TROJAN FOOTBALL
10/26/2019
Trojans handle Hawkeyes
Angelo Sulla - Citizens Voice
HANOVER TWP. — Colby Butczynski was a one-man wrecking crew for Nanticoke Area on Friday night.
Butczynski threw for 208 yards and three scores and ran for 148 yards
and two touchdowns in leading the Trojans to a 39-20 victory over
Hanover Area in one of the oldest rivalry games in the Wyoming Valley
Conference.
Butczynski surpassed 2,000 passing yards for the season while teammate Kenau Ammons finished with over 1,000 receiving yards.
“What else is to say about Colby? He is a great athlete,’’ Nanticoke Area coach Ron Bruza said.
Faced with a fourth-and-long from his own 19, Butczynski dropped back
into punt formation and, seeing that he was going to have a difficult
time getting the punt off, took off up the middle of the field, made a
move to his left and jetted 81 yards to give the Trojans an early lead.
On their first possession of the second quarter with the ball on the
24-yard line, Butczynski hit Ammons with a pass on the 3-yard line.
Ammons spun to his left and waltzed to the end zone for the Nanticoke
Area touchdown.
On the ensuing kickoff, Nanticoke Area’s Oscar Kryznewski pounced on a
loose football to give the ball back to the Trojans in Hanover Area
territory. After a 10-yard Butczynski run, he hit a wide-open Darren
Boseman with a 22-yard scoring strike.
Hanover Area then managed to get its offense into gear, as the Hawkeyes
moved 43 yards in five plays. Faced with a fourth down, Joe Curcio
called his own number and raced 20 yards to give the Hawks the ball on
the 15-yard line. One the very next play, Bobby Sabecky took a handoff
on a jet sweep and rambled 15 yards for the touchdown.
One the Trojans’ next possession, Ammons took a lateral from Butczynski
and had his pass tipped at the line of scrimmage. Defensive lineman
Jacob Mercadante alertly intercepted the pass and rumbled 55 yards to
pay dirt.
Nanticoke Area then recovered a Hanover Area onside kick. Following two
runs from Devon Lohman, which netted 30 yards, Butczynski called his
own number and bulled his way into the end zone to stem the Hawkeye
tide.
After both teams traded punts to start the second half, Butczynski hit Boseman in stride with a 30-yard scoring strike.
Early in the fourth period, Hanover Area held Nanticoke Area on a
4th-and-2. The Hawkeyes drove 98 yards in 13 plays. Tanner Bednarski’s
14-yard catch and run culminated the scoring for the Hawkeyes.
On its last possession, Lohman took a handoff left tackle and sprinted 51 yards for the game’s final score.
“This was a great way for our seniors to go out and also a building
block for our returning players for next year,’’ Bruza said.
8/21/2019
Nanticoke Area: Inside the Huddle
By Steve Bennett – Citizens Voice
Growing up fast
The Trojans enter the season inexperienced at some key positions. Among the most pressing: running back. What has been the case in recent years for the program can now be considered a trend.
It always seems that when the Trojans have experience at running back, the offensive line is the inexperienced part of the team. When the line returns some experience, Bruza has found himself breaking in a new set of backs.
But as is typically the case, the Trojans will find a running back or two that will emerge and handle the majority of the rushing duties.
Last year Nanticoke Area ran the ball 375 times, but lost its leading rusher to graduation.
Other spots where the Trojans are looking for somebody to step in and make an impact are at defensive end and outside linebacker.
Positive steps
Last year the Trojans opened up some eyes across the district when they elected to withdraw from consideration for the district playoffs and enter the Eastern Conference tournament in the postseason.
At the time, Nanticoke Area had already secured a spot in the district playoffs. However, the Trojans were not guaranteed a spot in the Eastern Conference unless they won their last two regular season games.
But to examine the decision a little deeper, there was a Monday practice where only 19 players showed up. Once word spread the Trojans were heading to the EC, the following day close to 40 attended practice. With that in mind, it shows that the players really do understand when the odds are stacked against them.
More so, the Trojans are expected to dress approximately 40 again this season. That leaves Bruza pleased with the depth. But with depth comes a specific number of questions. Mainly, just how much of that depth is quality? At smaller schools, the difference between a starter and backup can be significant. At bigger schools, maybe not so much. But in terms of roster size by today’s standard in the WVC, Nanticoke Area appears to be in pretty good shape.
Position breakdown
QUARTERBACKS
Colby Butczynski returns as the starter. Last year he threw for 800 yards and seven touchdowns. He also rushed for 135 yards and four touchdowns. Devland Heffron will be the backup. Heffron ran for 25 yards and completed two of his four pass attempts in limited action last season.
RUNNING BACKS
Colin Kashatus, Devin Lohman and Pierson Park will be the running backs. Of the group, Kashatus and Park are the most seasoned. Kashatus had 23 carries last year, while Park finished with 20. Lohman accounted for 10.
WIDE RECEIVERS
Keanu Ammons, Dylan Tuthill, Joe Fox, Sincere Shiloh and Darren Boseman will be the receivers. This has the potential to be a pretty exciting group. Ammons led the team with 14 catches last year. He averaged 20.9 yards per reception. Boseman had nine receptions, and averaged 20.8 yards per catch.
OFFENSIVE LINE
The center will be John Novak. At guard will be Kyle Bobeck and Chris Shon. The tackles will be Braden Zaremba and Elijah Collison. The tight end is Seth Pelton.
DEFENSIVE LINE
Bobeck and Collison will be the ends. Shon and Henry Sedorchuk will be the tackles.
LINEBACKERS
Kashatus and Pelton will play inside. On the outside will be Lohman and Park.
SECONDARY
Ammons and Tuthill are the corners. Boseman will be the safety. Last season Ammons and Boseman each had two interceptions. Ammons returned one for a touchdown.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Ricky Klepadlo will be the kicker and the punter. Last season he kicked 23 extra points.
8/21/2019
Nanticoke Area's Bobeck back on the field
Steve Bennett – Citizens Voice
Missing the final five games of his junior season did not sit well with Kyle Bobeck. Standing on the sidelines as a spectator after suffering a severe ankle injury, all Bobeck could do is watch and help out as much as he possibly could.
Not only did he feel he let the entire team down, he felt even worse for the seniors on the team who were hoping to end their careers on a winning note. The Trojans did just that, winning the Eastern Conference championship.
“Before I got hurt I thought we were playing really well,” said Bobeck. “Our line was really coming together. For me personally, I think my physicality was where I wanted it to be. Those five games I didn’t play, I will never be able to get them back.”
Bobeck will shift his position on the defensive line for the Trojans this year. A two-year captain who has added approximately 20 pounds of muscle during the offseason, he will move from tackle to end.
With an offseason to recover, Bobeck returns looking to make up for some lost time, especially with this being his senior year. And even more so with the way the Trojans rely on the offensive line in their run oriented offense.
“The line is always key for us,” Bobeck said. “We like to have that mentality that we can run the ball down people’s throats. This year we have the weapons to stretch the field. We are going to have to pass the ball.”
Now that he is fully healed and ready to go for the upcoming season, Bobeck was looking forward to the start of training camp once the injured left ankle was back to 100%.
With the Trojans coming off a championship season, Bobeck is hoping the team can make a return trip to the postseason. During his freshman season the team qualified for the district playoffs. While that is the tournament he would prefer to play in, another trip to the Eastern Conference would be just as satisfying. All that really matters is the opportunity to play a meaningful football game in Week 11.
“I would like to get six or seven wins this year and get back to the playoffs, that would be great,” Bobeck said. “Our seniors haven’t seen districts since we were freshmen.”
7/13/2019
Nanticoke Area 2019 Football Schedule
A Maluso - Citizens Voice
Nanticoke Area hosts Tunkhannock,
Wyoming Area, Holy Redeemer, Crestwood and Lakeland in 2019. The Trojans will
travel to Pittston Area in the season opener, as well as Wilkes-Barre Area and
Dallas. They close the year with back-to-back road trips to Lake-Lehman and
Hanover Area.
NANTICOKE AREA
Aug. 23 at Pittston Area 7 p.m.
Aug. 30 Tunkhannock 7 p.m.
Sept. 6 at Wilkes-Barre Area 7 p.m.
Sept. 13 Wyoming Area 7 p.m.
Sept. 20 Holy Redeemer 7 p.m.
Sept. 27 Crestwood 7 p.m.
Oct. 4 at Dallas 7 p.m.
Oct. 11 Lakeland 7 p.m.
Oct. 18 at Lake-Lehman 7 p.m.
Oct. 25 at Hanover Area 7 p.m.