Lockport Rage’s first season had its moments
Football team’s stunning comeback in tough game earned it playoff berth
LOCKPORT — The Lockport Rage didn’t win the championship nor did they finish with a winning record in their first season of semi-professional football.
But they did mount a John Elway-like fourth-quarter comeback to overcome some early wobbly moments, stunning the masses by earning a playoff berth in one of the toughest league’s in the nation.
So what can the Rage do for an encore?
The mystery began to unfold Saturday night when Lockport opened the Northeastern Football Alliance regular season on the road against Lyndonville in a contest that ended too late for this edition.
But what isn’t an enigma is the fact that the Rage are a tad bit better prepared (on and off the field) for their second season of duty in the former New York Amateur Football League. There was no scrambling out of desperation needed to find a home field before this season’s July 26 home opener against Syracuse. The Rage secured an agreement to use Exchange Club Field in Outwater Park two months ago unlike last year when they didn’t reach a deal to use the field until two weeks prior to the start of the season.
The team didn’t even wait for 2008 to begin preparing for its opener against a Tigers outfit that pinned a season-ending, 35-7, playoff loss on it. The Rage returned to work in December, or two months after that defeat — gathering twice a month during the winter in the Kenan Center for practices in an attempt to avoid another 0-3 start. They won five of their final seven games to qualify for the playoffs.
Unlike last year, Lockport scheduled two preseason games, winning both of them. The learning-on-the-fly Rage couldn’t find anyone to schedule tuneups against last season.
“A lot less stress [this year],” said general manager and co-owner Joe Speer. “It’s been a lot better this year. We have more people helping. Last year we were light on the coaching and management. We know a lot more of what to expect. . . . For the most part everything’s been running smoothly.”
“Getting established in the beginning was hard because there were a lot of naysayers. We had to make a name for ourselves,” said Will Stiles, middle linebacker and co-owner. “We had a great crowd that ran 250-300 strong, and we expect to double it this year. . . . We’ve been doing a lot of community stuff in the city. Now we’re known. Word spreads.”
And expectations have risen. It doesn’t matter that Lockport plays in the same league as defending state and national champion Monroe County Sting of Rochester. Just making the playoffs isn’t enough to satisfy this crew’s appetite.
The Rage’s early schedule could help their postseason quest, as the July 26 home opener is the first of three straight home games against teams expecting to contend for playoff spots. Lockport hosts Watertown, the oldest semiprofessional outfit in the nation, on Aug. 2 and faces another stiff test from the Southern Tier Diesel on Aug. 9.
“We’re very confident we have a good team,” Speer said. “Last year we could have easily been 8-2 [instead of 5-5] because all but two [regular season] games were close. We weren’t blown out. As a first-year team you should expect more blowouts, but we were competitive with [almost] every team,” Speer said.
That despite being slightly undersized, something the Rage addressed during the offseason by increasing the bulk of their offensive line by roughly 40 pounds. Starters Kevin Campbell (center), Jason Barnoff (guard) and Brian Harvey (tackle) return and welcome a new best friend to the lineup in 6-foot-7, 325 pound tackle Eric Hinton. Fellow newcomer Ben Marotta will start at guard.
The Rage return plenty of speed in P. J. Harris and Jeremy Brown. Both returned kickoffs for touchdowns last year with Brown averaging 36 yards per kick return and 22 per punt return. As a receiver he finished with seven TDs and more than 300 yards on 18 catches. Harris averaged 26.9 yards per return.
Fullback Kyle Hunley rushed for 482 yards and seven TDs on 73 carries, while Harris rushed for 440 yards and five scores. Starting quarterback La- Mont Rhim threw for nearly 1,000 yards and had 11 touchdowns in seven games, missing three with an ankle injury.
Linebackers Tom Covey and Stiles led the Rage in tackles last year, while Isiah Johnson entered the playoffs with a team-high three sacks.
The team also added a line coach in former Lockport High standout and Lockport Invader Roger Poole.
“Win or lose, as long as we’re holding our own with teams, there’s nothing to worry about,” Speer said. “We’re going to learn from every game we play. We’ll learn from our mistakes, but we’re going in to win and wanting to win. We have to come out of each game, stay together and not get discouraged. The playoffs are what really matters. As long as we make the playoffs, we know we’ve got a shot.”
