Shen motivated by Super Bowl loss heading into new season

CLIFTON PARK, NY (NEWS10) -- When Week 0 kicks off in Section 2 on Friday, things will look different in Class AA. They’ll start right out of the gate with league play. That sets up one of the premier matchups to kick things off for our 1st & 10 Game of the Week: Shenendehowa at Shaker.

The Plainsmen are coming off a 10-2 season in which they lost to CBA in the Super Bowl. While Shen lost some seniors, they've brought back two of the most dynamic backs in Section Two: Ihsaan Alozie and Anthony Diaz.

The Plainsmen have been pushed by that Section Title loss all offseason long. "That loss last season in the Super Bowl kind of motivated us," said head coach Brian Clawson. "If you talk to any of our guys, there wasn't like a grieving process. The guys just got right back at the weights. They got back in the off-season activities and it's definitely super motivating.

"It hurts when you have to lose like that," said Alozie. "So the whole offseason I've just had that the whole way and it's made me want to push a little harder every time."

The Plainsmen have won their last four meetings with Shaker, but starting with the Blue Bison will be no easy task. They're expecting Shaker's best punch. "We know, not being the underdog, we still have to perform," said senior linebacker and fullback Dylan Maye. "Them being the underdog, they're going to fight as hard as they can. So we know we still got to put our best foot forward."

Shen believes starting with a game like this helps their preparation. "Shaker has been a great rivalry for us, dating back to 12 or 13 years," said Clawson. "Greg Sheeler does a great job down there coaching that program. To have them week zero, it actually gives you more of an opportunity to prepare for them because we have that extra week of practice. Whoever we play, that's the only game on our schedule. So we want to go 1-0 each week. That's the goal and it's Shaker week so our guys are going to be ready to go."

Kickoff on Friday is set for 7:00 PM. We’ll have all of your high school football coverage on 1st & 10 every Friday night at 10:30 PM on Fox, and at 11:00 PM on ABC.