“It’s a pretty tough schedule,” Tyler Peddie admits, “but I think we can handle it. I feel like we’re coming together as a team.”
On Aug. 8, Tyler and the other receivers were working with Coach Eric Holzapple. The guys moved left and right, and caught tennis balls that were fired by the coach at short range. It’s a drill to develop good hands.
Later, the receivers faced away from the coach, turned at a signal from him, and caught a football that was coming straight at them. Tyler has made 30 receptions during his first two years as a receiver. He’s also played safety, and carried the ball on an occasional sweep. He did it last year against Queensbury and scored a touchdown in the state semifinals.
The speedster also returns kicks. And last year one of his runbacks may have been the turning point of the season. After splitting their first two games, the Dragons were trailing Kingston 13-0.
Playing at home, Kingston scored on two of its first three possessions, while the Dragons failed to get a first down. At the start of the second quarter, Tyler fielded a deep kick, took off at top speed and didn’t slow down until he was in the end zone. Along the way, he picked up some jarring blocks from his teammates.
The run ignited the Cornwall offense, which scored two more times before the end of the half. The Dragons finished on top 38-21 on their way to a 10-game winning streak.
Tyler also scored on a runback against Wallkill. If he gets past the first two or three defenders, he believes he has a chance to go all the way — especially if he has his linemen in front of him.
The versatile 12th-grader is a fan of this year’s offensive line. “They’ve given Jason a lot of time in the pocket,” he said, “and they’ve given Kevin more openings to run through.”
During the off-season, Tyler has been busy in the weight room. He’s bulked up since his junior year. “Everyone’s been telling me that,” he admitted, “but I didn’t notice it until the other day.”
He’s been busy watching his teammates, and thinking about the opponents he’ll be facing in the fall. The schedule is filled with a lot of new challenges — Amsterdam, Cardinal Hayes, Poughkeepsie and Marlboro. The traditional rivalry with Wallkill can’t be overlooked. But Tyler appears to be confident.
