TRIB TOTAL MEDIA • 127
ROCHESTER PLAYERS RUN SPRINTS DURING PRACTICE
LATE-SEASON SURGE
BOOSTS ROCHESTER
Small school football programs go through
ups and downs.
They make championship runs and then
reload and develop with a new set of players.
The Rochester Rams are a perfect example
of that, and last year was one of those seasons
where the Rams had to reset.
“I’ve been here for 34 years and last year
was one of our youngest teams from what
I can remember,” longtime coach Gene
Matsook said.
“We started freshmen and sophomores, so
we figured we were going to have a little bit
of a rebuilding year. But, from about game
six on, we started to catch on. Our young
kids got better, the team came together, and
we won the last three games in a row. We
have them all back this year too, so we are
hoping to take a big step forward.”
After losing their first seven games of
the season while only scoring 40 points,
the Rams won their final three games over
Northgate, Monessen and Bishop Canevin
by a combined score of 124-34.
“It was a big confidence boost for us because
we have a lot of guys coming back,”
senior Matt Bedekovich said. “So, to get
(the younger players) comfortable in their
position, it will help this season.”
The Rams only lost six seniors from last
year’s team, so as they head into the 2020
season, Matsook and the Rams are looking forward
to building off of what they established.
“That was a big building block for a young
team,” Matsook said. “If you can start improving
by Week 5 or Week 6, with a young
team, you are taking a step in the right
direction. It showed last year that the kids
were willing to learn and get better.”
Matsook and the Rams will return a lot
of talent from a year ago. After starting as
a freshman, Parker Lyons will return as a
sophomore quarterback, and running backs
Rashawn Reid and Denny Robinson will also
be back after providing solid options in the
backfield last season.
Bedekovich and Ryan Zawislak are two more
linemen and two-way players that will help
contribute again. Both are just trying to focus
on the basics as they get ready for this season.
“We just have to work on getting our fundamentals
down and building off of that,”
Zawislak said.
Before finishing off their season on the
right foot, the Rams’ offense couldn’t find
a rhythm and their defense allowed teams
to light up the scoreboard. Through their
first seven games, they allowed three teams
to score over 40 points. One scored 35, and
two scored 21.
As the Rams came together as a team, the
offense started to find a rhythm. Matsook
is hoping both his offense and defense can
operate efficiently at the same time so the
team can reach its highest level. After seeing
what his team could do toward the end of
last season, he’s excited to see what the next
step looks like.
“I think our kids caught on to what Rochester
football is and how to play at a high level
last year towards the end of the season,”
Matsook said. “But we can’t be satisfied after
just winning three games in a row. We have
to take another step forward if we are going
to get back to the top.”
by GREG MACAFEE
Coach: Gene Matsook
2019 record: 3-7, 2-5 in
Class A Big Seven Conference
All-time record: 664-411-54
SCHEDULE
Date Opponent Time
9.11 at Northgate* 7
9.18 Union* 7
9.25 at Burgettstown* 7
10.2 OLSH* 7
10.9 at Fort Cherry* 7
10.16 at Cornell* 7
10.23 Shenango* 7
*CONFERENCE GAME
FAST FACTS
• The teams that Rochester
beat last season finished
with a combined record of
5-24.
• The Rams have won eight
WPIAL Class A championships
and three PIAA Class A championships.
• Rashawn Reid and
Denny Robinson both ran for
100-plus yards at least twice
in the final three games of
last season. In their 50-16
win over Northgate, they combined
for 331 yards and three
touchdowns on 25 carries.
• The Rams will have eight
starters returning on offense
and 10 returning on defense.
ROCHESTER • BIG 7