GUILDERLAND — The Guilderland football team finished the regular season with a loud statement and accomplished something that hasn’t been done in a decade.

The Dutchmen guaranteed themselves a winning season after crushing Ithaca of Section IV, 60-0, last Friday. The victory gave the Dutchmen a fifth win for the first time since 1995.
"It’s a good game to go out for us," said Guilderland quarterback Greg Barcomb. "We got to visit Cornell and look at an Ivy League stadium. Ithaca was not the best team. But we went and did what we needed to do and we got other guys into the game that don’t play that much. Now we’ll get ready for the playoffs."

The Dutchmen will be in uncharted territory on Friday night. They will host their first ever home playoff contest; it is the fourth home game they have had this season.
"We’re now 0-0," said running back Kevin Forbes. "We don’t want to start this season 0-1. Coach told us to do what we did at the beginning of the regular season. Win the first one and keep winning."

Forbes praised the reserves who in practices during the week run the opponents’ offense and defensive schemes.
"But this was great," Forbes added. "Kids that give us a good look at the other team during the week were able to get in. It was rewarding to see them play. They are the unsung heroes of the team. They have just as much dedication as anyone else on the team. They are all part of the engine."

To recap the Ithaca contest, the Dutchmen used their superior athleticism and size to their advantage.
"We came up with a lot of mistakes," said Guilderland Coach Dan Penna. "But we were able to overcome that with our athleticism and physical play."

Slow start

The game started out slow for the Dutch.
"In the first quarter, we were a little tentative," Penna said. "We played down to their level and we talked to the kids. The senior leaders stepped up and said that we need to play our best and do the best job we can do every game."

The Dutchmen scored 26 points in the second quarter to blow open the game and cruise to the win.
"We put the game out of reach and were able to rest our starters for the playoffs," Penna said.

Penna credited the play of Ben Kosinski and Jarrell Gatterson at running back and fullbacks Jason Lawrence and Josh Sawyer.

Barcomb also had a good day. He threw for 113 yards on six completions in 10 attempts.
"We are fine-tuning the passing game," Penna said. "We had gaping holes and the only negative yardage we got was when we fumbled or on penalties. We were able to contain the line of scrimmage.
"We needed to get better with that game," Penna added. "We might get some false confidence from beating a struggling team. But we made some mistakes that we can’t make in the playoffs."

Penna said his team made some penalties and missed some tackles on defense.
"At times we missed tackles and blocks but we made up for it with our athleticism," Penna said. "Every opponent in the playoffs is just as athletic. We have to execute better than we did against Ithaca in order to compete in the playoffs."

Forbes rushed for two touchdowns for Guilderland in the Ithaca game. Sawyer had two touchdowns on the ground and Barcomb, Kosinski, Nick Ranalli, and Lawrence rushed for touchdowns.

The final points of the game came after Parker Wolff intercepted a pass and returned it for a touchdown.

Wolff had a big game for the Dutch as he also blocked a punt and ran the ball for 22 yards that put the ball on the goal line.

"Proud"

Penna is proud of the win and what it means to the program to get its first winning season since 1995.
"I’m proud of what the kids accomplished this season," Penna said. "We got that elusive fifth win that we haven’t been able to get the past few years of finishing 4-5. The week before accomplished our goal of making the playoffs."

But Penna said it is a new season and the team is focused on Christian Brothers Academy, which it hosts on Friday night.
"It’s not about anything that we’ve done but what we do from this point forward," Penna said. "It’s not good enough to settle for what we’ve done. We want to beat CBA, but they are very good.
"They are a Big 10 program," Penna said. "They are no stranger to the playoffs. They produce big-time players. And they have one this year in Joel Vallano, who is going to Maryland on a scholarship. We have to play great on the offensive line to offset his ability."

Penna also said that the Brothers have good skill position players that the Dutch will have to focus their defense on.

The Dutchmen are looking to gain respect.
"We expect teams to come out and say we’re just Guilderland," Barcomb said. "We have to go out and earn respect."

Penna said that it’s good to be home for a playoff game.
"It’s surprising to have a home playoff game," he said. "At best, I thought we would have a road game. But the teams in the playoffs have all earned their spot. The committee did a nice job placing teams the way they were supposed to. A few teams feel they were left out, but we are happy to be in it and we want to make something of it."

It has been awhile since the Dutchmen had a home game this season.
"We only had three home games," Penna said. "The last two weeks of the season we’ve been on the road. The last home game was homecoming and that tends to be loaded with distractions. Really our last home game where we were able to focus was week two against Troy."
"We’ll enjoy it," Forbes said of the home game. "We play hard at home. But it’s just fun to play football and we’ll do what we’ve done all year and have a good week of practice."
"The home game is huge. For the seniors, they don’t want their last home game to be a loss to Saratoga," Barcomb said, referring to the homecoming defeat. "This is a chance to go back and leave a better mark."