Longwood football team plays with heavy hearts in season opener
Longwood’s Mason Hauser, right, and Joey Gallo carry the uniform of Longwood’s Darrius Jones, who passed away this week, during a Suffolk Division I football game between Longwood and Whitman on Friday. Credit: Bob Sorensen
By Roger Rubin | [email protected]@rogrubin | September 10, 2021
The Longwood football team took to its home field Friday night for its season-opening matchup against Whitman with heavy hearts. Just eight days earlier the Lions lost senior teammate Darrius Jones, who along with his brother was killed in a car crash.
Mason Hauser and Joey Gallo led the team from the locker room, carrying Jones’ No. 21 jersey. Louis Kaleb and Tyson Taylor brought it out for the coin flip before placing it with his helmet on the home bench. The Lions scrawled his ‘21’ on eye black and shoes and gloves.
“They’re hurting,” Longwood coach Sean Kluber said, “but this is how we go forward. We play and we help each other get through it.”
The game, however, did little to lift their spirits. Whitman quarterback Nicholas Bottoni threw for three touchdown passes in the first quarter, the Wildcats led by 28 at the half en route to a 42-0 Suffolk Division I victory.
Whitman was a division champion for the first time in 37 years when last season was played in the spring, but fell to Floyd in the county championship game. This time around the Wildcats have bigger aspirations: a first Suffolk championship in 38 years. And from the look of their explosive big-play offense, the ‘Cats are looking very capable.
Bottoni was 7-for-16 passing for 217 yards and the three touchdowns and he rushed for a 10-yard score. Rahsan Thompson did a little of everything, scoring touchdowns on a 21-yard reception, a 60-yard interception return and a 14-yard run on a direct snap on the Wildcats’ Wildcat.
Tyreik Mays McCoy caught a pair of touchdown passes – 87 and 48 yards – and Liam Villanti, at linebacker, spent most of the game in the Lions’ backfield making big play after big play.
SEE PHOTOSPhotos: Whitman vs. Longwood football
Whitman wasted no time getting to work after forcing Longwood to punt on the game’s first possession. On the ’Cats first snap Bottoni hit a streaking Mays McCoy, who made a leap of Longwood defender Bailey Nowaski, and it went for the 87-yard touchdown. Whitman’s second possession ended with the 21-yard touchdown pass from Bottoni to Thompson. It was Bottoni to Mays McCoy for 48 yards and a score with 13 seconds left in the first quarter for a touchdown and the 21-0 lead.
Thompson’s interception return came midway through the second quarter.
Whitman got a Brandon Ivy interception to set up its first possession of the second half, capped by Buttoni’s 10-yard score on a block by Logan Elmore. Thompson’s rushing touchdown came on the first play of the fourth quarter.
Longwood 48, Bay Shore 0: Terrance Robinson had three rushing touchdowns and Caleib Corbett and Miles Flagg ran for touchdowns for Longwood (1-1). Aaron Ottenwalder returned an interception 33 yards for a touchdown. –Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 19 Sep 2021
Robinson runs wild
Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 10 Oct 2021
Terrance Robinson had a 91-yard kickoff return for a touchdown and rushed for 151 yards and a touchdown on 41 carries as Longwood defeated Sachem East, 21-7, in Suffolk Division I football Saturday. Louis Kaleb rushed for 53 yards and a touchdown on seven carries and Tyson Taylor rushed for 43 yards on seven carries for Longwood (2-2). Anthony Ordonez had 8.5 tackles and Aaron Ottenwalder had six tackles. Elijah Washington and Wallace Wilson each added a sack. Sachem East falls to 2-3.
Longwood 47, Riverhead 0: Terrance Robinson ran for 121 yards on 14 carries for Longwood (3-3). Louis Kaleb ran for 112 yards and two touchdowns on seven carries. Longwood ran for 364 yards behind the offensive line of Tyler Hammel, Felipe Neves, Ben Neves, Joey Gallo, and Josh Jackson. Tyson Taylor ran back a fumble recovery 81 yards for a touchdown in the win. Riverhead is 3-4. Oct. 24
Weiss to the rescue: Soph QB inserted in 2nd half rallies Commack to win
Heyman, Brian. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 07 Nov 2021
The scoreboard showed a “0” for both Commack and Longwood at halftime. So Commack’s coach made a quarterback change, handing off the job to a sophomore in a win-or-it’s-over home playoff game.
“All week long, we were working both quarterbacks in case we had to do this,” Joe Reggio said.
Jeremy Weiss provided an immediate spark in place of senior Matt McGurk and finished 5-for-10 passing for 156 yards and a touchdown. The third-seeded Cougars earned a 28-13 win over the No. 6 Lions Saturday in their Suffolk I quarterfinal.
“I was really excited,” Weiss said of this chance. “I was just waiting for my opportunity to play. With Matt up front, it was a little hard. He’s a great player.”
Commack (7-2) advanced to a semifinal at No. 2 Floyd Friday at 7 p.m. Reggio said he isn’t sure who will start at QB against a team that beat the Cougars on a late field goal in Week 2.
“I think we’re a much better team now, and we’re so ready for this game next week,” Weiss said.
McGurk had an 88-yard touchdown run called back for a hold in the first half, but was 1-for-8 passing. In the second half, he played one big snap at quarterback, plus some running back, receiver and safety. He was the definition of “team player.”
“I love Jeremy,” McGurk said. “He’s a great kid. For him to go in there and do what he did, he’s something special . . . All I care about is winning.”
Weiss, who saw some time in the previous game, found Tristan McMahon on two throws for 53 yards on the opening drive of the second half. McGurk capped it as a QB, running the ball in from the 1-yard line on a play he suggested.
“I said, ‘Get in there,’ ” Reggio said.
Longwood (4-5) countered late in the third on a 13-yard TD run by Tyson Taylor, who rushed for 96 yards. But on the next offensive play, Weiss went long for Christian Baldi for a go-ahead, 66-yard score.
Ryan Brady tacked on a 1-yard touchdown run with 7:56 left. But Taylor took off with the ensuing kickoff. The senior raced 95 yards to cut Commack’s lead to 21-13.
“Tyson’s very good,” Lions coach Sean Kluber said. “… I think he’ll be on everybody’s radar soon.”
McMahon ran 4 yards to the end zone with 2:45 remaining, putting it out of reach.
“It was a good year,” Kluber said. “I think we overcame some obstacles. We had a teammate [Darrius Jones] pass away . . . I couldn’t ask more from the kids in terms of effort.”
CAPTION: Brought into a scoreless game, Commack’s biggest of the year, QB Jeremy Weiss was 5-for-10 passing for 156 yards and a TD. James Escher