on the internets - go here for Time Warner's exact schedule.

http://www.timewarnercable.com/WNY/learn/programming/sports/sportsnet.html

Sweet Home-Clarence is also replayed Sunday at 1 p.m. In between the Sweet Home replay and the Iroquois replay on Sunday is live coverage of the one everyone is talking about: Winnipeg at Saskatchewan!

[Milt Latimer]

A friend from another blog put together this list of radio networks across NY that may be broadcasting games, if live streaming is available over the net, here's an excellent chance to catch action all over NY.

http://wjtn.radiojamestown.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=529&Itemid=51
http://www.z89online.com/default.asp?pid=8050

http://www.wiry.com/

http://www.welm1410.com/

http://www.wibx950.com/Sports/tabid/3478/Default.aspx

http://www.bugcountry.com/football.php

http://www.1570wvtl.com/index.php?page=high-school-football

WCGR(Canandaigua)-http://www.fingerlakesvisitorschannel.com/wcgr.asx

http://www.webo1330.com/default.asp?pid=5992 (Scroll down for schedule)

http://www.southerntiersportsnetwork.com/

http://www.northcountrysports.net/sxfootballsched.htm (has webcast as well: http://www.northcountrysports.net/index.html)

http://forums.recordonline.com/th-wken?entry=569 (WDLC Port Jervis and online here: http://kjbroadcasting.com/football-port-jervis.htm#schedule)

http://www.wtbq.com/ (Warwick Wildcat Football)

http://www.wnbf.com/

http://www.1490wkny.com/ (Kingston Football)

http://fingerlakesdailynews.com/webpages/view/Finger_Lakes_News_Radio_Home/ (Auburn games on WAUB 1590, Geneva games on WGVA 1240, Dundee/Penn Yan games on WFLR 1570 and possibly along with other games)

http://www.1420wack.com/cat/sports.html (Has teams like Lyons, Newark, Pal-Mac, etc.)

http://www.wbta1490.com/cgi_bin/program_view.pl

http://www.am1340went.com/(Gloversville area games)

http://www.wlvl.com/ (I believe Lockport area games)

http://www.hornellradio.com/(might need Firefox)

http://www.wxhc.com/ (usually Cortland or Homer Football)

http://www.1340wmsa.com/wmsa_sports.htm (Massena games)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WMCR-FM (has games all weekend, every weekend for teams in and around Oneida on 106.3 and 1600 AM)

http://www.wnyo.org/ (might have Oswego home games)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WRNY_%28AM%29 (RFA games, but only radio)

http://www.wvinbath.com/page.php?page_id=25762 (has Bath games)

http://www.wjjl.com/ (usually has Buffalo City league action and there should be a webcasts for those games during the season maybe on another site)

[Milt Latimer]

Vern- From what I gather, here's the lineup for games.

Time Warner Buffalo 13 will be taping the Iroquois-East Aurora game tomorrow night. It will air on Saturday morning at 11:30 AM. Following that broadcast, TW will have the Clarence-Sweet Home game on live at 2 PM. I believe the Iroq-EA game will also be on Sunday evening 7:30. I'll assume Sweet Home-Clarence will be again as well. Future TW games are will N at Will S, St Francis at Aquinas, Lew-Port at Cheektowaga, Niagara Falls at Niagara Wheatfield, OP at Lancaster, OP at Victor, and Tonawanda at NT, as well as playoff games and Harvard Cup Turkey Day.

WGR 550 AM has released their schedule. They'll be at Iroquois tomorrow night. Here's the rest of their schedule. http://www.wgr550.com/pages/5102761.php?contentRating=1

WJJL 1440 AM will have the Harvard Cup game of the week. Check www.harvardcup.com for their schedule.

WXRL 1300 AM will have Lancaster home games and the Depew-Lancaster game live, in between Ramblin' Lou and Polka.

WLVL 1340 AM does Lockport games and other things of interest in Niagara County. (So I suppose Lockport-OP will be broadcast tomorrow)

WJTN 1240 AM of Jamestown does Southern Tier games including Maple Grove-Randolph this week with online streaming, here's their schedule. http://wjtn.radiojamestown.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=529&Itemid=51

Am I missing anything out there????

[Vern]

I read that TW and YNN are going to televise some games. I also read that there would be a HS round-up type show. Where and when will all these shows be on?

[TML1000]

All the talk has been regarding shutting down the Grove's offense...which will not be impossible this season. However, no one is talking about their defense. While Randolph may hold them to 28...I can not see Randolph making much headway with the ball in thier hands.

MG 31
Randolph 13

[Stier09-10]

Another reason that Salamanca has probably fallen off in football is the loss of non-senecas from Seneca Indian Land. I believe around the year 2000, non- native Americans loss title to their property and only were in ownership of the homes on the land and not the property. So this of course was a big deterrent for many non-native Americans to live in Salamanca, but led them to relocate outside of the reservation and the City of Salamanca and led to a loss in population in the school district.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say Randolph 31 Maple Grove 24 tomorrow night. Randolph is too strong of a program to let MG beat them two years in a row, especially after all the talent that was lost from the 08 MG team. I also am curious how the coaches and kids in Randolph feel about one of their old coaches and players switching to coach their arch rival now, I got a feeling Randolph's looking to spite that loss tomorrow night...

[ed]

After averaging 50 points a game last year and 80 a game could have been accomplished(If they would have let their starters play 4 quarters). It will be interesting to see a team hold Maple Grove to 28. If anyone can do it it will be Coach Slater and the Cards.

My Prediction
Randolph 35-Maple Grove 33

[Chaut_Co]

AL
Salamanca has fell off due to coaching, that's the only explanation. You don't go from being year in and year out one of the best small school teams in WNY, to an average C team for no reason. Coach Morton who was the coach last time they won the section was let go for behavior reasons, and they haven't been able to get back to the good ole days. I'm not huge on size of schools, but their enrolment has dropped almost 100 (grades 9-11) students in the past 5 or 6 years.

Two huge games down here, Randolph travels to MG to try to regain Class D supremacy. Cassadaga and Fredonia square off. I think this will show where fredonia stands. Fredonia needs to make a statement to make people believe that they are a legit contender to SW throne.

My predictions
Maple Grove 28 Randolph 14
Fredonia 20 Cassadaga 14

[Mike Ferrentino]

By the way LMAO at Bruso, I never said I was an expert at anything. I have an ex wife that will verify that..I appreciate Bob saying I am, but he's probably wrong..have a great year everyone, it will be a fun one..