SEASON SNAPSHOT

2022 Schedule

Aug. 25—at Sheffield

Sept. 1—vs. West Branch

Sept. 8—vs. Elk County Catholic

Sept. 15—at Otto_Eldred

Sept. 22—vs. Sheffield

Sept. 29—vs. Cameron County

Oct. 6—at Elk County Catholic

Oct. 13—vs. Otto-Eldred

Oct. 20—vs. Coudersport among the league’s premier teams. Numbers are always a battle, so staying healthy is the top priority, but Bucktail could have the right ingredients to cook up the program’s first winning season since 2012.

“There’s some optimism and a lot of expectations. We have to fight the injury bug but we have some potential,” Sutliff said. “In our community and our town, there’s excitement. A lot of that comes from knowing we were a breath from winning four or five games and were right there with a lot of teams last year.”

There also is a comfort level change permeating throughout the team. Sutliff now has a year under his belt and has been able to install more plays and schemes than he did last year when a young group was learning on the fly. This time, Bucktail is ahead of schedule, has experience and has tasted success.

More than 30 players signed up and the junior high numbers are strong. Put it all together and both the present and future are looking pretty good.

“The players knowing the system should bode well for us. We can mix it up a little bit because that first year, you don’t get everything in that you want to get in,” Sutliff said. “Now you get all the extraplaysinandwehavea goodgroupofathletestowork with.Wecompetedinalloflast year’sgamesandhopefullywe cankeepgoingforward.”

Bucktailuseditsrunning gametokeepmovingdefenses backwardayearago.QuarterbackBrodyPentzandrunning backsTannerPettingilland BraylonFantaskiallwentover 500yards.Pentz,ajunior,flourishedinhisfirstyearstartingat quarterbackandcouldalsomove torunningbackindifferentpackages.ThatisbecauseBucktailis highonfreshmanPatrickTarantellawhoalsocouldplayasimilar dualroleashegrowsaccustomed tothehighschoolgame.

Pettingillisabatteringram typefullback,possessingquality speedfora220-pounder.With Bucktailhavinga10-game scheduleforthefirstduringthe 2000s,a1,000-yardseasonisa possibilityafteraveraging86 yardspergamelastseason.

BraylonFantaskicanbeusedat halfback,tailback,intheslot andatwidereceiver.Anexcellentall-aroundathlete,Fantaski nearlyreached1,000totalyards lastseason,whilescoring12 touchdowns.BrettMasonand freshmanGavinPickalsocould havestrongseasonsandprovide theBuckssomegooddepth. Havingthreebackswho topped500yardsalsohelped Bucktailutilizedifferentpackagesayearago.Bucktailranthe TripleOption,ransomeWishboneanddiditsbesttokeepdefensesguessing.Bucktailis hopingtokeepdoingthat,while alsoworkingonitspassing game.Pentzhadsomebiggames lastseasonandcontinued

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2022 RESULTS (2-7)

Bucktail 42, Sheffield 12

Bucktail 16, Elk County Catholic 30

Bucktail 32, Otto-Eldred 52

Bucktail 42, Cameron County 38

Bucktail 24, Elk County Catholic 33

Bucktail 36, Otto-Eldred 42

Bucktail 6, Coudersport 55

Bucktail 8, CMVT 32 progressinthethrowingdepartment,combinedwiththe weaponsBucktailhas,could forcedefensesintoapickyour poisontypescenario.

“That’swhatwestrivefor.You wanttokeepteamsoff-balance. Ifyouarerelyingonjustoneor twoguysthatcanmakeyoueasiertocontrol,”Sutliffsaid.“With thethreebackswehadlastyear itmadeitharderfordefensesto justpintheirearsbackandgo. Oursuccessthisyearisgoingto bedictatedbythrowingtheball alittlemore.We’recapableofit andIjusthavetofindwaysto airitoutalittlemoreandkeep defensesoffbalance.”

Helpingmaketheoffensego willbealinewhichalsoreturns severalstarters.LefttackleJon Greenisoneoftheleague’sbest andsophomoreEvanRansom andDanielGavlockbothmade positiveimpactsintheirfirst seasonsstarting.EvanHillyeris agoodcenterandColten Fleisherisaplayerwhocould burstontothescene.Allthose playerslikelywillplaykeyroles alongthedefensivelineaswell. SowillplayerslikeTalonDitty (6-foot-4,240pounds)andBrian Dwyer.KeepaneyeonDwyerin theoffensivebackfieldand/orat widereceiveraswell.

2022 Leaders

PASSERATCMINYDSTD

Brody Pentz713085528

RUSHERATYDSTD

Tanner Pettingill1277717

Brody Pentz895927

Braylon Fantaski615767

Brett Mason211291

Brian Dwyer121010

RECEIVERRECYDSTD

Braylon Fantaski203905

Brett Mason71381

Gavin Yachymiak2291

Brody Pentz3230

2023 Football Players To Watch

Braylon Fantaski, WR/RB/DB: Itʼs really not fair to limit by Fantaski by what positions he can play. Because, essentially, Fantaski can play them all. He is Bucktailʼs Swiss Army Knife and put together and outstanding junior campaign as Bucktail made some massive strides. At one point in the season, Fantaski was ranked among the areaʼs top 15 in receiving and rushing yards. The senior finished the year, totaling 966 yards and 12 touchdowns in eight games. Fantaski also returned an interception for a touchdown and was one of the teamʼs leading tacklers. Fantaski has led Bucktail in receiving the last two years and was second on the team in rushing a year ago. He put on an explosive show in a victory against Sheffield, topping 100 yards rushing and receiving and totaling 295 yards and six touchdowns. Fantaski also intercepted a pass in that game. He produced two 100-yard rushing games and has 37 catches over the last two years.

Brett Mason, RB/LB: Bucktail has several dangerous running options, so Mason did not have a lot of carries last season. Still, he is a dangerous weapon who can provide Bucktail a threat as both a rusher and a receiver. Mason ran for 129 yards and a touchdown, averaging 6.1 yards per carry. He also went over 100 yards receiving, totaling 138 yards and a touchdown on seven catches while averaging 19.1 yards. Mason ran for 73 yards in that Sheffield victory and also caught three passes for 77 yards. He also caught a 20-yard touchdown against Otto-Eldred in a highscoring 52-32 defeat. Mason provides help on defense as well and is one of several starters back on a unit which forced nearly two turnovers per game.

Tanner Pettingill, RB/LB: Part of Bucktailʼs threeheaded backfield monster a year ago, Pettingill led Bucktail in rushing with 771 yards and seven touchdowns. He was one of five players to top 500 yards and also caught a touchdown. Pettingill had shown flashes his first two years and put it all together as a junior last fall. A physical runner, Pettingill went over 100 yards three times and gouged Otto-Eldred for 203 yards and four touchdowns in a lastsecond 42-36 loss. Pettingill averaged 6.1 yards per carry and came up big against Cameron County when he produced 150 yards and a touchdown. Pettingillʼs emergence allowed Bucktail to keep teams off-balance with Fantaski and Brody Pentz also having strong rushing seasons. With Bucktail playing 10 games this season, a 1,000-yard season could be a possibility.

Brody Pentz, QB/DB: After making his presence felt as a wide receiver his freshman year, Pentz moved to quarterback as a sophomore last fall and became a versatile dual threat. Pentz totaled 1,165 yards and 15 touchdowns. Pentz helped the passing game become much more explosive than the previous season, throwing for 552 yards and eight touchdowns. He made the most of those completions as well, averaging 18 yards on them. Pentz is as dangerous running as he is throwing and gained 592 yards, good for second on the team. He also tied Pettingill and Fantaski for a team-high seven rushing touchdowns. Pentz went over 100 yards twice and also had a 95-yard rushing game. He displayed his passing prowess against Sheffield, throwing for a career-high 214 yards and three touchdowns.