Cazenovia — Both as a unit, and on an individual basis, the accolades for Cazenovia’s football team in the wake of winning its first-ever state Class B championship have continued to accumulate.
In the last days of 2015, MaxPreps, a national web site, came out with its final small-school rankings of the season.
In them, the Lakers finished at no. 20 among all small schools in the United States. Trinity Christian Academy, from Jacksonville, Florida, finished on top, with New York State Class C champion Chenango Forks (who won its third consecutive state title) in the no. 13 spot.
Then, on Wednesday afternoon, the New York State Sportswriters Association named its All-State football teams for Class B, along with C and D, and Cazenovia was well-represented – including at the top.
Jake Shaffner is NYSSWA’s choice as the Class B State Player of the Year. A two-way threat, Shaffner started at quarterback for Cazenovia, but also lined up at running back on the offensive side while playing full-time at defensive end, a rare combination. He also was the long snapper on punts.
In 13 games, Shaffner threw 18 touchdown passes and ran for 13 more, while on defense he recorded 65 tackles and 13 sacks. It was Shaffner’s 25-yard sack of Schuylerville quarterback Will Griffen late in the fourth quarter in the Nov. 29 state final at the Carrier Dome that all but wrapped up the game.
Shaffner said this week that, when he graduates from Cazenovia, he will head down the road to Colgate University, where his father, Paul, is an assistant coach. Shaffner is expected to play at linebacker for the Raiders.
Of course, Shaffner is far from alone in terms of Cazenovia players gaining NYSSWA All-State recognition.
Kevin Frega, who for two seasons led the Lakers in tackles and also contributed plenty to the team’s ground game, was chosen as a first-team All-State linebacker.
On the All-State second team, running back T.J. Connellan was honored despite missing most of the last three games due to a knee injury, joined by offensive lineman Dustin Hammond and defensive lineman Brenden Whalen, who served as anchors for groups that dominated the line of scrimmage all season.
Finally, Cole Willard was part of the Honorable Mention selections, chosen as a wide receiver, though Willard also starred in the defensive backfield and handled most of the kicking duties, too.
