Grid Rams working out on their own to shape up before official practice as one of best indy teams
August 14, 2024 at 11:43 p.m.
The first official practice for Section One scholastic sports isn't scheduled to start until Aug. 26. But don't tell that to the Port Chester football Rams. Because in their determination to make the upcoming 2024 season a special one, they have been practicing on their own since the past season ended last December. Those practices have taken place in the high school weight room, at a football summer camp in Briarcliff, in a 7v7 tournament, during individual position practices and in multiple other places and ways.
A strong starting nucleus is already beginning to emerge well before their first game which is scheduled for Sept. 6, a Friday night lights game away against Horace Greeley at 6:30 p.m.
Graduation hit hard
That nucleus is important because the Rams graduated 11 players—the equivalent of a starting team.
And they will be playing a strong independent league schedule that includes Albertus Magnus in their first home game Sept. 14 at 1:30 p.m. and goes on from there to include teams like prep school powerhouse Long Island Lutheran, Peekskill, Woodlands, Tappan Zee and Walter Panas.
So it's not going to be easy.
Especially since the Rams took their first big hit before their first official practice ever began.
Marc Dorsainvil, the team's fastest running back over the past two years, will not be coming out for football this season so he can concentrate on Track & Field, a sport that enhances his shot at a college athletic scholarship.
Rams dynamic duo
That means the Rams’ offense will revolve around their own version of the Yankees’ superlative one-two punch of Juan Soto and Aaron Judge.
That translates into junior quarterback Alexis Morel handing off to senior power running back John Pauletti (JP) in a Ram running attack similar to the Woody Hayes 1977 Ohio State Buckeyes’ "three yards and a cloud of dust" approach that was designed to wear out opponents.
Albeit with a difference. Because while Pauletti was virtually unstoppable, opponents couldn't key on him because there was no telling when Morel would take off on a keep or flood the air with passes.
In fact, Morel has gotten so good that his teammates call him Ace. And Pauletti, henceforth JP, has carried the Rams’ offense for so long, he already has multiple colleges interested, including Ithaca, the school that signed his cousin Dan of Rye Brook out of Iona Prep as their center.
But the Rams line up with a lot more than Ace and JP.
Players to watch
There is, for example, Alber Poroj, the player they call Hulk because he uses his size to cause destruction on offense and defense. He figures to draw college scholarship interest.
The plan for the 2024 Port Chester Rams football season is for Alexis Morel to hand off to power running back John Pauletti (#4), a rising senior.Courtesy of John Pauletti
So does 6:4 Jeremy Noel, a stud wide receiver and defensive end as is ex-Ram baseball catcher Scott Sullivan at wide receiver and corner.
Other Rams likely to catch the college recruiters' collective eye include Jefferson Castaneda, called the "Swiss Army knife" by his teammates because of his ability to play just about anywhere including corner back, outside linebacker and safety as well as back up quarterback on offense. And big things are expected from transfer Xavier Tapia at wide receiver and defensive end.
Two wild cards who could also help are ex-hockey and baseball players Billy Villanova and Johnny Borzoni (also a cheerleader) who have the speed to be threats out of the backfield.
While rosters are not yet complete, last year's roll included a promising crop of recruits in juniors Brian Rivera, Kevin Perez, Juan Hernandez, Fabian Mendoza, Julian Estevez, Kevin Cervantes, David and Brian Escobar, Jaycee Rodriguez and Luis Granados. The sophomore contingent included Tony Espinosa, Emmanuel Diaz, José Lopez, Erick Samano and Carlos Palma.
Work cut out for coach
Coach Chris Halstead has worked hard to build up those numbers and rebuild the program, and there are several other players who could step up from the junior varsity.
And they will have to. Especially since the Rams graduated players like John Delcid, one of their best running backs on offense and defense as well as their "Heart of a Giant" nominee, Jaden Barbour, their best lineman on offense and defense, and such talented players as Brian Aguilera, Jayden Arbusto, Franklin Cabrera, Anthony Escobedo, Nathan Provencher, Miguel Valdovinos, Fabrizio Vasquez, Alejandro Velasquez and Danny Zhagui.
That adds up to a lot of cleats to fill.
Every one of them will be needed because the Rams will be locking horns with many talented teams like Long Island Lutheran, a team with multiple scholarship athletes including a 4-star rated wide receiver and two 3-star rated defensive players, as well as Woodlands, a team that always gave Blind Brook a run for their money in the days before the Trojans dropped football last year due to a lack of players.
Port Chester, Blind Brook score
The good football news is that Blind Brook will be back on the gridiron as a merged team with Edgemont this year which means that any Trojans who want to play football will get a chance to try out to play the game.
The good news for Port Chester football aficionados is that the Rams have been working out on their own since the end of the last football season and have stepped up the pace well before the official start of Section One organized practices.
That means good things can start happening for the grid Rams from the get-go including the Morel-Pauletti combo potentially shaping up as one of the top dynamic duos in Westchester teaming up with a fleet of wide receivers and a line led by a player called the Hulk.
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