It started as a group discussion, among a bunch of lacrosse players in between practices and games last spring.

Hey, wouldn’t it be cool if we all played football our senior year? It was an idea that seemed like it could be a lot of fun.

Manhasset football has been excellent for years, just had an outstanding 7-3 season that saw it advance to the Conference II semifinals.

And hey, senior year, going out with a bang, hitting people and being hit, what could be better than that, right?

“It was a combination of everything, really,” said senior Danny Kolin, one of eight new seniors on the Manhasset football team (the school has decided to forego a new nickname after Indians was retired, simply going with “Set” in lieu of a nickname). “We knew the team was good, we thought it would be fun, and we knew it was our last chance to be together.”

Kolin said not all of the octet decided to play at once; each player committed one by one on their own, but the result is a Manhasset squad that is always looking for more bodies, suddenly has them.

“It’s a huge boost to our numbers; we’re up in the high 30s and that’s depth that will really help us,” Coach Jay Iaquinta said. “Now we can survive some injuries, and there’ll be more competition for playing time.
“And so many of these kids are great athletes.”

Among the newcomers expected to have big impacts are Kolin, a lacrosse star from Manhasset’s 2022 state title team who’s headed to Navy to play lacrosse next year, but will be a running back and linebacker, and Keith Lam, a lacrosse player who’ll now be a receiver.

Throw in Arek Cellura, a varsity lacrosse player headed to Stony Brook to play that sport, and Chaminade transfer Brian Reilly (also headed to Navy for lacrosse), and Manhasset suddenly has new pieces to a team that was already going to be pretty solid.

“You just have a lot of new guys with great enthusiasm who will fly to be the ball and be playmakers for us,” said senior nose tackle Brady Baulch. “Everybody has a new edge in practice now.”

Manhasset returns a lot of key pieces from a squad that lost to Carey in the playoffs, but must replace all-state running back/linebacker Jack Mulholland. Mulholland, the first Set player in 30 years to achieve first-team all-state, rushed for 996 yards and scored 18 touchdowns on offense, while on defense he made 72 tackles.

And he didn’t take special teams plays off, either; the 6-foot-3, 225-pounder made 28 of 29 extra points as well.

“As good as he was on offense, losing him on defense is bigger, because he was maybe the smartest linebacker I ever had,” Iaquinta said. “So it’s going to take a few guys to fill what he gave us.”

On offense, Mulholland’s carries in the triple-option attack will likely be split among senior RB/wideout Atif Heathington, a speed demon who had six touchdowns in 2023, Kolin and Matt Infranco.

Senior quarterback Drew Schwartz returns for his second year as a starter, and Iaquinta envisions Schwartz’s comfort level running the show meaning more pass attempts in ’24.

“He was excellent at managing the game, and I think now he’s going to be in position to help us win the game,” Iaquinta said.

“His leadership has been unbelievable,” Kolin said of Schwartz. “Getting everyone up to speed on the plays, and being a motivator.”

Schwartz will be throwing to Heathington, the fastest player on the team, with Lam and Cellura also likely targets.

Up front Manhasset is strong, led by returning starters Patrick McGinness, Henry Griffiths and Kingston Takahashi, all tasked with opening holes and being precise with their blocks in the complicated triple option scheme.

Defensively Baulch anchors the nose guard spot, while Eli Podraza and Tristan Chang offer excellent run-stopping capabilities; Chang was a county shot put champion in indoor track last winter.

Kolin and Henry Jervis will also likely be defensive starters at linebacker, along with returning linebacker Parker Madden.

In the defensive backfield impressive sophomore Michael DePietro returns, along with Heathington and Reilly.

“He’s got a lot of dog in him, really good player,” Heathington said of DePietro. “He’s just getting better and better.”

As usual, Manhasset’s schedule is rough. It moved down to Conference III this year, but moving with it was powerhouse program Garden City, winner of 42 straight, along with usually-strong Elmont.

Still, Manhasset looks to enough enough veteran talent back, along with the newcomers, to contend for a playoff spot. The taste of losing one game before the final has been motivating.

“We left some unfinished work on the table, losing that game,” Baulch said. “We couldn’t get it done, and that has motivated us.”

“I think our physicality will be stronger and will allow us to match up with everybody,” Iaquinta said. “I’m excited about what this group can do.”

2024 Manhasset schedule:

Saturday, Sept 7: vs. Hewlett, 2 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 13: vs. Division, 6 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 21: at Garden City, 3 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 28: at Clarke, 3 p.m.
Thursday, Oct. 10: vs. Elmont, 6:30 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 19: vs. Mineola, 3 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 26: at South Side, 3 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 1: at Kennedy, 2 p.m.