Lansing football racking up shutouts

The last time there was a Section IV Championship in eight-man football back in 2019, the Lansing Bobcats were crowned the champions with a win over Newfield. The landscape looks a bit different now, with six more teams joining the eight-man circuit to bring the total to 13. However, Lansing still finds itself near the top of the mountain as one more win this Friday will secure a playoff spot.

The Bobcats are 4-2 with one of the wins being a forfeit against Elmira Notre Dame. In the three victories that were decided on the field, Lansing has allowed a grand total of zero points. Only one other team in the entirety of Section IV has at least three shutouts, and that’s state-ranked Chenango Forks.

The defense has been very impressive for Lansing this season, and head coach Brett Hotchkiss explained why.

“I think one of the big things is just preparation,” Hotchkiss said. “It’s something we preach in our program. Owen and Brandon Davis coordinate our defense, and they do a great job of preparing our kids week in and week out. Our kids take a lot of time to delve into their opponent and do a lot of film study, which makes a big difference for us in terms of not only playing aggressively but going ahead and being able to anticipate going into plays or going into formations knowing what they need to do.”

The biggest difference this year for Lansing is that All-State quarterback Ben Vincent is no longer with the team and instead is playing at Alfred University. The Bobcats have reshaped their offense behind senior quarterback and former tight end Carson Crandall, who is one of many weapons in the backfield of a run-based attack.

“Everybody kind of steps up,” Hotchkiss said. “Ben was a very dynamic player for us. Obviously, having a quarterback that can run in the eight-man game is definitely a huge asset. But to that extent, I think Carson has done a great job leading us this year with a little bit of a different style. He’s really good at getting the ball out to the multiplicity of backs that we have.”

There are four running backs getting regular touches for the Bobcats. Senior Eric Khan leads the way as Nathan Jones, Anthony McMillen and Julian Waite rotate in regularly, keeping everyone fresh.

“Each of them kind of presents their own unique characteristics,” Hotchkiss said. “It makes play calling interesting at times. Just having a lot of guys, it keeps you explosive at that position. I think all of them seek to go ahead and have big gains for us at any point in time. Having those guys relatively fresh on the defensive side of the ball and being able to plug and play them on the offensive side, they are a little bit more durable that way throughout the course of games.”

There is a strong senior class of nine players on the 23-player roster with big roles in all three facets of the game. They’re looking to cap off their time at Lansing with a playoff appearance after many years of working with coach Hotchkiss.

“There’s a lot of kids in that class that I’ve worked with since they were in middle school,” Hotchkiss said. “It’s really nice to have kids that you know in the program and know the expectations. The more kids that you have that have been part of the program and can kind of convey the expectations and the messages that we send out as coaches is always beneficial to a program.”

Lansing will be traveling to Trumansburg on Friday in the final game of the regular season. Both teams are 4-2, and the winner will fill in the final spot of the four-team playoffs in Section IV eight-man football.

“A lot of our kids mix in quite frequently with a lot of their kids, so I’m sure there’s some healthy banter that goes back and forth week to week between the two groups,” Hotchkiss said. “Growing up around here, I just don’t think there’s much of a better rivalry than Lansing-Trumansburg across the lake at this point. I’m sure as the week goes on, everybody will be pretty amped up and excited.”

It doesn’t get much bigger than a rivalry game with a playoff spot on the line for both teams. Last season, Trumansburg’s second since bringing its football program back, Lansing was able to come out on top in a competitive 49-40 contest. Expect a similarly close game Friday.