Rondout Valley Central School (Accord, a suburb of Poughkeepsie, NY) has announced that SR WR/FS Andrew Koonz has accepted an academic scholarship to attend Hobart College this fall. Andrew starred for the Ganders in the classroom, football, lacrosse fields and the basketball court.
According to RVCS AD Jeremy Weber, Koonz "was recognized by the NY State Football Coaches association as one of the Top 30 student athletes in the state." Andrew also earned All Section IX awards in football and helped his lacrosse squad to a Section IX title.
A link to Koonz's highlight reel can be seen here.
What I can see from the film is Andrew uses his height (6'2") and excellent field vision to make plays, finding open lanes to gain yards. Defensively he can blitz, cover well and has good speed (4.6 FYD) that will serve him well in college.
Given his special teams experience at RVCS, I could see him get playing time early in his college career as a KOR or PR while he learns the playbook as an offensive or defensive player.
Either way, Koonz sounds like an excellent get for Hobart as a student athlete. Please join me in welcoming Andrew to the Statesmen Football family!
Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!
Saturday, March 26, 2016
Friday, March 25, 2016
Spring Practice Underway
While the Hobart College Class of 2016 prepares to graduate in a few weeks, the work on the 2016 football season has commenced up in Geneva. Spring practice got underway last week with the rising SO, JR and SR classes already keying in on the season opener scheduled for Saturday, September 3rd at Brockport. The Golden Eagles are looking to improve upon last season's 5-5 overall campaign and boast one of the best RBs in the East Region in JR Dan Andrews.
Captains have been named (more on that in a future post) and competitions across all positions are underway. While all roles are important, the most significant position battles in my opinion will probably occur along the OL and LB corps this spring and into preseason camp.
The Statesmen have big shoes to fill with the graduations of Trayvon Toney and Jacob Stanley. Hobart sees three key players on the OL graduate including Brendan Casey, Emiliano Acosta and TJ Scammura.
Captains have been named (more on that in a future post) and competitions across all positions are underway. While all roles are important, the most significant position battles in my opinion will probably occur along the OL and LB corps this spring and into preseason camp.
The Statesmen have big shoes to fill with the graduations of Trayvon Toney and Jacob Stanley. Hobart sees three key players on the OL graduate including Brendan Casey, Emiliano Acosta and TJ Scammura.
The FB position is also up for grabs with the graduation of Christopher Holoman. Fortunately the Statesmen have developed a deep roster of talented players.
I'll look to post more recruiting and spring practice notes in the coming weeks. In the meantime, thanks for reading and go 'Bart!
Saturday, March 12, 2016
Statesmen Sign St. John's Prep's Rodriguez
The Salem News (MA) reports that two St. John's Prep student athletes will continue their college careers at rival Upstate colleges. St. John's, located in Danvers, MA, is one of the top HS football programs in New England. ESPN.com ranked it fourth last preseason in their "Boston High School Report". The Eagles finished 8-3 overall in 2015, losing their final game 14-0 to Xaverian at hallowed Fenway Park (Go Sawx!).
Hobart enticed one Eagles player, DT David Rodriguez to join the Statesmen. He will be reunited with former teammate and St. John's alumni rising Hobart SO LB Brandon Kahari, At 5'10" 250 lbs. the Statesmen probably hope Rodriguez can grow into an interior problem for opposing offensive lines just like former standout (and MA native) DT Troy Johnson '15.
Hobart enticed one Eagles player, DT David Rodriguez to join the Statesmen. He will be reunited with former teammate and St. John's alumni rising Hobart SO LB Brandon Kahari, At 5'10" 250 lbs. the Statesmen probably hope Rodriguez can grow into an interior problem for opposing offensive lines just like former standout (and MA native) DT Troy Johnson '15.
A link to Rodriguez's highlight reel can be found here. The film shows Rodriguez lining up typically on the right interior side of the Eagles 4x4 defense.
Please join me in welcoming David to the Statesmen Football family!
Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!
Tuesday, March 1, 2016
St. George's Davis Picks Statesmen
It's taken me a while to locate much on the recruiting front, but it appears that at least one member of the Class of 2020 has received some press.
The Boston Globe recently highlighted the college choices of top HS football players in Eastern Massachusetts. Approximately 60 players were mentioned, but what I noticed was number 14 on the list (which was in alpha order) which read:
Omari Davis RB/DE St. George's Hobart
Davis starred for the undefeated Dragons (9-0) who won the New England Prep School Championship last season. It was the first undefeated run for St. George's in over 60 years! St. George's School is a co-ed boarding school located in Newport, RI.
Davis (#32), whose highlight reel can be seen here, is a north / south style runner. He may need to learn a little patience with letting his OL's blocks develop at the college level as he won't be able to blast through the line quite as easily as he did at the HS level.
Still, at 6' 215 lbs, he has good size and with 4.6 40 yard dash speed, he has potential to be another solid prep school RB Hobart has had in prior years (e.g., Keith Brandon out of NMH). He could also get initial looks as a FB given his size and blocking skills.
Davis also played DE for the Dragons and could get a look on the defensive side of the ball. He was named the SGS Athlete of the Week on October 5, 2015 for a 21 rush, 87 yard, 1 TD and five tackle (two TFL) game against St. Mark's.
Overall Davis sounds like a strong student athlete given the academic reputation of SGS and we congratulate and welcome him as part of the Hobart Football family!
Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!
The Boston Globe recently highlighted the college choices of top HS football players in Eastern Massachusetts. Approximately 60 players were mentioned, but what I noticed was number 14 on the list (which was in alpha order) which read:
Omari Davis RB/DE St. George's Hobart
Davis starred for the undefeated Dragons (9-0) who won the New England Prep School Championship last season. It was the first undefeated run for St. George's in over 60 years! St. George's School is a co-ed boarding school located in Newport, RI.
Davis (#32), whose highlight reel can be seen here, is a north / south style runner. He may need to learn a little patience with letting his OL's blocks develop at the college level as he won't be able to blast through the line quite as easily as he did at the HS level.
Still, at 6' 215 lbs, he has good size and with 4.6 40 yard dash speed, he has potential to be another solid prep school RB Hobart has had in prior years (e.g., Keith Brandon out of NMH). He could also get initial looks as a FB given his size and blocking skills.
Davis also played DE for the Dragons and could get a look on the defensive side of the ball. He was named the SGS Athlete of the Week on October 5, 2015 for a 21 rush, 87 yard, 1 TD and five tackle (two TFL) game against St. Mark's.
Overall Davis sounds like a strong student athlete given the academic reputation of SGS and we congratulate and welcome him as part of the Hobart Football family!
Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!
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