Sterling Limousine is sponsoring Friday night’s Central Bucks South at Council Rock South contest as a SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Game. Check back for complete game coverage. Also, look for bonus coverage of Friday’s Souderton/Neshaminy and Saturday’s North Penn/La Salle games. Be sure to check the web site for all the SOL scores.
It’s a brand new season, and it’s all business for the Council Rock South football team.
At least most of the time.
During a lull in the action at the team’s annual picture day, the seniors who are patiently waiting to have their individual photos taken are making good use of the brief down time to refine their musical talents.
Mike Hirthler III is singing lead for a group that calls itself the Black Spots. The senior lineman is accompanied by the rhythmic leg slapping of several teammates as well as the spirited air guitar performance of Mobyy Sháwwbynmiagma.
The Black spots are nothing if not creative, and while they haven’t hit the big time yet, they are convinced they will.
“We’re calling T Swift,” senior Jake Presley said of superstar Taylor Swift. “She’s kind of missing our calls a lot, but I’m sure we can work it out.”
“Once she sees us live – I’m not worried about it,” Hirthler said.
While there’s no mistaking that this year’s Golden Hawk squad knows how to have fun, there’s also no mistaking the unwavering resolve of the players to make a statement this season.
Forget the fact that they are without all-everything quarterback Billy Fleming as well as a solid senior class that led last year’s team to new heights last season. This year’s senior class is prepared to step up to the plate and silence the critics who suggest the team might be an also-ran this year.
“We have a great senior class and a real good bunch of guys,” said senior captain PJ Gallo, who will be taking his talents to the University of Maryland next season. “As far as replacing last year’s seniors is concerned, I think we have the guys to do it, and we could care less what other people think. It’s what we think, and we know we’re going to be good.
“We’re going to get after it every day at practice, get better every day and see where it takes us.”
The Golden Hawks hope it will take them back to the top of the National Conference standings – last season they were 6-1 and shared the conference crown with Neshaminy and Abington. They made history when they advanced to the district semifinals and finished the year with an impressive 12-2 record.
The bar has been set high, but according to coach Vince Bedesem, this year’s senior class is ready to accept the challenge.
“We approach every year as a building block,” the Golden Hawks’ coach said. “The kids know we focus a lot on our seniors, and every year is a building block for the time when they are seniors.
“Everything is that learning process and just setting themselves up for their turn. Even though they had great experiences as sophomores and they had great experiences as juniors – it’s their turn now, and they embrace it, and they want to capitalize on all the things they’ve learned throughout the course of their careers here.”
There are close to 40 seniors on the Golden Hawks’ varsity roster this year.
“They were very successful as freshmen, which was very, very beneficial,” Bedesem said. “They walk in and see the winning tradition we’ve had the last several years, and now they’re the ones that are really benefitting from it.
“They’re doing a great job as far as their leadership skills are concerned, and that’s what helps when you have a lot of seniors.”
This year’s seniors credit last year’s seniors for paving the way.
“They absolutely taught us how to win,” Gallo said. “They flat out won.
“They led – they were a great bunch of leaders and a great bunch of kids. They taught us a lot.”
“They showed us how to work hard and how you have to earn everything,” Hickey added.
Hickey went on to acknowledge that the thought of leading the team as a senior never crossed his mind while his freshman squad was piling up wins.
“I thought that was so far away, but it came so quick - it flew by.” the senior captain said. “Being a senior is actually kind of weird. You have no one else to look up to now. Everyone is looking up to you.
“You have to set the example and set the bar for all the young kids and show them how you do everything – show them what hard work is.”
Despite some new faces in the lineup, Hickey believes the Golden Hawks will be just fine.
“Losing those kids on offense – I wasn’t real worried because I knew what we had,” he said. “We’ve been working real hard in the weight room in the offseason, and I knew our backfield would be the same because our offense doesn’t focus on one person.”
“It’s all team,” Gallo added. “We’re going to go out and play 11 as one.”
The Golden Hawks will make their 2011 debut on Friday night when they host Central Bucks South.
The players can hardly wait.
“It’s pretty cool,” Gallo said. “It’s a big year. We’re really looking forward to it, and we’re going to give 110 percent.”
And that’s all Bedesem could ask of a senior class that has been part of a winning tradition since it took to the gridiron as freshmen.
Central Bucks South at Council Rock South
Friday, Sept. 2, 2011, 7 p.m.
Last year’s record: Council Rock South 6-1 SOL, 12-2 overall, advanced to the District One semifinal game; Central Bucks South 2-5 SOL, 4-6 overall
Last year: Council Rock South 35, Central Bucks South 14
Council Rock South coach Vince Bedesem’s keys to the game: “The key to Friday night’s game is pretty much the same as any game we go into. Our philosophy - when I sit down with the staff every year for our preseason meeting, we look to strive for great defensive play and solid and sound special teams play. We want to put points on the board, but ultimately, we want to have ball control.
“A team like CB South that averaged over 30 points a game last year and puts the points on the board because they do have a lot of threats. Obviously, with Matt Johns at quarterback – he’s a 6-5, 200-pound kid who’s going to the University of Virginia. The University of Virginia doesn’t just pick anybody out of the hat. They have had some real good players who played the quarterback position. He’s a special kind of player.”
Council Rock South players to watch: “We’re very defensive oriented, and we always start with our front line people. We have PJ Gallo and Andrew Cohen – who we feel is a Division One prospect – along with Jake Presley, who is the bookend and has taken over Matt Emilius’s spot. Anthony Miller did get a lot of playing time as a starter inside. These are some of the guys who are proven vets, and now let’s take it another step further.
“Our secondary is very veteran with Cory Wilkenson and Ryan Hickey. We moved Anthony Alimenti from corner to linebacker, and now we have junior Aaron Presley moving into the other corner position.
“We’ve put the load of our running game on Anthony Alimenti. We feel he’s going to be a very good running back for us. We also have Ryan Hickey and Ryan Whitely, our fullback, in the backfield, and with our triple option attack, we do love our fullbacks. Ryan Whitely also has been doing it for three years, but if we want to get to the next level, these are the guys that have been starters for a couple of years, and they have to step their game up.
“Our quarterback, Brian Donnelly, was a starter as a sophomore at defensive back. He started last year as a halfback, and now he’s running the team. He gets to touch the ball every time we get out there. We have full confidence in Brian’s ability, and in 10 years here, I have seen no one better athletically. He is a primetime player, and like Billy Fleming last year, he’s looking to score a baseball scholarship to college.
“We also stress our offensive line. Justin Flor is moving from the starting left guard to our center position, which is very, very important to us. Andrew Cohen will also start on the offensive line, and we have returners in Tom Trampe and Mike Yost at tackles. Coming into to fill the void at the other guard is sophomore Eric Gallo, who is a 6-2, 275-pound baby bull who we are expecting big things from.”
Coach Bedesem said: “We’re very excited. This is our 10th year as a program and as a staff together, and we have really now hit into a good situation where everybody is on the same page. The kids are dialed in on what we do now to prepare ourselves for a season. It’s no longer just showing up in August and away we go and play and learn. It started five years ago - after our last game, the following Monday, we’re in the weight room preparing for the following year. The key to our success has been that internal working out and just getting ourselves physically bigger, stronger and faster, and then, in turn, it just helps the mental process, it helps the emotional process. It’s also been proven – each year we’ve gotten better and better and better.”
Central Bucks South coach Dave Rackovan’s keys to the game: “Against a team like Rock South, you have to be able to stop the run. That’s what they do – they run the football. They’re strong, they have a good running back and an athletic quarterback. Some of their backs are back from last year, so we have to be able to stop that.
“From our end, we need to be able to run the football against them. They have a big, strong physical defense.”
Players to watch: “Offensively, our skill guys have to jump out. We have to get something out of Dan Brown who was injured all of last year, and I think he could be a real good football player. Chris Veal was a running back for us last year who we moved to wide receiver, and he needs to step up and be a solid performer for us as do the other receivers Dave Bechta and Frank Magasich.
“Our offensive line is relatively young, and that is going to be a deciding factor because of their youth. They’re not huge guys, but they have been working hard.
“On the defensive side of the ball, we knew we had to get better. I think we grew. Micheal Newman and Brandon Burrell had real good fall camps. John Mullen, a linebacker, has gotten better. In our secondary, Steve Veal is our free safety, and he’s a good football player.
“We have to mature as a group. We’ve worked very hard in the offseason, and hopefully, we can make that happen.”
Coach Rackovan says: “Council Rock South is not that much different than they were last year. They have a different quarterback, but a lot of those guys played last year, so they know how to win. They’re a real good football team. We have seen them play, and it is very similar to what they did last year, so it will be a real challenge for us.
“(For us), it’s a different year, it’s a different team. The kids have worked very hard. We took some lumps last year, playing some young kids, but I think they’ve matured over the winter. I’m excited about this group. They’re a great bunch of kids, and they’ve worked very hard.”
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