Clarkstown North Rams Hope Extra Work in Summer will Pay Off in the Fall

There's nothing better than sprints on a breezy Tuesday afternoon in New City in  August.

That is exactly what the Clarkstown North High School football team has been spending their afternoons doing. With a 4-5 season behind them, mediocrity is driving most of the team to attend voluntary summer workouts.

The Rams' four captains were all in attendance with about 20 other members of the Junior Varsity and Varsity football teams Tuesday. With training camp starting Aug. 20, those in attendance looked to capture the eye of the coach through work ethic, stamina and a desire to get better.

Rams captains Tareek Turner, Dan Macalena, Vincent Porcelli and Luke Sullivan all spoke about improving on last year's record.

When asked which game on the schedule he was most excited for, senior Macalena quickly answered "first game" and added that they have "got to play every team hard" if they want to make the improvements they feel they are capable of.

"It would be great to beat North Rockland," said senior runningback and defensiveback Turner. "We havent beaten them in a while and I would love to beat them in my final year."

The Clarkstown North Rams have not beaten North Rockland in eight years.

Team captain and third year quarterback Sullivan spoke about the Rams 2009 campaign.

"We had a solid year last year, but we were young," Sullivan said. "Now with more experience and some help from our juniors, we feel like a much better team overall."

Offensive and defensive lineman Porcelli believes that last year's team "should have been better" adding that he has seen a huge improvement in the team and believes that "every game on the schedule should be a win."

The confident team captains stand behind their team and are looking to make sure their opponents remember the day they played the Rams.

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