CRUNCH: Coaches are Starpoint's heart and soul

Crunch 2008

November 4, 2008

By Nate Beutel<br><a href="mailto:beuteln@gnnewspaper.com">E-mail Nate</a> The Niagara Gazette Tue Nov 04, 2008, 11:59 PM EST

PENDLETON — One is a local coaching legend that walks with a cane. The other is a jokester that can motivate kids with the best of them.

“I just think they’re the best,” Starpoint head coach Al Cavagnaro said of his assistants, Bob Boudeman and Tim Racey. “They’re both great teachers. They spend a lot of time at what they do and they really care about the kids.”

Assistant coaches are often the lifeblood of a program. That’s especially been the case at Starpoint where the assistants coordinate the offense and defense, a rarity at the high school level.

“When I brought Bob in five years ago it was so I could give my school the best chance to win,” said Cavagnaro, the former offensive coordinator. “After calling something, whether offense or defense for so many years, I didn’t know how it would turn out, but it’s actually been great. Now I get to see a little bit of everything and make suggestions where I see fit.”

Those suggestions have been few and far between because of the coordinators’ successes over the past five years. The once-dormant program has won a pair of Consolation Bowl championships and asserted itself as an annual contender in Class A North.

Boudeman has re-energized the Starpoint offense with his constant film study and varying formations. The veteran has also played a big part in the development of individual players, especially senior running back Brandon Bratek — the school’s all-time leading rusher.

“He’s helped me mature,” Bratek said. “During games after we score and the defense is on the field, we’ll go over plays on the sidelines and he’ll tell me little things to look for.”

Three-year starting quarterback Joe Scibilia, also a senior, said Boudeman has been like a personal coach to him over the last few seasons.

Racey, meanwhile, has been a confidant for players during tough times while displaying tough love at other times. He’s also developed a number of new defensive schemes that have made the Spartans defense more dangerous than in past years.

“He brings a lot of unique strategies to our defense, like this wide seven that we used to stop (Lockport running back David) Fluellen,” Bratek said.

Cavagnaro added that Racey, also the varsity baseball coach at Starpoint, will be a good fit to take over the program once he decides to step aside.

“I’m confident he can take it higher than where we are now,” Cavagnaro said.

For now, though, the Spartans are focused on winning their third Class A Bowl Championship in four years when they face league-rival Williamsville South today.

And with Boudeman’s health ailing a bit, you can bet the Spartans have some extra motivation to add another trophy to the awards case at the school.

“We wanted to win at Iroquois so badly for him, but we can still make this season special with one more win,” Bratek said. “It would be a real big accomplishment.”

Contact reporter Nate Beutel at 282-2311, ext. 2262.

GAME NIGHT

• WHO: Starpoint (4-5) vs. Williamsville South (5-4)

• WHAT: Section VI Class A Bowl Championship

• WHEN: 5 p.m. today

• WHERE: Vets Park at Medina High School

• KEY MATCHUP: Starpoint’s OL vs. Williamsville South’s DL: The Spartans have controlled the ball the past three weeks and hope to continue to do so against a banged up South squad.

• COACH’S QUOTE: “It’s pretty simple for us, we want to keep the ball in our hands and out of theirs. Offensively they’re tough and it’s difficult to pressure them. It’s also tough preparing for them because we don’t know who is going to be there for them because they have a bunch of injuries.”

— Al Cavagnaro

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