NEW YORK STATE FOOTBALL: TIOGA RUNS OVER STILLWATER, 63-14, TO WIN THIRD CONSECUTIVE CLASS D TITLE (24 PHOTOS) (2023-12-02)
By TIM BIRNEYValley Sports ReportSYRACUSE — The three-peat is complete.
Tioga jumped ahead early, pounded out 526 yards in total offense, including 428 yards on the ground, and cruised to a 63-14 win over Stillwater to win its third consecutive New York State Class D football title here Saturday afternoon at the JMA Wireless Dome.
"The kids came out on another big stage, and just balled out" said Tioga coach Nick Aiello.
"Similar to last year, you come into a state championship game, and you try to think of a way the other team can beat you, and you kind of forget what you’re really good at," he noted.
"Coming in, we scripted some plays we thought would be there against the different blitzes they’ve shown, and they just turned into explosive plays for us.
"As a coach, I couldn’t be happier for them to perform like that on a big stage. With all the jitters, all the nerves working up to a state championship game, for the kids to come out and executive offensively, and carry out the defensive game plan like they did was impressive," added Aiello. "As a coach I’m just so proud of that for these young men to perform in the moment like they did."
The Tigers also ran their win streak to 41 games — the last 40 coming with senior QB Caden Bellis, who was named the game’s MVP, at the helm.
"40-0 is a crazy number, and three state championships is something I would have never even dreamed of," said Caden Bellis.
"We’ve been working since we were 4 years old to get here and do this, and we did it three times," he added.
"Not a lot of people get the opportunity to win three state titles in a row, but here we are," said senior Drew Macumber. "It’s frickin’ awesome.
"We have the best coaches there are," added Macumber. "They train us hard, and we’ve worked every day in-season, and out … we’ve worked hard for everything we have."
"It’s unreal, most kids never experienced anything even close to this," said senior Levi Bellis. "We put the work in every day, and got it done."
"It just shows the special group of coaches, and players we have," said senior Gavin Fisher. "We just have an amazing group of guys.
"I could never have envisioned this happening. It’s amazing, a great feeling," added Fisher, who was 9-for-9 in extra-point attempts for the second year in a row in the state title game. He ended the season with a state record 99 PAT kicks.
"It’s really unbelievable," said senior Valentino Rossi. "To win three straight state championships, and win 40 in a row - it’s just unbelievable."
"It still doesn’t feel real right now," said senior Ousmane Duncanson. "It’s hard to process that the football career is over … it feels like yesterday I was asking coach Aiello what to do on plays.
"Honestly, it’s very impressive, all the work we’ve put in … our coaching staff is great," added Duncanson. "I’m truly grateful to be a part of this program. I am blessed."
"It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for most people to win one," said senior Karson Sindoni. "We had a chance today to win our third, and we got the win."
"It’s wild. It’s something we’ve dreamed of since the first day we stepped on the field together," said senior Evan Sickler. "It’s crazy we actually did it."
"I didn’t play last year, but I’m glad to be back this year, and happy to be part of the team, and part of the third state championship in a row for my school," said senior Hunter Fethers.
"A lot of these guys played together since they were real young … guys like Ouse (Duncanson), Ev (Sickler) and me joined them later, but playing was the greatest choice I’ve ever made," said senior Ben Leary.
"Coming here, and knowing how important Tioga football is, it’s awesome to be a part of it," he added.
In its three state playoff wins this season, Tioga scored 182 points.
"It’s incredible," said Tioga coach Nick Aiello. "It just shows how explosive we are, and it’s not just one guy.
"We’ve been able to spread the ball around, and that’s what makes us so dangerous — defenses don’t know who’s getting the ball, or when.
"The message to the guys since Day 1 of camp this summer was ‘I don’t know how many touches you’re going to get, so you better take advantage of them, and run hard … I think that’s what we saw today," added Aiello.
The Tigers’ margin of victory this postseason was 46.2 points per game, with the closest game a 56-12 win over Dolgeville in the state quarterfinals.
"Winning big doesn’t take anything away from (the state title), not at all," smiled Aiello. "You might think it would … if you think it’s boring, it’s not.
"I’m just so happy for the kids in the moment.
"When you talk about competitive sports, at the varsity level there is so much emphasis on winning, but I think people tend to forget those are sophomores, juniors, and seniors out there," noted Aiello. "To watch them develop, and then to come out and perform like they do, it makes you so excited, and proud as a head coach.
"I’m thankful for being a part of it, and privileged to coach these kids," he added.
Stillwater won the pre-game coin toss, and deferred to the second half. Tioga elected to receive the opening kickoff.
After junior Jonah Lamb fielded a low line-drive kick, and returned it 15 yards to the Tioga 46, Caden Bellis set the tone for the Tigers on the first play from scrimmage, busting off a 33-yard run on an option keeper to the Stillwater 21.
Five plays later, Macumber scored on a 5-yard run with 9:30 remaining in the first quarter. Fisher’s PAT kick made it 7-0.
After Stillwater elected to punt on fourth-and-1 at its own 29, Tioga took over at its 46, and needed just five plays to find the end zone again.
A 42-yard run by Macumber set up a 1-yard QB sneak by Caden Bellis with 6:16 left in the first quarter. Fisher tacked on the PAT to make it 14-0.
After another three-and-out, Sickler returned the punt 20 yards to the Stillwater 45.
Duncanson ripped off a 23-yard run on the first play of the drive, and a roughing-the-passer call on the next play moved the ball to the Warriors’ 11.
After a holding call wiped out an 11-yard TD pass from Bellis to Karson Sindoni, Tioga needed four run plays, including an 11-yard pick-up by Rossi, to extend its lead. Macumber capped the drive with a 1-yard plunge with 1:57 left in the first quarter to make it 21-0.
Stillwater’s next possession ended with a dropped pass on a fourth-down fake punt attempt, which gave Tioga the ball at the Warriors’ 39.
On the first play, Bellis, who was rolling to his right, fired a 39-yard TD pass to Rossi with 11:45 remaining in the first half. Fisher’s kick made it 28-0.
"I saw him rolling out," said Rossi. "I was headed in the opposite direction, so I came back to him to try and give him another open look … and he found me."
Stillwater picked up its first two first downs on its next possession, but eventually punted.
Tioga took over on its 22, and Duncanson broke loose off the right side on the first play, outrunning a trio of defenders down the visiting sideline in a 78-yard sprint to paydirt with 7:27 remaining in the first half. Fisher’s kick made it 35-0.
After another Stillwater three-and-out, Tioga took over at midfield, and on the first play, Bellis hit Sickler two steps behind a defender for a 50-yard TD pass with 5:25 remaining in the half. Fisher’s kick made it 42-0.
Stillwater ran out the first-half clock, and Jaxon Mueller’s ‘Hail Mary’ heave from the Tioga 42 was intercepted in the end zone by Bellis as time expired.
The second half started like the first half ended as Lukas Lilac ripped off a 25-yard run on Stillwater’s first play, but was stripped by Sickler, and Caden Bellis pounced on the loose ball at the Tiger 42.
Six plays later, including a 33-yard run by senior Gianni Silvestri, Macumber bulled in from 3 yards out to make it 49-0 with 9:09 remaining in the third quarter.
Just when you didn’t think it could get any worse, junior Brennan Sindoni delivered a big hit on the ensuing kickoff, and sophomore Logan Bellis secured the loose ball at the Stillwater 26.
After runs of 7 and 10 yards by Macumber, Bellis connected with Karson Sindoni on a 9-yard TD pass with 8:05 remaining. Fisher’s PAT kick made it 56-0.
Stillwater picked up a pair of first downs on its next possession, but eventually punted, pinning Tioga at its own 10.
Caden Bellis ripped off a 45-yard run on the second play of the possession, and Macumber capped the 10-play, 90-yard drive with a 1-yard TD run with 8:20 left in the contest. Fisher’s 9th PAT kick made it 63-0.
Mueller added TD runs of 1 and 4 yards on Stillwater’s next two possessions to provide the final margin.
Macumber led the Tioga ground game with 142 yards, and four TDs on 19 carries, while Duncanson rushed for 112 yards and one TD on five carries, Caden Bellis added 92 yards and one TD on six carries.
Bellis also completed 3 of 4 passes for 98 yards and three TDs, with Sickler, Rossi, and Sindoni hauling in TD passes.
"I’m just so happy we were able to get a lot of guys into the end zone," said Aiello. "I hope it’s something they remember forever."
"There are so many athletes out here," said Caden Bellis. "Me getting the ball to one of them, and them being able to score on any single play is something you can’t even imagine."
Stillwater rushed for 253 yards on 48 carries, with 123 yards coming on the final two possessions of the fourth quarter.
Mueller led Stillwater with 142 yards, and two TDs on 19 carries. He also completed 1 of 5 passes for seven yards, and one interception.
Aiello was pleased with his team’s performance against the highly-touted Stillwater ground game.
"We put a lot on our linemen," he said. "To prepare for them, we had two defensive lines rotating, so we didn’t get worn out. So, if we got in a dogfight, near the end we would be somewhat fresh.
"Both defensive lines did outstanding jobs," added Aiello. "The guys who were filling in run support … everything came together on defense as it has for so many games for these guys."
Aiello is proud of his team for living up to the expectations heaped upon them after winning the Class D title last year, and returning 21 of 22 starters this year.
"Everyone knew what we had coming back, and we did, too," said Aiello. "It’s easy to say everyone is coming back, but there’s so much work that goes into it.
"For us, it started at the end of June going to a team camp," he noted. "If you saw the numbers of just the attendance in our weight room over the summer, you knew these guys weren’t resting on their laurels, they all put in the time.
"Once we got into the season, you would think it would be tough to keep them motivated, but it really wasn’t," said Aiello. "These guys had an end-goal in mind. As we were working through the season, it started to become a reality — it was like ‘hey, we could really do this — go 40-0 and get the three-peat’
"The Waverly game was huge, going through our division was big, but once the playoffs rolled around, these guys were locked in. They were focused, and worked hard every single week.
"That performance they put on last week in the state semifinals (63-16 win over CSP) is really indicative of the types of players they are, but more importantly, how hard they work at preparing themselves," Aiello added. "That’s why they came out and performed like they did last week, as well as today."
Aiello summed up his team in five words.
"These guys are just winners."
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IN PHOTO 1: Tioga’s Caden Bellis. … PHOTOS BY TIM BIRNEY.
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