Football

Blood, sweat and tears

Liberty shows immeasurable heart edging out Eldred in a football classic

By RICHARD A. ROSS

LIBERTY NY — Football is about a lot of things. But in the end, it’s mostly about desire. No other sport requires quite the same combination of unyielding physical contact and unbridled will.

For the past two seasons, Liberty has endured ravaging defeats since its program was reinstated in 2005, going 1-17. But coach Jim O’Connor and his staff have marshaled a group of high school football players through the ranks of modified, junior varsity and varsity and tried to instill in them the belief that if they worked hard and sacrificed enough, they could turn the corner and begin to steer the Indians back towards the zenith Liberty once occupied.

In the faces bedewed by tears of exultation and the stirring words of the coach who tried to express his untrammeled pride in their effort, win or lose, the rewards of those sacrifices were made plain with Liberty’s stirring 15-14 home win over Eldred on September 8.

The win followed an opening road 26-22 win over storied Delhi, and propelled the Indians to a 2-0 start, something last seen in 1999. Senior Trevor Tomkins, who is unquestionably the team’s emotional nexus, never held back both on the field, where he seemed omnipresent, and in his post game expression of what this win meant.

“This is not about me, this is about our team,” he said. “This one’s for you, coach,” he told O’Connor following the victory. Much was said in those moments, including O’Connor’s tribute. “You left your hearts on the field today and I am so proud of you,” he said. “We did this because we were 1-17 and you guys deserve this for all of the hard work. And I would have said the same things to you even if we had lost.”

But Tomkins had something else to motivate the team. “We dedicated this game to Kyle Lackey,” he said to this writer. “He left his heart out here on this field in the last football game he ever played in and no one played harder than him.”

Lackey, a senior on the Livingston Manor/Roscoe (LMR) Devilcats, died in a fatal car crash last fall. Liberty’s only win came against LMR and Tomkins remembered Lackey’s grit and effort in that game.

The dawn of a new era

Liberty has struggled in most sports in the recent past, but the Liberty community remembers years like 1999, when the mention of Liberty football evoked respect. But of late, schools felt they could write in a win even before playing the Indians.

That era is rapidly drawing to a close and the Indians proved it with their impressive win over Eldred, a team that a year ago lambasted them 47-0, as quarterback Nick McCormick rushed for four touchdowns.

Over the past two years, Eldred has been dominant. Last week, the Yellowjackets sent the signal that they were ready to batter opponents again by trouncing Hancock 52-6.

That signal never reached Liberty. They were busy relentlessly practicing for a game that, from the looks of the first half, meant a lot more to them than it did to Eldred. After beating Delhi last week, Liberty players had to hear their win downplayed as some people said that Delhi wasn’t really the Delhi of old.

“Now beat Eldred and maybe you’ll get some respect,” they said.

So they did.

Liberty hit hard and caused a trio of first-half fumbles. Two of those, they turned into scores. Eldred is used to pounding out its running game, but Jim O’Connor’s tribe hit the gaps and stymied the run of Eldred’s running backs Kevin Prunka, Chris Leader and Tom Compasso. As for passing, Eldred never got one off successfully, not that they tried many.

On an attempted screen pass, quarterback Bryan Henry was sacked and the resulting fumble, caused by Liberty’s Shane Fitzsimmons, was alertly picked up by Pedro Alvarez and carried 39 yards for Liberty’s second score of the first quarter.

Seventeen seconds earlier, Liberty had profited from an Eldred fumble recovered by Brian Williams. Eldred looked like they’d get the ball right back, but Liberty quarterback Joe Ruiz connected with Ivan Rivera on the left sideline. He galloped by Compasso and hauled in the ball on a fourth-and-eight play. The play went for 34 yards, and gave the fired up Indians a 6-0 lead with 1:59 remaining in the first quarter. Tompkins booted the PAT to make it seven-zip.

Alavarez made it 13-0 with his fumble recovery gallop, and a faked kick turned pass found Tompkins from Ruiz for two more. Liberty was stoked and Eldred felt the heat. Yes, it was hot out, but the real heat emanated from coach Frank Kean, who declared he was embarrassed by his team’s flat play in the first half. Liberty led 15-0 at the break.

Kean’s halftime sermon awoke Eldred from its slumber. Liberty was soon to learn you can be stung when you disturb the hive.

Liberty received to start the second half but, just like last week, they watched their lead trimmed quickly. Last week, it was Delhi’s passes. This week, it was Eldred’s revived running attack. Liberty’s first series of the half stalled, and Eldred took over on downs on its own 21. Henry, who had been nursing a sore shoulder since the fumble, returned to call signals in place of his sub Stan Smith.

Prunka, Leader and Compasso were picking up big swaths of yardage. With just over half of the third quarter gone, Leader rumbled across the goal line for Eldred’s first score. The score stood at 15-6. Prunka’s conversion run was stopped in one of those defining stands made by the Indians that would ultimately determine the outcome.

Eldred’s defense was sensing Liberty’s fatigue and Eldred capitalized on the next series. After Nick Simonelli stopped Tompkins on the third down, Liberty faked a punt but fumbled. Eldred’s Cody Conklin recovered and gave Eldred a first down at the Liberty 26 as the third quarter ended.

Prunka got it to the two. but then Tompkins picked off a Henry pass and the interception was called back on a holding penalty. On the next play, Compasso dove in for the score from the two to make it 15-12. Prunka made it a one-point game on a conversion carry and things were getting interesting.

There were still seven and a half minutes to go, and Eldred schemed to get the ball back and do it again. They held Liberty at bay and forced a punt. Gino Jones blocked the punt and Eldred had the momentum, but Liberty reached down for something called heart.

As it turns out, they had an ample supply. As the second-half effort showed, Eldred did too.

Eldred had a short field at the Liberty 28. Compasso ran it to the nine and Prunka took it to the four, but it was now fourth down. A lack of line push showed itself in last week’s win against Hancock. Now it was rearing its head again.

Eldred called a time out and Liberty assistant coach Chris Sinceno told his team, “This play will decide the game. Hit the gaps and get a good push.”

Eldred’s 21-yard field goal was well within range of kicker Bobby Warden but no one blocked Brandon Tompkins. He got a piece of the ball, which flew between the uprights but under the crossbar. Liberty took over on the 20 and Eldred prayed for a fumble or a big stop. They got neither. Dustin VanLieu made a great run to the 37 and Tompkins got it to the Eldred 49. On the next carry, he broke loose for a touchdown but a holding penalty called it back.

A punt was never returned as Kojo Williams bobbled it and held on at the 11. Prunka made a valiant run to the 30, but time expired as the teams earnestly congratulated each other.

Eldred (1-1) faces tough Tri-Valley (2-0) in Grahamsville next weekend, while Liberty travels to James I. O’Neill on September 14. O’Neill is 0-2.

Kudos to both teams for a great football classic, one that will no doubt motivate both squads as they approach the ongoing challenges of their 2007 campaigns.

Stat Line:

Prunka had 35 carries for 94 yards; Leader went 10 for 80; and Compasso was 12 for 61 for Eldred.

Liberty had 29 rushes for 103 yards; Trevor Tompkins had 9 rushes for 49 yards; Joey Ruiz completed 5 of 14 passes for 54 yards.

Visit riverreportersports.com for an album of photos.