By Dan Murphy
This Saturday, Oct. 22, the Yonkers Force and Yonkers Brave will face off at Roosevelt Field at 130pm for the rivalry known as the Superintendents Cup. The two quarterback for the Force and the Brave are also brothers,
Atticus Oelkers is the quarterback for the Force and Noah Oelkers is the QB for the Brave. Atticus goes to Roosevelt High School and Noah goes to Sanders, and that is why they play on different teams.
The two played in last year’s Cup, with Atticus getting the MVP. Force Coach Anthony Fava told us that Atticus is one of two QB’s for the Force, but added, “Atticus is one of our toughest players. He is a natural football player and a great kid with a great personality. He is one of my favorite kids that I have coached, and he is a damn good football player. No matter where we play him, he steps on the field and does what he is asked.”
Brave Coach Vic Chiappa said about his QB Noah, “He’s a great kid and is as tough as they come. He takes a lot of hits and keeps on ticking. He never gives up and has a tremendous heart. But he’s also a good athlete and a very good football player. He comes from a great family and I love coaching him.”
Chiappa said that he looks forward to coaching Noah next year when he is a senior. “He has gotten so much better this year with every game. He commands the offense and reads the defense well. He has been working on his mechanics and will be a great quarterback and leader next year.”
How do the brothers feel about playing each other? “We are both looking forward to Saturday. It’s weird to play against your brother but he taught me how to be a good Quarterback so it’ll be good to see how we play against each other now,” said Noah.
Atticus added, “He always says I taught him to play QB but I wouldn’t have learned myself if I didn’t have him to throw to. We taught each other to play football. We’re obviously brothers first, but we’re both competitive so we are definitely both going into Saturday looking to win”
The game on Saturday will be one of the highlights of what has been a tough year for both teams. Coach Fava said, “We started out 2-0 but lost our last five games. But that 5 game stretch was one of the toughest in Section one football.” The Force played two State Championship caliber teams in Mount Vernon high school, at Memorial Fields opening game, and against State Champ Carmel high school. And the Force were competitive in both those games.
“Some of our loses are not an indication of the performance of our players. The boys have played hard all year and have not given up. We have been banged up for a while but are coming into this game healthy.” Even with a win, the Force will not make the playoffs this year but will have two more game to be scheduled.
The Brave are still looking for their first win of the year. “We have had a tough year. Are players are young and we have had some injuries. But I’m most proud of the fact that every day at practice they work hard. They still get after it,” said Chiappa.
Go Force and Go Brave!
