While things didn’t end the way Cortland football team 117 wanted, there are still a ton of positives to be taken from their 2022 campaign.
With a final record totaling nine wins and two losses, the Red Dragons rattled off nine straight to start the season.
Throughout the win streak, the team was led by a tantalizing offense that averaged over 50 points per game. The well-balanced passing game led by quarterback Zac Boyes opened up the running game for 1000 yard rusher Jaden Alfanostjohn.
Behind first year defensive coordinator Steve Cushing, the defense allowed just 13 points a game at the same time.
The final two games were the only time Cortland appeared to be defeatable the entire season. While matches against Ithaca College and Randolph-Macon College didn’t go their way, it is impossible to say the 2022 season was a failure.
All together, the team outscored opponents cumulatively 496-192, as they notched 5,496 total yards.
In his first season at the helm, sophomore quarterback Zac Boyes threw for 2826 yards, and scored 30 total touchdowns.
Second year starter and fellow sophomore Jaden Alfanostjohn tacked on 18 touchdowns himself.
A major distinction this year centered around the dynamic duo that developed with junior wide receivers JJ Laap and Cole Burgess.
Laap was recognized as the team’s deep threat through the air, demanding double teams and clouded coverages throughout the season. He set an Empire 8 conference record in week one against Wittenberg, totaling 312 receiving yards and 2 touchdowns on 9 catches.
As for Burgess, he was the do it all receiver the team needed. With 816 receiving yards and 11 total touchdowns, Boyes seemed to find Burgess when the team needed it the most. A record setting day for the junior occurred in week 2 vs TCNJ, where he caught four passes, notched 140 yards and tied a school record for receiving touchdowns in a game with 3.
On the opposite side of the ball, individual talent was as well apparent.
Cornerbacks, Josh Cordero and Mark Noel tantalized opposing offenses. Cordero notched six interceptions, and returned three of them for touchdowns. Noel also scored on an interception.
Against the Empire 8 player of the year from Utica, Cordero proceeded to shadow him and hold him to just three total catches. The senior’s impact will surely be missed.
Safeties Ty Kolar and Christian Legagneur played a key piece day in and out and were vital to team 117’s successes.
The offensive and defensive lines, better known as the trenches, were also a bright spot in the 2022 season as they ran opposing teams into the dirt. In week 9, running back Ashton Capone ran for a school record 282 yards. Conversely, against a top rushing attack in the country, Cortland’s defensive line shut down Randolph-Macon, allowing just 63 yards through the first three quarters, with a total of 112 on 37 attempts.
While the season failed to end in a deep playoff run for your team in red and white, Cortland football by no means failed in 2022. They won the Empire 8 outright for back to back seasons for just the second time ever, and the first time since the late 1980s.
The team looks poised to compete again in 2023, but until then players will focus on preparing themselves for yet another offseason.