The Program: Unity football in 2023, Week 10
Oct. 26—Each week, we catch up with coach Scott Hamilton to look back at how the Rockets fared and look at what's next:
Week 9: Unity 47, Monticello 23
A balanced offense and opportuntistic defense helped the Rockets end the regular season with a superb road win. Dane Eisenmenger completed 17 of 25 passes for 168 yards and three touchdowns, Garrett Richardson rushed for 131 yards on 22 carries and a touchdown and Aiden Porter led the receiving corps with 86 yards on eight catches and one touchdown. The Rockets never trailed, taking a 20-0 lead in the second quarter.
"The thing I was happiest with was in a big game where you get a lot of momentum at the start, you've got to stay focused and moving in the right direction," Hamilton said. "We were able to do that."
Week 10: Unity (7-2) at
Williamsville (7-2), 2 p.m. Saturday
This is the third straight season the Rockets and Bullets will meet in the playoffs. And fifth time in the last 12 seasons. But first time they'll tangle in the first round of the Class 3A playoffs. Unity lost 12-7 at Williamsville in the state semifinals a year ago and topped the Bullets 28-7 in the state quarterfinals in 2021. The Rockets lost 45-7 in the second round in 2013 and won 10-7 in the state quarterfinals in 2012 in the other two playoff meetings against coach Aaron Kunz's program.
"They are very well-coached. Very disciplined. Very sound," Hamilton said of this season's Williamsville team, which has only lost against two playoff teams in Olympia and Maroa-Forsyth. "They look very similar to us. They lost a ton of guys from last year, and were trying to find themselves early in the season. Now that they have, they're playing their best football."
Much like Hamilton feels about his team, which has won four straight games.
And Hamilton had a hunch early this past Saturday that Unity and Williamsville would meet in the first round. So much that he and Kunz exchanged text messages before it was official that Rockets and Bullets would add another chapter to their playoff history together.
"I figured we'd be on the road with where we were with the playoff points," Hamilton said. "Any time you play one of Aaron's teams, you know what you're going to get. It's just a matter of us being ready to go."
