It has only been a few weeks since the Warriors were defeated in the District 2 AA championship game by defending champ GAR, but who’s to say we can’t already look forward to next season. First and foremost I want to congratulate all of the seniors on successful playing careers and taking Wyoming Area to their first district title game since 2006, also a loss to Lakeland. This article though will be focused squarely on the underclassmen and what is to come next year for the Warriors. Nick O’Brien: 

It wouldn’t be right if O’Brien was not to the first name mentioned here after what he did for the 2011 squad. Week in and week out O’Brien was constantly putting up huge numbers only being held under 100 yards twice on the season, and in one of those games, against Meyers he scored on a punt return and an interception. People always say that primetime players come to play in big games, looking at O’Brien’s numbers in the playoffs; there is no way to deny that O’Brien thrives in the big game. O’Brien amassed 747 yards from scrimmage in two playoff games, two games! Players go seasons without gaining that many yards and O’Brien managed to do it in his first two games in the district tournament. While this whole article very well could be dedicated to O’Brien’s achievements, it’s time to move on.

Line Play: Listed above are many of Nick O’Brien’s accolades, and much to the credit of him some of the credit has to be given to his offensive line. Returning next year will be, Joe Taylor, Joe Erzar, Carl Zielinski, and Trent Grove who all have experience in the trenches. Taylor really came along on the defensive side of the ball making a big interception in the Mid-Valley game. Zielinski started at Tackle as a Junior and will be returning as the anchor of the line. Grove will be returning as one of O’Brien’s favorite targets in the passing game at tight end.

Experience: The Warriors will be even more experienced at the skill positions next season. The Warriors return their top two rushers from 2011 in O’Brien and Skursky. Cody Schmitz, and Trent Grove who were two of the teams leading receivers, and Zack LaNunziata who lined up almost everywhere on both sides of the ball for WA. Finally is Wyoming Area’s dark-horse, Jordan Zezza. Zezza showed us all what he is capable of in the final few games of the season lining up at quarterback, wide receiver, and made his biggest play of the year at safety when he intercepted a Darrell Crawford pass in the district final to keep Wyoming Area in the game.

Sophomore Sensations: While experience is huge when it comes to high school football it’s never a problem to have two young sophomores who have a knack for making plays. Both Jeff Skursky and Marty Michaels made plays throughout the 2011 season for the Green and Gold. Skursky was the second-leading rusher on the squad, and Michaels had an interception against Nanticoke while playing linebacker. These two are just merely begging to tap into the potential that they hold and seeing them develop into key players in the next few years should be interesting.

Kicker: Maybe the most underrated statistic in high school football is kicking. The Warriors have been spoiled recently when it comes to that position. Katie Scalzo stepped in as a sophomore in 2008, and immediately gained the job and kept it until she finished her final season. In 2011 freshman A.J Lenkaitis took over the job and did a great job all year. He was a perfect 9 for 9 in the district tournament. Lenkaitis will serve as a solid kicker for the years to come, while you may not hear his name as much as the players running it into the end zone that one point could end up winning the Warriors a game during his tenure as the kicker.

There is much to be expected in 2012 for WA, returning many key players and personnel should make it an interesting season. While the season is almost a year away this could be the defining year that puts Wyoming Area football back on the map as they try to make the district playoffs in back to back years for the first time since 2006-2007.