Now that the Catholic league season is over, I would like to recognize folks that made this season successful for this page. This was my first full season doing this and it would not have been possible without the guidance, and the cooperation with a lot of people throughout the year. I will likely miss a few but I give my thanks and gratitude to the following people:

• My family who has been supportive of this journey.
• All coaches from programs that were receptive to what this page is trying to do. I won’t go name by name to protect confidentiality. A wide variety of programs head coaches, and assistant coaches made themselves available, and helped me a lot to get this page going.
• Programs that entered stats. While stats are not the only thing, they did help me tell the story each week. Since there is only 1 of me and 22 teams, it can get very difficult to provide game by game narratives and season long narratives.
• Players, parents, game officials, and other folks who reached out with their well wishes and feedback. This page would not be possible without you. Whether it is a piece of constructive feedback, or informing me of typos, I appreciate all of you.
• I’d like to thank all media and content creators for helping me along this year, if just for reporting, or just talking. They include:
  • Nobody Cares Sports
  • Varsity Media
  • Sage Media Solutions
  • Jared Valuzzi/Uzzi Sports
  • Prolific Sports Lab
  • The fbfour crew
  • The Baristas at nycfbtea
  • seafootballalumni
  • ShotbyLjay18
  • longislandfootball.com
  • KeyStar Network
  • Official_nyrankings
  • fabian.flics

Anyways, onto the post.

This is essentially the first offseason post of the year, and I have a lot planned. In this post, provide my post-season take of every program from my point of view. I will go division by division and just provide a recent history and what success may look like moving forward.

‘AAA’:

• Iona Prep (11-1, ‘AAA’ Champion and NYSCHSAA Champion); I think we can officially call this decade the decade of Iona. Where St. Anthony’s dominated the 2000s, and Stepinac dominated the 2010s, the Gaels have owned the 2020s. Joe Spagnolo, since joining Iona in 2016, is 79-21 with 5 title appearances from 2021-2025, winning it in 2021, 2024, and 2025. Iona Prep is now a machine of a program, as their JV and Freshman squads both dominate the lower level too. With some of their best players graduating, I am interested to see how Iona reloads and makes another run next season.
• Monsignor Farrell (10-2, including the forfeit due to Moore folding); The Lions are on the upswing, and their hire of Rocco Del Priore has paid dividends already. He is 25-18 during his tenure with two seasons with 8 wins or more, and some talented young players in the program. Monsignor Farrell spent a lot of time in the late 2000s, and 2010s struggling, but are now officially back as a premier football program in the NYCHSFL. With two title appearances in the last five seasons, I would expect more from the Lions moving forward.
• St. Anthony’s (7-5); The Friars have posted a 22-13 record since 2023, a far cry from the years of dominance. Head Coach Joe Minucci, who took over for Rich Reichert in 2019, has a 42-24 record over his seven seasons. He won the ‘AAA’ title and State Championship in 2022 with Dante Torres, Ian Strong, and KJ Duff, now stand out players in college. The St. Anthony’s I knew had an inevitability about them, especially on defense. The system is what ruled during the heyday of the Friar dynasty. Now? Without phenom players, the St. Anthony’s have the look of just another NYCHSFL team in the ‘AAA’.
• Chaminade (7-5); Alumnus Thomas Claro was appointed head coach of the Flyer program following the 2023 season, a year which they went 1-8. A former NFL player, and former offensive line coach for Archbishop Stepinac during their dynasty, Coach Claro has gone a respectable 15-9 in the last two seasons, and has won a playoff game in each season. Chaminade seems to live on this edge where they are considered pretty good, but never really threaten for the championship. They have not been to the ‘AAA’ title game since 2013, and have not won one since 2012. Before that? 1998. It is still early in his tenure, but the Chaminade faithful will begin to demand results sooner, rather than later.
• Archbishop Stepinac (6-5); First year head coach AJ Magee had his hands full with a parent and student base with very high expectations. Former coach Mike O’Donnell won 4 ‘AAA’ titles in 5 seasons in the late 2010s, but the Crusaders have not quite been able to get back to that rarified air. The bottom finally fell out in 2024, when everything seemed to go wrong, and they finished 1-10. Enter AJ Magee, who has now stabilized the program, going 6-5. The challenges for Stepinac are significant, as they are a Westchester school that has to compete with the likes of Iona Prep for players, who has expanded their footprint across state lines.
• Cardinal Hayes (4-8, including the forfeit due to Moore folding, and their week 0 exhibition vs Erasmus Hall); CJ O’Neil has brought Cardinal Hayes from the depths of the NYCHSFL to being a program with 3 ‘AAA’ titles since 2015, and 5 trips to the title game. There were no Belins on this year’s team to paper over the flaws of this Hayes team, as they replaced 17 starters this year. The Hayesmen seem to do this from time to time. The issue wasn’t talent this year, it was execution. Badly timed turnovers, penalties, and mistakes left a lot to be desired. The coaching staff has to develop the younger players, and hope that they are able to reload after a difficult year.

‘AA-1’

• Xavier (12-2, including the forfeit due to Moore folding, ‘AA-1’ Champions); Dom DeFalco was a member of the 4 horsemen team of Xavier in the late 2000s, and being a Staten Island native, he brings additional toughness and grittiness to the Knights who were suffering no shortage of either. Chris Stevens, the long time Xavier coach, stepped down after 2023. The architect of Xavier’s Single Wing offense, Stevens coached Xavier to 4 NYCHSFL titles in his tenure. Dom DeFalco only needed two seasons to win his first title, this time on the ‘AA-1’ level, and win his first two Turkey Bowl games. With their engines on offense and defense graduating, I wonder what this Xavier team will look like next season.
• St. Joseph by the Sea (6-5); The Vikings under Tressor Baptiste are 27-18 over his tenure. St. Joseph by the Sea has been transformed into a championship contender in the ‘AA-1’ after being in the ‘AA-2’. Even though this past season was tougher, the Vikings were able to assert themselves well and make it to the championship. The Vikings have some great teams moving up from the JV, so I don’t think they will be going anywhere.
• St. Peter’s (7-5, including the forfeit due to Moore folding); Where there were two Co-Head Coaches last season, there were three this season. Last year Mark DeCristoforo and Rob Sica led the Eagles all the way to the championship game. St. Peter’s had 18 wins in 2023 and 2024. They added accomplished coach Nick Giannatasio from Moore Catholic, which added championship pedigree to the head coaching room, albeit an ‘A’ title in 2016, and an ‘AA-2’ title in 2019. The Eagles went 7-5, making their 3 year record to 25-10. They had big wins against ‘AAA’ opponents, but also lost to a shorthanded Holy Trinity team from the ‘AA-2’, and got shown the door by Xavier in the semifinals. Still, they have a young team with a ton of potential, and plenty of coaching power on staff. As we have learned from history, Triumvirates never last too long. With Rob Sica retiring and moving to South Carolina, there will be two coaches in 2026, unless there is a shake up again this offseason.
• Fordham Prep (3-9); Pat Deane took over after Pete Gorynski was fired after the 2017 season. Deane, who has been with Fordham Prep for decades, and is a Prep alumnus was able to seamlessly step in and lead the program through this tumultuous time. After Covid hit, the Rams seemed to hover around .500 for the last four seasons until this year. Deane is 35-42 in his career as the Rams head coach, including a 4-3 record vs Xavier in the Turkey Bowl. In recent years, Fordham Prep has made large investments into their athletic program, redoing their weight room, and planning to remake their athletic complex. You don’t spend that much cash on improvements, if you are not expecting to compete year in and year out in the NYCHSFL.
• St. Francis Prep (6-4, including the forfeit due to Moore folding); Rich Carroll took over a legendary program in 2016, after the passing of the legendary SFP coach Vince O’Connor. The Terriers have been 27-57 over the last decade or so. Taking over a football program with this much history has its drawbacks, and the Terriers had fallen on hard times, especially at the turn of the century. The huge Queens school seems to have gotten its groove back recently, going 13-8 over the past two years, and boasting one of the better and more balanced offenses in the ‘AA-1’. I feel their blend of their old style offense with new concepts has worked in keeping them competitive, but the Terriers need to take that next step. SFP is a program that could be back at the top, but it will take time. Stable leadership is essential, as well as more modernization of their offensive concepts.
• St. John the Baptist (5-5); Philip Alba has led the Cougars since 2019, and has an impressive 34-28 with a ‘AA-1’ title in 2023. The West Islip program has been competitive, with 3 seasons with over 7 wins or more, and a strong playoff contender every year. In 2024, the bottom fell out of the program, and they had a tough year. This is normal in the world of high school athletics, but the program has stayed steady, reloaded, and went a respectable 5-5 with a ton of new starters in a season mired by injury. The future is bright, since much of the team were young and inexperienced. They are hungry. I would look for big things from the Cougars next year.
• Kellenberg (1-9); Eric Meisse has guided this program through a very turbulent time in their history. The Firebirds were elevated to the ‘AAA’ after their pair of ‘AA’ titles in 2017, and 2018, and it just has not gone as well as expected. Kellenberg is a huge school, and by all accounts, they should be able to compete and dominate. After a few tough years, the Firebirds are taking their lumps, before being built back. Still a talented team with a strong system, Kellenberg has a lot to look forward too. Their JV squad won the ‘AA’ last season, and teams can turn quickly. On their side too, is the school just invested in their weight training facility. Look for Kellenberg to bounce back.

‘AA-2’

• Xaverian (9-4,including the forfeit due to Moore folding); In his first year as head coach, Dom Aloutto led the Clippers to an 8-4 finish and a title. The Brooklyn school has been dominant on the ‘AA-2’ level, winning every game against fellow ‘AA-2’ schools by two scores each. Xaverian High School is a huge school enrollment wise, and have gotten their groove back. The Clippers have all the ingredients to being one of the best programs in New York City. We shall see how they continue, as their engine on offense, their quarterback, is graduating this year.
• Holy Cross (8-4, including the forfeit due to Moore folding); In 10 seasons, Tim Smith is 42-59, but has really stabilized these past two seasons, going 13-10 with two title appearances on the ‘AA-2’ level. Holy Cross is a program that I feel could also move up to the ‘AA-1’ level, but I think will stay down for the time being. A historically strong NYCHSFL program, the Knights are headed in the right direction.
• Holy Trinity (7-4); A program in turmoil after the sudden dismissal of Coach Kamal Roy before the 2023 season, Gino Tassone took over the Titans after the 2023 season, and has done what he could to salvage what he could. The smaller program was thin, but Coach Tassone was able to salvage this season, going an impressive 7-4, a game away from the championship after a disastrous 1-10 season the year before. His staff rallied, and the untimely loss of key players late in the season derailed their chances at a championship. Coach Tassone is a great football mind, and gets good players on the field to compete and represent HT well. We will see how the offseason goes.
• Christ the King (6-5); After a lot of fanfare of a new coaching staff fell through, Christ the King quietly appointed Ben Krauz. And he defied all expectations with the Royals this year, going 6-5, and being a play away from a championship berth after taking over the program in the winter after nearly 3 winless seasons. Revitalized by Krauz, a St. Anthony’s alumnus and champion, Christ the King is rapidly changing the narrative of their school. As the Royals program continues to rebuild, I will be watching closely to see how they develop in the seasons to come.
• Kennedy Catholic (3-7); I think this is a program that is in a difficult spot. They are in Somers, a traditional NYSPHSAA powerhouse, and in Westchester, sharing the spotlight with Iona Prep and Archbishop Stepinac. Being a smaller school, the way Dominick Tassone comes with a team ready to compete every week is admirable. Their beautiful venue in the woods makes for a picture perfect place to play football. I think this program has the stability, but it just takes a long time to rebuild after an event like Covid in 2020.
• Mount St. Michael (4-7); Jayson Holt’s second year ends like the first year, a semifinal exit in the ‘AA-2’ playoffs. After two seasons, Holt is 10-13, and is working with a smaller program. It is difficult succeeding a legendary coach like Mario Valentini, but the days of Mount playing for ‘AAA’ titles are a distant memory. Holt knows what it takes to succeed in this league, as he was the quarterback on those teams that made championship runs. Mount can compete, but will need to get buy in, and will need to work hard in the offseason. Step by step, and year by year, Mount can rebuild.
• Cardinal Spellman (2-7); First year head coach Shaheem Burnett, a Cardinal Spellman alumnus, had a tough year. Though Cardinal Spellman isn’t known for football, they are a school on the larger side with over 1,100 students. It was not that long ago that Cardinal Spellman was winning ‘A’ titles. The team currently is young, and the numbers are small. Stability, and a willingness from the school to put resources towards a quality team is necessary for them to compete. The ingredients are there with their own facility, a decent sized school, and a young head coach, they just have to put it together.
• St. Dominic’s (1-7); Back in the NYCHSFL after years, Ralph Del Giorno led the Bayhawks back for a grueling full schedule. St. Dominic’s is a small program, and this is their first time playing up in years. There was a lot of learning what it means to compete in the best league in New York, so the players will have to get back at it, and Coach Del Giorno will need to implement a robust offseason and summer program so the Bayhawks bounce back after a tough year.
• Nazareth (0-7); Gary Gooden, a Nazareth alumnus, set forth 3 years ago on the ambitious task of reviving the Kingmen football program. Already a small school, Gooden built from the ground up, and finally rejoined the NYCHSFL this season. For all intents and purposes, it went about as expected. Nazareth is a smaller school, but that does not mean that they cannot compete. Coach Gooden has set the foundation, and will need to continue to build the culture. As part of the championship teams from the 1980s, he knows what it takes. I hope that Nazareth sticks to it, and that we see them for years to come.

I am looking for feedback on this past year, as well as suggestions for what I can do better, and suggestions on things I can do to enhance the content of the page.

Thank you all!