Challenge a steep one but Scianna, Larkin look forward to it
New Larkin football coach Mike Scianna knew it wasn't going to be easy. Building a strong program rarely is.
After working for years as an assistant coach in multiple high school programs and Benedictine University, Scianna was thrilled last April when he was named the fifth football coach of the Royals since 1962.
His positive outlook hasn't changed even though he inherits a steep challenge in his first season. Larkin returns only four full-time starters from a team that went 5-4 and missed the playoffs on points.
Making matters more difficult, the new coach and his staff were informed Tuesday that nine players who had participated throughout summer camp and two-a-day fall practices were actually ineligible due to academic issues stemming from the spring semester. The late word of their ineligibility three days before the season opener cost the Royals their leading returning rusher, starting nose guard, backup tailback and several key reserves from what was already a young team.
Scianna said even more sophomores will have to be brought up in addition to the four already slotted to play with the varsity. That won't be easy either because only 11 sophomores came out for football this season. Tentative plans, Scianna said, already called for the freshman team to play the sophomore schedule.
Though Tuesday's news had the potential to be a devastating blow, Scianna remained optimistic.
"Hey, we just have to go out there and take it out on our opponent as best we can," he said. "We have a game to play against McHenry.
"We have a lot of juniors and a lot of sophomores coming up, so the future's bright. We want to win now, but there's going to be some growing pains. We'll be very, very young.
"Ideally, we're hoping for a balanced attack. If we stay balanced, we'll be a little bit more competitive."
The key component to such an attack will be returning junior quarterback Kyle Newquist (6-foot-2, 185 pounds). As a sophomore last season, the signalcaller was not asked to win games for the Royals. That was the job of all-state running back Jalen Williams, and he executed it well. Newquist completed 45-of-100 attempts for 527 yards and 7 touchdowns and ran for 3 scores.
The other returning starter on offense is senior wide receiver Trevor Whitehead (6-0, 180). He made 15 receptions last year for 231 yards and 3 touchdowns and he ran for another. Whitehead's coach said the sticky handed receiver has the potential to be one of the top receivers in the Upstate Eight.
"He's our guy," Scianna said. "He's got very good feet, runs great routes and catches the ball. He gets hit and gets right back up. You wish you had 11 of those. And he's a good kid and good in the classroom, too."
Speedy sophomore tailback Matthew Smith (5-9, 160) could develop into a key component of the attack.
The offensive line lacks experience but boasts excellent size in some positions. Sophomores Adam Hamill (6-2, 270) and Terry Schabert (6-1, 305) are building blocks of a developing unit. Senior Joe Hitzeroff (6-1, 256) could prove to be a revelation at right guard. The Larkin staff thought highly of him last summer, but a preseason knee injury sidelined him for his junior season.
Senior outside linebacker Brandon Williams (6-2, 230) and senior cornerback Frankie Haywood (5-7, 140) are the only returnees on defense. Junior Brett Barry (5-10, 175) will play inside linebacker. Scianna called him "the smartest kid we've got. He calls the defense and makes things work."
Senior Mikey Herbold (6-4, 255) was part of the defensive line rotation last year and returns at an end. Athletic junior Shaq Moseley (5-10, 180) will man the other cornerback slot.
"We know it's a building year," Scianna said of his young team. "Get better every day has been our motto. We need to play hard for six seconds every play. If we can break it down and be good at the little things, we'll come through."