Orchard Park, NY (WBEN) - Thursday and Friday mark the final Section VI playoff games at Highmark Stadium. For coaches who made multiple appearances, it was special for them and their players.
"It's incredibly special," says Glenn Graham, whose Cleveland Hill teams reached the stadium playoff and won eight times. "I always tell people, it's a little bit like if you're a family that celebrates Christmas and you get to see Christmas through your kids eyes, seeing the whole spectacle through the eyes of our players. Anytime we had the good fortune to be there, was just tremendous, and it's so much fun." He notes very few are lucky enough to go on to the next level, so playing in that stadium is just a thrill for those guys who are coming to the end of their football careers.
Graham's first win came in 2007. "We were behind with little over a minute and a half to play, and then came back and won the football game against the defending champions. That was an absolute thrill," says Graham. He also recalls the first time he made it when he was an assistant coach in 1986. Cleveland Hill won in overtime.
Len Jankiewicz's Lancaster teams made ten appearances at Highmark Stadium, and agrees with Graham about how special playing at the stadium is. "When those kids walk out of that tunnel and they know that their favorite team of all time, the Bills do the same thing, I think it puts that experience, if it's the first time for a young man to be at the probably the pinnacle of his high school athletic experience, to be there with the professional, the best in the world, and doesn't happen across the country that way," says Jankiewicz.
Jankiewicz's success rate wasn't as high. "We kind of took it on the chin from some great, great programs: North Tonawanda, Orchard Park, Jamestown, by the way, who are competing this weekend. The coaches of those teams, still remain great friends of mine and well respected teams back then too, and really back when I was there, a lot of the teams that we lost to in the stadium town went on to win state championships. So you know, finishing second in that regard isn't too bad," says Jankiewicz.
Will the tradition continue at the new stadium? Jankiewicz isn't so sure because of the turf. "The NFL has to see how things go for a few times with their own competitions and so forth, in terms of how the wear and tear of professional athletes make on that on that field itself," says Jankiewicz. He hopes eventually they do come back hold some games there a Thursday and Friday. Graham is also optimistic. "The Bills have been great to us for the last four plus decades, and I'm sure that anything that can be worked out, they'll attempt to work out for the future," he says. He adds it's going to be a little sad when the last game ends to close that chapter, but a new chapter will come about, one way or the other, and he's looking forward to being a part of that.