3 takeaways from the Long Island high school football county quarterfinals
In this file photo, Ward Melville head coach Chris Boltrek watches his team play on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024. Credit: George A Faella
1. Maybe 8 isn't so great
Why do we still have eight teams qualify for the high school football playoffs? Some feel it’s a waste of time. Others feel it’s an opportunity to get a fresh start after a disappointing regular season.
The less-is-more concept of going with the top four in every division/conference would eliminate the quarterfinal round of the playoffs, which most feel is loaded with blowout victories and an exercise in futility for the weaker teams.
This weekend there were 28 double-digit wins in 32 public school games. Not exactly great football.
Nassau County started the quarterfinal round in 2004, and Suffolk County adopted the format in 2008.
The No. 1 seed has played the No. 8 seed a total of 144 times, with the No. 8 seed winning only once. In 2012, No. 8 West Babylon upset top-seeded West Islip, 20-19.
That makes the No. 8 seed in Suffolk 1-63 while Nassau No. 8 seeds are 0-80.
It gets a little more interesting when you look at the No. 2 seed against the No. 7.
In 144 meetings, the No. 7 seed has won eight times (8-136). It happened on Saturday when No. 7 South Side upset No. 2 seed Elmont, 31-13.
Overall, having eight playoff teams hasn't produced a lot of Cinderella stories.
If you combine the 1-8 matchups and the 2-7 meetings, the lower seed has gone 9-279.
Sometimes more is better. Most of the time it's not.
2. No guts, no glory
Give Ward Melville coach Chris Boltrek credit for the call of the week. The third-seeded Patriots trailed No. 6 Lindenhurst by a point in overtime. Boltrek decided to go for the two-point conversion and win. “We missed an extra point earlier in the game, and I was very confident to run the play we went with,” Boltrek said.
Boltrek used sophomore wide receiver Joe Karpowicz in the wildcat formation. Karpowicz followed big blocks from senior left guard Patrick Vasquez and junior left tackle Victor Bergamaschi on a counter run into the end zone for the win. “Karpowicz is just a dynamite athlete,” Boltrek said.
And now Ward Melville is on to the next round.
3. Special teams
Sachem North kicker Zach DeMilt put five of six kickoffs into the end zone and forced Connetquot to start at its own 20-yard line five times. The kicking game is so valuable in high school football — especially when you can make the opponent start deep in their own end almost every time. DeMilt also made 3-of-4 extra point attempts to help No. 5 Sachem North upset No. 4 Connetquot, 33-21.
Gregg Sarra is Newsday's high school sports editor and has been on the beat since the mid-1980s.
