Week 4 Connolly Cup Players of the Week

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Connolly Cup is one of the most prestigious awards among Western New York High School Football, given to the area's best skill player annually at the end of the season. Each week the Connolly Cup committee presents a list of players that showcased excellent athletic ability over the previous weekend. Here are the Week 4 Players of the Game selected by the Conolly Cup committee.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>RB [player_tooltip player_id='1513348' first='Zach' last='Bridenbaker'] (Depew) - Bridenbaker accounted for 337 yards from scrimmage and scored 4 TDs. He is quickly establishing himself as a Connolly Cup finalist favorite, with his second nomination in as many weeks.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>ATH [player_tooltip player_id='501394' first='Trent' last='Buttles'] (St. Francis) - 15/22 for 198 yards and 2 TDs while running for another 63 on the ground. He also led the Red Raiders with 10 tackles. Few QBs can dominate both sides of the ball like Buttles. He is becoming one of the top athletes in WNY in his first season since leaving Rochester.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>QB [player_tooltip player_id='1624567' first='Mac' last='Capen'] (Newfane) - A dual threat QB that has made his presence known toping this list for the second time. Capen has led the Panthers to an undefeated start; this week he ran for 238 yards and scored 4 TDs on the ground whle throwing two more in the air. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>ATH Waylon Dowdy (Salamanca) - Led the Warriors in tackles with 6 while making a clutch TD reception that helped them beat division rival, Falconer. Dowdy is a new name to me but is having a solid senior season and looking to lead Salamanca back to the Sectional finals.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>ATH [player_tooltip player_id='1624547' first='Jaylin' last='Coleman'] (Maritime-Tapestry) - Ran for 155 yards on just 5 carries; but scored 4 times. Also recorded 8 tackles. I started covering Coleman prior to the 2024 season and he showed a lot of athletic ability. Now in Class C, the Seahawks are off to their best start since their conception in 2023.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>ATH Carter Dersarkissian (Barker – Roy Hart) - 10 carries for 127 yards and a TD. Made a critical INT in the 3rd quarters.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>QB [player_tooltip player_id='1742268' first='Kalaugn' last='Ford'] (McKinley) - Big divisional game in the pouring rain, he ran for 109 yards and scored twice. Ford is a dual threat QB that ran for 1,000 yards and threw for 1,000 yards as a junior. I expect the same this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>RB [player_tooltip player_id='778700' first='Elijah' last='Kimble'] (Canisius) - A one man wrecking crew, Kimble ran for 254 yards (becoming Canisius' all time leader in rushing yards) and scored 3 times. Kimble is arguably the best RB in NYS and the unquestioned top ball carrier in Western New York.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>ATH Devin Hewes (Chautauqua Lake-Westfield-Brocton) - Hewes had his breakout year last season and is continuing to impress as he recorded 8 receptions for 119 yards and a TD against the back-to-back Class D champions, CSP.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>RB [player_tooltip player_id='1345135' first='Amir' last='Hernandez'] (Canisius) - Kimble's complimentary back had just as much of an impact running for 148 yards on 11 carries and 4 TDs. Last season, Hernandez was All Catholic as a RB and LB and the same should be expected as a senior.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>QB [player_tooltip player_id='505857' first='Joe' last='Mest'] (Olean) - 15/23 for 299 yards and 4 TDs. Also had 5 tackles, an INT and a fumble recovery on defense. A legit Connolly Cup contender as a senior, Mest was in the hunt in 2024.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>RB [player_tooltip player_id='1212776' first='Christian' last='Moss'] (Medina) - I like Moss' chances to be a finalist this year as he has been the best RB in Class C the last two years. This week in a blowout win over JFK, Christian ran the ball 13 times for 195 yards and 1 TD. He also registered a 32 yard TD reception.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>WR [player_tooltip player_id='1864284' first='Alex' last='Quarantello'] (West Seneca West) - A breakout WR with a new freshman QB, West Seneca is off to a remarkable 4-0 start. Quarantello only regustered 3 catches for 35 yards but his 4 INTs on defense and a pick six were a huge factor in their 31-7 win over Sweet Home.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>RB [player_tooltip player_id='747256' first='Jimmy' last='Valentine'] (Bennett) - Having a breakout season but not an unknown name, Valentine has been the Tigers best rusher this year most recently going for 140 yards and 3 TDs in a surprising blowout win over Clarence.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>RB Jake Zeigler (Portville) - This was Ziegler's coming out party running for 223 yards and 5 TDs in a blowout win over Fredonia.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->