By Matt Diano: Are you ready for some football? I am honored to be back again for the 2016 season to shine a spotlight on the very best and brightest that the NYCHSFL has to offer.
Week #1 is officially in the books and already we are starting to see some tell-tale signs of how amazing the rest of the season is going to proceed.
Among our four honorees for the inaugural week of the new season, three are fresh faces, and all four play a different positions on the field…That is what we like to call, spreading out the admiration
Umari Taylor (Sr.); RB/CB – Holy Trinity Diocesan High School Titans
The lone returning recipient from a year ago, Taylor was honored in week #7 of the 2015 season when he exploded for a career high 309 rushing yards and four touchdowns in a 41-16 victory over St. Joseph’s by the Sea….Anytime the aforementioned is your bench mark, you know you must have done something extremely special to impress the selection committee….After all, when you make it look effortless the way the 5’8, 175-pound tailback is a threat to do every week of his senior campaign, it is only human nature that the pundits begin to take it for granted….One thing that opposing coaches will never take for granted is the ability to contain this “complete package” of a young man….Dangerous in every facet of the game, last Saturday, Taylor did everything short of driving the team bus in spearheading the Titans to a huge 32-25 victory on the road over perennial AA title contenders, St. John the Baptist.
Seeing his school fall behind 8-0 at the end of 12 minutes, Taylor would take over during the final 36, accounting for three of Holy Trinity’s five touchdowns and racking up 246 yards of production as a runner, receiver, and kick returner.
Finding the end zone for the first time in 2016 when he broke from 11 yards away in the second quarter to get the Hicksville based program on the board, the part of Taylor’s massive afternoon that stood out the most was that none of what he did was simple padding of stats. On the contrary, for much of the game, he single-handedly was keeping HT in contention by offering an answer to every Cougar surge….A key example of this occurred when SJB recovered a fumble and returned it for six to increase their lead to 18-6. With momentum completely in the corner of their LI foes, Coach Tony Mascia’s squad needed a catalyst and they found it on the ensuing play when Taylor camped underneath the kickoff and then bolted 79 yards for his second score of the day to cut the deficit to 18-12.
Taylor’s heroism continued in the final quarter when he cut through the hole and dashed 94 yards to the house to pull Holy Trinity even, 25-25.
On the day, Taylor carried the ball 11 times for 114 yards and two scores, caught three passes for an additional 21 yards, and tallied 111 yards as a return man…Just for good measure, he also managed to record three tackles in case anyone questioned just how insanely versatile he is when he puts on the Green & White colors.
Will Loffredo (Jr.); WR – Fordham Prep Rams
When we said in the 2016 preview that junior signal caller, Matt Valecce, was going to have infinite amount of quality targets to which he could throw, we were not blowing smoke…When you combine the best pocket passer in the Catholic League with the deepest receiving corps, you know points are going to be flying on the board…And points certainly were not at a premium on Saturday night at Coffey Field, as Valecce completed 21 of 29 attempts for 288 yards and three touchdowns to propel the Rams to a 29-14 non-league victory over Section IX’s Warwick Valley.
While Valecce does deserve and will get more than his fair share of praise during the course of the next two months, the weekend equally belonged to his fellow 11th grader and main focal point, Loffredo.
Standing 6’4 and weighing 205 bills, if you are a defensive back, this is not and never will be a match-up to which you will look forward…The reason for this is that more times than not, the sure-handed and athletic wide-out is going to exploit his physical advantages and make it a long afternoon/night for his opposing counterpart.
Loffredo most definitely was having his way this past weekend, as he led the Rams across the board in all major receiving categories, catching nine balls for 125 yards and a pair of TDs.
With his team holding a 13-7 edge, the two-sport athlete (also plays lacrosse for the defending AA State Champions), added to the lead when he was on the receiving end of a 28-yard strike with just over 3:00 remaining in the third quarter to make the score 19-7.
The incredible junior duo of Valecce of Loffredo hooked up for a second consecutive touchdown about 12 minutes later when the former hit the latter with a nine-yard pass to put a then one-score (22-14 at the time) contest on ice by increasing the lead to 29-14 with three minutes to go.
For their careers, Valecce and Loffredo have now been the pitch/catch combination on 53 completions and seven touchdowns…..They have established themselves as Catholic football’s version of the historic Peyton Manning to Marvin Harrison pairing.
Adley Raboy (Sr.); DE – Monsignor Farrell Lions
Another student-athlete who rose to the occasion in helping his school post a non-league “w” in the first week of the season was the senior D-lineman, Raboy.
Our only defensive player highlighted this week, if we had to select just one, Raboy still would have been a unanimous choice following a senior debut that witnessed him amass four of the Lions’ eight total sacks in a 41-0 shutout over Monsignor Martin League member, St. Joseph’s Collegiate Institute (Buffalo).
A speed rusher who relies more on technique and athleticism than size, the 215-pound Staten Islander and his fellow linemen were so dominant on the road last Saturday that not only did they prevent the host Marauders from scoring, they also played quite a significant role in aiding their own offense…With endless amounts of pressure, the Farrell defense was able to create multiple turnovers which enabled their teammates on the other side of the ball to inherit ideal field position.
As all attention now shifts to their upcoming game with AAA runners-up, Cardinal Hayes, Head Coach, Anthony Garofalo and staff know that they are going to need to get that same effort out of their star defensive end if they hope to kick off league play on the right foot…If Raboy can cause the same chaos and make Christian Anderson’s life as miserable as he did to the SJC QB, a déjà vu nomination to this list might be in order.
Note: In addition to being recognized by the NYCHSFL as a Player of the Week, Raboy’s stellar play was recognized by Staten Island Live who bestowed the same honor upon him early Wednesday morning.
Matt Chmil (Sr.); QB – Chaminade High School Flyers
If anyone still considers Chmil “a lacrosse star playing football”, you are in for a rude awakening…This young man is a football player who just happens to be so blessed athletically that he excels in all other areas too.
22 months removed from the program’s last varsity win, a lot of the chatter during the preseason was along the lines of “if only the Flyers can put it all together”….A team that possesses a wealth of God-given physical ability, there has never been a question regarding talent. The issue in the past has been one of execution and playing up to their potential….
Last Saturday afternoon, playing on the eve of the 15th anniversary of the September 11th attacks on a field dedicated to the memories of their Gold Star alumni, potential was transformed into success for the Flyers as they scored on their first six possessions to emerge with a 42-20 win over fellow Marianist institution, Kellenberg Memorial….Chmil was the driving force the entire way.
Playing an almost flawless game in the commencement to his scholastic gridiron swan song, to the Flyer faithful watching from the seats, the 6’1, 185-pound future Duke Blue Devil Lacross Player’s performance was reminiscent of something they had previously seen not too long ago when another #12, Sean Cerrone, captained the Mineola based school to back-to-back AAA finals appearances and a title in 2012.
Looking the part of an individual who should be running Brian Kelly’s option scheme at Notre Dame next fall instead of playing middie for Duke Coach John Danowski, Chmil was nothing short of astounding with all of his limbs, totaling four touchdowns and compiling over 260 yards of total offense.
Referenced in the AAA preview as someone with the skills required to take over a game all by himself, Chmil was Chaminade’s offense for the first quarter-plus of the game, as his runs of 38 yards, 1 yard, and 1 yard represented the first three scores of the game for the Crimson & Gold as they jumped out to a 21-6 lead early in the second quarter.
After allowing a few of his teammates to enjoy the satisfaction of taking a trip to the promised land (AKA the end zone), Chmil concluded his day by converting what looked to be an impossible 4th-and-long by hitting 6’3 tight end, Mike Kelleher on a jump ball for a 31-yard TD toss to make the score 42-6.
Chmil, who exited the game at approximately the halfway point of the third quarter, had a stat line that read as follows: 10-for-11 in the air for 182 yards and one touchdown; 13 carries for 79 yards and a trifecta.