By Chris Metcalf
LCAA’S FINEST
GREIGSVILLE – When you play football on the O-line, you don’t get your even share of local ink or stardom.
But, York/Pavilion coach Kurt Schneider fully knows, his Golden Knights will only go as far as the boys up front will take them.
So far, so good.
York/Pavilion is currently the No. 1 seed in the Section V Class D poll sitting on top with a 5-1 record heading into Friday night’s hometown showdown with defending sectional champion Oakfield-Alabama/Elba.
The game will not only be Y/P’s Homecoming contest but senior night as well.
Y/P, who is averaging 22 points per game, has scored 28 and 25 points, respectively, in their last two games, and has really started hitting their stride on that side of the football after scoring just 26 in their first two games.
A mix of three seniors and two sophomores are up front for the Golden Knights – including left tackle Dan Lyness (6-foot-1, 215 pounds); left guard Kasey Coffee (5-10, 190); center Joe Munoz (6-1, 180); right guard Brennan Royce (5-10, 220); and right tackle Austin Cummings (6-1, 290).
Munoz, Royce, and Cummings are all seniors while Lyness and Coffey are just sophomores.
All those guys up front in the trenches, also play important roles on the defensive side of the ball with Royce second on the team with 31 tackles at his linebacker position.
Munoz (15 tackles), Coffey (14), Lyness (13), and Cummings (12) have also recorded double digits in tackles.
But it’s the offensive line that keeps Y/P’s heart beating as the program attempts to make a run at the program’s first Section V title since 1991.
And coach Schneider and his team would love nothing more than to hear those firetrucks running through town the night of Nov. 10, Class D title night.
But that will depend on those young men in the trenches.
“First, you couldn’t ask for a better group of athletes to work with, they are a great group of young men that want to get better day in and day out,” coach Schneider said. “They love to grind and we talk all the time about embracing ‘the suck,’ and doing all the little things that make our offense work. It’s not glamorous, but they know, we go as far as they take us this year. My seniors in Brennan, Austin and Joe have been great examples of the work and dedication it takes to get to the point where we are now. Austin and Joe have been two-year starters and Brennan is now starting his third year on varsity, and all three just continue to stay hungry and humble.”
With just two weeks left in the regular season, Y/P faces O-A/E at home Friday and then on the road against Geneseo/MM the following week.
Two more dubs and the Golden Knights will get the top seed.
Schneider says the communities of York and Pavilion have noticeably some extra pop in their step this fall and the excitement is something the ‘KPO’ faithful have been patiently waiting for.
“I think this is the most juice we have had around the program and in the community since I have been here,” coach Schneider said. “I think it’s an easy group to get behind, we have played some really exciting games this year, and we have a legitimate chance to achieve our ultimate goal and be there at the end. Add that all up and this makes it a really fun time to be around York-Pavilion football, and we are going to embrace the opportunities we have in front of us.”
Friday night is expected to be another thriller.
– Doug McFarland Photography
