Blue Devil Football Throws a Party
The Huntington football program turned in a good year on every level. So it was time for the Blue Devils to party last week. A crowd of about 150 filled the high school cafeteria to share a meal and listen to coaches wax poetic about their players.
The program's annual awards night is always a high octane affair. There were long tables crammed with hot and cold food items and desserts, colorful balloons decorating the room and many players dressed in business attire, including ties. Nick Lupi even wore a tuxedo.
"It was fun to get everyone in the program together in one room with their parents and talk about all the good things that we accomplished this season," said Steve Muller, Huntington's head coach.
Rick Eriksen, who is retiring this year from teaching and coaching after 22 seasons at J. Taylor Finley Middle School, received a plaque recognizing his contributions to the Huntington football program. He was moved by the award and said the success his teams achieved was a result of hard work by his players and support from their parents. "It was a great run," he said about his coaching career.
Blue Devil junior varsity coach Ron Wilson thanked Eriksen for keeping him in the program. "He was my first coach at Finley," Wilson told the crowd. "After the first day of practice, I didn't want to go back. But, he was my social studies teacher and when he told me I wasn't allowed to quit and to be at practice, I didn't have any choice. I'm glad that I stuck with it."
The varsity coaching staff presented offensive awards to Calvin Bollar (John Paci Award for Outstanding Offensive Back), Tyre Brown (Outstanding Receiver Award), Richard Fernandez (Outstanding Offensive Lineman Award) and Dan Plant (Most Outstanding Offensive Player Award).
Defensive awards went to William Coffey (Outstanding Defensive Back Award), Peter Kingston (Outstanding Linebacker Award) and Jack Forster (Outstanding Defensive Lineman Award). Trayvon Toney and Dante Allen received Most Outstanding Defensive Player Awards.
Matt Curley was named the Special Teams Player of the Year. Ryan Mulligan earned the Joe Lucey Award/Coaches Award. The Christopher Pettit Award for the top student athlete went to Brandon Fiodelisi.
Former Huntington football coach and current high school physical education teacher Steve Henry was on hand to present an award named in his honor. Alex Gennaro was given the Steve Henry 12th Man Award.
Towering Shaheem Lewis was presented with the Offensive Rookie of the Year Award. Davon Nelson won the Defensive Rookie of the Year Award. C.J. Herrington's hard work and dedication earned him the Most Improved Player Award.
The team's Most Valuable Player Award went to senior Calvin Bollar. "Calvin did everything we asked of him," Muller said. "He's an old-fashioned football player that really grinds it out on both sides of the ball. We're going to miss him next fall."
Junior varsity awards were presented to Ben Kocis (Outstanding Offensive Player) and John Mallouk and T.J. Greenhill, who shared the Most Valuable Player Award.
Finley players were also on hand to pick-up some special awards. On the seventh grade level, Ethan Dwyer and Christopher Rasco won Most Improved Player Awards. Joseph Puca was named the team's Most Valuable Player.
Finley eighth graders Kenneth McCarthy (Outstanding Offensive Player), Kyle Davis (Outstanding Defensive Player) and Kiandre Burrell (Most Valuable Player) were also honored.
The Blue Devil coaching staff recognized Chartytin Ortiz with the Manager of the Year Award for the countless hours she contributed throughout the season.
Now that this past season is firmly tucked away in the record books, the Blue Devils have turned their sights toward the future. "We're looking forward to next fall," Muller said.