Section Nine Football

By FEARLESS PHIL High school kids eye the calendar and get that quiver in the tummy, that mixture of nervousness and excitement that signals the beginning of the new school year is close at hand. But football players are already back in class, only this classroom is located in the hot August sun of the practice field. Port Jervis all-state lineman Chuck Buck did a lot of homework in the offseason. As the sunlight glistened off the surprisingly appropriate Superman tattoo on Buck's huge right arm, the senior looked ready to go at an early preseason practice. He'd better be ready because opponents are hoping to tattoo a bullseye on his backside. "I'll have lots of help," Buck said. "We've got some good guys playing on the line with me." One of those big boys he referred to was another returnee, junior tackle Chris Conklin. Buck and Conklin shared the same homework assignment in the offseason, to shed some pounds and add more muscle. Buck is down about 15 pounds to a svelt 240; Conklin lost almost 20 pounds to get down to 250. Easier on the knees, improved mobility and quickness. Meanwhile up at Red Hook junior Chris Ramirez spent much of his offseason in the weight room, adding some 14 pounds of muscle to boost his weight to 194. Ramirez will be playing tackle this year in addition to running out of the fullback slot. Ramirez wants all the muscle and size he can get when lines up against the likes of Spackenkill in Red Hook's second scheduled contest of the upcoming season. These players are just three examples of what football coaches continually harp on: sacrifice and dedication. * * * * * * Meanwhile there is no offseason for the coaches. Defending AA champ Newburgh's C.T. Chatham has been focusing on assembling a front wall to complement the dazzling skilled players he has coming back like RB Joe Williams and WR/DB Sean Bergin ... Kingston's Tom Loughlin is trying to figure out how his solid squad can stop the Goldbacks while fending off Monroe-Woodbury ... The exuberant Greg Sirico must do a little tweaking (but not much) in time to tangle with whoever in the AA title game ... Wallkill's Dave DerCola has to keep his hungry and talented Panthers' confidence from turning into overconfidence. Port and Rondout are not about to be intimidated ... "Tom Terrific" Tegeler must guide his New Paltz Huguenots past Marlboro and Red Hook to get to another B title showdown with loaded Spackenkill ... Highland's Carl Relyea has to first get past Spackenkill before it can hope to return to the glory days of '94-'96 ... Now that Tri-Valley has moved up to Class C and escaped the nightmare of trying to stop Livingston Manor's George Thomas, Bear Coach Dave Viglione must win the duel with Pine Plains ... That leaves the remaining coaches in Class D with Thomas. Roscoe's Fred Ahart and Eldred's Frank Kean have so many years of coaching between them that, combined, those years when loaned to a newborn would make him eligible for social security. Surely they'll think of something. But Manor's Scott Branning has been around, too. And he's got Thomas ... Stay tuned. Things are going to get interesting.

By FEARLESS PHIL Rising from the aftermath of World War II, organized high school football in Ulster County solidified itself in the form of the Ulster County Athletic League (UCAL). Researcher and Section Nine stat man Rich Michaelis of New Paltz says that the Huguenots were playing touch football back in 1946 against the likes of Kerhonkson (later Rondout Valley) and Maybrook (later a part of Valley Central). From 1947 to 1953 the teams played one another in six-man football. After a year of playing both six-man and 11-man, 1955 saw New Paltz involved in an all 11-man schedule. Two years later (1957) saw a loosely confederated, five-team "Ulster County League" which included New Paltz, Kerhonkson (which would soon be Rondout), Onteora, Wallkill and Marlboro. Apparently there were no official league standings that first year. In 1957 the first of 34 years of champions would be proclaimed. Liberty, Ellenville, Pine Bush, Highland, Red Hook and Saugerties would also join the league. In 1980 the league changed its name to the Mid-Hudson Athletic League (MHAL). Here are the champs: UCAL 1957 - Onteora 1958 - Onteora & New Paltz (tie) 1959 - New Paltz 1960 - New Paltz/Rondout Valley/Onteora (tie) 1961 - New Paltz 1962 - Liberty 1963 - Liberty 1964 - Onteora 1965 - Highland 1966 - Highland 1967 - Rondout 1968 - Rondout 1969 - Pine Bush 1970 - Highland 1971 - Highland 1972 - Ellenville 1973 - Wallkill 1974 - Red Hook 1975 - Wallkill/Rondout/Pine Bush (tie) 1976 - Wallkill 1977 - New Paltz 1978 - Rondout 1979 - Marlboro MHAL 1980 - New Paltz 1981 - Ellenville 1982 - Ellenville 1983 - Marlboro 1984 - Marlboro 1985 - Marlboro 1986 - Rondout 1987 - Rondout 1988 - Red Hook/Onteora (tie) 1989 - Onteora 1990 - Saugerties In 1991 the section set up five divisions: Division I (Class A); II and III (Class B); IV (Class C); V (Class D). The MHAL teams went into divisions III and IV.