Ransom Era Set To Begin at Bucktail
By Bees O’Brien
FARWELL- New Bucktail head football coach Kevin Ransom is finding out just how challenging coaching the smallest public school in Pennsylvania can be and he’s welcoming it all with open arms.
Bucktail has 18 players on their current roster and nobody is hitting the panic button. That’s normal in Farwell.
Ransom returns a host of talent from the Bucks’ District 4 1A playoff team from a season ago. One of those returning is 1,300-yard rusher Brody Pentz. The senior starting quarterback will once again be the top athlete on the field on any given Friday night. The only problem is, everybody in the D9 League Region 3 is well aware of the talent that #2 has under center.
Ransom’s Bucks will be looking to find some offensive help in the form of running backs Jaden Intallura and Colton Fleisher, as well as Bucktail’s top returning receiver in Gavin Yachymiak. Look for Yachymiak to get some rushing attempts in 2024.
Freshman Teagan Stone will also be a weapon at wide receiver.
The Bucks tallied up over 3,000 yards on the ground a season ago, which helped them finish the regular season at 5-4. Graduation hit them hard in both the skills positions and on the offensive and defensive lines.
Seniors Martin Lewis and Talan Ditty will be relied on heavily to lead Bucktail’s line on both sides of the ball, with Evan Ransom being a huge factor in their success. Ransom played just 6 plays last season before his season was ended due to an injury. Jaden Barnes returns to the Bucktail line. Coach Ransom also gave praise to Andrew Kitchen, Will Pedokus and Caleb Smith for their work on the line in preseason drills.
Bucktail’s season took a hit when Elk County Catholic opted to end their football program. This left Bucktail and other Region 3 teams with holes on their schedule. The Bucks had two games slated against the Crusaders in 2024 and have yet to fill those openings. Currently the Bucks have just 8 games scheduled and only three of them at Dwyer Memorial Field.
They will open on August 24 at Sheffield for a 1:30 kickoff time. The following week they will open their home schedule against defending Region 3 champions Coudersport on August 30.
Region 3 did get some good news when Smethport moved from Region 2 to Region 3 within the D9 League. The Bucks will meet the Hubbers on September 20 in Smethport.
Bucktail’s other two home games will be September 13 against Otto-Eldred and October 18 in a rematch with Sheffield.
Away contests against Union/AC Valley and Cameron County also remain on the schedule too. They’ll travel to Clarion County on September 27 to meet the Falcon Knights and then to Emporium to face Cameron County on October 11.
“Our biggest thing will be keeping everybody healthy.” Said Ransom “If injuries pile up at a small school, that can lead to trouble.”
