The National Football Foundation (NFF) and Len Genova, President of the Suffolk Chapter held its first ever Photo Shoot/Media Day for its major 2024 Football honorees this week.
The event brought out the county's best and brightest gridiron stars. The players sat with each other and you could see the comradery among those involved. Some teams sent their offensive line for a photo opportunity, while others sent their star position players, but everyone in attendance made an impact on the field this season.
While much of the night honored what took place in 2024 there was also a definite sense of optimism for the county for the upcoming 2025 season. “It’s a great opportunity to recognize and promote our 2024 honorees and announce the top returning QBs on Long Island. We are very excited,” said Chapter President Len Genova.
Among those that were recognized included the Golden Eleven & Top Scholar Athlete. The Golden Eleven recognizes the top scholar athletes in the county based on their athletic and academic excellence. One scholar athlete is selected byeach head football coach from throughout the county based on criteria set by the NFF. From that group, a selection committee consisting of multiple head coaches from each Division selects the top eleven scholar athletes and the overall Top Scholar for Suffolk County. Among the finalists were Aaron Fisher from William Floyd and Gavin German from Smithtown West.
The Orlin & Cohen Player of the Week were honored as well. Each week during the regular season and playoffs one player is selected county-wide for their outstanding performance on the gridiron. Ja'Quan Thomas, Anthony Raio, Hudson Philbrick, Shane Kiernan, and Joe Filardi were among the group of players honored.
The best offensive line in the country included Longwood's dominant front with Jordan Bennett, Clint Chichester, Michael Duarte, Gio Johnson, Ryan Morrissey, and Greg Princivil on hand to accept the honors while Bayport-BluePoint also were named among the 4 best offensive lines in Suffolk.
And the look to the future was the 2025 Long Island QB Challenge participants presented by Orlin & Cohen. The 4th Annual LI QB Challenge will be held this summer. The event is a skills competition for the top returning QBs on Long Island. Shane Kiernan from Miller Place will lead the field of 11 players that also includes Nick DeVito and Antonio Marrone from Smithtown.