Two Section XI Players “Looking for Revenge” in Week 2

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After a packed slate of games last Wednesday- Saturday, Football has finally and excitingly returned to Long Island. Among all the stellar debuts in Section XI, a few players had their opening week unfortunately spoiled. Walking off the field with a loss after a strong performance leaves a bad taste in every player's mouth. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>That hunger to get into the win column only grows throughout the week, and heading into this weekend, keep your eyes on these two players who will do whatever it takes to finish the week with a W.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Asante Daniels 27'- RB-Copaigue</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Of all the impressive running back outings, Daniels' was the most shocking, as his team couldn't secure the win. Copaigue fell to Commack 21-19 despite the senior tailback putting up video-game numbers: 210 yards on 19 carries (11 ypc) and a 99-yard touchdown run.  Number 0 was on another level to start the season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src=u0022https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/2/30416/6aa46720cc567ba375eef5c9u0022 width=u0022640u0022 height=u0022360u0022 frameborder=u00220u0022 allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6aab46ec026c2"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Daniels displayed every skill he has in his arsenal against the Cougars—the catching ability out of the backfield. The patience to let blocks develop, footwork to make quick cuts, and acceleration to explode through the hole for chunk gains.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p> To top it all off, his contact balance and grit to never go down; Daniels only landed on the turf when he faced a gang of tacklers; otherwise, he dominated in 1-on-1 opportunities. Daniels either beat defenders with speed or power. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Expect a similar showing from Daniels as the Eagles take on a Linderhurst team that struggled to stop the run in the opening week.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='2325960' first='Jason' last='Thompson'] 28'/ WR- Walt Whitman</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Walt Whitman shows a lot of promise this season despite a 37-26 home loss to Longwood. This team isn't exactly like their 2021 squad that won the Suffolk County championship, but they have a ton of playmakers. <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/23594044/jason-thompson/highlights">[player_tooltip player_id='2325960' first='Jason' last='Thompson']</a> leads the pack. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src=u0022https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/2/31304/6aa2e4965b04050d78d8af4bu0022 width=u0022640u0022 height=u0022360u0022 frameborder=u00220u0022 allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6aab46ec026e4"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The junior was amazing in the opener and arguably the best receiver on the field. In one instance, he caught a deep ball from quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1814225' first='Dodge' last='Alahverdian'] over two defenders for a touchdown. Another big play came on a corner route, where he snagged a ball along the sideline, pinned it on the defender's back, and stayed in bounds. Standing at 5'7, Thompson plays bigger than his size, and he absolutely burns defenders on the outside.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He's also beating defensive backs with his route running. His releases on double moves and post routes have corners in a blender. Thompson shows good footwork and uses head fakes well to get behind whoever guards him in man coverage. With the basketball background, it looks like he's playing a pickup game on the turf.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Thompson finished the night with two long touchdowns and over 100 yards receiving. An encore performance is highly possible as the Wildcats travel out east to Riverhead.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->