Football: Fox Lane turns the page for a new season in a new league

Clockwise from top left, Justin Sarote will be a key on both sides of the ball for Fox Lane. Sophomore Andrew Rudolph steps into varsity role wearing same jersey number as his brother Will who graduated last year. Gabe Rodgers returns after missing last season due to injury. Senior Joe Cerone will anchor the line for the Foxes. Drew Giuliano is back for his fifth year as the head coach for Fox Lane. (Jim MacLean Photos)

By JIM MACLEAN

It didn’t end the way they wanted it to.

Ask anybody involved with Fox Lane football last year and that’s what they will tell you, a season with high hopes and a talented roster off to a good start, and then came some devastating injuries that knocked them out of the playoff picture.

Losing your starting quarterback and star receiver in the same game, both three-year varsity starters, along with other key injuries was a big blow for the Foxes. Most of that team were senior veterans lost to graduation, and now Fox Lane will take to the field with a young team that has just seven seniors on the roster taking on a new schedule as the Foxes move to the southern league in Class A.

Senior Justin Sarote was one of the injured, one of the leading tacklers on defense at linebacker and the back up quarterback before his injury, he still has a bitter taste of how last season unfolded for the Foxes.

“Last season we were a great team and then three people went down, being one of the injured, I can’t wait to get back out there,” said Sarote. “For the seniors coming into this season, we’ve got to step up and be leaders, we have a young team, and everyone has to step up.”

Fellow senior Gabe Rodgers was another one of the key injuries suffered by the Foxes. He was a starting linebacker and went down with an injury in the first game of the season.

“This year is my last chance, my senior year, and I was injured all last year, so I’m putting everything I have into this year to prove myself on the field for my team,” explained Rodgers. “We have to keep our heads down and focus on getting better every day. When you wear that jersey on a Friday night, every second of the game you have to work hard, stay focused, and that’s how we can be successful.”

Fox Lane coach Drew Giuliano is back for his fifth year at the helm, and he knows it is a new season with new challenges. Fox Lane will not be facing state champion Somers, Yorktown, Mahopac and the rest of its local rivals in the northern league, now the Foxes have to prepare for a new schedule against powerhouse Rye, Harrison, Nyack and other Rockland County teams.

“We’re like everyone else, trying to figure out who we are and learn from our mistakes; we did a camp and we have a weak zero game, so we’re prepared and ready to get started,” Giuliano said regarding the new season. “We’re counting on a lot of juniors and sophomores and only have seven seniors. Our league is different, and if we do our thing we can be a little sneaky and surprise some people. We’re concentrating on fundamentals and getting better every day.”

Sarote and Rodgers are two returning senior starters that Giuliano will be counting on to lead the way for a roster that includes 36 players overall. Those two will be key on defense and also carrying the ball on offense, with Sarote at quarterback.

The Foxes have some veteran leaders returning as starters in the trenches, led by senior Joe Cerone. He will lead the way on both sides of the line for the Foxes. Senior Marvin Romero is another returning starter on the line at defensive end.

Other returning varsity players include senior receiver Will Broghammer, and junior Evan Stackle returns at running back after being on varsity last year as a sophomore.

Newcomers carrying the load in the backfield will be juniors Luis Rodriguez and Luke Grasso, and junior Chase Stonecipher will be a big target as a receiver for the Foxes.

A pair of sophomore newcomers carrying on a family tradition will Gavin Mammola and Andrew Rudolph as they both step into a varsity role wearing the same jersey numbers as their big brothers Logan Mammola and Will Rudolph, a pair of senior veterans on last year’s team. Gavin will be wearing No. 2, and will be a halfback and defensive back like his older brother, while Andrew will be wearing No. 9, and playing at quarterback for the Foxes.

It adds up to a talented, but young roster, and the seniors want to make it a happy ending for their careers on the Fox Lane sideline.

“The seniors this year who were juniors last year were really upset, we felt we could have gone far in the playoffs, but we had all those injuries,” added Cerone. “Friday nights, under the lights is a feeling you can’t describe, that’s the beauty of football. Coach always says there is nothing like playing in front of your home town with the people you grew up with, it’s special, and we’ll get after it and give it our all.”

Fox Lane was set to kick off the season tonight, Friday, Sept. 5, at home against rival Horace Greeley.