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MONDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK: AIELLO CREDITS SECTION IV COMPETITION FOR TEAM'S SUCCESS IN STATE QUARTERFINALS (2019-11-18)

By TIM BIRNEY
Valley Sports Report
TIOGA CENTER "” Tioga remained perfect against Section III foes in the New York State, Class D quarterfinals with a 43-20 win over Frankfort-Schuyler Friday night at Vestal High School.

Tioga coach Nick Aiello, who has eight Section IV titles to his credit in his 10-year career, believes there a few reasons for the Tigers' 8-0 mark in the state quarterfinals.

"I think it's a combination of things," he said. "First, the kids are excited and confident coming off those Section titles.

"The main reason, I believe, is the competition we face in Section IV during the regular season really prepares us for those games," noted Aiello.

"And, the coaches we face ... the weekly chess matches with Xs and Os have the coaching staff ready for postseason, too," added Aiello.

The Tigers started fast with a five-play scoring drive to take a 6-0 lead.

Aiello was a little more at ease after the first possession after voicing concerns during the week leading up to the game.

"It was good to see. I felt as the game progressed our guys got a little better feel for what (F-S) was doing up front," said Aiello. "Some plays we tried early on that didn't seem like were, we went back to later and we executed them better.

"After watching the film, there were some communication things.I still feel it's kind of a weird front for us," he noted. "It's just a little different in terms of what we're use to seeing, but I thought the kids did a nice job  picking up on it."

After a defensive stop, the Tigers took over at its own 28, but a power outage delayed the game for 25 minutes.

"I don't think (the power outage) effected us at all, it was just weird," said Aiello.

"It made for a long night. We got up there, we get ready, we're on the field and all fired up, then three minutes into the game we're back in the locker room sitting there.

"It was like we had two halftimes," noted Aiello. "It really made the second halftime - the real halftime - feel like "˜what the heck are we doing back in here?'"

Once power was restored, Tioga and sophomore tailback Emmett Wood picked up where they left off. On the third play after resumption of play, Wood sprinted 64 yards for a score. He added the conversion to make it 14-0

Wood had 99 yards and two TDs on Tioga's first two possessions.

"Emmett is running hard, and with a purpose," said Aiello. "He's been getting better and better, and has become a real workhorse.

"At the same time, he only had 19 carries in this game, where in the other (playoff) games he was up over 30.

"I think having a little more balance in our offense, had a lot to do with the big runs Emmett had for us, and reduced his workload," Aiello added.

The "mix" involved senior Brady Worthing connecting on 4 of 5 pass attempts for 79 yards - all in the first half, including a 32-yard strike to junior tight end Derrick Gage, a 31-yard completion to sophomore Cobe Whitmore, and an 8-yard TD to Gage, as well as a few effective runs by junior fullback Sloan Manuel.

"We were trying to get back to the mix we had all season long because we feel the more balanced we can be - and the more we can spread the ball around - even if it's just a little bit, the more things will open up," said Aiello.

"I thought we were getting into a pretty good rhythm, and a pretty good mix until we fumbled," noted Aiello. "Then (F-S) goes down and scores, and Brady (Worthing) got hurt on the extra point, so that kind of put a damper on it."

The Tigers turned almost exclusively to its ground game in the second half behind junior back-up QB Ethan Agan, and scored on its first three possessions, before taking a knee at the F-S 2-yard line as time expired on its fourth possession.

"I was really impressed with (Ethan) Agan going in there in the second half and running the show for us," said Aiello. "He did some really good things.

"He's the guy we're looking to take over that position next year, so it was nice to see him go into a state quarter-final game and be that leader for us," he added.

After the opening three-and-out, F-S moved the ball consistently, with Tioga making stops in its end of the field on several possessions. During one stretch, F-S ran 25 offensive plays to Tioga's 3, but only scored six points.

"It was kind of weird," said Aiello. "(F-S) was able to chip away, and run some base plays that we worked on a lot throughout the week. As coaches, we were a little frustrated with that.

"And a couple of other things we worked on all week, letting the guys know what to watch out for, were working against us.

"It seemed like for a little while our defense forgot what the game plan was, but when we needed to get some big plays to stop their drives, we were able to do that," Aiello noted.

"For the most part, we still have some really young kids out there who are doing a really good job out there, and learning from game to game," he added.

Aiello did have one sharp criticism of his team after watching the films.

"The one think I'd like to see is a little bit more hustle," he said. "I think that was one of the problems on those drives, it seems like we get to certain points in the game and guys quit hustling and flying to the football.

"That's going to be a big point we'll stress this week," noted Aiello. "You just can't be standing around watching the guy get extra yardage because you're not willing to fly over there and finish off the tackle.

"There are some things we're concerned about that we need to work on," Aiello added.

A major contributor in the win was the defensive line, anchored by the play of seniors Bryce Mashas, who had three QB sacks, and Dom Wood, who added two sacks.

"On the defensive line with Dom Wood, (Aaron) Howard, and (Bryce) Mashas, we're pretty confident in their skill set," said Aiello. "We''ll rotate Cole Williams in there, and some other guys as well.

"It was nice to see Mashas really get after it," noted Aiello. "He's been working real hard, and he's turning himself into a pretty good two-way lineman."

Aiello said his team's play in special teams needs to be better.

"Special teams were all right.

"We've had great kickoff coverage all year long, (but) I don't know what's going on the last couple weeks," said Aiello. "We're kicking the ball off and getting decent kicks, but letting them return it to the 40.

"We changed up personnel a bit, thinking that was the problem, guys not doing their jobs anymore ... we need to shore that up for sure.

"We need to work on some things to make sure special teams are sharp this week," added Aiello.

GRADE: A. "I'll give the guys another A," said Aiello. "You're talking state quarterfinals, and the guys stepped up. It's a big win for them, and they put themselves in position for a state semi-final game.

"At that point, you're always proud of them to get the "˜W's because that's all that matters - it's win or go home.

"It was a pretty good week of practice, and we're right where we want to be," he added.

"”"”"”"”"”"”

IN PHOTO: Tioga's Emmett Wood, who was named team MVP in the Tigers' win over Frankfort-Schuyler Friday in the New York State, Class D quarterfinals. .... PHOTO BY TIM BIRNEY.

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