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Varsity football starts off another year, with the entrance of six new coaches.
“We have more coaches this year than before, some with lots of experience coaching and some without as much, but I definitely think as a staff, they mesh together better than in years past,” said head coach James Yeager.
The new coaches include Mario Colon on running backs, Sean Defendi on the offensive line, David Harrington on special teams and tight ends, Brandon Randolf on defensive backs and Anthony Walker on wide receivers.
“It’s a great experience, I’m happy for this opportunity; it’s great to be apart of this winning team,” said Walker.
Former Ocean Lakes alumni football players Eric Crosby and Jaeden Irwin-Harris have returned to coach the defensive line as well.
“Being able to come back and coach is amazing. Coming back as a former player, you have so much more pride in coaching,” said Crosby. “Now I realize why my coaches were so hard on me and taught me the lessons that they did.”
After a rough past season of 1-9, the team and coaches plan to look at this year as their redemption and take a new approach both offensively and defensively.
“I’ve coached for 20 years now, so I wanted to come out here and help the team as best as I can,” said Defendi.
Freshman offensive lineman Cole Defendi is coached by his father.
“Being coached by my dad is a great way to increase the way I perform,” said Cole. “He knows the way I play and always gives me suggestions and advice on how I can improve my game.”
The coaches spend countless amounts of time coming up with new plays for the team after practice in addition to meeting together every Sunday, according to Yeager.
“It’s rewarding coaching the guys, I told myself if I could impact their lives just like my coaches did for me then that’s all I need to be happy,” said Crosby. “If I can implement the Ocean Lakes culture that we had when I played, we can take the program to a whole new level.”
