Coming into Year 2 in the Allegheny Mountain League, gone are the questions surrounding Bradford High being too big, too powerful or even too unsafe for its smaller-school oppositions.
No one might be happier to put last season in the rearview than Owls head coach Jeff Puglio, now in his eighth year (30-50) roaming the Parkway Field sideline. None of those questions materialized into major catastrophes for the AML, especially after a narrow Week 2 loss to Coudersport in overtime.
Sure, the Owls, 4-6 a year ago, beat up on Cameron County to the tune of a 76-0 drubbing, but fought an uphill battle with inexperience and costly injuries as the squad never found secure footing in the mighty South division, going 0-5 against division foes.
“4-6 was an improvement on the 1-9 [seasons],” Puglio said, “but it’s not where we want to be so it’s a lot of not what is the league going to do, but what are we going to do? We have to worry about Bradford. What are the Owls doing today to get better? It’s not about what everybody else is doing. Our focus every day is what are we doing today that will make us better.”
Fortunately for Puglio’s team, the Owls return one of the top running backs in District 9, albeit one coming off injury. John Eakin, after rushing for 1,167 yards as the Owls played a District 10 schedule in 2015, ran for 238 yards in the season-opener against Smethport (including a 99-yard score on the Owls’ first play from scrimmage) then was largely absent from the offense due to a nagging ankle injury.
A healthy Eakin, who is sitting on 1,907 career yards, will get a healthy dose of opportunities to show he’s returned to full health this season.
“You’ve got a fullback that’s 240 [pounds], runs a 4.6 [40-yard dash], 42-inch vertical…the goal is to get John the ball,” Puglio said. “It simplifies our game plan a lot. We also have a lot of weapons that we can use other than John this year.”
Among those other weapons are returnees junior Jaron Ambrose (31 carries, 181 yards, two touchdowns; four catches, 88 yards) and sophomores Derek Sunafrank (12 carries, 133 yards, two touchdowns) and Caleb Nuzzo (three carries, 31 yards).
Who throws and hands off the ball this year for Bradford High isn’t a cut-and-dry answer, though. Donny Pattison, the team’s leading receiver last year as a sophomore, is penciled in as the starting quarterback, but has to sit out the team’s first game vs. Smethport due to being ejected from last year’s finale against Warren. Nate Blauser, for now, will take the snaps under center for Week 1.
“It’s looking like Donny is going to be the guy after that first game,” said Puglio, who noted Pattison’s scrambling ability style differs greatly than the way Kyle Kirk, the school’s all-time leading passer, played last year. “He’s really got a command of the offense. He’s worked hard on his own to improve his throwing. I like what we can do with his legs. For a Wing-T, play-action passing scheme, to have the run along with the throwing threat is critical for us.”
Finding a spot for Blauser after the first game is also a top priority for the coaching staff.
“We have to figure out what happens to him after the Smethport game if he doesn’t play quarterback,” Puglio said. “He’s one of our best athletes and he has to be on the field.”
The team, after its offensive line was badly bitten by the injury bug, returns experience. Continuity in the interior along with Eakin’s downhill running style –– two things absent last year because of injuries and the shuffling of lineups –– would give the Owls’ a dynamic look that lacked last year.
“With us Wing-T teams, can you build that continuity on the line?” Puglio said. “Our skill guys are really, really good. They were really good last year. We just didn’t have consistency up front.”
Along the line, Bradford High brings back junior Mitch Hayden (We’re looking from big things out of him up from,” Puglio said.), senior Isaac Gralak and junior center Kevin Ackerman, a three-year starter.
“Center is one of those positions where it will make or break you.”
With health, a steady dose of Eakin eating up yardage and creating play-action passing opportunities, the Owls could be a major factor in the South division when division play opens in Week 5.
“We had a little bit of success early in the year and not so much at the end of the year,” Puglio said. “We want to really build on that and after that split in the schedule, we want to start winning some games in the [AML] South. That’s our focus.”
Returning starters:
John Eakin, senior, 6-2, 234, fullback/linebacker
Isaac Gralak, senior, 6-1, 225, guard/defensive end
Andy Pantuso, senior, 6-0, 195, tight end/linebacker
Kevin Ackerman, junior, 6-1, 218, center/linebacker
Jaron Ambrose, junior, 5-9, 150, running back/safety
Patrick Caskey, junior, 5-8, 162, running back/linebacker
Mitch Hayden, junior, 5-11, 227, guard/defensive tackle
Donny Pattison, junior, 6-2, 193, quarterback/cornerback
Drew Piganelli, junior, 6-3, 210, tackle/defensive end
Anthony Bruno, junior, 5-9, 147, slot end/safety
Derek Sunafrank, sophomore, 5-10, 158, running back/linebacker
Also lettering:
Caleb Nuzzo, sophomore, 5-9, 147, running back/linebacker
The players, by position:
Offense
Quarterbacks: Pattison, Nate Blauser (jr., 5-10, 150), Doug Hannon (so., 5-9, 133), Jake Pattison (fr., 5-7, 115 )
Running backs: Eakin, Ambrose, Caskey, Nuzzo, Sunafrank, Issac Smith (jr., 5-6, 137), Zach Woodel (jr., 5-7, 134), Jonah Rowry (so., 5-10, 150), Austen Davis (fr., 5-2, 103)
Ends: Pantuso, Bruno, Vinny Burgess (jr., 5-10, 215), Gaige Campbell (jr., 6-0, 185), Greg Frederick (jr., 5-8, 165), Matt Stafford (jr., 5-8, 138), Gage Taylor (so., 5-9, 170), Zach Cole (fr., 5-6, 115), Dillon Cramer (fr, 5-6, 128.), Kholten Fuller (fr., 5-11, 161)
Guards/tackles: Gralak, Hayden, Meyer, Piganelli, Dalton Feiro (sr., 5-11, 230), Jordan Bond (jr., 5-8, 182), Tyler Buck (jr., 5-11, 270), Clayton Cornelius (jr. 5-9, 187), Fuller, Brody Hahn (jr., 5-9, 180), John Mackey (jr.), Austin McCracken (jr. 5-9, 200), Alec Nelson (jr., 6-2, 237), Andrew Truman (jr., 5-9, 181), Caleb Blake (fr., 5-6, 161), Ryan Hughes (fr., 5-10, 198), Kyle McWilliams (fr., 5-7, 207)
Centers: Ackerman, James Yohe (so., 5-7, 197), Austin Schaumleffel (jr., 5-9, 211)
Defense:
Ends: Bond, Campbell, Cornelius, Frederick, Fuller, Meyer, Piganelli, Rowry, Hughes
Guards/tackles: Fiero, Buck, Hayden, Mackey, McCracken, Nelson, Schaumleffel, Truman, Yohe, Black, McWilliams
Linebackers: Eakin, Pantuso, Ackerman, Burgess, Caskey, Hahn, Smith, Nuzzo, Sunafrank, Taylor, J. Pattison
Defensivebacks: Ambrose, Blauser, Bruno, D. Pattison, Stafford, Woodel, Hannon, Cole, Cramer, Davis, Fuller
Kickers/punters:
THE SCHEDULE
August
25 – Bradford 56, Smethport 0
September
1 – Coudersport, 7 p.m.
8 – at Cameron County, 7 p.m.
15 – at Otto-Eldred, 7 p.m.
22 – Elk County Catholic, 7 p.m.
29 – at Ridgway, 7 p.m.
October
6 – Kane, 7 p.m.
13 – Brockway, 7 p.m.
20 at Curwensville, 7 p.m.
