DESPITE YOUTH, EXPECTATIONS REMAIN THE SAME FOR WAVERLY IN 2021
By: Tim Birney | WaverlyAthletics.com | September 1, 2021 | Photo courtesy David Alliger
WAVERLY — Waverly returns a fair amount of experience in 2021, but the
team as a whole remains young, says longtime coach Jason Miller, who
expects his team to grow as the season progresses, and ultimately
challenge for a division title, and a Section IV crown.
(Waverly opens the 2021 season tonight at home against East Syracuse-Minoa. Game time is 6 p.m.)
“The
thing I love about being back in a normal situation is an expectation
with enough talent that throughout the year, we’re going to grow,” he
said.
Earlier this week, Whitney Point announced it will drop to
8-man football, forcing Section IV to shift Chenango Valley into
Waverly’s division, along with O-M / Watkins Glen, and Dryden.
“Our division got tougher,” said Miller.
“Now,
all of the sudden winning the division is really important,” he noted.
“With Whitney Point dropping to 8-man, Chenango Valley comes over to our
division, so that’s a critical game for us at home in Week 2.
“Our
goal is to win our division, so that we’re the number one seed in our
division, crossing over against the No. 2 seed in the other division in
the semifinals, and not the 1-seed (Chenango Forks),” continued Miller.
“Our
goal is to make the Section IV finals,” he added. “A lot will have to
happen right for us throughout the season, but it is a realistic goal.”
Junior
Ty Beeman returns to anchor the offensive line at center, and will be
flanked by seniors Cayden Turcsik and D.J. Shaw at guards. Junior Zach
Vanderpool and sophomore Jake Benjamin will start at the tackles.
Eighth-grader
Troy Beeman will back-up all three positions on the line, while senior
Jake Forrest and sophomore Dylan Baggerly will back up at guard, and
freshman Cam Hills is the back-up tackle.
Miller’s biggest concern with his offense is in the trenches.
“Our
depth up front is our biggest concern by far,” he said. “Our first few
guys are young, but solid. They got a little game experience last year,
and they’re going to develop throughout the year.
“Our back-ups
and younger guys will have to come along; that’s major concern,” added
Miller. “With this schedule, and starting off against large school that
have a lot of linemen, that’s our weakness.”
Junior Nate DeLill will start at tight end / H-back, with senior Kaden Wheeler also seeing time there.
Sophomore Joey Tomasso will start at quarterback, and sophomores Gage Tedesco and Braedon Hills will share time at tailback.
Seniors
Brady Blauvelt and Tyler Talada will start at the X-receivers, with
juniors Isaiah Bretz and Treyton Moore both seeing time there as well.
Sophomore Jay Pipher will start at slotback, with junior Kayleb Bechy and senior Thomas Hand also seeing time there.
“We’re
young. If you look at our roster, especially the guys on offense, we’re
young — a lot of freshmen and sophomores,” said Miller. “Our goal is to
get better every week.
“We have a lot of depth in the skill
positions, though, and that’s one area where we’re good,” noted Miller.
“We use multiple-personnel sets, and no matter what personnel grouping
we’re in, we’re deep.
“We’re a little inexperience at tailback,”
he continued. “Gage (Tedesco) was out last year, and Braden Hills is
coming back after not playing last year.
“Both are pretty
talented kids, though,” added Miller. “They run hard, and as they get
use to this level of football, they’re going to develop into pretty good
players.”
Cam Hills and Ty Beeman will anchor the defensive line
at the tackle spots, with Vanderpool, Troy Beeman, and Forrest in the
mix to see time. Benjamin and Talada will start at defensive ends.
Shaw
and Turcsik will start at inside linebacker, with Baggerly and Ty
Beeman rotating in, and junior Conner Stotler also in the mix.
Tedesco and Bretz will start at outside linebacker, with Wheeler and Moore backing them up.
Pipher and Tomasso will start at safety, with Hand, Bechy, and Blauvelt rotating at corner back.
“I
don’t have a major concern on defense,” said Miller. “We play some
teams that can really run the ball, and that could be an issue, but we
have a lot more experience on the defensive side of the ball than on
offense.
“Most of our guys are hitters, and like contact, so I
feel pretty good about our defense,” he noted. “We don’t have great team
speed … it’s a typical defense for us.
“It will come down to
assignments early in the year, and that’s always an issue for us. We
will get game experience, and we’ll get better every game.
“I
feel good about our defense. I think they’re going to fly around, and I
think they’re going to play hard, and that’s what you ask of them,”
added Miller.
On special teams, Ty Beeman will serve as
long-snapper, with Tomasso handling the punting chores, and junior Ryan
Clark will handle the place-kicking duties.
“(Ryan Clark) does a
great job, and has a strong leg,” said Miller. “He has embraced the role
of kicker. He works on it, and has a lot of different types of kicks.”
Hand, Bechy and Stotler will return kicks for the Wolverines, and Pipher and Tomasso will handle the punt return chores.
AROUND SECTION IV, DIVISION V
“I have a lot of respect for (O-M /) Watkins Glen, I think they are going to be a very good football team,” said Miller.
“I
don’t know anything about Chenango Valley, but Chenango Valley is
Chenango Valley, and they’ve always been a thorn in our side,” noted
Miller.
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