L
ast
season,
Huntington
finished their season with a
record of 7-3. Despite the
team’s strong performance, they were,
unfortunately, unable to capture the
Suffolk County Championship. This
season though, things would be different.
Led by Coach Steve Muller, the
second most winningest coach in school
history, Huntington came out firing on all
cylinders.
The team won their first three games of
the season, outscoring opponents by more
than a 2-to-1 ratio. However, the rest of
the team’s schedule would not be so kind.
After starting the season a perfect 3-0, the
Blue Devils rotated wins and losses in the
final five weeks of the season.
Ending up on the wrong end of the
games against Sayville, Miller Place and
Islip, Huntington closed out the regular
season going 2-3.
Still though, with a 5-3 overall record,
it was still good enough to to earn the
Blue Devils the fourth seed and a draw
into the Division III Section XI Playoffs.
“He’s a level-headed guy who is
very methodical and professional in his
approach. He helped keep everyone’s
focus and got us back into the game.”
From that point on, those three losses
meant virtually nothing.
Cold temperatures and blowing snow
wouldn’t be enough to slow down the
Blue Devils who fought back to gain their
first lead of the game, 13-12. From there,
they never looked back, winning the
game, and the Championship Title with a
score of 26-18.
During the teams regular season
schedule,
Huntington,
outscored
opponents
177-163.
But
during
their three playoff games, they
outscored opponents by a combined
102-44. Clearly a different animal
in postseason play, the Blue Devils
dispatched of #5 Hauppauge, #6 Bellport
with relative ease.
Seventh
seeded
Sayville
was
a bit of a different story.
Only 4-4 during the regular season, their
record was clearly not indicative of how
good Sayville’s offense was. The Golden
Flashes led the league offensively, scoring
280 points in eight games.
They would then have to beat the #1
seeded Miller Place to earn their title
shot. However, the three-time defending
Champs wouldn’t have enough in their
tank against the Blue Devils.
Despite a 12-0 deficit that came as
the result of two fumbles early in the
game, Huntington was able to battle back.
Coach Muller pointed to his workhorse
quarterback, Ben Kocis, in leading the
comeback.
With that win, the team also earned
their bid against (10-1) Nassau County
Champions, Lawrence for the Long Island
Class III title.
Huntington also found themselves
down early in this one, 14-0. And despite
their efforts to chip away at the lead, it just
wasn’t in the cards for the Blue Devils.
Huntington ultimately ended their great
season with a 42-32 loss.
All in all though, it’s hard not to be
proud of what the team achieved. With
their performance in the Suffolk County
Championship Tournament, the Blue
Devils won their seventh County Title
since 1948.
The success didn’t end there though.
Not only did Coach Muller recognize the
talented group of players on this team, the
league did as well.
POST SEASON RECOGNITION
All County Team Recognition
- Levar Butts
- Troy Greene
- Ben Kocis
- Christian Jamison
All Division Team Recognition
- Levar Butts
- Troy Greene
- Ben Kocis
- Christian Jamison
- Nick Arleo
- Davonte Evans
- Christian Gonzalez
- Tim Mattiace
- Jimmie Nelson
- Infinite Tucker
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WWW.ULTIMATEATHLETEMAGAZINE.COM
Boomer Award - Awarded to Suffolk’s
Best Quarterback
• Ben Kocis
- Complete 116 of 228 passes for
1,687 yards, 11 touchdowns and
only 5 interceptions
- Rushed for 535 yards and 8
touchdowns on 82 carries
James LeBlue Award (Awarded to
County’s Top Scholar Football Player)
• Christian Jamison
- Caught 49 passes for 784 yards and
7 touchdowns
- Tallied 38 tackles, 13 assists, 1 sack
and two interceptions
Designed by
Win-Kye Cheong
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