How Two Mohawk Valley Powers Punched Tickets To The Carrier Dome

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Rocky (00:32):
Welcome to the Mohawk Valley Sports Watch.
Thanks for making us part ofyour Sunday morning here.
I am beyond excited thismorning to talk to some local
friends again.
The Mohawk Valley Sports Watchis back.
Um it's been a busy, uh, busyfall here for myself and my my
family.
Been running around um chasingthe kids around.

(00:53):
Aiden was playing football.
I was coaching.
My daughter's been doing uhsoccer all year round, so we've
been all over the place, and I'mexcited to have this show back
as this was the show, myfavorite show to do.
They're all my favorite, butthis one definitely is my
favorite one here to talk somelocal sports.
So we're back.
And I got a great lineup herethis morning for everybody

(01:14):
tuning in.
If you're tuning in onFacebook, YouTube, Twitter, or
LinkedIn, if you have anycomments, questions uh for the
show, please put them in thecomment box.
I'll bring as many over as Ican here this morning.
And uh the guest lineup today,in just a little bit, a longtime
friend of the show was one ofthe first guests I had on on the

(01:35):
Mohawk Valley Sports Watch.
Scott Petoniak's gonna join me.
At about 9.10, we'll talkSyracuse football.
They lost again last night.
Steve Angel went down a whileago, and it seems like the
season has just spiraleddownhill for the orange.
So we'll talk about someSyracuse football.
If we get some time with Scott,we'll talk some Buffalo Bills
football uh with Scott as well.

(01:55):
And then at about 9.30, we havefriend of the show, New
Hartford head football coach JimKramer is going to join me.
We'll talk his big win overIndian River for the second time
this year.
They opened up with a win overIndian River the first game of
the year, and now they punchedtheir ticket to the third
straight trip to the Section 3finals for Coach Kramer.
And then at about 9.50, anotherlong friend of the show,

(02:18):
Whitesboro head football coachCurtis Schmidt will join me as
they punch their ticket as wellto the Carrier Dome.
So two coaches that are veryfamiliar with playing at the
Carrier Dome as they take theirteams in there for another
chance to win a Section 3 title.
So that and more here thismorning on the Mohawk Valley
Sports Watch.
Want to make sure I give ashout out to the Rome Free

(02:39):
Academy field hockey team, uh,Coach McKenzie Welther.
They are 18-0.
They will play today in theregional final against
Mamarneck.
Um, that game's at noon.
Um, and I believe those gamesare being played at VVS High
School here this morning uh aswell.
So best of luck to the RomeFree Academy Black Knights um on

(03:03):
chasing uh a statechampionship, which hasn't been
done, I believe, since mysister's year.
I can't remember my sister'syear here in Rome, but they were
20-0 or 22-0, undefeated instate champs.
And this Rome Free Academy teamhas a chance to do just that.
Um, congratulations to NewHartford Girls Soccer.
Uh, they punched their ticketas well to the regional final, I

(03:26):
believe.
I think they won yesterday.
Uh a lot of um section threefinal games across high school
football next week will be atthe carry dome, the class uh
double A, Liverpool and CBA willrematch.
Uh CBA beat West Jenny 55-7,and then Liverpool beat CNS High

(03:46):
School uh 22-0.
So that will be the double Afinal.
And then the Class A finalagain, Whitesboro will play East
Syracuse Manoa.
Whitesboro beat Carthage onFriday night 38-12, and then ESM
beat Fateville Manlius 31-6.
So Whitesboro will play ESM forthe Section 3 title.

(04:09):
As I just said, we'll talk toCoach Kramer and New Hartford as
they punched their ticket tothe Section 3 final.
Except this year, it will notbe against Indian River, which
would have been the third timein the last three years for
Coach Kramer.
But Indian River uh fell to NewHartford 37-34.
It was a classic game on Fridaynight.
It was a great game back andforth.

(04:30):
And then the second game onFriday night, which was played
at Corcoran High School,Institute of Technology 28 VVS
21.
So New Hartford will playInstitute of Technology.
And that Syracuse team isloaded with skilled players.
So we'll talk to Coach in morein here in just a little bit.
The Class C final, two familiarteams that are very familiar

(04:52):
with each other, and I feel likethey are very familiar with
playing in the Section ThreeFinals.
The top seed Kazanovia beatSkinny Atlas 28-21 on Saturday,
and then General Brown beatLittle Falls 63 to nothing.
Um, as Little Falls had upsetMarcellus to three seed earlier
in the section of uh playoffs.

(05:14):
General Brown will play Kaz.
That game is scheduled for nextSaturday at noon, as Cazanovia
is the top seed.
Two powerhouse programs thathave been there for a long time.
Umet for the section threefinals.
In Class D, Lowville beat SandyCreek.
If the stat man was on with mehere this morning, he would say

(05:34):
Sandy Creek, and he'd say we'reseasons go to die.
Well, Lowville, the top seed,beat Sandy Creek.
That game was Saturday atWestmoreland High School on that
beautiful turf statement theyput in at Westmoreland.
Uh Lowville, the top seed, won30 to nothing.
And then the number two seed, alittle weird not seeing
Dodgeville as the top seed inClass D, where they've been for

(05:56):
so many years.
They beat Cato Meridian 42 to14.
So Dodgeville and Lowville willplay in the Class D
championship game on Fridaynight.
That game is also scheduled atthe Carrier Dome.
In the eight-man, uh, the topseed Frankfurt Schuyler, which
somebody's got to explain thisto me.
I've said it for the last somany years.

(06:17):
I'm not really sure whyFrankfurt Schuyler is not
playing regular 11-man football.
I've seen this team, I've seenhighlights.
They do not look like theybelong playing in eight-man
football.
It's just my opinion.
Not taking anything away fromthe kids because they've had a
good season, and last year theywon a state championship.
They have absolutely destroyedteams in the eight-man.

(06:39):
But tip your hat to SequoitValley, uh, where I got my
coaching career started as ahead coach on a great run that
they had this year in theeight-man.
They had beaten ThousandIslands 40 to 28, and then they
fell just recently here onFriday night to Frankfurt Skyler
54 to 34.
And then the two-seedMorrisville Eaton, another

(07:01):
familiar team of myself and myfamily.
They beat Waterville 48-6.
So the eight-man championshipgame is all set.
That'll be played Friday at 2o'clock at the Carrier Dome as
well.
It'll be top seed at FrankfurtSkyler, and they will play
Morrisville Eaton.
So that game is Friday as well.

(07:21):
So all these sectional finalgames will all be played at the
Carrier Dome.
And hats off to all those teamsfor making it and having a
great season this year uh aroundsection three in class A
through D.
So in just a little bit, we'regoing to talk some Syracuse
football.
The Syracuse alum got on meearlier in the year when the
season started.

(07:42):
I predicted Syracuse to go fourand eight, and it looks like
that's what they're trendingtowards here is they'll play at
Notre Dame next week, uh, whichI do not see the Orange being
able to win that game, but younever know.
That's why they play the game.
And then that would follow upthis last game of the season,
they would play Boston College,who is one for nine or one and

(08:03):
eight, one and nine, whatever itis, and Bill O'Brien's first
year as the head coach.
But Syracuse should be able tocompete and play with Boston
College.
And I know we're going to talkto Scott here in just a little
bit.
I know that the Steve Angelithing, when he got hurt, things
kind of spiraled downhill.
But the one thing I'll say thatI'm going to talk to Scott a

(08:23):
little bit about, and peoplehave been on me because I I
don't always talk very highly ofthe orange, but I gave them
their props last year.
But I said Syracuse last yearhad a pretty easy schedule.
This year they've had a toughschedule, but these were the
games as Coach Medis's Pags andI would get on and talk every
year, and we would do thesepredictions and pick their
games, we'd say Syracuse alwayshas to win the 50-50 games.

(08:45):
Not knowing how good Pittscould be, how good Georgia
Tech's going to be, NC StateWake.
And you look across the ACCthis year, and those teams are
pretty good.
Wake had a huge win last nighton the road at Virginia, who
still has a chance to play forthe ACC title and get into the
college football playoff.
But the one common thing with alot of these teams is to me

(09:06):
they're getting better.
Like if you look at NorthCarolina, I'm not a big Bill
Belichick guy.
You look at North Carolinawhere they started the year,
they looked horrendous.
And everybody's saying, well,Bill Belichick's gonna jump to
the NFL, and this he's not meantfor college.
And I still don't think he'sreally meant for college.
I still think next year, if hegets a call from an NFL team,

(09:27):
he's gone.
And don't be surprised if theGiants fire Brian Dable and Bill
Belichick gets a call to goback home to New York and coach
the Giants, maybe.
But North Carolina has gotten alot better.
And I know people say, well,they beat Stanford, um, you
know, they beat Syracuse.
But when you look through thelast three or four games, they

(09:49):
were in the game againstVirginia, they had a chance to
win.
They should have beat Cal camedown to the last play.
They have routinely gottenbetter week over week.
They have a good chance becausenow they'll play the North
Carolina teams.
They'll play Wake, and I thinkthey ended with North Carolina
State, which I think are twowinnable games, and Wake Force
is playing a lot better thisyear.

(10:11):
But they've gotten better.
When I watch Syracuse play, andI know there's a lot of
Syracuse faithful that arewatching this show saying all he
does is badmouth Syracuse.
I don't always badmouthSyracuse.
I'm not a Syracuse homer like alot of people are around here.
Um I'll pull for him, but Idon't go crazy if they lose.
But I'm more disappointedbecause I don't think a lot of

(10:32):
these guys have gotten anybetter as the seasons went on.
I think they've they've trendedin the wrong direction.
I think Fran Brown's a hell ofa salesperson.
Um I think he does a reallygood job talking up the program.
I think he does a great jobselling the program to recruits.
We all know he was a reallygood recruiter.
And it is nice to see onTwitter and social media when
you see a lot of these big nameplayers that are now saying

(10:55):
they're gonna flip, and insteadof looking at Georgia, they're
gonna look at Syracuse.
Or instead of looking atFlorida State, they're gonna
look at Syracuse.
So I think that's really coolto see.
But at the end of the day, Ijust don't know.
And listen, Angeli's ifAngeli's playing this, we might
be saying, well, geez, Syracuseis six and two.
They had the big win overClemson, which doesn't look like

(11:17):
too big of a win now becauseClemson has looked horrendous
this season, but they got thewin last night over Florida
State.
And I like Dabble Sweeney.
I think Dabble should goelsewhere.
I do.
I think Dabble Sweeney shouldgo elsewhere, and I think he
should start over somewhere.
I think his time's kind of rundry in Clemson.
Um the knock was he hadn'tdipped into the transfer portal,

(11:38):
he's not up to date with theNIL and all that stuff.
I like Dabble.
I've always liked DabbleSweeney.
Um I just don't know if if it'sif it's meant to be right now.
He stays at Clemson.
All these big jobs open, go geta fresh start somewhere else.
That's what I would say.
Go get a fresh start somewhereelse.
Well, we'll see what happenswith Dabbo.

(11:59):
But again, Syracuse, we'll see.
They they'll end Nordame thisweek, who I think is one of the
hottest teams in the country.
I think Marcus Freeman's a starin the coaching field.
I think Marcus Freeman, if I'mall these other big schools that
are open to Florida's DLSUs, Icall him up and I say, How much
do you want?
I got put a blank check on atable and say, fill it in.
It's your job to lose.

(12:19):
He's not leaving Nord Dame.
And I just saw this morningLane Kiffin signed another
extension.
I think he's going to make $13million a year to stay at Ole
Miss.
Good for Lane Kiffin.
If you saw the um the story onLane, personal life is in a
happy place.
And I think that should benoted across college football.
You don't have to chase themoney.

(12:40):
These guys are all makingreally good money across college
football.
$13 million to $16 million or$13 million to $17 million, eh,
$3, $4 million to you and Imeans a lot.
To those guys that are making$13 million, why go chase
another three or four start overwhere if you don't really win
within your first two to threeyears, you're gone.

(13:02):
Lane seems happy at Ole Miss.
He's got Ole Miss competing tobe in the playoff.
He's got him competing for anational championship.
I think Lane made the rightdecision.
Um you look at Kurt Signeti andthe job that he's done in
Indiana in just two years.
Think about this for a minute.
Kurt Signeti, who coachesfootball at Indiana, who people

(13:24):
will say is a basketball school,has turned down probably every
job in America.
He's probably turned downIndiana, or he's probably turned
down Penn State, Florida, LSU,all these big jobs that are open
to stay at Indiana in mylifetime.

(13:45):
And I'm sure everybody on herewould probably agree if this was
10, 20 years ago.
Would you ever see a coach fromIndiana turn on a chance to go
coach at Penn State?
Who, by the way, they just beatand I thought Penn State should
have beat him, but that was ahell of a catch and a hell of a
throw by a Mendoza at the end ofthat game to where the kid got

(14:05):
his toe down to beat Penn State.
And tip your hat to the kids atPenn State for playing hard.
That stadium was 107,000people.
That stadium was full.
Good for the people down atHappy Valley because that place
was rocking for that gameagainst Indiana.
But tip your hat to a lot ofthese coaches that are staying

(14:25):
put.
I saw Matt Rule at Nebraskasigned at extension.
He's going to stay there.
What he's built at Nebraskastill hasn't won a big game, but
um he was rumored to be the topcandidate, played for Joe
Paterno at Penn State.
Um, so I I for sure thoughtthat uh Matt Rule was going to
be a candidate there.
He's he decides to stay.
Uh Cody's saying Dan Lannonturned down Alabama.

(14:48):
I don't I don't doubt that.
Um, but those guys are makingreally good money and the
programs are in really goodshape.
Why leave?
Why leave?
Doesn't make any sense to mewhy anybody would want to chase
those down.
But I think when you look atguys like Signetti, you know, in
the two years, and I said lastyear I thought Indiana had a
pretty easy schedule.
Now, people are gonna say,well, they almost lost to Penn

(15:10):
State.
It's still Penn State.
You know, in the preseason whenPenn State was number one, that
would have been a monster game,but it's still Penn State to go
on the road and beat them attheir place in front of 107,000
people is still a big game.
Indiana's gonna play Ohio Statefor the Big Ten title game, and
we'll see how good Indianareally is.
The Mendoza kid looked prettygood yesterday.

(15:31):
I'd probably say to me, it'sprobably Julian Sain, the
quarterback for Ohio State, whoI hate to say that too loud with
my wife upstairs, the Buckeyefan, but I think Julian Sain
would probably be my pick rightnow as the Heisman Trophy
winner.
Mendoza would probably be rightthere too.
But I want you to go Google akid, and his his name is is

(15:51):
slipping by me, and I waslooking at it last night.
The quarterback for UConn hasthrown like 26 touchdowns and
zero interceptions, and I don'tthink Jim Moore Jr.
gets the credit he deserves.
In my eyes right now, if I hada coach and a vote for a coach
for coach of the year, let mesee.
I got a I think Scott mighthave been having uh let me see,

(16:13):
it's it's not letting Scott in.
Let me um Scott, if you're ifyou're listening, I'm gonna try
to send you um send you anotherlink here in just a minute to
see if we can uh we can get youon here.
Uh so bear with me.
Um but I forget the kid's name.
Um if you actually Google it umand you look to see the job he

(16:37):
has done this year, um, and Iagain I don't think I would have
ever thought um where I wouldsee UConn.
Let's see if we got Scott.
There he is.
I can hear, I can see you,Scott.
Can you hear me?

Scott Pitoniak (16:54):
I can hear you.
Yes.
How are we doing, my friend?
I'm doing well.
Sorry about those technicalglitches there.
I'm I'm uh technologicallychallenged here.
Just ask my wife.

Rocky (17:03):
You you made it on, no problem whatsoever.
I appreciate it.
Scott, I had to have you backas the as the first guest to
back on this show because Ibelieve you were one of the very
first ones I had on many yearsago.
So I won't say how much I'veaged over the years, but I
couldn't be more excited to haveyou.

Well, it's always a pleasure to be on with
you.
And anytime I told you, I'd behappy to do it.
And I'm honored to be one ofthe original charter men.

Rocky (17:29):
So, Scott, a lot of the uh the Orange Faithful were on
me before the season startedbecause I put my predictions up,
and I feel like when we talkSyracuse, we've talked a lot
about the same things over theyear as far as the league goes,
where I would always saySyracuse would have to get the
50-50 games, right?
We never knew what GeorgiaTech, the NC States, the Wake,
those teams are going to be.
And this so happens this year.

(17:50):
Those teams are playing reallywell.
I had predicted Syracuse to gofour and eight.
Many believe, and I wouldprobably be on that wagon if
Angeli was still there thisseason offensively, probably
would have been a lot different.
But Scott, I'll ask you thisquestion.
I've been more disappointedthat that the team hasn't gotten
any better week over week.
And that to me it falls back onthe head coach, and I like

(18:13):
Fran, but the team just hasn'tgotten any better.

And I think it's uh I I guess what we've
discovered, Rock, is uh, as youwell know, the the quarterback
is such an important position infootball.
Um, you know, it goes beyondjust the value of one position.
It's uh, you know, it'sdisproportionate in value.
And um, you know, when Anjaliwent down, essentially, now that

(18:38):
you look back at it, Syracuse'sseason went kaput.
Uh, they didn't have anadequate backup.
Um, we all thought RickyCollins, who had been a high,
highly regarded recruit at LSU,and we know LSU's history,
recent history of producinggreat quarterbacks, you know,
Joe Burrow and and Jade McDanieland so forth.
But um, you know, uh it'sbecome apparent in these six

(19:02):
games that Ricky Collins justdoesn't have what it takes um to
be, you know, I think aquarterback at you know, a power
four conference um, you know,um team and stuff.
He doesn't process reallyquickly.
And and I will I will cut himsome slack.
He was thrown in there, but hehad the entire spring before

(19:25):
Angeli.
People forget Angeli was notsigned by Syracuse until after
spring practice.
So, you know, Ricky Collins hadall the reps in the offseason
and and um uh you know, and thenAngeli comes in af after the
spring, obviously, and and thenyou know, we were told there was
a battle, and and it's clearthat Angeli was a far superior

(19:46):
quarterback and stuff.
So um the disappointment isthat none of these guys,
including some you know, highlyregarded recruits at
quarterback, um, that they wereable to get them ready.
Um, you know, and uh and again,Collins, I mean, I just don't
see it in him, Rock.
And so you don't have aquarterback, and that has a

(20:06):
disproportionate impact oneverything else.
Essentially, what Syracuse hasbeen these last six games, Rock,
is um they've been, they can'tplay complimentary football
because they really don't havean offense.
Um, you know, you the defensehas shown some flashes here and
there, but they wear downbecause you can't put that kind
of pressure on a young defenseand stuff.

(20:27):
So um, yeah, there's been somedisappointments there.
Um, you know, Fran, I cut Fransome slack.
He's in his second year as ahead coach.

Rocky (20:36):
Yep.

Um, he made some mistakes.
There's no question about it.
Um and to be honest with you,most programs, whether it be
college or in the NFL, you loseyour starting quarterback,
you're usually cooked.
I mean, if the Bills lost JoshAllen, I'm sorry.
You know, they go from being aSuper Bowl, uh legitimate Super

(20:58):
Bowl contender to not being one.
Um, you know, to being a goodteam with still some very good
players around, and you gotMitch Trubisky and stuff.
But, you know, they're youknow, so you so it's it it's
unfortunate because I reallythink that we really saw Angeli
coming on.
And um, and I I you know, I waslike you, I thought this is a

(21:19):
four or five win team going in,not knowing how good Angeli
would be.
And then I raised myexpectation level.
I really believe that if Angelihad not gotten hurt with the
Achilles injury, that Syracusewould have been, you know,
contending for seven or eightwins this season.
I really think they could have,but it's just uh it's all gone

(21:39):
down the tubes.
And now it's clear.
Um, you may have seen thatFrance sent four um uh freshmen
out there as his game captainsyesterday.
So what does that tell you?
They're in total rebuild moderight now.
He's trying to, he's looking at2026.

Rocky (21:58):
Yeah, Scott, and they've played, I believe, they've
played over 30 freshmen thisyear, which I think is one of
the most in the country.
Matter of fact, I think theysaid third nationally, where
they played 34 freshmen, 19different players have made
their first career start forSyracuse.
I thought the schedule lastyear was set up well for Frame
Brown or whoever got thatSyracuse job to come in and have

(22:18):
a really good year in year one,and then year two, we just
didn't know what to expect fromAngeli, like you said.
But one thing I look at is, youknow, I look at some of these
ACC teams, and we can take BillBelichick in North Carolina, who
I thought they were an absolutedisaster um throughout the
season.
But you look at North Carolinathe last three or four weeks,
they've gotten better.

(22:39):
And I just saw where they havethe 16th ranked class nationally
coming in there, so it lookslike they're gonna get things
turned around.
I'm just a little bit moredisappointed in Syracuse that I
haven't seen a playerimprovement by a lot of these
guys, and maybe it's justoverlooked because of the
different quarterbacks that haveplayed, and the focus has been
on that position for Syracuse.

(22:59):
But what's your thought on someof the other positions?

You know, I mean, their strongest position
going into the season was theirwide receiving core.
I mean, but if you can't givethose guys the ball or whatever,
um, you know, then that negatesthat, right?
So I've been disappointedthere.
Um, you know, I seen someflashes on some defensive
players and stuff.
They were going to be in arebuilding mode with their

(23:25):
defense, which only exacerbatesthe problems that they're facing
by not having an offense.
Um, yeah, there's there'sthere's it's clear that um, you
know, we didn't we didn't wedidn't see improvement not only
among the young players, whichis understandable.
If you're playing true freshmanin a power four conference,

(23:45):
you're in trouble for the mostpart, unless you're you know,
you're Georgia or LSU or OhioState or whatever that can
reload or whatever, you know.
Um, but I I still I still putyou know, the onus is on Fran
Brown won 10 games last yearbecause of Kyle McCord.
You know, let's let's let's behonest.

Rocky (24:05):
Yep.

And again, you know, that's a quarterback.
There was a quarterback who wasa great college quarterback.
I mean, and and Jelly wasshowing signs of picking up
where McCord left off.
And then when he went down, andyou I guess my biggest big
criticism would be like, again,Ricky Collins, you know, you had

(24:26):
him, uh, you paid money forhim.
Uh, he was going to be yournumber one guy.
And he's just looked dreadful.
And I I a criticism I wouldhave of Fran is that, you know,
now we hear this past weeksaying, like, well, we didn't
really do a good enough job ascoaches in terms of, you know,
tailoring an offense for him,because here's a guy who can

(24:47):
move.
I I didn't understand from thestart.
I was saying to a friend, like,I was at a couple of those
games, they said, like, why ishe in the pocket?
Why is he?
Here's a guy who should berunning RPOs, who should be
like, you should be rolling themout.
Um, and they didn't do thatfrom the start.
So that's a that's a bigmistake on his part.
But again, I know a lot ofpeople are, you know, Syracuse
fans are so impatient.

(25:08):
They were spoiled, you know,having a coach come in and win
10 games right off the bat,which hadn't been done since
Pasqualone and uh PaulPasqualone inherited Coach Max,
you know, great teams that heset up.
Um, and so now, you know, thefall to a nine-loss team, this
very well could be.
I mean, unless they beat BostonCollege in the battle for the

(25:29):
basement of the ACC.
Um, you know, it's it'sdisappointing.
And Fran hasn't handledeverything well.
Uh, he's shifted things aroundhis coaching staff during the
season.
That's never a good thing.
Um, you know, so uh he madesome mistakes, but again, for
people who want to fire him, Imean, that's ludicrous.

(25:49):
So you're just gonna fire him.
And I mean, he's a goodrecruiter, he's got stuff to
learn as a head coach, and andkids buy into him.
He connects with kids, but um,you know, it's a very, very
young team, and they have notperformed well, and he's got to
kind of hold it together, andthere's gonna be a lot of

(26:09):
changes that, you know, youknow, you're gonna lose a bunch
of kids, um, including kids fromyour recruiting class, and they
have a very good recruitingclass coming in, a top 25.
So you gotta give you got togive the guys some more time.
Uh, and you know, we all makemistakes early in our jobs and
stuff.
I mean, it's just uh, you know,it just doesn't, it's success

(26:30):
is not linear, it's not astraight line, never has been.

Rocky (26:34):
Scott, I was just talking.
I said, this coaching carouselthat we have, I said, I never
thought I'd see the day wherethe coach in Indiana probably
turns down Penn State and allthese big jobs.
And, you know, he's he he'smaking good money in Indiana.
But when you look at thiscoaching carousel, are you
surprised with with all thesehigh buyouts and you know, these
big universities moving onmid-season from all these

(26:55):
coaches?

I I'm surprised and I'm not surprised because
we're in a different, totallydifferent era now.
We're in we're in professionalfootball, let's be honest with
what we're seeing, you know,with college football.
And um, you know, you've gotkids that are not gonna stay
there, you know, four years.
I mean, I see kids now, youknow, you're watching a college

(27:18):
football game.
They said, yeah, last year hewas at this school, and the year
before that he was at thatschool.
They're on their third school.
Um, you know, so I guess I'mnot um surprised.
I'm disappointed.
I don't like the system.
Um, I think it's uh it's kindof a, you know, I know it's a
big business and everything.
And, you know, guy, you know,you know, donors are gonna write

(27:41):
the $76 million check orwhatever it is for, you know,
Jimbo Fisher or James Franklinor this and that.
But I don't like it, you know,and I don't think anybody does.
And I'm gonna tell you now thatit's not a popular opinion, but
this isn't getting resolved,this chaos of kids jumping every
year and so forth, and andcoaches getting bought out or

(28:03):
whatever.
This isn't gonna change untilthere is some rules in place.
And you're not gonna do thatuntil you have a players' union,
then and then that whatever thegoverning body of you know
college, big-time college sportsis, because the NCA can't do it
anymore, they're gonna have tonegotiate a collective
bargaining agreement with theplayers.
And so then you come up withthings, Rock, but like you're

(28:24):
only allowed one transfer, let'ssay, within a three-year period
or whatever, unless a coachleaves.
If a coach leaves, all bets areoff.
You can go transfer to anotherschool as a player.
You know, we gotta, we gotta,we can't have this every year,
like you know, like in the NCAslast year.
I think we discussed this.
You know, a team, a Cinderellateam makes it to the Sweet 16,

(28:46):
they lose the day after theirentire roster is in the transfer
portal.
So we gotta we gotta bring someorder to this chaos.
And again, people aren't gonnalike that.
Whoa, you're gonna make theplayers like, you know, well,
the players are getting paid.
Let's be honest, okay?
Players are getting paid andand often getting paid, you
know, huge sums of money.

(29:06):
Um, so we've got to, we've gotto get, you know, it's a wild,
wild west right now.
We got to bring some order tothis or else it's just gonna
keep on.

Rocky (29:15):
Scott, who would you say right now is your favorite to uh
to win the nationalchampionship?
You gotta you lean in one way?

It's you know, it's always tough to go against
Ohio State.
It really is.
I mean, they're loaded.
Uh they got a Heisman trophycandidate quarterback.
I mean, I would like to seeIndiana.
I I love what what you knowSignetti's done there.
I would love to see them, andthey're gonna meet, you know,
they'll meet in the Big Tenchampionship game.

(29:42):
Um, that was an incredible uhwin or avoiding a loss yesterday
by you know Indiana.
I mean, what a catch.
Maybe I don't know, one of thegreatest catches I've ever seen
in college football, to behonest with you.
That toe tap was justunbelievable to win that game.
Um, I don't know how how good.
Is Texas AM?
I don't know.

(30:02):
You know, uh, they're awfullygood.
Notre Dame's put themselves ina position to you know be a
factor again, but you know, canthey really match up in a
national championship gameagainst an Alabama or uh you
know an Ohio State?
Do they have you know the speedand the athletes that that

(30:23):
those programs have and thedepth?
They haven't proved that,right?
And in other things.
So I don't know.
I mean, I'm it it's not a sexypick, but Ohio State to me seems
to be the you know, the team tobeat, the champ to knock out.

Rocky (30:38):
Well, Scott, my wife's probably upstairs.
I don't know if she's listeningto me, but my wife's probably
smiling ear to ear, because Ithink, as you know, my wife's a
big Buckeye fan, and of courseI'm the Michigan fan that's got
that's got to live with her umlistening to how good Ohio State
is.
But I would agree right now,the only thing I'll say, and
I'll and I'll I'll end it withthis, and I'll have to get you
back on so we can talk bills.
I know we'll talk Syracusehoops with it throughout the

(31:01):
year as well.
I got a couple of the highschool coaches coming out with
me shortly, but I've I will saythis.
I'm not sure Ohio State playedTexas that first game of the
year.
Now, Texas has played better.
I'm not sure Ohio State'sschedule has been as strong as
what it's been with Penn Statebeing down.
They don't play Oregon, they'llget a chance to play Michigan
at the end of the year, whichMichigan's had their number, but

(31:21):
I think this year, I think lastyear was a fluke that Ohio that
Michigan beat Ohio State as aas a four-touchdown dog, but I
don't think their schedule'sbeen as strong as some of the
others.

Yeah, I agree.
And and and I believe Indiana'snot gonna be, you know,
concerned about them.
I think they'll they can gotoe-to-toe with them.
And then who knows?
They could wind up meetingagain in the playoffs, right?
Because they're gonna both go.
Whoever loses that game is it,you know, is going to the
playoffs, I mean, as well.
Um, so um, you know, and again,that would be what a Cinderella

(31:55):
story, the job that he's donein just such a short time.
You know, they're no longer abasketball school, Rock.
They're a phone.

Rocky (32:02):
Unbelievable.

Yeah, it is.
I mean, that shows how theworld is topsy turvy, right?

Rocky (32:07):
Scott, he had one of my favorite lines when he said, All
I do is win, Google me.
That was one of the best lines.
But you know what?
Good for him.
He's changed that programaround and he's finding a way to
win games.
And but I think that NIL andthat transfer portal always
helps.
Uh, we can go get some players.
So, Scott, listen, I appreciateyou jumping on.
We'll uh we'll do it againsoon.
We'll talk Bill's one segment,some Syracuse hoops.

(32:29):
Um, but I appreciate you comingon as always.
Good to see you.

I love being on there with you.

Rocky (32:36):
Appreciate it, my friend.
Enjoy your Sunday.
Go Bills today.

Yeah, yeah, should be a good one.

Rocky (32:42):
See you, Scott.

Take care.

Rocky (32:45):
So that was Rome uh Sports Hall of Famer.
Um Scott Petoniac, and we'regonna see if we can get Coach
Kramer on here.
Let's see.
Coach, I think I can hear you,but I can't see you.
Can you hear me?
I can hear you, I can't seeyou, but I could hear you just
fine.

Coach Jim Kramer (33:03):
Well, that's probably a good thing for the
audience then.

Rocky (33:06):
So we're good to go if you're good.

Yeah, I'm good.

Rocky (33:08):
I'm good.
All right, cool.
Well, coach, listen, Iappreciate you taking the time
here this morning, and uh,congratulations on punching your
ticket to uh yet again anotherSection 3 final against a
different team this year.
Um but let's talk about thegame against Indian River.
It's tough to beat them once,but you guys were able to get
them twice in two really goodgames.

And Corey does a great job with them, and and
their program is is top notchand they challenge you in so
many ways.
So obviously a great win forour program.
Got to flip the script now andget ready for a very athletic
ITC team.
Um, you know, so we we're we'veturned the page and are focused
on them, but our kids areexcited.

Rocky (33:55):
Coach, I was going back and I was looking at some uh
some numbers for you.
You were hired back in, Ibelieve it was 2017.
You took over a program thathad won 13 games.
And since you've since you'vebeen there, you've now turned
this thing around where you'reagain, I'm I'm going off some
numbers here in stats, 61 and21.
You've now been in the sectionthree finals.

(34:17):
This will be your thirdconsecutive year.
What's been the biggest thingfor you since you've been there
turning this program around?

We have a great coaching staff.
We've we've stayed together fora while now, so uh, you know,
really proud and excited uh ofthe guys that I work with every
day.
And we got great kids that buyinto what we're doing.
Uh they know to be successful.
You know, there's differenttypes of the players.
We got it, we got some 12-monthfootball guys, we have some
dual sport guys, and I thinkthat's the biggest thing right

(34:45):
now, especially in this area.
Like you got to be able to workwith kids that play other
sports, and and you need them tobe successful.
And uh, you know, I think wegot a good mix of kids, we got a
great group of families.
Uh, our lower level coaches doa nice job, our our youth
coaches do a nice job.
So uh it's more than just me.
It takes a collective group,and uh, you know, we're excited

(35:09):
where we are, but certainly notsatisfied with where we are.

Rocky (35:12):
Coach, your your game the other night, I was actually
sitting at the Alks Club havinga few cocktails, and I had your
game on my phone, and I wasscreaming and yelling at the end
of the game.
I'm like, all right, just runthis ball, run the clock down a
little bit.
Let's punch one in here at theend.
I almost felt like whoever hadthe ball last had a really good
chance to win this game, butwhat a what a fun game to watch.

Yeah, it's back and forth.
That seems to seems to havebeen the storyline.
Uh, you know, when the twoteams Indian River and New
Hartford have played the lastcouple years, but uh you
certainly did not want to leavethem too much time, um, but
needed to make sure we scored atouchdown.
I'd be lying to say that Iwasn't trying to score on first
and second down.
That certainly wasn't a plan.

(35:54):
They made us pitch the thirddown, but um, you know, our kids
were composed, our kids were uhbelieved in what we were doing,
it went unexecuted, and and allcredit to them.

Rocky (36:05):
Coach, I had to uh I had to surprise you here um with a
guest because he had um a fewquestions for you, and he's on
camera.
So Nolan, you should havehelped dad out a little bit of
getting getting dad on camera.
But uh, but coach, I had tobring Nolan on because I know
it's special to have your sondown there on the field with
you, but I think he's got aquestion for you.

(36:27):
Nolan, what do you got for yourdad?

Nolan Kramer (36:29):
I prepared this yesterday with the help of Pop.
Um this week, you'll game planFrank DC for the second time
this year.
How does the game plan you hadum the week of September 19th
when you played them in weekthree to now two months later,
assuming they've changed theirstuff and you changed a lot, um
does this game plan differ fromthe week three to the sectional

(36:51):
finals?

Rocky (36:52):
Geez, that's a good one.
That's a great question.

It is a very good question.
Uh I think both teams will goback and look at that that
contest at week three and pullsome of the positives, but I
think we struggled in someshort-yarded situations.
I think they did a good job ofrushing our passer.
Uh, we only had seven points uhtill late in that third
quarter.
Uh, so we have we have to findmore creative ways to get the

(37:16):
the ball in our guys' hands andto run the ball a little bit
more effectively than we did.
They're a big team up front.
Um, and then obviously on theirside, very athletic
quarterback, nice playmaker atwide receiver.
Um, you know, it should itmakes for an interesting thing.
When you play a team twice, youknow, I've told you this
before, when you play a teamtwice, sometimes you have some
different game plans andwrinkles that work the first

(37:38):
time.
You gotta be willing to go backand tweak them.
And so that's what we're tryingto do right now.
And uh I think we're a betterversion of what we were week
three, and I know they'reprobably saying the same thing.

Rocky (37:49):
Coach, I was gonna ask you a question with this team.
It seems like you got a lot ofupperclassmen with seniors and
juniors, um, which always helps,and you know, with experience
coming into a year and comingoff the last couple years where
you guys have gotten to thatgame and and fell short.
How much does this leadershipon this group help you guys out
heading into this season andbringing you back to a section
three finals?

Yeah, luckily for us, we've got a couple guys
that have played an awful lot offootball.
Um, you know, so what's nice iswhen you play a team like
Indian River, they've playedthem before.
When you when you talk aboutscouting reports, they have an
idea what you're talking about.
It's not new to them.
When we're gonna talk tomorrowin our team meeting about what
you know what it's gonna be liketo get off at the dome, we're

(38:31):
gonna have guys that have gottenoff the bus and gone in the
dome, you know.
So when we come out of thetunnel, the excitement's gonna
be you know through the roof.
But it's guys that have done itbefore, they know what to
expect, they know what thelogistics of the day and the
week are gonna look like.
Um, so it's helpful.
And uh, you know, we're justgonna have a business type

(38:51):
approach.
We're gonna enjoy the moment ofthis week, but we have a
business type approach of whatwe're trying to do.
And uh, you know, I know ourkids are eager to go out and
compete.

Rocky (38:59):
Nolan, you got another, I know you got another one for
dad.
What do you got?

No, I was just asking him how important is that
dofo position?

So Nol Nolan's Nolan's graduated from water
boy to director of footballoperations this year.
So, you know, I he's uh he's abig timer, and uh, you know, I
know it's a it's a proud momentwhen you get to share it with
with the family, and that'sobviously important to me.
And I know he enjoys being outthere, our kids enjoy having
him, but uh I think that speaksvolumes to our program.

(39:32):
Like our kids, our kids like torepresent our community, our
school, our young kids look upto them.
Um, you know, our kids are thefirst to be at a pop warner
game, our kids are the first toto make sure that they're high
five in the young kids and andin the community, and that makes
it important for when they goout and get cheered for and the
roles reversed.
So I know no one's excited tobe down there, and and vice

(39:54):
versa.
The kids are excited to havethem, and and uh it makes it
like you said, what what what'ssome things that have led to our
success?
The culture has led to oursuccess.
People want to be there, peoplewant to be around it, and and
like to think we have a funenvironment, we have a uh we
have an inclusive environment.
We have we have we're a placewhere you know I enjoy doing it.

(40:17):
And uh, you know, our coachescome every day excited to coach,
and our kids, our kids reallydo enjoy practicing.
I think that's something that'sprobably lost.
We practice really hard.
Um, we push them to the limitin practice, but they show up
every day and they want toconsume more uh in all three
phases of the game.
And and those are kids you wantto be around.

Rocky (40:38):
Coach, I want to talk to you a little bit about your
senior quarterback, who I thinkis one of the best, if not the
best, in the area, and then yoursenior wide receiver and Peyton
Way, who is the best receiveruh in Sex and Three.
Talk to us about how specialthose two are and the connection
that both of them have on thefield.

Yeah, they're they're close friends, they've
played together for a long time.
And and, you know, Johnnyhaving a kid that you've you've
worked with, I mean brought himup as a freshman.
He was the JV quarterback, andI would bring him to the varsity
games.
Uh, and I remember talking tohis family about this thing.
I'm not gonna put him in agame, but I need him to be on
the bus.
I need him to be in the lockerroom, I need to have him see how

(41:17):
I, you know, give correctivefeedback uh during the game and
how how the quarterback handlesthat.
And uh each year he's justgotten more comfortable and
better, and and he wants theball in his hands.
And I think you know what'smost important in his maturation
process is you know, I put theball in his hands and and we

(41:37):
threw an interception inovertime last year, which he
made the correct read and and hethrew a good ball.
The other kid made a heck of aplay, you know.
And I think what was important,you know, this past Friday
night is two minutes to go.
And what's your mindset?
And he's like, let's go.
Like, we're ready to go.
I'm ready to go win this game.
So he he's got a winner'smentality, he's a competitor.

(41:58):
Uh his relationship with Peytonuh is exceptional.
Peyton's a fantastic footballplayer.
I mean, what I'm most impressedwith Peyton is his buy-in to
all three phases of the game.
You know, he wants to playevery down defensively, he wants
to play offensively.
We've moved him in a ton ofdifferent positions to try to
get matchups for him uh over thecourse of the game.

(42:20):
And uh he's a wee over me guy.
He knows he is one of thebetter players in the area and
one of the better players on thefield each night, and he wants
to do what's best for the team.
So I think that those two andtheir leadership qualities just
uh set the tone for everybodyelse in the locker room.

Rocky (42:39):
And coach, how much does I know a coach's preparation is
you know, it's it's it's game togame, but being it's the game
this week, is your preparationas a head coach any different
this week going into this game?

No, I you know, I you know me very well.
I'm pretty routine-orientedguy.
Um you know, we're gonna younever look ahead, you know, you
know, didn't look to IndianRiver until South Jeff was taken
care of, didn't look to whatmight be the next game until
that one's taken care of.
And I think, you know, look atthe opponent's offense on one
day, look at the opponent'sdefense on the other day and

(43:12):
special teams, and just try today by day approach, try to give
our kids the best game planpossible.
And I mean, you know, I thinkwhat's good with our group is we
we have a game plan ready forMonday.
We're we're willing to maketweaks on it throughout the
week, but uh it's all aboutteaching the kids.
It's a it's that old teachingadage.
And and Blaze over at Utica isreally good about saying this,

(43:34):
was saying that coaching isteaching.
And it's not about it's notabout what I know or someone
else's knows, it's about whatthose kids are able to soak in
and comprehend and do at fullspeed with confidence.
And that's that's what we tryto do during the course of the
week is just give them as manytools in their toolbox as
possible.
Uh, so when they go on thefield, they feel like they can

(43:55):
run through a wall.

Rocky (43:57):
Coach, I was telling Nolan last night, I because I
wanted to surprise you and bringhim on, but I said we're gonna
come to the game next weekend.
But how do how do we get a newHartford shirt?
You got any shirts left over?
I can get a new Hartford shirtfor the game next week.

Yeah, yeah.
I know Curtis is coming onnext.
He'll probably you know giveyou a Whitesboro one too.
But we'll uh if you're surewe'll get we'll get a couple of
your way.
We've had we've had some niceguests throughout the year.
Obviously, living in Rome, wehave we have a following here
too, and you're a close friendas others.
We have some we have somesurprise guests, and and some of
them show up in those hoodieson game day.
So we'll make sure we get yousomething for for Saturday.

Rocky (44:32):
Awesome.
Well, coach, I appreciate it.
I don't know if we lost Nolan.
Are we the loser?
We still got you, Nolan.
No, I'm here.
You got any parting shots fordad?

Gotta go win it.

Rocky (44:45):
Nolan was Nolan was one of our um guys who would give
the pep talks.
The kids love listening to hispep talks.

So he he doesn't hold any punches.
He he he sits at the dinnertable and tells you tells you
how it is, and you either likeit or tell him to go to his
room, you know.

Both times it's to the room.

Rocky (45:04):
Well, Nolan, Coach Faz says that uh he's got a job for
you in college, Nolan, whenyou're ready.
So when you're ready, reach outto Coach Faz.
You got a job lined up already.
All right.
Well, Coach, listen,congratulations.
Always love having you on, anduh, we'll do it again soon and
uh go win one next week.

I appreciate it.
You do great things for thisarea in sports, so keep it up
and we appreciate you.
Thanks, Rock.

Rocky (45:25):
Coach, you got it.

Thanks, bye-bye.

Rocky (45:29):
So that was Coach Kramer and and Nolan Kramer.
I want to surprise Coach andbring him on and uh get a
question in for dad, which Ithink is really cool to have him
on the sidelines with dad.
That's kind of how I grew up,being on the sidelines with with
my dad.
So always special to have yourson with you uh along the way.
So another coach who's got ason playing, I had the I had the

(45:49):
unfortunate um the opportunityto coach against him, um as
Coach Smith's son, who has agreat career ahead of him, too.
And I know it's special forcoach to have one of his own
coming up through the program.
So let's bring Coach on now.
I feel like it's a familyaffair.
I get the Kramers on.
I probably should have reachedout to have your son on.

(46:10):
Um so we could have talkedabout how well he let my team
up.

Coach Curtis Schmidt (46:15):
Yeah, he would have liked to come on, and
he's out with his mom now,though.

Rocky (46:19):
So, coach, congratulations, man.
Another trip to uh the sectionthree finals and uh another,
another uh another year wherewe're gonna be talking late in
the November.
Congrats.
Thank you.
So, coach, let's talk aboutthis season, as we know every
season's a little bit different,and your season started, which
seems like it was justyesterday, how fast high school

(46:40):
football goes.
Um, you guys opened up youronly loss of the season against
CBA, who's um more than likely,I'll say, gonna win another
sectional final and probablychase a state championship.
But from where you guys werefrom that game against CBA to
where you guys are now, how muchhave you guys improved?

I think we've improved drastically, and
a lot of credit to the kid.
You know, the past two seasons,we've been fortunate.
We were fortunate to have somepretty dynamic teams and uh a
lot of depth.
And uh this year's been alittle different.
Um, I know I said early in thesummer, what you know, everyone
asked what your goal is, andthat's to find your identity
early.
And I felt like this year um ittook us a little longer than

(47:21):
usual.
We had to move kids around.
Um, and we were, you know, wewere being successful, but in
the back of my head, like I knewwe needed to make some changes
and uh both offensively anddefensely.
We we changed our wholedefense, you know, um kind of
mid-season, and it was like atwo or three-week process.

(47:42):
Um, we knew where we wanted tobe and how we changed it slowly,
and now uh we're theredefensively and then
offensively.
Obviously, we made some changesat the quarterback position to
get kids in the right position.
So this year's been a littledifferent.
Um we we had to, you know, wetry we figured out our identity,
and then we had we had to, youknow, put in place a process to

(48:04):
slowly change and get to wherewe had to be.
And uh now I think we'replaying our best football.

Rocky (48:10):
And Coach, similar to Coach Kramer, he was hired back
in 17, and I think you werehired back in 19, uh, replaced a
legend there in Whitesbroughand Coach Shane.
And you know, you look at yourprogram now, and Whitesboro, as
I said in my modified game athalftime when I was ripping our
kids, is you're one of theprograms that um that we want to
be.
We want to try to be theprogram like Whitesbro, where

(48:32):
you're you guys are strong everyyear, strong foundation.
And I looked at when you firstgot hired, and I take a look at
the last three or four years andthe success that you guys have
had, you guys have just builtoff of it.
But it starts with that thatpipeline of that youth level.
Um, so where you're at today towhere you were when you first
got hired, um, is night and daydifferent.

Yeah, it is.
I mean, you know, I was callingthe offense since 2009, and um,
you know, when you're anassistant coach, you you don't
you don't have as much on yourshoulders, you know what I mean?
And then when you take over,there's certain things you want
to change, and and it is alittle bit different, even
though I had a lot ofexperience.
Um, but also, you know, you gotto have great kids, and it's

(49:16):
high school football, and youdance with your date, and most
of the the schools in this areadon't recruit.
So um, you know, you're gonnahave good years and bad years,
but you hope when you have thoseyears that maybe you're not as
talented.
Uh, you can fall back on yourculture and and your tradition
and your work ethic andpreparation and still be
competitive.

(49:36):
Um, and obviously, fortunately,the past three or four years,
we've had some really talentedgroups, but um, there were some
changes we made when I tookover.
We got really involved with theyouth program, and uh I was
just talking to a coach aboutthis the other day.
The biggest change we made wasthe way we practice and prepare.
Um, our practices are are wellplanned.
Our coaches spend a lot oftime.

(49:57):
My defensive coordinatorprobably for a two-hour practice
spends four hours the nightbefore um preparing for a
two-hour practice, making allthe look team cards, every card,
every coach gets a script.
So there's a lot that goes intothis thing if you're gonna do
it right.
Um, but the way we practice,um, the amount of film we watch

(50:17):
with our kids before practice,um, I think that's led to our
success.

Rocky (50:22):
And coach, ESM, you guys will play in uh in the finals.
What what challenges do theybring for you guys?

Yeah, so they're a team that has uh
gotten dramatically better asthe year went on.
Um, you know, they lost toCarthage, which was kind of a
lopsided game, but it the scoreisn't really what the game was.
Um against us, we we opened up21-0 pretty early in the first
half, and then I don't know whenthe last time we've been shut

(50:50):
out in a half, but they shut usout in the second half, and um
they present some problems.
They're mid-level athletes ondefense and and the back end,
they're very good.
Um offensively, they have umvery good skill position and uh
they do what they do and they doit well.
So um uh it's definitely gonnabe a challenge.
It's not easy to play or beat agood team twice, and um we're

(51:12):
preparing uh extremely hard aswe speak, and uh when I get off
here with you, we're we're gonnago back at it.
But it's gonna be a tough game,and um we'll be ready though.

Rocky (51:23):
Coach, talk to about Connor McDonald.
How special.
And you've had so many goodspecial players over the years,
and you got you got more thanjust Connor.
I know as a coach you'd sayit's still it takes a whole
team, but I want to talk abouthow special of a kid is he?

Yeah, I mean, I've been doing this for
17 years, and um I've had a lotof good athletes.
You know what I mean?
Great kids.
I mean, you go back to the MikeSullivan's, Steve Allman's,
Mike Bunell, um, and then morerecently, obviously Kyle and
Memphis, Tony Dorzinski, guyslike that.
And I just feel like Connor islike all of them combined.

(51:58):
Um, he can flat out do it all.
Um, you know, we line him upall over all over the field.
Uh he's had games where he'shad 10, 11 targets, and then
against Carthage, the first timehe had 27 carries.
So at the end of the day, he'sgonna touch the football on
offense.
Uh he's an IQ kid.

(52:19):
He he knows every position.
Uh, you you tell him or showhim one thing once and he gets
it.
And then on defense, um, youknow, he he he if he's on the
field defensively, uh it's aproblem for the for the offense.
And again, he's an IQ kid, he'salways in the right spot.
He's only a junior, you know,he's a high-level division one

(52:40):
recruit, and the interest isstarting to pick up.
Um, but he's gonna come out ofWhitesboro as being the one of
the best to ever play here.

Rocky (52:49):
Coach, and I I always focus on the offense, but you
got a couple linebackers thatare pretty good too that have
played really well for youthroughout the season with Joe
and Jordan.
Talk about those two.

Yeah, so you know, we we we lost some big
time linebackers last year, andthat kind of was a question
mark for us.
But Jaden Baez, uh Joe Dare,and uh Nicholas Gaspa, um they
have played phenomenal.
Um, they they've they've reallyfilled some big shoes, and they

(53:21):
are just relentless and oldschool tough guys.
And um they they are flyingaround.
And and yeah, everyone alwaystalks about our offense, but
really our defense, our I mean,our first group against Carthage
let up two first downs, Ithink.
Um uh last game.
The first game againstCarthage, they let up under 80

(53:42):
yards before you know we pulledthem.
So our defense is um puttingour offense in great positions,
and um our offense is doingwell, but obviously we're we're
not as um we're not scoring 50,60 points at will.
So we we need our defense toput us in great spots, and I
think our special teams areplaying great, but those three

(54:03):
linebackers have been key to oursuccess as as well as our
frontage and our secondary isvery good.
So um we we have a very gooddefense.
I we changed it a lot, the kidshave adapted, and um the
changes that we made I I thinkfit our team well.

Rocky (54:19):
Coach, how much pressure do you feel?
Maybe you don't feel thepressure, but you know, as being
the head coach at Whitesborowith all that rich tradition, I
I feel like Whitesboro, youknow, when the season starts,
everybody you're expected reallyto be playing for a sectional
you know title, and then evenbeyond with you know being in
the state championship game,you've been there.
Do you feel any extra pressurethat you have to get there every

(54:42):
year because it is Whitesboroin the tradition that you've
been part of for so long?

Yeah, I I don't know if it's pressure,
it's definitely in anexpectation um uh to be there
every year.
You know, we work extremelyhard and we prepare for this
moment.
Uh but we talk to our kids thatthe bar is way up here.
And if we don't reach the bar,you know, the season's not a

(55:08):
success.
Like um, you know, we're nothappy with just being there.
And um I think that's becauseof the way this program has been
built from when Coach Shane andhis staff was here um to when
we took over.
It's uh we try to do thingsright, we try to do things 12
months a year.
And um I think the way weprepare, we prepare like every

(55:32):
game is a state championshipgame.
Uh we talk to the kids thatit's not about who we play, it's
about how we play.
And um there might be a littlebit of pressure.
I mean, I I put pressure onmyself 100% and my staff to make
sure we're doing things right.
But you know, in my youngerdays when I was coaching, I was

(55:53):
probably a little bit morecocky.
Um you know, maybe thementality of we're gonna go out
there and win.
And I'll never forget in 2011against ESM, uh, I think we
scored 15 touchdowns in thescrimmage against ESM in 2011,
15 to nothing.
And uh, we were going for ourthird sectional championship,
much like we are this year, anduh they held us to zero points,

(56:16):
and I was the offensivecoordinator, and that was
probably one of our betterteams.
And from that day on, I saidI'll never take a team for
granted, and I'll never not,I'll never lose a game because
we're not prepared.
So um there's a lot ofpressure.
Um, but I think when youprepare correctly and you
prepare extremely hard, um youdon't feel the pressure as much

(56:40):
more because if if you can go onthe field on a Friday night and
know that your team is the mostprepared team, know that you
did everything in your power toget your team prepared, I I I
think there's not any morepressure.
I think you start feelingpressure when you have questions
and the kickoff is it hashappened and you're still unsure

(57:00):
if you you went overeverything.
Um, so we work extremely hardto prepare so we don't feel that
pressure.

Rocky (57:08):
Coach, how special it is?
I know just asking Coach Kramerthis.
I mean, he's got his son withhim, and I was a coach's kid
too, and was coached with my dadand we grew up on a football
field.
How special is it for you tohave it be a family affair there
in Whitesboro?

Oh, it's very special.
I got three boys, I'll playfootball.
Two of them will be on thesideline with me on Friday
night.
Uh, my middle child Cameron isfinally old enough to make the
ride, and I can trust him on thesideline, I think.
But, you know, it it's special.
Um, Carter, Carter's been withme since since he was pretty

(57:42):
much born, and um he loves thegame.
He's an IQ kid, he heunderstands the game, and it's
just cool to watch him grow, youknow.
And it's also tough because Imissed a lot of his games.
You know, I didn't get to gowatch her great game.
My wife, fortunately, I have agreat wife who supports
everything I do, but she wastexting me um and sending me

(58:03):
every clip of the game.
So I'm in practice and I'm I'mlooking at the game, and um, so
it is tough because you do missout on a lot of things.
Um, and that's just kind of theway it's gonna be.
But luckily I have a supportivefamily, um, a mother and
father-in-law, a mother and afather that do a lot for us, and

(58:23):
um and then obviously my wife.
But yeah, that's uh you gottahave a support to do this thing
the right way, you know.
Like it's we don't just show upon August 20th and then finish
and and and put the stuff awayto next year.
You know, there's weight roomstuff involved in the off
season.
There's we're all summer, youknow, a lot of people are going
on vacation and stuff like that,and and we're on the football

(58:46):
field.
So it is a family affair.
You have to have support, and Ido have support uh from my
family, and um, and then it'sspecial to have my boys around
it, and um uh they enjoy it.

Rocky (59:00):
Well, I will say this, coach.
I'm a Rome guy, but theWhitesboro community's been
really, really good to me.
Um, and I know I know you youhave as well.
And I was asking Jim this.
I might be able to get awaywith this more with with Jim
because he's he's a Rome guyhere, coaching at New Hartford.
But I asked Coach, I said,Coach, I gotta get a new
Hartford shirt to support youguys.
And now I gotta say, I gottaget a Whitesboro shirt, but I

(59:21):
can't say it too loud becauseCoach Nicola may kick me off the
coaching staff and get rid ofme, but I gotta get a Whitesboro
shirt.
I feel like I'm part of theWhitesboro family too here.
The guys are so yourcommunity's been so good to me,
Coach, and you have as well.
And uh, I you know I can'tthank you enough for always
jumping on with me, but I mighthave to sneak in a shirt.

Yeah, we'll get you what you need.
I you know what I think I thinktimes have changed a little
bit.
Like there's no one cheeringmore for Jim, obviously his his
wife and his kids, but when itwhen he's playing, like I'm
cheering for him.
And yes, I knew Hartford andWhitesboro had that rival, but
you know, I want to see otherpeople.
people that do it the right waybe successful.

(01:00:02):
And um, you know, I got homefrom my game and uh I couldn't
wait to talk to Jim about his.
And when he finally called meat night, I I had already
watched the fourth quarter on myphone.
So, you know, I'm his biggestfan.
I want them to be successful.
We went obviously went tocollege together.
But I I just want to supportpeople that do it the right way.

(01:00:25):
And I want to see, you know,we're not in the same league.
And um you know a lot of ourkids work out with their kids.
Jim and I talk three times,four times a week.
And um yeah we're rivals withNew Harford, but at the end of
the day, I want to see them Iwant to see them get it done.
And um it's the same with Rome.
We all have a good relationshipand uh when if we're gonna face

(01:00:47):
each other then we're gonna goat it.
But after that I respect themand uh I want to see everyone
around here be successful.

Rocky (01:00:54):
Well coach I won't uh you know I won't look ahead but um
take care of next week and uhwe'll we'll get you guys back on
throughout the fall here ashopefully you guys both can
punch your ticket and and keepplaying here late into the
season.
So as always I appreciate youand I know we'll talk again
soon.

Coach Curtis Schmidt (01:01:10):
Sounds good thanks for having me on.

Rocky (01:01:12):
All right coach thank you.
Yep.
So that was Whitesboro headcoach Curtis Schmidt and and I I
do mean this when I say thisthere's so many local coaches in
this area from all sports thathave been really good to me and
those Coach Kramer and CoachSchmidt are just two of them.
Coach Streif over a proctor hasbeen really good to me.

(01:01:32):
Coach Briggs at Helm Patton'sbeen really good to me um all
those guys Coach Fiorini atWestmoreland's been really good
to me as well and there's somany more and I've built over
the last probably 10 years ofdoing this this show that
started on the radio um hascarried over now into a podcast
which I love because I can do iton my own time.
But I think the relationshipsthat I've built in this area

(01:01:55):
from the sports side in allsports field hockey soccer you
know girls basketball boysbasketball is really cool um and
when I I mean this from thebottom of my heart is the
Whitesboro community has beenreally good to me.
And growing up you know CoachHoke was a Whitesboro guy.
Rome Whitesboro when I wasyounger was always the game with

(01:02:17):
with Proctor and here we arefast forward all these years
later and it's like you knowwhen if Rome's not playing
Whitesboro, I poll for CoachSchmidt all the time.
Same with Coach Kramer and allthose guys where it's it's
really a a big community of guysto do it the right way.
So I can't thank um those twoguys particularly um enough for

(01:02:37):
uh for coming on here andtalking some high school
football with me.
I will have um RFA field hockeyum as I said they'll play today
at noon against Mamarneck um atnoon I believe that game is at
VVS I will have coach on I I wasgoing to reach out to her I
knew they were playing thistoday so I didn't want to bother
her uh McKenzie but um I willhave her on to talk about their

(01:03:00):
season as they chase not only astate championship but an
undefeated state championshipthat has not been done since my
sister played on that Rome FreeAcademy team that finished
unbeaten in state champs.
So uh best of luck to McKenzie.
I'll be reaching out for her tocome on and talk about her
season.
We'll talk more with these guysof when they win.

(01:03:21):
I'm not going to jinx them whenthey win next week we'll have
them on again to talk abouttheir next matchup but as a head
coach it's week to week.
So I appreciate everybodytuning in today.
It was great to be back behindthe mic to talk the Mohawk
Valley Sportswatch.
I'll let you know when the nextepisode of Inside Utica
University football podcast withCoach Faziano will be scheduled

(01:03:41):
for next week.
So I'll let you know more onthat.
Continue to follow me acrossall social media platforms and
thanks for tuning in today tothe Rockpile is where dreams
become reality.
Have a good weekend everybody

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