Ray Marshall knew that taking over the Snyder High School football program was going to be a major challenge.
After all, the Tigers are in the midst of a 29-game losing streak, dating back to Nov. 5, 2011. That’s almost four straight years of losing. The current members of the Snyder roster have never had the chance to experience a victory on the high school level.
Marshall, the former Lincoln and St. Peter’s College standout, understands that the program is downtrodden. The high water mark for victories in the past decade is two. During the past 12 seasons dating back to 2003, the Tigers have won a total of just 12 games and lost an even 100 times. In the middle of all that has been five winless seasons.
There’s not much more that can be said about how troubled the Snyder program has been. Six different coaches have come and gone since 2003. None of them could get the Tigers on the winning track.
But Marshall, who spent the last 10 years as an assistant at Lincoln, believes he can be the one to turn the tide completely around.
“I think we’ve progressed a lot,” Marshall said. “We have some kids who I didn’t even know who could play that are doing very well. Our defense looks pretty good now. We’re a better team. We have 40 kids who want to play football. Those who didn’t want to play took themselves away. Those who survived are the ones who are still with us and are very serious about playing football. We have kids who want to play.”
Marshall believes that he has the leader to bring the Tigers out of the doldrums in sophomore quarterback Titus Whitehead (6-1, 175).
“When I first got to Snyder, Titus didn’t want to be the quarterback,” Marshall said. “I was told that he was the best athlete that we had. I watched him do some athletic things, some different things. I sat him down and told him that he had to be the quarterback, that we needed him. Since then, he’s doing a great job in leading this team. He’s going to be able to make some plays for us.”
Senior Dakim Lyons (5-11, 160) is one of a handful of quality running backs that Marshall can call upon. Lyons was not a running back last year for the Tigers last season, but was moved there this year.
“We’re trying to be more diverse with our offense,” Marshall said. “We have a bunch of athletes who can play running back.”
Junior Samjoe Nesmith (6-0, 190) is the fullback. Did you expect anything different from a guy named Samjoe? He was born to be a fullback.
“He’s one of the toughest kids I’ve ever coached,” Marshall said. “He does everything hard. He goes the full 100 percent in everything he does.”
The tight end is senior Tyrek Rice (6-2, 225), who Marshall thinks can be a solid player.
“He can do a lot of things for us,” Marshall said. “We’re going to run a lot of things through him, especially in our passing game. He can be the first option and I don’t think there are many teams that gear their passing game for the tight end. He runs good pass routes and has good hands.”
The wide receivers are senior Kiewuan Anderson (6-0, 170) and sophomore Nasir Smith (6-2, 180).
Junior Charles Ransom (6-2, 250), the son of the former Dickinson High School and Ramapo College basketball star of the same name, is one of the tackles. Senior Malik Brooks (6-1, 235) is the other starter at tackle.
The rest of the offensive line is comprised all of sophomores, with Demetriel Vasquez (5-9, 245) at center and Patrice Pierre-Louis (5-11, 255) and Eddie Russell (6-2, 245) at guard.
Defensively, the Tigers will use a 4-4 formation, with Ransom and sophomore Isaiah Herron (6-3, 230) at defensive end and senior Devon Jenkins (5-11, 235) and junior Devin Faulkner (6-1, 220) at defensive tackles.
Junior Nolan Burns (6-1, 205) is a returning starter at outside linebacker. Marshall believes that Burns has the potential to be a very good player.
Senior Robert Rice (6-3, 190) is the other outside linebacker, with Brooks and sophomore Anthony Howard (5-11, 210) on the inside.
The cornerbacks are Lyons and Anderson, with Whitehead a fixture at safety.
Whitehead has a chance to become the most noteworthy Snyder football product in a very long time. As a sophomore, he has untapped and unlimited potential, both at quarterback and at safety.
The Tigers open the 2015 season with a game against Bergen Tech, followed by a contest against Newark West Side. Both of those games are winnable for the Tigers, so the hideous losing streak may be a thing of the past early on.
“I think it’s very important for us to get off to a good start,” Marshall said. “We’re trying to bring Snyder back to the way it used to be. There’s going to be a lot of eyes on us. A lot of people are going to judge the new coach and the program from the start, so the first game is very important.
Added Marshall, “We’re trying to bring a little pride back into Snyder football. We’re trying to establish a winning attitude. I think we have that already. The kids are showing up every day and they’re ready to compete.”
And ready to win? It sure has been long enough. – Jim Hague
Jim Hague can be reached at OGSMAR@aol.com.