Highlander Football has a winning attitude in 2020
West Milford. Coach Steve Maslanek: ‘We are in a very good position as a football team right now.’
| 27 Sep 2020 | 03:02
West Milford is scheduled to begin the regular with a road game at Jefferson on Friday, Oct. 2. Photo by Dave Adamson on Unsplash.
Entering his third year as the head coach of the West Milford High School football program, Steve Maslanek has already left his mark in a positive way.
The Highlanders finished with records of 5-5 in 2018 and 2019 while facing their usual tough schedule of opposition on the field.
This season, they are looking to continue to build and improve - and a winning record is a real possibility for West Milford.
“Kyler Grahame is our captain,’’ Maslanek said. “(We want him to just) continue to lead by example as he has since being named captain in December.’’
West Milford is scheduled to begin the regular with a road game at Jefferson on Friday, Oct. 2.
Their first home contest is slated for Friday, Oct. 9, versus Vernon.
The Highlanders compete in the North Jersey Super Football Conference Patriot Blue Division along with Jefferson, Lakeland, Sparta, Vernon and Passaic Valley.
Maslanek views his team as a contender for the Division title.
“(We want to])compete for the Conference championship, take every game as a playoff game,’’ Maslanek said. “Everyone in the Division is good, however currently Sparta is the top team in the Division.
“West Milford’s Administration did a tremendous job getting our fall sports teams back on the field July 13,” the coach added. “We are in a very good position as a football team right now.’
Key returning athletes
Key returning student athletes for the Highlanders to the varsity roster this year include:
Kyler Grahame (offensive line and middle linebacker, senior)
Mark Keeser (offensive line and middle linebacker, senior)
Chris Coyle (wide receiver and defensive back, senior)
Chris Ashby (wide receiver and defensive back, senior)
Casey Fagan (wide receiver, defensive back and kicker, senior)
Xavier Gerety (wide receiver and defensive back, senior)
Anthony Gryskin (defensive end and wide receiver, senior)
Ian Babitz (offensive line and defensive line, senior)
Dylan Connors (quarterback and defensive back, junior)
Joe Palminteri (running back and defensive end, junior)
Ashton Stymacks (running back and linebacker, junior)
Zander Masanko (offensive line and linebacker, junior)
Nae’qwon Morris (wide receiver and defensive back, junior)
Seamus McGuinness (wide receiver and defensive back, junior) and
Ralph Turre (offensive line and defensive line, junior)
Newcomers
Among the promising newcomers to the varsity level for the Highlanders are:
Taylor Waldo (offensive line and defensive line, senior)
Ryan Kirwan (offensive line and defensive line, senior)
Shane Yodice (offensive line and defensive line, junior)
Derek Montesano (offensive line and linebacker, junior)
Cateo Lucas (running back and defensive end, junior) and
Aidan McGuire (running back and linebacker, junior).