Week 6 of the high school football season in Western New York has gone by and the Buffalo Bills and Legends Global Merchandising are happy to partner to recognize the top coaches in the region through the 2024 High School Football Coach of the Week program.
Aimed at highlighting varsity head tackle football coaches’ efforts on and off the field, coaches from both the Buffalo and Rochester regions will be honored over the next 10 weeks and will receive $1,000 for their teams. Each region’s Coach of the Year will be named during the Week 17 game against the New York Jets and will receive an additional $1,000 for their programs.
Rochester Region Coach of the Week
Brighton coach Stephen Lian was named the Buffalo Bills coach of the Week after leading his Bruins to a 14-6 win over Irondequoit. Brighton is now 6-0 on the season in Class A, Irondequoit fell to 5-1.
The game was scoreless in the first half.
In the third quarter, Brighton’s Noah Wagner ripped off a 30-yard punt return to start the Bruins with great field position at the Irondequoit 35-yard line. Gavin Parks ran four times and capped the drive with a 5-yard touchdown run for a 7-0 lead.
Irondequoit responded immediately as the offense drove 70 yards for a touchdown to pull within one. The Brighton defense stuffed the 2-point conversion to preserve the 7-6 lead.
In the final quarter, Brighton added a touchdown drive where the Bruins drove 43 yards in 8 plays. Wagner caught a 5-yard touchdown pass from Grady Hopkin for a 14-6 lead.
Brighton got the ball back with four minutes left and ran out the clock.
Gavin Parks ran 39 times for 194 yards and 1 touchdown. Parks, a 1st-team All-Greater Rochester running back in 2023, has now rushed for 993 yards and 15 touchdowns on 133 carries this season. Kaleb Matthews made nine tackles, including 2.0 sacks. Matthew Heininger made 7 tackles and recorded 2.0 sacks. Noah Wagner caught 3 passes for 25 yards and a touchdown.
Hired as head coach before the 2012 season, Lian has coached at Brighton for 15 seasons.
His coaching philosophy is to develop future leaders through football. He uses his program as a vehicle to make the community better.
His favorite memories as a football coach are when former players come back at their alumni events and share their memories that they have been able to experience as a Brighton Football Family.
Away from the field, his team volunteers with all their Brighton Junior Bruins football activities. They also organize and work their annual “Peanut Butter and Jelly Slam” to make bag lunches for the Open Door Mission.
The above story is from the Buffalo Bills
2024 Buffalo Bills Coaches of the Week Winners
Week 5 – Phil Vecchio, Olean HS and Alex Veltz, Batavia HS
Week 4 – Ryan Gibbs, Chautauqua Lake Central HS and Tim Rose, East Rochester-Ganada HS
Week 3 – Curt Fischer, Falconer Central HS and Mike Wayne, Fairport HS
Week 2 – Chuck Nagel, Newfane HS and Ryan Kramer, Geneseo HS
Week 1 – Don Bass, Niagara Falls HS and Jeff Welch, Canadaigua Academy
