There were many open questions about the Yorktown Patriots prior to the start of the high-school football season.
That’s common any time a program undergoes a big head-coaching change, especially when the former team leader steps down after 40 years at the helm, winning hundreds of games and multiple championships.
That’s what Alec Hicks inherited when hired to take control after former coach Bruce Hanson retired following the 2024 season. And when Yorktown struggled with a 1-2 start, the naysayers began to become more vocal.
“I found you hear from more people after losses,” Hicks told ARLnow in a recent interview.
Yorktown’s season opener was a 29-28 setback to the South Lakes Seahawks, 2-8 last season but likely a region playoff team this year. The second loss was against the Centreville Wildcats, 38-14, the third week of the season. Centreville was 4-6 a year ago but stands 7-1 this season and leads the Concorde District at 4-0.
As the season wore on, the team found its footing and the naysayers receded. Yorktown finished the regular season with a 7-3 overall record and an outright Liberty District championship with a 6-0 mark and three straight victories.
A 31-24 overtime home win over the Washington-Liberty Generals in the Patriots’ final game clinched the undefeated league record. The win also gave Yorktown the unofficial Arlington title with a 2-0 record against county public-school rivals.
Next for Yorktown will be an opening-round home game in the eight-team 6D Northern Region playoffs that begins Nov. 14.
Yorktown’s only other loss this season was a lopsided 31-7 home defeat to the West Springfield Spartans, another good team at 7-2 and atop the Patriot District standings at 6-0. So two of the Patriots’ losses will be against 2025 district champions, Centreville and West Springfield.
“All of those losses made us better,” Hicks said. “We learned a lot, saw where teams exploited us, and we practiced better after those losses.”
New head coaches in all sports expect early-season struggles as the players adjust to offensive, defensive and special-teams schemes. Hicks said that was the case for Yorktown, but was made easier because many of his assistant coaches — like Mike Collazos, Evan Ruffner and Tom Norton — also had been members of Hanson’s staff.
Hicks was Hanson’s longtime defensive coordinator, and the Patriots’ special-teams coach before that. Hicks also played at Yorktown, graduating in 1999. He has now won district championships at Yorktown as a player, assistant coach and head coach.
If there was one win that turned the season for the Patriots and provided a huge momentum boost, it was a fourth-week 21-20 home victory over the Langley Saxons in their 2025 district opener. Langley was considered the preseason district favorite.
That win began a stretch in which Yorktown will enter the postseason with six victories in its final seven regular-season contests.
Hicks said two more “sound” league wins over McLean and Marshall in the two games following the Langley victory did a lot to continue building the players’ confidence.
The coach pointed out that the week-seven loss to West Springfield resulted in even more “focus and urgency” among the players and coaches.
Hicks said the strong individual play of senior quarterback Samson Schneider continues to be a big reason the Patriots are winning.
“He throws great balls, and is a smart and good runner,” Hicks said.
Through 10 games, Schneider has thrown for 1,889 yards and 20 touchdowns, has run for 229 yards and five scores, and has been intercepted just four times.
Other leading rushers are spread among Nate Randles with 452 yards, Colt Monticello with 284 and Jack Ezzedin with 271. All have four touchdowns.
Sammy Keiser, Brady Owens, Alex Hans, Boston Izzo, Randles and Monticello have been productive pass-catchers. “We spread the ball to a lot of different players,” Hicks said.
Placekicker Max Yoon has made two field goals and 34 extra points.
Yorktown’s offensive line has been productive. The unit has consisted of seniors Noah Taphorn, Nikhil Eastman and Chris Layman; juniors Shane Campbell, Luke Colbert and Mateo Patino; and sophomore Benny Vandall.
Among the leaders of Yorktown’s defense, which has bent at times this season but hasn’t broken, are senior linemen Bobby Shea, Teddy Sennott and Henry Midberry; senior linebackers Andrew Cole and Nicky Palma; and senior defensive backs Collin Damato, Justin White and Jammoris Watts. Palma had a game-saving overtime interception in the end zone against Washington-Liberty to end the game.
Hicks is optimistic Yorktown can be successful in the region playoffs. “We are up for the challenge against anybody,” he said.
Though the pairings won’t be set until after the games this Friday (Nov. 7), Yorktown could face South Lakes again in its first-round region-playoff game.
NOTE: The upcoming region-playoff game will be the 25th Hicks has coached at Yorktown.
