Football Preview: Manhasset vs. South Side

After losing to Carle Place last week, the South Side Cyclones (1-3) look to rebound in this Saturday's home game against Manhasset, who are coming off a 35-0 loss to Lynbrook.

Coach Paul Mastronardi said he was impressed by Manhasset's quarterback, who he noted is a threat in the air and on the ground. "He's definitely the best quarterback we've seen all year," he said. "He runs well and has an outstanding arm."

As he said last week, the coach reiterated that he needs more consistency from his defense, and the unit has to focus more on wrapping up in the open field. "We had four major breakdowns last week that turned into three touchdowns," Mastronardi said. "We have to stop giving up the big play."

He noted that besides the four defensive lapses, the defensive unit played pretty well. They made a key stop on a fourth-quarter, Carle Place third down to give the offense a chance to tie the game with three minutes left.

For South Side to beat Manhasset, Mastronardi explained that they have to contain the big run plays, especially by the Indians quarterback. "When he doesn't find his primary receivers, he tries to scramble, so we need to stop that," he said.

During this week's practice, the team focused on end-run support schemes and perimeter run defense because those two facets have been its Achilles heel this season. "We've been doing that poorly since the beginning of the year and other teams have taken advantage of it," Mastronardi said.

The team's offensive unit practiced route running, he added, since the Cyclones wide receivers have been practically invisible during the past few games. "When they don't run the patterns correctly, it puts the quarterback in a bind and makes it difficult," Mastronardi explained.

On a positive note, the team's rushing attack flourished last week, as sophomore Eric Willie ran for 90 yards and two touchdowns. Coach said the underclassman will get between 20 and 30 carries on Saturday. Junior Zach Scaduto is still ailing from a rib injury suffered in the loss to Sewanhaka, and Mastronardi said senior Taaj Cox will see more playing time in the backfield, particularly when they run two-back sets.

It's the mistakes that have haunted South Side in its losses, and Mastronardi added that for them to beat Manhasset, that can't happen. "We'll have to play 48 minutes of flawless football to beat them," he said.