Friday, September 29, 2017
By Steve Ruman
POLAND
In terms of tenure, Poland High football coach Ryan Williams is a young pup within the Mahoning Valley coaching fraternity.
Williams is in just his second year as a head coach, which means he has less head coaching experience than all but five of his area counterparts.
Yet ask Williams to describe his mood at the midway point of the 2017 season, and he sounds like a well-traveled veteran who has experienced it all.
“Well, all coaches are miserable all the time,” Williams said. “You’re either miserable miserable or miserably happy. Even when things are going good, you know they aren’t perfect. You know there is always a ton of room for improvement.
“The losses, they stick with you. And the wins, well you’re always looking ahead to the next game so you never really get to fully enjoy the victories.”
However, with a little prodding, Williams softens up a bit and admits that, “We have a very long way to go. ... and I wonder, how will we react when we face adversity? But yeah, I do like a lot of what I’ve seen to this point.”
What’s not to like?
Poland has raced off to a 5-0 start and it has faced little adversity in doing so. The Bulldogs have outscored opponents 235-31, with their closest game being a 30-7 win at Howland.
The Bulldogs sit atop both the Red Tier and Blue Tier in the All-American Conference standings. They are ranked fourth in the Division IV Region 13 computer rankings. They also are ranked fifth in the Associated Press statewide poll.
“We really do have a lot of work to do,” Williams said. “We watch game films and we’re always pointing something out. But I can’t be more proud of the way this group of [20] seniors [has] come together. Their unselfishness and their commitment to the program is the true story of our turnaround from a year ago.”
In many ways, 2016 was a season of firsts for the Bulldogs.
Williams was a first-year head coach. A longtime Poland assistant, he took over the reins of the program following the resignation of Mark Brungard, who stepped away at the end of 2015 following an 11-year stint.
The Bulldogs proceeded to miss the playoffs for the first time in nine years, and their 4-6 finish marked the first time since 2005 that they logged a losing record.
“Last year wasn’t any different in terms of how we ran the program, the terminology, the philosophy,” Williams said. “It’s like anything else in life, whether it’s getting married, having a child, getting your first job, whatever it might be. ... You might be ready, but until you actually go through the process, you are going to experience some surprises.
“Was there a learning curve? Probably. But overall, we were very competitive and we played Poland football. We just didn’t end up where we would have liked.”
Despite the rough rookie season, Williams — a history teacher in the Poland school system — may have history on his side.
Brungard’s first year also resulted in a 4-6 finish. Brungard then put together a string of 10 straight winning seasons.
“Right now, my only concern is getting prepared for this week,” Williams said. “My only goal is to see that our kids improve from their last outing, that they get better each time they take the field.”
“I can tell you there were a lot of unhappy players at the end of last year,” Williams said. “They were very anxious to show everyone that 4-6 was not who they were They made a commitment as soon as last season ended, and they have intently stuck with it.”
Poland opened the season with a 51-14 win over Marlington. Blowout wins over Niles and Jefferson followed. The Bulldogs led 30-0 at halftime in their game at Howland. Last week, they rolled to a 63-0 win over Edgewood.
Like he did a year ago, junior quarterback Cole Kosco guides the Poland offense. Kosco has thrown for 513 yards and six touchdowns, and he has also rushed for a pair of scores.
Senior Mike Diaz (13 receptions, 279 yards) has been Kosco’s favorite target, while seniors Jonah Spencer (51 carries, 495 yards, seven TDs), Dante Romano (44 carries, 368 yards, six TDs) and Richard Bailey (26 carries, 236 yards, five TDs) pace a talented and deep backfield.
“Our running backs, they epitomize the definition of unselfishness and what it means to be a team-first player,” Williams said. “Jonah and Dante can both be featured backs, but they are very willing and even anxious to share playing time. They sincerely don’t concern themselves with touches or numbers.”
To emphasize the point, Williams shares a video of a Spencer 88-yard touchdown run against Howland. Spencer breaks several tackles at the line of scrimmage, then races untouched to the end zone. However, Williams asks the viewer to focus on Romano, who is on the sideline for the play. Romano can be seen racing from one end of the field to the other, following Spencer and celebrating wildly in the process.
“That’s what I’m most proud of on that play,” Williams said. “The guys on this team have a true love for one another. They care about each other and about the Poland football program.”
As a team, Poland is averaging 360 yards per game, including 258 rushing yards. Kosco has been sacked just once in five games.
“Our line has really done a nice job,” Williams said. “We have some returning seniors on the line, but we also had some holes to fill. The new guys have really stepped up. We’re at a point now where we can rotate guys in and out, and feel comfortable with whoever is out there.”
Defensively, the Bulldogs are giving up 161 yards per game, including just 75 rushing yards per contest. Linebackers Kincaid Mrakovich (36 tackles) and Eric Shipsky (35 tackles, three fumble recoveries) lead the way up front while defensive back Bill Orr has pulled in three interceptions.
“As a whole, this defensive unit works extremely hard in the moment, they always seem to make the big play when they need to,” Poland defensive coordinator Rick DiNunzio said. “Last year was definitely a learning experience, and they are using that experience to fuel them on this year.
“Truthfully, we were a few plays here and there from going 6-4 or 7-3 last year. We knew the talent was there. Then to see the way the guys responded in the off-season, taking it upon themselves to really take things to the next level. This is a special group.”
DiNunzio is one of five varsity coaches who played for and graduated from Poland. Three of the four freshmen coaches also are graduates of the school. Most of the staff serve as teachers.
Williams is a Boardman product, but he served as the Poland defensive coordinator for 11 seasons prior to assuming the top role. He has lived in Poland since 1993.
“[Brungard] always made an effort to bring Poland guys onto the staff,” Williams said. “I saw what a valuable took can be, and this year we have more Poland grads than ever.”
DiNunzio played under Rick Shepas in 1995. He has been a Poland assistant under Paul Hulea, Brungard and Williams. Like Williams, DiNunzio said that having so many Poland graduates on the staff “is invaluable, and it speaks volumes that so many of us want to return and be part of the program.”
“This staff knows the Poland way,” DiNunzio said. “They understand the traditions and they know what Poland football means to the community. Some of our freshman coaches played just a few years ago when today’s freshmen were in middle school. The players looked up to these guys, now they are learning from them.”
DiNunzio noted that most of the lower level coaches work side by side with the varsity coaches during summer camp “to learn everything from terminology to play selection.” The varsity staff has even made a strong commitment to connect with the Little Bulldogs football program.
“Everyone is on the same page, and these kids, they can’t wait for their turn, they can’t wait to get to the high school level and be part of this,” DiNunzio said. “As a grade school kid in the early ‘90s, I was there to see a low point in the program’s history.
“Then I saw things take off, and everyone really rallied to keep things going ever since. We’re all in this to keep the tradition alive.”
As for the rest of the 2017 season, Spencer — like his coaches — insist that Poland “is only concerned about Struthers [tonight’s opponent], and only concerned about improving from last week.”
He does admit that he and the rest of his teammates have a bit of a chip on their shoulders, and feel as though “we let a lot of the community and former players down” with last year’s sub-par record.
“Last year was a tough pill to swallow,” Spencer said. “Honestly, I cried when Coach Brungard left. Our biggest fear was that someone from the outside would come in. But then coach Williams took over, and we felt like it was a great transition, but we didn’t produce on the field.”
“We hung a ‘4-6’ banner in the weight room to remind us all winter long that we had work to do. We were not going to let history repeat itself.”
Spencer then points out a little piece of historic trivia, noting that he was born one week before Poland became the first Ohio high school team to log a 15-0 record en route to a Division III state championship in 1999.
So, is Spencer looking for championship-like history to repeat itself in 2017?
Spencer replies in a miserably-happy-sort-of-way which would make his coach proud.
“We haven’t won anything yet, we still have a long way to go and our only concern is our next opponent,” Spencer said. “We’re very happy to be 5-0, but we’re not satisfied.”