Large School Observations
There is definitely a QB battle going on at Canisius. Gabe Fisher (’21) and Tyler Baker (’22) will battle for the vacancy left by Christian Veilleux who decided to attend prep school instead of returning for his senior season. Neither Fisher nor Baker established themselves as the clear favorite on Wednesday so it will be really interesting to see how that ultimately plays out. It wasn’t that either player did not have their moments, each made good plays and have been working hard in the offseason. Max Dowling, Antwain Gandy and Grant Taylor are playmakers and will be nice weapons, Gandy especially. You will hear that name quite a bit this fall. They have a number of returning linemen.
St. Joe’s had a number of skill guys perform well last Wednesday, led by Micah Brown their senior quarterback. Jimmy Scott is no longer an unknown after his brilliant freshman season. David Morgan is real nice player and the trio give the Marauders their best chance of defeating their biggest rival Canisius since 2011. Is the line going to be as good as it was last year? That will be their biggest question mark.
Orchard Park had a strong showing defeating Starpoint, SJCI and Canisius before ultimately losing in the championship to Lancaster. The Quakers will be a lot of fun to watch this season. Mike Pataky is a character and should be a force this season. Jack Sharp returns for his senior season and still one of the top QB’s in WNY.
South Park for having no real experience in 7-on-7’s held their own. There was some bickering on the defensive side of the ball but that just shows how much they care. This is a traditionally tough team to play, the Sparks do not take plays off. They did very well Wednesday and will be a force as usual in Class A.
Starpoint steamrolled their way through the round robin play. Playmakers all around. They still have a competent receiving core but I anticipate a more balanced offensive attack this year, time will tell. Carson Marcus (’21) looked comfortable taking snaps.
It’s not going to be easy for Clarence to make up for the losses of Jon Stevens and Jack Putney. Zach Norton is explosive and poised to have a great year, hoping he has some help. Their strength could be the line.
Lancaster is really good. It appears they will continue to use a two quarterback system. Jason Mansell looked miles ahead from where he was last year and he was pretty darn good already. Keep those prayers coming for head coach Eric Rupp’s Father. The Legends will be celebrating their 100th season. Lancaster has won three Section VI titles in a row.