ROTTERDAM - The sudden exodus of four of the six teams scheduled to play Class D football this fall because of low roster numbers left Section 2 officials scrambling to fill the holes left in the schedules of the two remaining programs, Greenwich and Canajoharie/Fort Plain.
Officials were able to reconfigure the Class B and Class C schedules to accommodate Greenwich and Canajoharie/Fort Plain, which has allowed the two remaining Class D programs to test themselves against tougher competition each week. For Greenwich, the winners of the 2025 and 2024 Section 2 Class D titles, the new schedule has given the Witches a chance to flourish in a situation that could have proven difficult.
Friday night, Greenwich improved its overall record to 6-1 with a 16-7 road win at Schalmont/Duanesburg/Berne-Knox-Westerlo, a Class B program ranked No. 21 in the state. Ethan Mullen caught a pair of 5-yard touchdown passes from Brett Traver and the Witches added a safety in the fourth quarter to help secure the fifth straight win for the state's No. 6-rated Class D squad.
"I am extremely happy with the way we've played the last two weeks," Greenwich coach Brandon Linnett said. "The second half against Fonda (a 40-28 win) was outstanding. Last week I thought we played great defense most of the game. The offense was a little sputtery. ... We had to kind of just grind it, which we were able to do."
Fonda-Fultonville (5-2) rebounded from that loss to edge Cobleskill-Richmondville (5-2) 28-27 Friday, jumbling up the Class C West Division standings considerably. Greenwich travels to take on Cobleskill-Richmondville this week.
Linnett entered the game against the Sabres wondering how his squad would fare against an unfamiliar opponent. The Witches gained 238 rushing yards on 46 carries, including 156 in the second half.
"I didn't know how we would do against their athleticism. We gave up the one touchdown, so I really thought we did well to hold them to seven points," Linnett said.
Mullen's second touchdown catch was a thing of beauty for the Witches, coming with 5:01 left in the third quarter on a diving catch.
"Mullen is nice to have. He's a big target and made a couple of other nice catches (besides his touchdowns) that kept drives going," Linnett said.
Greenwich opened its season with a 26-0 triumph over Section 7 foe Moriah. The Witches lost 28-0 in Week 2 against Schuylerville and then responded to produce victories against Hudson (24-0), Coxsackie-Athens (44-0, a game halted in the second quarter because of injuries), Canajoharie/Fort Plain (60-6) prior to their wins over Fonda-Fultonville and Schalmont/Duanesburg/Berne-Knox-Westerlo.
"We were worried about staying healthy, and we are banged up a little bit and our depth is being challenged having more sophomores on the field than we would like, but they are getting good experience and making some plays," Linnett said. "Playing four quarters each game has helped us out a lot. Relatively speaking, we have been able to stay pretty healthy. We've found a second quarterback in Brett Traver. He has helped a lot."
Cobleskill-Richmondville, ranked No. 14 in Class C, should provide Greenwich another stern test. The Bulldogs defeated Schalmont/Duanesburg/Berne-Knox-Westerlo 28-15 in Week 2. Linnett is looking forward to his team's next challenge and is grateful Section 2 football officials put together the schedule the Witches are currently playing.
"Even losing to Schuylerville early was good for us," Linnett said. "We had some opportunities. They are really good and it was good for us to play them. They are a step faster, just as physical and they are well-coached. It probably was just what we needed at the time that it happened."
Two-point conversion stop secures huge win for Fonda-Fultonville
Fonda-Fultonville built a 28-13 lead over Cobleskill-Richmondville and held on to register a stirring 28-27 Week 7 victory as the Valley Hawks denied a two-point conversion attempt that would have put the Bulldogs ahead.
Cobleskill-Richmondville finished 3-1 in Class C West Division play and Fonda-Fultonville (2-1 division), Hudson (2-1 division) and Johnstown (2-2 division) have secured playoff spots. Fonda-Fultonville and Hudson meet this week to complete the division schedule. If Hudson wins, Cobleskill-Richmondville would claim the top seed based on a 29-20 win over the Bluehawks and Fonda-Fultonville would be the division's fourth seed because of a 19-7 setback against Johnstown.
A victory by Fonda-Fultonville would land the Valley Hawks the No. 1 seed and the rest of the division would be No. 2 Cobleskill-Richmondville, No. 3 Hudson and No. 4 Johnstown.
Class AA playoff picture taking shape
Victories on Friday by Christian Brothers Academy, Saratoga Springs and Shaker allowed those squads to clinch playoff berths in the four-team Class AA playoffs. CBA (7-0, 6-0) blanked Schenectady 61-0, Saratoga Springs (6-1, 5-1) defeated Colonie 42-14 and Shaker (6-1, 5-1) shut out Albany 42-0.
The only potential intrigue centers on the No. 4 seed. Currently, Shenendehowa (5-2, 4-2) occupies that spot. The only team left that could deny the Mustangs is Albany (3-4, 2-4). In order for that to happen, the Falcons would first have to defeat Niskayuna in Week 8 and then beat Shenendehowa in Week 9, plus have Shen fall to Shaker in Week 8. If Niskayuna defeats Albany, Shenendehowa would earn the final playoff spot regardless of its outcome vs. Shaker.
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There’s more to Albany with the Times Union. Subscribe today for just 25¢.This article originally published at Section 2 football Week 7 recap, analysis: Small school shines, Class C thriller, AA playoff race update.