In just 12 seasons of work as head football coach at Christian Brothers Academy, Joe Casamento made his reputation with a fast-break, high-energy offense that loved to put as many points on the board as possible.
So it was no small irony that Casamento’s 100th victory proved to be a low-scoring affair where the Brothers leaned on the running game to pull through.
In front of the home fans Friday night at Alibrandi Stadium (along with many of Casamento’s former players), CBA and Cicero-North Syracuse played a first half without any touchdowns. But with Tyler Hamblin and a strong defense leading the way, the Brothers would take over late and earn a 15-3 win over the Northstars.
From 1999, when Casamento took over at CBA, to 2005, the Brothers won seven consecutive sectional titles in three different classes – first B, then A, then AA, capped off by a state AA championship won in 2004.
In the course of that run, CBA installed and popularized the spread offense. And a string of great quarterbacks, from Casamento’s son, Joe Jr., to Greg and Mike Paulus, established both Section III and state passing records by the time they were done.
Hamblin is the Brothers’ latest standout under center, entering his third year as a starter. But with a high concentration of new starters around him, CBA figured to struggle to find its rhythm.
It helped, on this night, that CNS faced that same dilemma, especially since Blake Monday, projected to be the Northstars’ top running back, tore his ACL a week before practice started and will miss the season.
Still, it was CNS seizing a 3-0 lead in the first quarter on Stephen Messur’s 26-yard field goal. From that point forward, the Northstars would not score again.
CBA’s defense used its speed to shut down whatever the opposition tried. CNS would get just 109 total yards, a reflection of how much they missed Monday.
Meanwhile, CBA started out exclusively on the ground, executing 16 option running plays before Hamblin threw for the first time in the second quarter.
Hamblin did lead a scoring drive in the second quarter, but it bogged down near the goal line, so it had to settle for Riley Dixon’s 35-yard field goal – which atoned for missing a 24-yard attempt earlier in the half. At the break, it was still a 3-3 tie.
Finally, the Brothers began to click in the third quarter, sparked by Emmanuel Collins, who played soccer a year ago.
Starring right away on the gridiron, Collins had runs of 11 and 25 yards, and Cirro Nicoletti-Watson went 14 yards to set up Hamblin’s nine-yard touchdown run that gave CBA a 9-3 edge.
CNS nearly caught up, getting near the goal line when Andrew Johnson went 42 yards on a reverse, requiring Bunn to tackle him at the eight-yard line. Moments later, the Northstars fumbled – and CBA end Mike Magnarelli recovered.
Spared, the Brothers put it away with a 92-yard drive right after Magnarelli’s recovery. Bunn, who finished with 80 yards on the ground, took off on a 24-yard sprint to the end zone that clinched Casamento’s milestone.
Hamblin led CBA with 108 rushing yards to go with his 108 passing yards on nine-of-16 completions. CBA stays at home next Friday to take on Liverpool (who lost its opener to Rome Free Academy) at 6:30, while CNS heads to nearby Nottingham after the Bulldogs topped Central Square 27-18 in the Kickoff Classic at the Carrier Dome.
