RYE – There’s no reason to hang any help wanted signs.
There is plenty of talent here despite graduating so many of the headliners who delivered another state championship last fall. It’s just a matter of getting this year’s cast situated. All of the nearly 50 players who lined up at Nugent Stadium on the first day of practice Monday know the drill.
And the expectations.
Rye head coach Dino Garr was in full voice at the start of his 51st season. There was plenty of praise to go along with the critical feedback as the offense brought the Xs and Os to life. And when focus began to fade late in the morning session, there were 25 pushups.
Charlie Brady is taking over at quarterback for the Garnets, who return just three starters on that side of the ball.
“This group has to realize it’s their turn and they have an opportunity to build on what has been successful for our program over the years,” said Garr, who last year became the winningest football coach in state history. “They’ve been a part of it. Now they have to become the leaders. That is the expectation, next man up. That’s coach-speech, but the reality is we lost a lot and we expect these players will accept the challenge.”
Names to know
Charlie Brady, Sr., QB/DB; Luke Denvir, Sr., TE/S; Jagger Fenton, Sr., RB/LB; Ryan Hess, Sr., WR/DB; Benji Kaplan, Sr., OL/DL; J.P. Treacy, Jr., TE/DE; Graham Durkin LB/OL; Izu Udeagha, Sr., LB/FB.
Schedule
Sept. 4 vs. Cornwall
Sept. 10 at Clarkstown South
Sept. 18 vs. Eastchester
Sept. 26 at Mount Vernon
Oct. 2 at Somers
Oct. 9 vs. Nyack
Oct. 17 vs. Harrison
Oct. 23 at Clarkstown North
Takeaways
Are the Garnets going to be able to replicate the offensive production they got last season from Carson Miller, Henry Shoemaker, Charlie Garnett and Sebastian Lewis? They combined for more than 8,000 yards, so the answer is no. There are some playmakers in the junior and senior classes, though, and with a little game experience, Rye shouldn’t have any issues finding the end zone.
There were plenty of candidates to fill out the XL and XXL jerseys. Garr was preaching the importance of aggressive line play and reacting when the level of execution cleared the way for a big run.
With all the changes, Rye is coming into the season as the favorite to win Class A. There is more competition than a year ago. Somers and Clarkstown South are strong. Harrison and Yorktown are improved. And teams like Brewster and Mahopac are likely to pose a challenge.
Talking points
“It’s a new team,” Brady said. “There are some new players and I’m just really excited to get it going. I’m not dreading (the work). I’m pumped up to be here.”
“It’s definitely a new year, but we have the same aspirations as last year” Fenton said. “We want to go just as far and we’ll compete every single game. The guys who graduated are our best friends and were mentors for us. See the way they were leading this team last year is helping us a lot.”
“We’re super excited,” Kaplan said. “We think we’re going to be as good as last year. I know we lost a lot of players, but I think we have kids here who are going to step up and fill those roles. … Nothing changes as far as expectations. We know what the goal is.”
Mike Dougherty covers high school football for The Journal News/lohud.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: New lineup at Rye planning a vigorous state football title defense
