Football is a strange game. In 2013, the Massapequa Chiefs were loaded with stars—including quarterback Matt Caracappa, wide receiver Craig Berge and close to 30 seniors, yet they had their dreams dashed by the rival Farmingdale Dalers in the Nassau County title game.
Last season, when the team was expected to take a significant step backwards because of a young core group of players, they shocked the Nassau football community by getting redemption on Farmingdale and defeating them 20-14 to advance to the county semifinals. They finished 5-5, but nonetheless showed a ton of resiliency by winning two playoff games against higher ranked opponents.
“We knew they would be good,” said fifth-year head co
ach Kevin Shippos. “But not many of them had experience at the varsity level. Junior varsity is a different animal.”
This season promises to be even more successful. The Chiefs have 30 seniors on the roster—the most in Shippos’ tenure—and many of them have a full-season of experience under their belts now.
Leading the way will be quarterback Brad Baldinger. The signal-caller is coming back from a scary injury in 2014. After getting hit on a play, it was discovered a few days later that he had ruptured his splee—an injury that has ended many football players’ careers.
After a tedious road to recovery, he has come back from his injury and has been medically cleared to go.
“He’s bigger, faster and stronger from last year,” said Shippos. “He was voted captain by his teammates. He hasn’t been allowed to get hit yet, so he won’t get hit until week one.”
Shippos noted that the strength of the team is the leadership and experience on the offensive line. Kyle Berna, Tommy Kempton, Dominick Corrao and Matt St. Jeanos are a veteran group and their are a handful of three and four-year starters among them. They will look to protect Baldinger and pave the way for the run game.
Chris Baccoti will be the workhorse at tailback and will also play safety on defense. Last season, he rushed for seven touchdowns and added another three receiving touchdowns. He was also one of the heroes in the upset of Farmingdale. Along with his 18-yard touchdown run, he also recovered the fumble that was forced by linebacker Paul Dilena to prevent the Dalers from scoring the game-tying touchdown with time expiring.
The Chiefs will once again be competing with the heavy weights of Nassau County. Conference-I, which features the schools with the largest enrollment figures, currently has the reigning Nassau County champions from Syosset, ranked No. 1. East Meadow comes in at No. 3, the Chiefs are ranked No. 3 and the 2013 Nassau County champion Farmingdale Dalers are No. 4.
It will undoubtedly be a fight to the finish once again, but the Chiefs are well-equipped to handle this sort of competition.
They will open up at home on Sept. 12 against Herricks.
