GUILDERLAND — Following in the cleated footsteps of one of the most talented senior classes in Guilderland’s football history, the current team is aware of the challenges ahead.

And judging by Monday’s aggressive one-on-one tackling drill in the 90-degree, sun-drenched heat, the players seem willing to forge ahead.

Gone is Frank Gallo and his record-setting passing arm, as well as Jake Smith, who caught many touchdowns. Gone, too, are the quick feet and versatility of Micaiah Henningham and Joe Cornell, as well as the superior leadership of guys like Julian Christiano, Marcus Knodler, and Zach Formica.

Every year, high school football teams deal with players lost to graduation — it’s a never-ending cycle — but Guilderland has let go of most of its starting roster from a 2013 team that made the Class AA semifinals.

Head Coach Dan Penna told The Enterprise that there has been some talk within the team about the players the Dutch have lost, and how to fill those voids. Guilderland has been re-inventing itself in the preseason.

“We did lose a lot, and they were good players, but we all have confidence in what we have coming back,” said senior Alec Cardinal on Monday. “It feels good to lead, and the shoes have to be filled.”

Despite hoping for similar success as last year, senior Ben Phelan believes it’s a good idea for the 2014 Dutchmen to get as far away from last year as possible.

“We don’t want to forget about those guys,” said senior Ryan Gallup. “They helped us a lot, but…”

“It feels completely different because we were behind all those guys,” added senior Michael Lia, who credited Formica for helping him with tight-end routes and blocking assignments. “We’ll be taking what we learned onto the field.”

Guilderland had some fierce but composed players who spent two or three years on varsity, and that’s something “you can’t replace,” Penna said. “You have to come back and grow as a team — you can’t replant the same soil — you have to use new soil to grow something different this year.”

Gallup was featured as a back-up at halfback and fullback last year, but he’ll be a key element for this season, Penna said. Junior Cameron Long, a starting defensive back in 2013, will now have to fill a role on offense.

“The new roots of our team have to find out who they are,” said Penna. “We’ll take their abilities and utilize them as best we can.”

Phelan said that, besides himself, Cardinal, Gallup, Lia, Long, and senior Andrew Sentz, there’s no one else with much game experience. Sentz, now the starting quarterback for the Dutch, took a few snaps last year, and also made two game-winning field goals.

“Being behind Frank [Gallo], it was a good time to learn, but we’re not going to be throwing the ball 40 times per game this year,” Sentz said. “The offense is going to change.”

With more player-coach interactions in 2014, and more of a focus on pacing the offense, Penna wants to make sure that no stone is left unturned.

Penna said that Guilderland will go with a more balanced approach. Not that the Dutch weren’t balanced before.

“The past few years, we had more reliance on the pass,” said Penna. “This year, the pass will be used more as a functional source. When we make the call, they’ll know what to do.’

Sentz, who spoke rather softly on Monday, knows that he’ll have to be loud at the line, and that he’ll have to move his feet.

Guilderland has had its share of adverse games, pulling off some heroic victories, and Penna thinks that, from witnessing those situations, the Dutch players learned how to compete at a high level with a sense of urgency while maintaining composure.

“They saw the players above them not getting rattled,” said Penna. “Also, they saw them accomplish goals.”

The Dutchmen open this season at Colonie on Sept. 5. Guilderland beat Colonie in the Class AA quarterfinals last year, so Phelan thinks the Dutch already have a target on its back.

Guilderland had a rough semifinal loss to Christian Brothers Academy in 2013 and Cardinal may be using that bad memory for some extra fuel this season. He really wants to beat CBA next time.

Actually, two of Guilderland’s three losses last year were to CBA, and it was not pretty either time. Cardinal said that the whole Dutch team knew that it could have played better in those games.

“There’s a lot of talent in that locker room,” he said. “We just have to work hard.”