Know the opponents
-
- November
- 10
I spent a few hours last night scouring the internet and talking to friends upstate about the five state quarterfinal opponents. Here’s the info I tracked down. If you have anything else, please feel free to share:
New York State Football Quarterfinals
Class AA
New Rochelle (9-1) vs. Section 2’s La Salle (8-2)
When/where: Saturday, 7:30 at Dietz Stadium, Kingston
Five things to know about LaSalle:
1. La Salle is a private school located just North of Albany. The students wear military uniforms to school.
2. Of the four state tournament appearances, this will be the third in four years. LaSalle lost to Nyack in 2000, lost to North Rockland in ‘05, and Monroe in ‘07.
3. Like New Rochelle did against Carmel last week, LaSalle rebounded from a 34-7 regular-season loss to Schenectady with a 26-14 victory in the final. Marquis Terrell (5-8, 170) has rushed for 141 yards and a touchdown in the victory.
4. Terrell is part of a LaSalle offense that has posted video-game numbers. He’s a Division I-AA recruit who has rushed for 1,683 yards and 16 touchdowns, averaging 7.2 yards per carry. Mike Murray (6-3, 170) is 61 for 100 passing for 1,359 yards and 12 touchdowns. Lou DiNovo (5-11, 172) has 26 receptions for 733 yards and nine scores.
5. LaSalle’s other loss came on Sept. 19 when it lost 26-7 at home to Monroe-Woodbury.
For more info: Check out LaSalle’s page on the Albany Times-Union website
Up next: The winner plays Section 9 champ Monroe-Woodbury, which has beaten New Rochelle in the state tournament en route to the final the last two years. Monroe has gone to the Dome the last three years, winning in 2005.
Class A
Nyack (9-1) vs. Section 9’s Cornwall (9-1)
When/where: Friday, 7:30 at Mahopac
Five things to know about Cornwall:
1. Cornwall has been to the state tournament four straight times and in five out of six years. It lost to Section 1 teams three times but beat Harrison in 2006 en rout to the state final. They lost to Ossining, 13-0m last year.
2. The Green Dragons are a spread offense team that relies on record-setting quarterback Kevin Arduino. The 6-foot-2 senior set two Section 9 records in last week’s final, breaking the single-season mark for passing yards (2,229) and touchdowns (29). He’s only thrown four interceptions, and is coming off a season-high 308-yard effort last week.
3. There’s no shortage of receiving options for Arduino. Kevin King (6-2) has 34 catches and eight touchdowns, and Craig Zuzek (6-foot) has 32 catches and 10 touchdowns, and
4. Linebacker R.J. Roth apparently has 153 tackles for the year (33 solo and 120 assist). That’s 17 a game, if you like inflated stats.
5. Cornwall, which is averaging 37 points a game, only lost to AA champion Monroe-Woodbury, 24-19, in the season opener.
For more info: Check out Cornwall’s page on Varsity845, which is the Times Herald-Record site. There’s also the Section Nine Football site.
Up next: The winner meets either Burnt Hills (Section 2) or Indian River (Section 7/10) on Friday, Nov. 21 at 8 p.m. at Dietz.
Class B
Rye (10-0) vs. Section 9’s Highland (7-3)
When/where: Friday, 7:30 at Dietz Stadium, Kingston
Five things to know about Highland:
1. Highland was last in the state tournament in 1998 when it won four out of five Class C titles. It beat Edgemont in 1995 and Dover in ‘96.
2. Highland won last week’s title with a 22-yard field as time expired, beating New Paltz, 19-16. New Paltz was the reigning champ, losing to Rye in last year’s state quarterfinal.
3. The ball won’t be in the air unless it’s kicked. Highland runs on nearly every play, spreading carries between Brian McCabe, Rob Tracz and Mike Fallatik.
4. Amazingly, Highland didn’t score an offensive touchdown last week. McCabe scord twice off fumble returns, and the defense picked up a safety. The defense is solid, allowing seven points or fewer in seven games. It had six interceptions in a win two weeks ago.
5. Highland was beaten handily by Cornwall, 41-0, a month ago. It’s other losses were to Class A Saugerties, and O’Neill.
For more info: Check out the Highland page on Varsity845.com. There’s also the Section Nine Football site.
Up next: The winner faces either Beekmanown (Section 7/10) or Hudson Falls (Section 2) on Saturday, Nov. 22 at 4 p.m. at Dietz.
Class C
Croton-Harmon (9-1) vs. Section 9’s Ellenville (8-1)
When/where: Friday, 4:30 at Mahopac
Five things to know about Ellenville:
1. Ellenville upset Sullivan West last week, 34-20, in the final to reach the state quarterfinals for the first time since 1993, the first year of the tournament. It lost to Rye.
2. Unfortunately, we won’t get to see the 305-pound quarterback. Sebastian Constable returned from an apendectomy and guided Ellenville to the title. Tony Casamento (left) is again the famous backup. Constable isn’t a huge offensive threat but is skilled at managing the offense.
3. Forget the quarterback. The most dangerous player is Don Exner, who has rushed for 1840 yards and 21 touchdowns. Eric Thayer is coming off a 162-yard rushing effort in the Section 9 final.
4. The Ellenville defense did an excellent job containing Sullivan West’s quarterback, who had thrown for 1,236 yards entering the game. They got good pressure on him and he managed only 108 yards.
5. Like Croton, Ellenville avenged an ugly regular-season loss in the final. Ellenville lost to Sullivan West, 41-19, in the season opener. It’s averaging 41 points in its last five games.
For more info: Check out the Ellenville page on Varsity845.com. There’s also the Section Nine Football site.
Up next: The winner meets the winner of Saranac Lake (Section 7/10) and Watervliet (Section 2) on Saturday, Nov. 22 at noon at Dietz.
Class D
Tuckahoe (7-2) vs, Section 9’s Chester (7-3)
When/where: Saturday, 3:30 at Dietz Stadium, Kingston
Five things to know about Chester:
1. Chester has faced Tuckahoe in the state tournament three of the last five years. Tuckahoe won all three meetings, outscoring Chester 109-6.
2. One of Chester’s losses was because of a forfeit, which was punishment for a bench-clearing brawl in a win over Onteora. The fight happened just before the half and the game was immediately suspended.
3. Matt Balzano is a solid quarterback. He threw for two touchdowns in the Section 9 final win over Eldred. He’s somewhat of an efficient passer, completing 54-percent of his throws for nine touchdowns and five interceptions.
4. Tight end Tyler Dieudonne and Dan Conklins split the workload out of the backfield for Chester. Both have between 600-700 yards rushing on the year.
5. Chester coach Ron Stover coached at Sleepy Hollow from 1992-98.
For more info: Click over to the Chester page on the Record online. There’s also the Section Nine Football site.
Up next: The winner faces the Rensselaer (Section 2) and Moriah (Section 7/10) winner on Friday, Nov. 21 at Dietz.
This entry was posted
on Monday, November 10th, 2008 at 12:02 pm by Kevin Devaney Jr..
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Nyack may be in trouble Cornwall’s only loss was in week 1 to phenom Monroe Woodbury in a close game. They lost 19-24
Max preps is great you can go back as far as the 2004 season for stats
The QB from Cornwall gets down and dirty…
http://www.maxpreps.com/new-york/football/cornwall-central-(new-windsor)/kevin-arduino/stats.aspx?athleteid=391d5108-4c0a-4c32-a543-37ca4635fa41&ssid=2f36027d-d6f6-4509-aba9-adad5cc85b5e&urpath=,local,player
He attempted 38 passes in the last game. Everyone know’s Nyack’s secondary is weak. Nyack is going to have their hands full. They need, i repeat NEED to develop some sort of pass rush! They have never seen a passing juggernaut like this before! I pray Nyack can pull this one off. If Cornwall’s line can control the Nyack defensive line, this guy Kevin Arduino is going to pick them apart. He leads the whole state in passing, that includes AA, CHSFL… This guy is the real deal 2229 passing yards and 29 TDs. 649 rushing yards and 10 TDs. This guy is clean. He also has more rushing yards then even Leonard does. Nyack could sure use that defensive tackle that tore his ACL right about now!
The LB Roth is only 185 pounds though. So he may be a quick one. The Nyack guards match up well against quick LBs.
The QB and WRs is where Cornwall will make their money at
does anyone have a take on ellenville, i understand they are big upfront. do they have speed, great coaching, maybe some key trick plays?
They have a good d-line and a good back. but from what i saw that was about it.
Ellenville is pretty solid. This may be the best chance Section 9 Class C has in a while.
They’re very physical and have solid speed. They beat a very good and disciplined Sullivan West team. Ellenville is a big Class C school and was in Class B last year. But they run alot, not too tricky. They can hit, they get to the ball, and they run very, very well. It will b a physical battle.
As for Corwnall..although they have talent I’m not so sure they can beat Nyack. Kevin Arduino is awesome, but Nyack’s overall athletic ability will be a problem for Cornwall.
RB Lou D’Esposito is solid, but comes no where close to Nyacks backfield. Cornwall is well coached though & very disciplined. They play team ball. Arduino is a pure competitor. His arm is great and he’s got vision. He can also run if needed. He’s def college material.
Class B..Highland has no chance. They had a nice run, but Rye will dispatch them. Rye will have an east path to the Eastern Finals.
Cornwall’s numbers just scare me a little
Here is a youtube video of the QB from Cornwall.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ja4TcpytoPU
This kid looks very solid.
According to the computers, Rye’s a MONSTER favorite (of course), Tuckahoe is a 2 TD favorite, Croton is favored by more than a TD, Nyack is a slight favorite, and New Rochelle is a slight underdog.
#12 Dave Blythe 17 carries for 144 (next leading rusher)
This team has forced 370 points, and allowed 83 points
This team hasn’t played a good game in over 2 1/2 months. All Of Cornwall’s games were blowouts except for week 1 against AA MW
The big question is how much better is section 1’s competition then Section 9? Nyack did have a weak regular season as schedule as well
Can Nyack defend the pass?
Cornwall’s Roster does not show the heights and weights of their lineman. But their skill players are not big at all. The only person 200 pounds is the QB, who is also 6 foot 2 by the way
I think if Nyack can develop a pass rush, which they sort of did against Ossining they can win.
I don’t think Cornwall’s defense is ready for the athleticism and speed from Nyack’s offensee though, even though offense hasn’t been Nyack’s bright spot.
If it comes down to the Arduino vs the secondary, Cornwall will score every single time!
I look for Nyack to start running more to the outside, and less of Athony davis. According to the roster Cornwall’s Lbs are not to big both 185 pounds.
THIS IS JUST THE NUMBERS, i dont know anything about what offense they run or what their tendencies are
I do know back in the early part of the century this use to be a fairly easy game for nyack. But Ossining only beat them 13-0 last year, and Harrison’s all star team lost the year before. Is it because those 2 teams aren’t nyack when it comes to state play or has Cornwall gotten much better? You tell me
Good Luck Nyack, your going to need it
Go New Rochelle and Rye as well
I’m going to look at the Arduino highlight tape now, and see if i can get a better look at these guys
All of the receivers are very tall. Nyack has VERY short players in the secondary.
Cornwall is not that fast tho
Cornwall’s numbers are impressive….but against less than impressive competition
1st) The only close game they had was Wallkill in late September. Wallkill came out with more fire. But Cornwall easily took care of business. Although I dont think Wallkill was that bad though.
2nd) The loss to Monroe wasnt as close as the score indicated. MW was up by 3 td’s going into the 4th quarter and turned it down a notch. They also had alot of turnovers and played extremely conservative and didnt want to show much.
But this is the best Class A QB from Section 9, that Section 1 will see in a while. Arduino has talent! Im pretty sure Cornwall may score points, but I dont know how they’ll defend against Nyack. But you never know.
In Class B. The spread couldnt be more accurate John!lol. I don’t see Highland putting points on Rye. Highland barely edge a New paltz team that was 10x better last year. Highland doesnt have enough weapons. But they’ll fight hard though.
Class C is going to be the game to see! I think the spread is way too much. Although I like Croton, I believe Ellenville is very tough! If Ellenville was in Sect.9 Class B they would’ve won that title. They def have the talent to go to the dome. I def want to see this game. Donald Exner is tough as nails. Ellenville has always been a tough blue collar team. I havent seen Croton though, but I know this will be a good game.
Class D- Chester is always decent, but they’re def the underdog. They might pull an upset but its unlikely.
Class AA- I think New Ro will easily handle LaSalle although I’m really impressed with LaSalle’s victory over Schenectady. Honestly, I also think this is the year MW may be vulnerable. Scalo is more like Tebow this year. His stats arent as eye-popping but he’s better, more seasoned and still dangerous. But the o-line this year isnt the same as last year. Much smaller and he doesnt have the same protection. Although he does have more receiving options than he had last year. The defense is also much better this year. I think that sort of covers up a bit for the less experienced o-line. But New Ro is tough and has a good chance of taking this one.
If anyone wants some good facts and ratings class by class go to MASSEY/RATINGS
MW is weak. They have a great QB. But the line is weak. Last year they had a 6’5 315 pd. kid on their line and a 6’2 265 pd. kid. their line is small and not as athletic.
Garnets should pound Highland. Question is – what’s next on the way to the states? Any good teams coming down the line? Tough to see Rye not repeating, this team seems absolutely loaded – but the 2006 Rye team seemed awfully strong and lost before getting to Syracuse. You never know.
how can u possibly say that nyack played nobody when they beat somers, ossining, harrison and sleepy hollow & Cornwall plays no one up there, no one, u think that theyve played a team with as much team speed as nyack, ure crazy
Where does it give predictions for the games?
Where does it give predictions for the games
Here is the latest MSG Top 10 Tri Sate Poll- It Looks like Mike Quick has New Rochelle and Monroe Woodbury very even-
Also Iona has Beaten 2 teams on the list in St. Anthomy and New Caneen.
It is too bad that Floyd, Iona, St. Anthony, Fort Hamilton, Port Richmond are not in the NYS Tourney.
MSG Top Ten FOOTBALL POLL
As of 11/10
1. Don Bosco Prep, NJ (7-1)
2. St. Joseph (Montvale), NJ (7-1)
3. St. Peter’s Prep, NJ (7-2)
4. Wayne Hills, NJ (9-0)
5. Iona Prep, NY (9-0)
6. Irvington, NJ (8-0)
7. Hillhouse, CT (9-0)
8. Bergen Catholic, NJ (7-1)
9. Floyd, LI (9-0)
10. St. Anthony’s, LI (8-2)
TAXI SQUAD
Monroe-Woodbury, NY (10-0)
Piscataway, NJ (7-1)
New Rochelle, NY (9-1)
Port Richmond, NYC (10-0)
Freehold Boro, NJ (8-0)
Immaculata, NJ (8-1)
New Canaan, CT (9-0)
Ft. Hamilton, NYC (10-0)
Union, NJ (6-2)
Asbury Park, NJ (8-0)
Cornwall just might be better than Nyack, however, section 9 as a whole is not near as balanced as section 1 from top to bottom in the A’s. Cornwall has turned into a top notch program , but while section 1 has Ossining, Harrison and Somers that were probably better than any A school in Orange county(besides Cornwall). Therefore throw all of their stats out the window. Had Somers kept all of their players in, they would have had a 1500 yard rusher a 1200 yard runner and a 1500 yard passer.This meant nothing when facing the Yack.Im of the opinion that section 1 is on a down swing, hopefully its just the balance as to why no teams are dominating. Lets bring home at least 3 chips fellas
IonaPower,
Congratulations to Iona Prep on being #5 on such a prestigious list. My only problem with such a ranking is that the list is comparing private schools, which can recruit players from anywhere with public schools which cannot. It’s like the proverbial “comparing apples with oranges.” It’s not a valid comparison.
Anyway – good luck to Iona Prep, New Rochelle and all the other section 1 winners.
I AM HAPPY THAT THERE ARE A FEW GAMES LEFT AT MAHOPAC, DEITZ IS MUCH FARTHER AWAY I WANT TO WISH ALL THE SECTION 1 TEAMS SUCCESS , EACH TEAM WILL REPRESENT US HONORABLE, ITS HARD TO PICK FAVORITES , HOWEVER MY HEART AND SOLE MUST GO WITH RYE EVEN THOUGH , I LIVED IN HARRISON FOR 32 YEARS MY ADDRESS WAS RYE AND OUR CHURCH WAS IN RYE GOD BLESS AND GOOD LUCK BIGJOE
GoNewRo
One of the points I was making is that New Rochelle and Monroe Woodbury are being looked at as very even in their rankings.
Also just having both New Rochelle and Iona Prep mentioned with the likes of the New Jersey and Long island powers is big. This MSG list in the past has not given teams from the Hudson Valley too much respect in the past so it is good to see some local schools mentioned.
Hopefully both Iona and New Rochelle will keep on winning.
IonaPower,
You’re right-good point and I’m sorry if I misinterpreted the comment.
IMHO
New Rocheele 27- Lasalle 13 Sets up big game vs MW next week Will new Rocheele get it’s revenge? Think not, but it will be close and a classic!
Corwall 24 Nyack 20 Sec 9 football is getting better. Nyack just runs out of gas against an expierienced Corwall team that been here 4 years running and should be able to run effectively against Nyack. Could easily go the other way though…..........
Rye 47 -7 Rye will have the second and 3rd team by half time.. This one is no contest and neither will next weeks semi final be either. Rye will meet one of the western sections (Bath or Lackawana) in the dome and prevail by 2 touchdowns, but it won’t be easy up there…the staters may even have to play the whole game??!!
Ellenville 20- Croton Harmon 13 Another tough call but Croton’s run ends here.
Tuckaho 27 Chester 14 Tuckaho has played up all season against much tougher competition and has been here too often for a game but overmatched Chester team
wolfie u dont know what ure talking about, how can u say that cornwall will run effectively against nyack when they pass way more then they run, do u do any research or do u just predict scores to make ur self sound stupid. cornwall runs the SPREAD
ConnorNyack you really take posts way to serious. Every comment that is not pro-Nyack, you respond to like “you sound stupid this, that and the third.” Just calm down wolfie was not being negative in anyway he just gave a prediction
crotons run is defintiely not ending. that was a poor call…and nyack is not losing either… to dominant.
How good is Lasalle? We (new ro) have a lot of momentum coming into this game.
my bad jax i just dont like it when people who are unimformed come on the website and give predictions on teams they know nothing about, i dont know too much about cornwall other then they have a great quarterback and dont run the ball too much, because they’re in the spread, but i know enough to realize that if they do win, it wont be because they ran the ball all over nyack.
Wolfie posted the same predictions on Syracuse.com. It would be good to hear your rationale for why Cornwall will be able to run on Nyack’s D.
No one has been able to run on Nyack’s D all year. They may be able to throw on Nyack, but on the ground Nyack has been really strong all year.
Wolfie is there something we don’t see?
Hi Ellenville. Allow me to introduce you to Nick “Dinero” Mainiero.
the kid’s money.
-hook
Yes they run the spread, but they have huge and experienced “O” line that protects the QB vey well. They won’t run wide on Nyack but I believe they will run up the gut effectively enough to keep Nyack honest. That’s the point I was trying to make. They are not one dimentional at all, and I believe they will be able to run effectivly enough to compliment their passing game. I hope that clears up my point. I may be very wrong….who really knows
I’m rooting for Nyack, being from sec 1, and have never seen them play this year, just hearing this second hand from people I trust. All do know is that 1: If nyack should win , they will have to earn it and play well and2: that it shoud be a great game!
yea i guess me and wingtguy misunderstood u
were looking at it one sided here.
How about when Nyack has the ball. Controls the clock and keeps that Cornwall spread off the field??
Ya see sometimes you can play defense with offense. We also cant really say there’s enough evidence to justify an argument that supports the Cornwall defense either.
They may just as well not be able to stop the Indians.
I really think that if you see Cornwall able to establish some sort of runnig game in order to set-up their passing attack and play action it will be a tough back and forth game. If Nyack is able to stuff the run and force Cornwall to relay just on their passing attack it will be Nyacks game to lose. That to me is the key and you’ll know pretty quickly is my take.