2011 Preview: Sachem North Football

Last season was supposed to be the year for Sachem to finally get back to the Long Island Championship and the dream was crushed in the Suffolk County Division I final by Sachem's rival from the east, William Floyd, for the second straight season.

And just when you thought Sachem might be down in 2011, rebuilding, and it is in many aspects of the roster, don't think twice about the Flaming Arrows making another run and possibly creating the third straight Sachem-Floyd battle at Stony Brook in November.

The Dalton Crossan-Stacey Bedell individual rivalry as the top player in Suffolk County began long before this season kicks off Saturday afternoon. They've been pinned against each other at combines and recruiting showcases, in the regular season and in championship games. This year it will be no different. Enjoy the competition, because they are two of the most talented high school football players to play in this county.

Sachem will have a high powered offense, a strong offensive line, brightness on the defensive side of the ball and tons of upside considering the amount of underclassmen already shining.

Record Last Year: 10-1 (Regular season Division I champions, Suffolk County Division I runner-ups)

Division I Pre-Season Ranking: No. 2 of 14

Head Coach: Dave Falco, 9th season (43-29)

Venue: Fred Fusaro Alumni Stadium

Top Players

• Tyler Andreassi LB/FB
• Dalton Crossan RB/S
• Trent Crossan QB/LB
• Vincent Juliano RB/DL
• Vincent Provenzano WR/LB
• Jacob Starling OL/DL

Position Breakdown

Offense

Quarterback: He’s a sophomore in grade, but he plays like a senior in football strength and IQ, which is why his transition from running back to quarterback will seem effortless. He’s put in the work, however, mentally and physically to give Sachem a passing threat for another three years. “To stick a guy in the quarterback position who has been a running back his whole life, it’s a challenge,” Falco said. “It’s one of the reasons we’re going to improve as we go on. The more snaps he gets the more he’ll improve.”

Running back: Dalton Crossan. Enough said. He’s the featured back this year, giving Sachem a similar feel to how it operated in 2009 when Davon Lawrence received a majority of the workload.  “He’s worked extremely hard to get to this point,” Falco said. “We still have to be balanced and get others the ball so [opponents] can’t load up too much on him.” Also expect carries from Tyler Andreassi, Anthony Ross and Mahlik Pierre.

Fullback: Andreassi, Vinny Fragale and Kevin Lathan will split time.

Wide Receiver: Look for Ryan Calabrese, Cody Petillo and Matt Ward to catch passes.

Offensive Line: Steven Mills will play center with Connor Harris and Jacob Starling playing the guard positions. Vin Juliano is a tackle and there is still competition between John Fitzpatrick and Nick Dirosse at the other tackle positions. Rob Cabria will play tight end. John Shannon is in the mix on o-line as well. There are some veterans and some athletes who make for some big size on this line.

Defense

Defensive Line: Some familiar names from the o-line: Capria, Juliano, Starling and Fitzpatrick. Plus, you’ll see Mykael Parada, Sean O’Shea and others. “We have a lot of guys on the line that are hard to move,” Falco said. “It’s going to be different than a year ago.”

Linebackers: Andreassi and Fragale will be in the middle as the main bruisers on defense.

Secondary: Trent Crossan will see time at corner with Pierre and Ross rotating in at the wings. Dalton is playing safety. Calabrese can be utilized as a defensive back in multiple areas of the field.

Special Teams: Bryan Morris, a sophomore, is back for his second season of varsity action and will kick extra points. Falco is unsure who will handle punt duties, but is considering both Crossans, as well as some others.

Expectations: “Our expectations are still high and we like them to be high, but we have to be realistic. We have a lot of sophomores on the team this year, we have a quarterback that hasn’t taken any snaps in a game situation, anytime you have a young team its about progressing week to week.”

Key Loses

• Jesse Scanna, playing football at Cortland
• Mike Andreassi, playing lacrosse at UMass
• James Thompson, playing football at Central Connecticut
• Tim Lang, playing lacrosse at UMBC
• Angelo Armine, playing lacrosse at Molloy
• Mike McCarthy, playing football at Cortland

2011 Season Schedule

• Week 1 @ Bay Shore: Saturday, Sept. 10, 2 p.m.
• Week 2 vs. Northport: Friday, Sept. 16, 7 p.m.
• Week 3 vs. West Islip: Friday, Sept. 23, 7 p.m.
• Week 4 vs. Longwood: Saturday, Oct. 1, 6 p.m.
• Week 5 @ Connetquot: Thursday, Oct. 6, 3:30 p.m.
• Week 6 @ William Floyd: Saturday, Oct. 15, 1:30 p.m.
• Week 7 vs. Brentwood: Saturday, Oct. 21, 7 p.m.
• Week 8 @ Lindenhurst: Friday, Oct. 28, 6 p.m.

Related Coverage from Sachem Patch

Check Sachem Patch all season long for major coverage of Sachem football. There will be countless profiles, notebooks, stories, photo galleries, videos and historical look-back pieces about the program every week.