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<p>Now that much of the preseason hype has been put to rest (or at least settled down some), here are several unexpected players that came through for their team's season opener.</p>
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<p class="text-gray-700">A transfer from North Tonawanda and an extraordinary return man, [player_tooltip player_id='1284141' first='Demaree' last='Baker-Houston'] made his McKinley debut a memorable one on both sides of the ball. Houston ran for 65 yards on 7 carries and registered 13 tackles on defense against Hutch-Tech in opening week. </p>
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<p class="text-gray-700">WNY Maritime/Tapestry is an up-and-coming program entering their second season in existence. They may have found their QB for the next two season in [player_tooltip player_id='1583437' first='Tremayne' last='Harris']. The Seahawks would lose but Tremayne, who is new to the school, had a monster game going 16 of 25 for 333 yards and 2 touchdowns.</p>
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<p class="text-gray-700">Dominic Gonzalez had a successful sophomore season as Jamestown's JV QB and leading them to an undefeated season. He would, however, begin his junior year as varsity's backup. That did not stop Gonzalez from having an impact in their 40-0 win over Frontier as a runner. Dominic had 9 carries for 84 yards and a touchdown in his varsity debut.</p>
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<p class="text-gray-700">Eden/North Collins was hitting on all cylinders week 1, especially through the air. Their passing attack was red hot as the sophomore, [player_tooltip player_id='1449594' first='Sawyer' last='Balone'] led the team in receiving with 7 catches, 151 yards and 1 touchdown. He would also go on to add 5 tackles from the CB position.</p>
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<p class="text-gray-700">[player_tooltip player_id='1513348' first='Zach' last='Bridenbaker'] is not a surprise for me as I did see some of his JV tape from last year. Bridenbaker is a RB/LB combo and although I thought he would have more of an impact of offense (3 carries 15 yards and a TD), he shined mightily on defense with 13 tackles, 2 forced fumbles and a fumble recovery that was returned for a touchdown.</p>
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<p class="text-gray-700">Even though he is a senior, Ronan Annunziata is a name that is new to me. Entering the season with 15 career tackles, Ronan blew up with 13 tackles and an interception in a Week 1 shutout victory over Lake Shore.</p>
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<p class="text-gray-700">I covered many Lake Shore players and the team as a whole this offseason but [player_tooltip player_id='1467402' first='Mason' last='Anderson'] was never even on my radar. In his varsity debut, however, he made his presence known. The Eagles would end up losing but they have something special in Anderson, who ran the ball 20 times for 84 yards. He also added 5 tackles and 2 interceptions on defense.</p>
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Now that much of the preseason hype has been put to rest (or at least settled down some), here are several unexpected players that came through for their team's season opener.
HEIGHT
5'10"
WEIGHT
170
POS
ATH
CLASS
2025
State:
New York
School:
McKinley
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HEIGHT
6'0"
WEIGHT
200
POS
QB
CLASS
2026
School:
WNY Maritime/Tapestry
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HEIGHT
6'0"
WEIGHT
150
POS
ATH
CLASS
2026
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HEIGHT
5'10"
WEIGHT
140
POS
WR
CLASS
2027
School:
Eden/North Collins
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HEIGHT
5'11"
WEIGHT
168
POS
LB
CLASS
2027
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HEIGHT
5'9"
WEIGHT
190
POS
LB
CLASS
2025
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HEIGHT
6'1"
WEIGHT
185
POS
ATH
CLASS
2028
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