Football Team Preview

Coach: Len Cusumano has been the head coach for 6 years, and before that, he was the assistant coach for 7 years.

Last year’s record: 2-3

Key Returners: Captain Steven Dembowski(Sr. Offensive Line/Defensive Line), Captain Nick Messina(Sr. Running Back/Linebacker), Dylan Hutchinson(Sr. Wide Receiver/Defensive Back), Justin Amato(Sr. Offensive Line/Defensive Line), and Matt Bell(Sr. Offensive Line/Linebacker)

Key Losses: Chris Cole, Zach Traina, Desmond Von Tobel, Sean Cuffe, Kevin Cuffe, Daniel Haag, Mike Solazzo, Nick Mazza, and David Jones

Key Newcomers: Nick Marchese(Sr. Linebacker, Running Back), Conor Mckenna(Sr. Defensive Back), James Perrone(Sr. Offensive Line/Defensive Line), Thomas Lodestro(Sr. Offensive Line), Ethan Shaw(Sr. Offensive Line/Defensive Line), Nick Saveriego(Sr. Wide Receiver/Defensive Back), Ethan Silcher(Sr. Wide Receiver/Quarterback/Defensive Back ), Nick Bruzzi(Jr. Offensive Line/Defensive Line), Jake Crawbuck(Jr. Quarterback), Quinn Flanagan(Jr. Full Back), Brandon Flanagan(Jr. Tight End/Punter/Defensive Line), Hunter Hein(Jr. Offensive Line/Defensive Line), Conor Higgins(Jr. Wide Receiver/Defensive Back), and Dan Kastanis(Jr. Wide Receiver/Defensive Back)

Strength of team: “We have a lot of seniors that are hungry to prove themselves, [and we have] experience up front, on the offensive line, defensive line, and at the linebacker position,” Cusumano said. “A lot of success happens from [those guys] on the offensive line and defensive line. That’s obviously responsible for a secondary step up and really showcases their skill and their ability.”

Weakness of team: “We want to make sure we don’t expose any weaknesses,” Cusumano said. “We’ll continue to practice and work to attain perfection as best as possible. We want to make sure that we’re making practice as difficult as possible so that the game becomes a little bit easier.”

Outlook on the season:  “The expectation is to succeed every single week and go 1-0 every single week; we’re not looking too far ahead,” Cusumano said. “We’re very grateful to be practicing now and to have had a summer to practice and get ready for the season. We’re appreciative and thankful for what we’re doing right now because last year was obviously a different story. So I know the guys are very grateful to be out there and we’re happy to say the team is back together, building that camaraderie with our coaching staff.”

When asked about the starting quarterback Cusumano responded, “All three guys are working right now. We have a three headed monster right now with Ethan Silcher, Jake Crawbuck, and Nick Messina. So we’ll [take it] week to week, as far as the game plan is concerned.”