Charger Football: Living Up to the Name and Game
All photos by Roberta Pratt.
Evi Quast
Charger Football has a standard that coaches hold their players to on and off the field. “Chop the wood” is their simple, but meaningful power statement. This, among other things, separates Sussex Hamilton Football from the rest. The goal, the standard, and winning mentality that each of the coaches and players have in this program is what makes this team.
When coaches were interviewed to share their thoughts about how the season was going so far, not only did they acknowledge the struggles that they have been facing throughout the season, but marked on their wins and accomplishments up to this point. Each coach had their own opinions on upcoming games, past setbacks with injury, and all the in-betweens but one thing that showed through their interviews was the strong faith present in each and every one of their players.
Being a coach is not a walk in the park, and all the coaches have different styles and strengths they bring to the teams, especially this year, when Charger football overcame multiple bumps that some teams struggle to recover from. One of these was the loss of significant senior players, especially on the defensive front. When asked about this, instead of dreading the lost talent and potential for a major setback, Coach Josh Neary chose to highlight the talent still on the team and the strategies they used to build up and keep their long standing winning streak.
Neary stated, “Not having Mason Desai out there on the field, who is out with a knee injury, is a leader that we miss out there. What helps though is the lone returning starter is an All-Conference player in Tyler Mirasola. His leadership and motivation to win every rep is contagious with all our defensive backs.”
Coach Neary not only mentioned the senior DB’s he has worked with over the years, but made sure to highlight the grit and determination these players had despite the injury and loss of players. He went on further to say, “These seniors I have had the pleasure of coaching the last 4 years and we have a great relationship with each other and as a whole DB group. They make my job a lot easier and the transition a lot smoother.”
Of course, apart from the senior talent on the team and some of the losses off that, the work that Coaches Justin Kontny and Nathan LeRoy do to prepare the new freshman and sophmores to adapt to the higher level game deserves highlighting. When Coach LeRoy was asked about the freshmen’s progression this year he stated, “The freshmen have been progressing nicely. We have a good combination of athletes that have played for a long time and athletes that are new to football that have some real talent.”
Overall Coach LeRoy really marked on the positive strides that freshman have this year, even going on to state, “I believe that this current class has the most talent I have seen since I have started coaching here. The athletes in this group have the ability to take over a game on their own.”
Ultimately, the mix of returning players and incoming freshmen have affected the team in a positive way. Coach Kontny even commented on these dynamics, and the team working together to put in the reps and develop a strong game. “They are currently on a 16 game win streak. As they develop this offseason and fill spots of seniors we are losing on varsity, the sky's the limit for this group.”
Hamilton coaches keep a consistent focus towards the hard work they need to put in to face off against some of the best teams in the state. This all starts with the positive mindset, which is shown through Coach Zach Wettengel’s interview when he was asked how he was planning to prepare defensively for the Marquette and Germantown games. “They are great opponents and will present a challenge in many areas. At the end of the day we know if we do our job and play for each other we can accomplish anything we put our minds to!”
Despite Marquette and Germantown having notably tough offensive lines, Coach Wett was confident from a defensive standpoint that, apart from a tough competition, the players can very much deliver a good, strong game.
Leading into feelings about the playoff season as well, not just on the defensive side but overall, Head Coach Justin Gumm felt extremely confident his team could deliver the Charger standard. “We feel like when we play at our potential, we can beat anybody. We have a group that works hard and plays for each other and when we play our game, we are pretty impressive.”
Again the coaches maintain consistent messaging on the overall positive feelings about their players and skill.
Playoffs are often a stressful time for teams; however, with the game plan that each of the coaches have carefully constructed and effort they put into getting their team to the top, expectations are high. Coach Gumm further explained the techniques that help the team get to where they want to be. “The key to our success this season so far has been guys going out and executing the game plan, together. We don't have players trying to do too much; they trust the guy next to them to do their job and they continue to do theirs.”
All the coaches had many different difficulties to deal with starting off the season and carrying it on, but that hasn’t seemed to stop them at all from keeping up the standard. Coach Gumm, ended his interview with a strong sentiment: “The standard does not change and they know that. Past success has led to continued success.”
Hamilton Chargers Football is now 6 and 2 overall, 4 -1 in conference play, and 2nd overall in the Greater Metro Conference. The season is looking strong and optimism runs high with coaches, players, and fans. Despite the challenging games, looking further into the playoff season it's sure to be a winning streak for Chargers Football, especially with the mentality coaches and their players have.
