BY BOB HERZOG
It wasn’t easy for a first-time visitor to Seaford High School on Wednesday morning to figure out which players were doing what on the football field. That’s because veteran coach Rob Perpall doesn’t believe in numbers on the players’ practice jerseys.
So, unlike at other schools I’ve visited, every Seaford player wore black pants and green mesh jerseys, unadorned with numbers or names. “When I first got here [12 years ago], players started asking for their favorite numbers and complaining if someone else had it,” Perpall said. “Go make your own number famous. We don’t worry about uniform numbers or statistics.”
On game days, the Vikings don’t have players’ names on their jerseys, only numbers, in the tradition of old-school college programs like Penn State. “It’s a team thing,” Perpall said.
His team, which went undefeated last year until it lost to Amityville in the Long Island Class IV championship game, should again be tough in Nassau Conference IV. Seaford will be led by senior tailback/cornerback Nicky Barbuto (above), who gained more than 1,500 yards rushing last season, and senior quarterback Chris Rigoli, in his first season as a starter.
On Wednesday, in addition to full-team drills, Perpall spent some time working with receivers and defensive backs, emphasizing one-on-one coverage and fighting for position. The Vikings play mostly zone defense in the secondary, but as the coach noted, “When a receiver is in your area, it becomes man to man.”
So Perpall became agitated when a defender crossed his feet or let a receiver get behind him by failing to backpedal quick enough. “If he’s even, he’s leavin’!” Perpall said, a favorite rhyme the coach used to describe what would happen if a cornerback let a wide receiver get too close.
At least that cornerback’s identity remained a mystery to one observer on Wednesday.