By TIM BIRNEYValley Sports Report
TIOGA CENTER — Longtime Tioga coach Nick Aiello, who has 11 Section IV titles and four state titles under his belt, is glad to be back on the field in preparation for the 2025 season.
"It is good to be back on the field," he said. "It's been a really good, and long summer, but I think we're ready to go.
"I think we had a good enough summer that the boys are focused and determined from Day 1," added Aiello. "So yeah, it's good to be back out here."
Aiello said his varsity numbers are solid, but the JV's are lacking.
"We're sitting at 23 for varsity, which is what we expected, but our JV numbers are low.
"We only had 14 show for JVs today," said Aiello. "We know we have three more that will be here, which gets us to 17.
"The magic number is 20, so we have to get on the phone this afternoon and get some guys to practice, or we're going to have to fold it, which is unfortunate ... but we're hoping to have enough by tomorrow," he added.
The Tigers saw its streak of six consecutive Section IV titles end with a loss to Delhi in the Class D title game last fall. Aiello said his team is focusing on the "little details" that make the difference in big games.
"Our focus is on every little detail of every little thing we do. If you want to win big games, it always comes down to that.
"We're not talking about last year, but the kids were reminded it was a yard-and-a-half; that can be the difference in winning and having your season end, so that's the focus," said Aiello.
"We're not out here just to run around and to look good in a uniform," he noted. "We're put here to do every little thing right — from the huddle to the stance to the first step — that's what we're focusing on from Day 1."
Tioga opens the 2025 campaign against Windsor at Waverly's Memorial Stadium on Aug. 30 at 3 p.m.
"There's isn't much time to get ready, but I think we had a good enough summer to be well-conditioned coming into Day 1, and that was our goal.
We didn't do any seven-on-sevens, and we really didn't do any of those joint practices like we've done in the past," said Aiello. "I thought with this group it was just as important to get together three days a week and work our tails off, and they did.
"And, I was impressed with their attendance," added Aiello. "I think we're exactly where we need to be with the week double-zero game less than two weeks away."
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IN PHOTO 1: Tioga coach Nick Aiello. IN TOP PHOTO: Tioga's Shane Platukis cuts off a pylon after taking a hand-off from Jackson Bombard. ... PHOTOS BY TIM BIRNEY.
