In his fourth year as head football coach at Westbury High School, Savalis Charles now has a group of seniors that are fully integrated in his system.
“These seniors came into ninth grade during my first year here so the only thing they know is my system,” said the former LIU Post star. “Last year’s seniors came in under a different coach.”
That will be a huge confident boost for a young team that is returning only six starting players from last year. They will be forced to transition from All-County quarterback Raeco Jackson, who has moved on to play at Div-III Cortland.
Last year, Jackson led the squad to a 3-5 record, which left them one victory out of the playoffs for the third consecutive season. They were on pace for a postseason berth when they began the season at 3-1. Then the injury bug hit.
“Lots of our weapons were out,” said Charles.
The team lost the remaining four games of the season by a combined score of 126-30. Between the injuries and having to face Carey and Wantagh, it was the perfect storm for the playoff hopefuls.
Fortunately, they will be returning star running back Shalike Marchant who ran for 1,100 yards last season and an absurd 1,700 yards and 17 touchdowns during his sophomore year. They will, undoubtedly, be relying on the senior back to duplicate that type of success.
At the quarterback position, Charles noted that there is a competition between junior Viron Jones and Nayya Miller. Entering camp, the team was expecting Jones to be the quarterback considering his consistency and conventional passing style. In recent days, however, Miller has “really stepped up”, according to Charles and put his name in the conversation. If Jones does win the starting job, Miller will still see plenty of time as a cornerback and wide receiver because of his incredible speed.
The starting job will be decided based upon their upcoming scrimmage and Charles said it will be a “real test” for the team.
On defense, the team will be counting on senior Jhonny Cruz and Tykim Anderson. Both three-year starters, Charles stated that the 248 pound Cruz has what it takes to play at the college level and he “has a great motor” and is the “strongest kid on the team.”
He will need to shoulder a heavy burden, and that comes in the form of playing among a difficult conference. The reigning champs from Carey are reloaded, as are the No. 3 ranked Garden City Trojans. Fortunately, they will not have to play either of those teams.
They will, however, play No. 2 ranked MacArthur and Bellmore JFK, whom they open up against on Sept. 12.
Charles is optimistic about the team, despite their young age. “I know what we can do—what we’re capable of doing,” he said.
Now it’s time for them to go out and do it.
