Madison Football Reloads, Looks to Rebuild While Being Competitive in 2023 

Madison High School (Marine Park, Brooklyn) football enjoyed a wonderful 2022 season, posting a perfect 7-0 regular season record and earning 1105 power point rankings, only second to Erasmus Hall. The Golden Knights went on to beat New Utrecht, 38-0, in the first round of the PSAL Class “A” Conference playoffs before losing to Curtis in the second round.

Now, Madison is in the highest-Class PSAL football “AAAA” Conference, and is going from 53 players to 29.

Therefore, head coach Tommy Salvato said there is going to be some rebuilding, but still will prepare and go out there and give maximum effort each week.

“We lost a bunch of guys,” Salvato said. “We had a lot of seniors, with a lot of experience. But these (present) kids are working hard. They’ve worked hard all summer. We’re going to bang away. We’re going to rebuild. We just want to get better each week. We’ll see what happens.”

Players such as receiver/cornerback Mikai Johnson and Amir Cameron have moved onto Division III Buffalo State while Jessie Monti is at Nassau Community College.

However, the core of the Golden Knights is now made up of a trio of gifted returning seniors: Tamel Morgan, Quadir Mceachin and Aaron Ellis.

“They’re unbelievable,” Salvato said of the three. “They’ll play college football somewhere.”

Morgan is an offensive/defensive lineman who has displayed a lot of promise and can play at the low-major Division I level, Salvato noted.

“He’s a big kid, coachable, with a real nice demeanor,” he said of Morgan.

Mceachin is a 6-foot-2, 190-pound inside linebacker/halfback who is a returning player and is expected to lead on and off the gridiron.

“He is a great leader, coachable and we’re happy to have him back,” Salvato said of Mceachin, a captain and player that could also suit up at the low-major Division I level, he noted.

Salvato said Ellis, who owns a high football acumen, will get a fair share of the running duties along with 5-foot-10, 195-pound senior Dylan Cobham, a fast, hard-to-tackle player.

Plus, he will hold down the linebacking corps along with Mceachin and senior Latrell Campbell.

“He’s (Ellis) a tackling machine,” said Salvato, who is going into his 36th year as a coach. “He’ll also see time as a running back. He’ll get his carries. He’s a really good kid, with a high football IQ.”

Senior Micthell Mordichi will be under center, a newcomer to the position, but does possess some throwing ability, per coaching staff. Salvato said “he’s raw” and will be a work in progress as the season moves along.

However, having a new starting quarterback while winning over the last few years is nothing new for Salvato and Madison.

“We won three different championships with three quarterbacks,” said Salvato, who captured titles in 2018, 2109, and 2021.

Senior wide receivers Emerald Smart and Brandon Watt will be potential targets for Mordichi.

Upfront, there is senior Adam Gutenmakher, a 6-foot-2, 230-pound offensive lineman/defensive end that has a shot at being a playmaker.

“He’s a big kid, really fit, and can run pretty well,” the 1982 Madison High School graduate said. “We hope that translates on the field.”

Senior Levan Loria is a safety and will man the slot position as well, as Salvato said that “he played a lot last year.”

The one aspect of the team that needs work, however, is the offensive line, as the coaching staff will be searching for the right mix of linemen as the season moves along.

“We have to fix the offensive line,” the football lifer admitted. “But we’ll be okay.”

— Jerry Del Priore

Photos: Madison High School Football.