Matt Gallo knew full well that he wasn’t going to turn the St. Anthony football program around in the matter of minutes; that it would take a little time to nurture the Friars into an autumn winner like Ed Stinson had when the former Hoboken legend was the coach a few years ago.
So the 1-9 record that the Friars posted last year wasn’t a complete culture shock for Gallo — who ironically played for Stinson at Hoboken and coached with him before taking over two years ago.
“The kids are getting more comfortable with the system,” Gallo said as he prepares to kick off his second season as Friar head coach this weekend against Morristown-Beard at Caven Point Cochrane Field. “It gets better as we go along. We have no place to go other than back up. We have an exciting young foundation with only two seniors and two juniors. We’re not using that as an excuse. We want to compete with anybody.”
Gallo said that the Friars are in tune with his plans for the program.
“They’re meeting most expectations,” Gallo said. “We just need some ironmen because we don’t have a lot of players. We got that response all summer during workouts. The kids met their conditioning requirements and were in the weight room. I was very encouraged by the way they turned out. The commitment was there. It just now has to translate over to the regular season.”
Gallo said that he’s not concerned about getting a head start on the rest of the county — other than St. Peter’s Prep, which had to go across the Atlantic Ocean to get its early opener.
“We want to come out right away and play,” Gallo said. “The kids are chomping at the bit.”
Gallo said that the Friars have a favorable schedule and won’t have to play the local powers like North Bergen, Hoboken and Lincoln like they faced last year.
With the new Super Football Conference in place, the Friars only face Marist and Hudson Catholic among local schools this fall.
“There’s more competition at the enrollment level,” Gallo said. “I’m encouraged by that.”
But Gallo is a little concerned about the lack of participation numbers that the Friars currently have. At a recent practice, there were 18 players in uniform.
“The lack of numbers is a problem at the moment,” Gallo said. “We expect to grow as the year goes on. I do expect our players to be ironmen and play both ways. They have to play that way. That’s the reason why conditioning was so key during the summer. It was as vigorous as it gets.”
Sophomore Nashawn Taylor (5-11, 160) is the starting quarterback.
“It’s his first year playing football, but he’s very smart in the game,” Gallo said. “He picked up our system right away. He has a lot of growing to do. We’re not expecting him to do too much. So far, he’s doing what we expected.”
Junior Khalil Vance (5-6, 180) is the fullback in the Friars’ Delaware Wing-T offense, with sophomores Tyheem Black (5-6, 170) and Myshawn Anderson (5-5, 150) at the wing backs.
The wide receivers are returning starter Mark Walker (6-1, 190), a junior, and senior Demarco Veras (6-1, 190).
The offensive line features senior James Mitchell (5-11, 200) and sophomore Jaeden White (6-1, 190) at tackles, with sophomores Elijah Chia (5-8, 200) and Kenneth Livingston (5-8, 180) at guard and freshman Malik Cooley (5-8, 180) at center.
Defensively, the Friars will feature a 4-4 set, with Mitchell and White at defensive end and Livingston and Chia at the defensive tackle slots.
Black and Vance are the inside linebackers, with freshmen Jaquan McDuffy (5-9, 170) and Quasir Johnson (5-8, 150) starting at the outside linebacker position.
Sophomore Tyrell Gregg (5-10, 170) is a cornerback along with Anderson and Walker is the safety.
Even with all the traveling, Gallo likes the new NJSFC schedule.
“I love the new league,” Gallo said. “It’s equal in terms of competition. We’re facing teams that are on our level. We also have an improved team. We’re ready to rock this year. I really like what I see in terms of physicality and aggressiveness. What we lack in size, we make up with physicality, aggression, and swagger.”
We’ll see this weekend, when the Friars kick off the local grid season…
St. Dominic Academy is looking for a qualified swim coach for the upcoming 2016-17 season. Interested candidates should contact athletic director John Nagel by either mail (2572 Kennedy Boulevard, Jersey City, NJ 07304) or e-mail at jnagel@stdominicacad.com. Deadline for application is Sept. 9…
St. Anthony High School will host a special 50th anniversary coaching gala in honor of legendary Hall of Fame basketball coach Bob Hurley on Friday, Sept. 23, at the Casino in the Park in Jersey City.
There is a host of different ways to contribute to the cause, which include sponsorships and the advertising journal. Tickets for the dinner begin at $150 and contributions are tax deductable, because they go directly to the high school.
For further information, contact the St. Anthony Development Office at (201) 653-5739 or visit online at www.stanthonyhighschool.org…
Now it’s time for Character No. 11 in the Top 25 Sports Characters over the last 25 years at the Hudson Reporter and it’s none other than the late beloved former athletic director at Dickinson High School Gennaro “Roddy” Maffia of Jersey City.
“Maff,” as he was affectionately called, was the head honcho of the Dickinson athletic department for more than 25 years. No question, Maff wore his love of the Rams in his wardrobe and on his sleeve, because he wasn’t afraid to tell anyone and everyone how he felt about the Dickinson athletes.
With his ever-present maroon jogging suit and his assortment of gold medallions around his neck, Maff was Dickinson from head to toe and represented the program well over his status as AD. A greeting was never just a handshake with Maff. It was always a hug and a kiss on the cheek. One never knew if he was saying hello to Maffia or Vito Corleone.
A simple conversation with Maff would turn into a 90-minute dissertation and suddenly, there was half the morning gone spent talking Dickinson athletics or his beloved Nebraska Cornhuskers. And when Maff got excited or angry, the words were a little tougher to get out of his mouth.
Maff stood about 5-foot-5 on good days, but he was a giant along the sidelines at Caven Point or near the scorer’s table at Dickinson basketball games. A truly big man in a little man’s body, Maff died in 2011, but is never forgotten by those who knew and loved him…–Jim Hague
Jim Hague can be reached via e-mail at OGSMAR@aol.com