Orchard Park running back Okoya Anderson turns up field during the Quakers’ scrimmage against Canisius last Saturday. Anderson and his teammates will be looking to avenge their 9-7 loss to Lancaster last season when the Redskins visit OP Stadium at 7:30 p.m. Friday night. Photo by John Normile Purchase color photos at www.BeeNews.com The Orchard Park Quakers varsity football team went 7-2 last season and advanced to the Class AA semifinals last October. For many programs, that would be a successful season.

For head coach Gene Tundo and his Quakers however, that’s a disappointment.

“Our goal is always to go to (Ralph Wilson Stadium) and go as far as we can,” said Tundo, who is entering his 17th season as Quaker head coach. “We got beat by a great team in North Tonawanda. We played hard though and never gave up.”

The Quakers have set the bar high as Tundo’s teams have gone 129-24 in his previous 16 seasons. A loss in the Class AA semifinals (21-7 to North Tonawanda last October) is falling short of the established mark, especially after Orchard Park won the Class AA state championship in 2008. The Quakers should be a favorite though to win another league title and head to the Class AA championship game at Ralph Wilson Stadium. The Quakers will get a chance to prove themselves in the very first game of the season Friday night when they host division rival Lancaster, the team that handed the Quakers their first loss in two years back in October and faced North Tonawanda in the Class AA championship game in November.

Kyle Witkowski is expected to be the starter for the Quakers on Friday night. The senior played sparingly for the Quakers last season in a backup role to starter Dave Janca, who graduated in June. Witkowski’s expected to take a hold of the starting role this season. Tundo described Witkowski as a consistent passer who throws the ball very well. Tundo also mentioned fellow senior Zach Shenk as someone who could see playing time at the quarterback position. Tundo said Shenk has good strength and can do a lot of different things. He can also play receiver and in the secondary for the Quakers.

The biggest obstacle the Quakers will have to overcome this season is the graduation of important players such as Janca, Dan Nesci, Gary Davies and Kevin Collins. The Quakers were also hit hard on the offensive line by graduation as well as the transfer of Robert and Patrick Kugler to Pennsylvania after their father, Sean, was named the offensive line coach for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

“It’s hard to replace great players,” Tundo said. “Five of our six linemen are gone. It’s hard to replace linemen. That’s what we are focusing on most. It’s tough. The o-line is brand new.”

The one holdover is third-year offensive lineman Pat Moran, a major contributor to the Quakers’ line play not only in 2009, but also in their state championship year of 2008. Though the Quakers may be short on depth on the line, they have plenty at the skill positions.

Witkowski and Shenk will have options to throw to in the passing game with perhaps the most dangerous target being junior Ben Johnson.

“He started last year for us,” Tundo said. “He’s a very talented athlete. He has great hands and good vision. He also has great speed. He should have a great year.”

Senior wide receiver Bobby Corvino is small at just five-foot-nine, but he possesses great hands and tremendous speed. Senior Paul Leavell also is a threat in the passing game with his ability to catch the ball out of the backfield.

The bulk of the rushing duties belong to junior Okoya Anderson. The six-foot, 169-pound back rushed for over 1,000 yards last season and added 16 touchdowns. He will be expected to carry the load for the Quakers again in 2010.

Orchard Park’s captains are Corvino along with Ross DeLisle, a senior who plays tight end and safety mainly and is one of the team’s biggest contributors on special teams.

The Quakers will also be counting on several new players coming up from the JV squad that went 7-1 last season. Tundo is excited about those players, but didn’t want to make a judgement as to who specifically would be the key contributors until he saw them on the field first.

The Quakers will also face some new opponents in the Class AA South Division as Section VI merged with Harvard Cup schools to form new divisions. Orchard Park now faces Lancaster, Clarence, Frontier, Jamestown, West Seneca West and Harvard Cup school Bennett.

Tundo is a fan of the new divisions because of the opportunity they provide for the city kids.

“It’s exciting,” he said. “Buffalo has some great athletes. It’ll be neat to play teams we haven’t played before. They play very good ball in the Harvard Cup.”

As for whether or not the Quakers can reclaim the Class AA championship they’ve become so accustomed to winning, Tundo said a few factors need to fall into place first before the Quakers can think about packing for a trip to the state playoffs. “If we’re healthy, we should make the playoffs,” Tundo said. “We ’re in a good division, so we’ll have our work cut out for us. We need to be healthy. It’s a long season. If we can make plays and bond together, we should do well.”

e-mail: mmigliore@beenews.com