Wolcott football head coach Jason Pace sees the return of four of his five offensive linemen from last year’s 9-3 squad.
That’s the good news.
The bad news: Pace needs to replace graduated quarterback Vincent Gambino (171-for-256, 2,305 yards, 28 TDs, 8 INT) and running back Mike Audibert (160 carries, 1,411 yards, 26 rushing TDs).
Gambino was the successor to dual-threat quarterback Mike Nicol, who also had a stellar career with the Eagles. Audibert was the successor to Joe Lynch, who ran for 1,362 yards and 17 TDs on 180 attempts in his senior season in 2014.
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| Wolcott huddles after practice at the school on Tuesday evening. |
Also gone are three solid wide receivers in Phil Lebel (53 receptions, 747 yards, 13 TDs), Jason Pelletier (39-419) and Sean Brooks (24-297).
With all those losses, you’d figure Wolcott is in trouble. That’s not necessarily the case.
“I lose all of those talented players, but four of my five offensive line return,” Pace said after practice on Tuesday evening.
Those linemen have been focused on getting stronger. During the summer, the linemen would lift before a workout, then do so again after. The commitment shows these linemen want to win, even if it may take a little time to break in some skill players.
The linemen are also big, something Pace hasn’t experienced before in his time as Wolcott’s coach.
On defense, the Eagles look to be an aggressive bunch, just judging by what I saw in their practice Tuesday.
Wolcott opens the regular season Friday on the home turf of Joe Monroe Field at 7 p.m. against Wilby.
