The Buffalo Bills and ADPRO Sports are proud to once again partner to recognize some of the best coaches that Western New York has to offer through the 2022 High School Football Coach of the Week Program.
The Bills and ADPRO Sports will be awarding varsity head tackle football coaches with the Coach of the Week Award to highlight not only their team's achievements on the field but also some of the work they are doing off the field in their communities. We will announce winners from the Buffalo and Rochester Regions over the course of 11 weeks, with both region's Coach of the Year being named during the Buffalo Bills vs New England Patriots game in January of 2023 at Highmark Stadium.
Each Coach of the Week winner will receive a $1,000 grant from the Buffalo Bills and ADPRO Sports. The respective Coach of the Year winners will also receive an additional $1,000 for their programs. Winners will be selected by a panel of local high school football experts.
Buffalo Region Coach of the Week # 5
Portville head coach Josh Brooks has been named the week five Buffalo Region Coach of the Week after the Panthers earned a gutsy win at CSP last week. Portville is now 4-1 overall, 3-1 in D League games, and tied for second place in the league.
Portville scored first in the second quarter when LB Caiden Zollinger tackled a CSP ball carrier in the end zone for a safety and a 2-0 lead. Late in the third quarter, Portville extended the lead to 9-0 when Zander Keim ran for a 13-yard TD.
"Our defense was spectacular again," Brooks said. "We have only given up 2 TDs in regulation and 1 in OT all season. Our defense has been great all year."
Coach Brooks is in his 5th season as head coach at Portville. He was an assistant under longtime coach Gary Swetland for 5 seasons before that.
"I learned a lot from Gary," Brooks said. "To maintain a one-school team in Class D presents a lot of challenges.We just try to take pride in our community and our team."
Coach Brooks taught Phys Ed for 9 years at Portville and was recently named the school's K-12 Assistant Principal.
This past month Brooks' players participated in a fund-raiser for a local family who is battling childhood leukemia.
Rochester Region Coach of the Week # 5
Penfield head coach Anthony Bianchi has been named the week five Rochester Region Coach of the Week after leading his Patriots to a 26-8 win over previously undefeated Central Square (Syracuse) last week.
Penfield trailed 8-0 in the second quarter when Christian Brown returned an interception 52 yards for a TD to pull the Patriots within 8-6 at the half. Penfield scored 3 more TDs after the halftime break to pull away for good. The Patriots are now 3-2 on the season and 2-2 in Section 5 AA games.
Coach Bianchi, the son of longtime Aquinas AD, Anthony Bianchi Sr., was hired to lead the Penfield program in July of 2021. Bianchi, who currently teaches at Irondequoit Middle School, is in his first head coaching job, though he has coached at Eastridge and St. John Fisher College in recent years.
Coach Bianchi is transforming the program by instilling a winning culture and creating a strength and conditioning program to help better develop his players.
"It was a bit eye-opening," Bianchi said. "There was no strength program. That was the first thing we had to start. We only had 28 kids on the team."
"We still only have 29 kids," Bianchi added, "but winning some games has helped with the excitement level. We are just trying to get kids to believe that we can go out and compete and win."
Coach Bianchi has gotten involved in the Penfield Youth program, holding coaches' clinics for the youth coaches and camps for the youth players. This fall, the Penfield football players will begin community service initiatives in their area.
In 2021, coach Bianchi's team received a scholar-athlete-team award which reflects his vision and passion for the sport, while also teaching his players discipline, hard work, and being positive young men off the field and in the community.
