Former CCHS players and coaches feted during halftime
“All we wanted was a little respect,” David Coates reminded his players as they gathered around him in the Cornwall Middle School gym. Twenty years ago, they had been section champions. Now, on Sept. 22, they were back in Cornwall to be honored by the current group of football fans. The event attracted 17 former players and three coaches.
The plans were established in advance. The alumni would lead the current players onto the field and join the captains for the coin toss. There would be a minute of silence for the late Adam Nunnally and John Shea. Then, at halftime, the champs would be introduced one player at a time until all of them were standing at midfield, where they would receive gifts from the kids in the Youth Football League.
But first came the reception in the gym. The walls were decorated with the sports pages from 2003. There were seats around a long table with refreshments. But no one sat. Instead, they gathered on the gym floor and reminisced.
Twenty years ago, on that euphoric night in Kingston, they had each held the trophy for a few seconds before passing it to a teammate. “Thank you for giving us a chance,” the coaches told them. Now, Mr. Coates expanded on that theme.
He had arrived with a new coaching staff from `outside the district in 2002. They had instituted a new system. “You welcomed us,” he told the alumni. “And we connected.” In spite of that, the team still lost more games than it won in the coach’s first season.
Determined to improve, they regrouped in January and started working toward the next season. In addition to their efforts, the coach recruited players from other sports. But when September arrived, most every one predicted that Wallkill would win the section title. No one gave Cornwall a chance. But the Dragons won nine of their first 10 games, and defeated Wallkill in the championship game.
Mr. Coates is now the athletic director in Middletown. He was not the only one to address the players in the middle school gym. Cornwall’s current athletic director, Jason Semo, thanked them for coming. “You set the trajectory for our program,” he told them. “Later teams followed your tradition of hard work.”
The results were phenomenal. Mr. Semo proudly mentioned that, over the next 20 years, the Dragons won 16 section titles, eight regional titles, and two state championships. Cornwall’s current coach, Kevin Arduino, played on three of those winning teams. But, in 2003, he was just a member of the Youth Football League.
He recalled that year as he spoke to the alumni just before game time. He remembered the Friday night home games when he and the other youngsters would stop their practice and form a chute for the high school players. The kids would cheer as the big guys marched passed them on their way to the football field.
Young Kevin Arduino exchanged high-fives with some of the people he was now addressing in the gym. He said that he watched their games and remembered John Piascik running over potential tacklers. It was an inspiring experience that he’s never forgotten.
