High school football has arrived: Four Section 4 games to keep an eye on (plus a few more)
Off one of the toastiest, least-comfortable September weeks of preparation in recent memory, Section 4’s football squads are prepped and ready for across-the-board action.
Following a weekend of here-and-there activity, the schedule kicks in for real Friday and Saturday.
Here, a smattering of games of particular note:
Susquehanna Valley at Johnson City, 7 p.m. Friday
Go time approaches for SV and JC, each coming off 2022 seasons within a game of .500.
When the teams collided in October 2022, Wildcats quarterback Peyton Brzozowy made good on 8 of 11 passes for 100 yards and a TD in a 36-20 win at Susquehanna Valley. The lead was 30-14 following JC’s 16-0 command of the third quarter.
SV was a 34-16 winner against S-VE/Candor in last season’s opener, with Luke Kariam 5-for-5 passing in a game that was 34-0 early in the fourth quarter. JC defeated Vestal 14-13 to open the 2022 season.
Windsor at Chenango Forks, 7 p.m. Friday
Chenango Forks commences a season coming off a loss for the first time since 2019, and does so against an opponent that a season ago took the Blue Devils to the brink.
In September of 2022 – Forks’ second game and Windsor’s opener – the Blue Devils emerged with a 19-12 win at Windsor. The Black Knights held a 12-6 halftime lead on TDs by Ashton Werner (20 rushes, 90 yards) and Dom Weaver, only to have Forks go ahead for keeps on Finn Stark’s 45-yard rushing TD in the third quarter.
Windsor will seek its first win against Forks since 1998.
Tioga at Waverly, 7 p.m. Friday
The atmosphere at Waverly’s Memorial Stadium figures to be extraordinarily energized come kickoff to set in motion a contest pitting Tioga’s two-time defending Class D state champion riding a 28-game win streak against Waverly’s reigning Section 4 Class C champion.
More: Q&A with Waverly’s Joey Tomasso: A wide range of topics explored in this one
Do not be surprised to see a healthy bit of scoring produced by teams that combined for 83 points in their respective openers last weekend.
The most recent meeting between the Tigers and Wolverines resulted in a 36-17 win for Tioga in the abbreviated Spring of 2021 season.
More: Tioga Central football looks to continue dominance, eyes three-peat
Chenango Valley at Maine-Endwell, 7 p.m. Friday
Maine-Endwell, the team to beat among New York’s Class B lot, will tote a 22-game win streak into 2023 and a Night 1 test against Chenango Valley.
Austyn Nyschot, returner of a punt 80 yards for points in last year’s opener, takes over at quarterback with rave reviews from Spartans coach Matt Gallagher. “He’s been smack-dab in the middle of some big things for us in the biggest moments,” the coach said.
Chenango Valley moves up to Class B this season after a stay in Class C.
“We haven’t played them in a while. We’re going to approach that game like any other,” Gallagher said. “I know they’re trying to build something and with a new coach, in his second year, he’ll bring some enthusiasm and they’ll hopefully put together something.
“Our goal will be to get better every week, get as many guys to play as possible because that’ll always help us. The more time our guys get in game situations, the better off we’ll be as the season progresses because we don’t have an easy schedule.”
Section 4 vs. Section 3
Section 4 neighbors Elmira, Horseheads and three-time defending sectional Class AA champion Corning will square off with opponents from Section 3 on Friday night.
The Express opens at home against Liverpool on an evening the school district will recognize 2023 inductees into the Elmira City School District Athletic Hall of Fame at halftime.
Corning’s initial foe of 2023 is a familiar one, with the Hawks taking on host Cicero-North Syracuse in a rematch of the last three Class AA regional quarterfinals. C-NS has won all, rolling to a 36-0 victory last year after nailbiters between the schools in 2019 and 2021.
Horseheads, which cruised to a 56-34 win over Columbia to begin its season, makes its home debut against Fayetteville-Manlius.
And more 4 vs. 3 action
Vestal will be home 7 p.m. Friday against Baldwinsville and Union-Endicott will visit Syracuse CBA at 6:30 that night, the openers for Section 4’s duo but not so for their Section 3 opponents.
Baldwinsville fell by 28-6 last weekend to Jamestown while CBA was a 49-8 winner against South Park.
As for Vestal vs. U-E? That one is scheduled for Sept. 22 at Dick Hoover Stadium.
Week 1 Schedule
Sept. 8
Corning at Cicero-North Syracuse, 6:30
Union-Endicott at Syracuse CBA, 6:30
Liverpool at Elmira, 7
Fayetteville-Manlius at Horseheads, 7
Baldwinsville at Vestal, 7
Chenango Valley at Maine-Endwell, 7
Susquehanna Valley at Johnson City, 7
Norwich at Oneonta, 7
Windsor at Chenango Forks, 7
Sidney at Bainbridge-Guilford, 7
Tioga at Waverly, 7
S-VE/Candor at Dryden, 7
Whitney Point at Deposit-Hancock, 7
More: M-E's Adam DeSantis, Tioga's Caden Bellis head small school all-state football teams
Sept. 9
Binghamton at Utica Proctor, 1:30
Owego at Newark Valley, 1:30
Delhi at Harpursville/Afton, 1:30
Ithaca at Walton, 1:30
Lansing vs. WG/O-M (at O-M), 7
Eight-Player
Sept. 8
Unatego at Morrisville-Eaton, 6
Onondaga at Groton, 7
Sept. 9
Greene at Newfield, noon
Oxford at Thomas A. Edison, 1:30
Trumansburg at Unadilla Valley, 7
Moravia at Thousand Islands, 7
This article originally appeared on Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin: HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL: NYSPHSAA Section 4 matchups to watch in Week 1
