STATE CHAMPIONSHIP
Panthers like being stingy
Sweet Home rides its defense to Class A final
In Week Seven, the Sweet Home football team had essentially a meaningless game. The Panthers had already clinched first place in Class A North, already secured home advantage for the first two rounds, already had established themselves as a favorite to head to The Ralph.
But that week, that meaningless game, was when coach John Faller said he thought it all really came together for Sweet Home.
“[Jamestown, a Class AA playoff team] was coming off playing some pretty good ball games, playing some power football, and we had to travel down there,” Faller said of his team’s 28-0 victory on Oct. 18. “We had a couple of kids come of age, like [junior] Steve Spencer and [senior] Tyler Heald and some other kids. They tied some things together and we felt it as a unit. They developed pride in themselves holding teams scoreless.”
That was the first of three straight shutouts, which were followed by a Section VI championship blowout (39-19) of Iroquois, a dominant performance against defending state champion Aquinas (23-6) and a stunning semifinal rout of Corning West (48-8).
Early in the season Sweet Home (12-0) started the season with four wins with an average margin of victory of eight points.
“It was a case of the right hand didn’t know what the left hand was doing,” said Faller. “Teams hurt us a little bit, but not enough to get us beat. You’re trying to get the players in the right positions with the skills that they have, you’re teaching them and trying to come together. That’s really what we’ve done. We’ve come together.”
Next up is Section II (Albany area) champion Burnt Hills (12-0) at 5 p. m. Saturday at Syracuse University’s Carrier Dome.
Burnt Hills, a school located about 10 miles north of Schenectady, is led by 6-foot-1, 210- pound senior Paul Layton, who has passed for more than 1,200 yards, rushed for more than 1,100 and also kicks extra points. The Spartans have out-scored their opponents, 505-78, but advanced last week with a 14-13 win over Nyack.
“[Layton] is their best all-around athlete and it should be a good matchup,” said Faller. “They run the wing-T and we’ve seen variations of that with Jamestown and West Seneca East [a 46-0 playoff-opening win].”
Sweet Home’s speedy defense contained Iroquois and phenomenal running back Brandon Murie, then stood up to Aquinas’ bruising line and senior back Casey Vogl, then was all over Corning West’s option attack.
“We just take a look at things, and as a staff we come up with a plan on what plays the other team likes to run the most, their main threat on offense, and you try to do that every week,” said Faller. “But the kids still have to do the blocking and tackling.”
Thanks to the Buffalo Bills, Sweet Home and Orchard Park have both practiced in the Bills’ fieldhouse this week. That’s not only allowed the teams to conduct crucial full practices during inclement weather but in a dome-like environment they’ll be in on Saturday.
“After 25 degrees and snow out there, it can only can get better,” said Faller. “Our kids ran pretty well on snow, so to get on dry turf, that can only enhance some of their skills.”
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