All-state progress: I plan on finishing up the coding of the NYSSWA girls basketball all-state team over the next few days and it will be published Wednesday, May 6. Mike Libert and Jeff Mlinar put a tremendous amount of work into assembling the key information for the selections.
Section 2 football mourns: Two big names from the Section 2 football coaching ranks have died in recent days.
Murry O'Neil, who brought football to Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake and coached in Section 2 for six decades died of natural causes on Thursday at the age of 90.
O'Neil started up the football, wrestling and track and field programs at Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake in 1955. He coaches the football squad until 1984, posting a 131-103-7 record. His last three teams won league championships.
O'Neil continued coaching at different levels at Ballston Spa, Saratoga Springs, Queensbury, South Glens Falls, and Saratoga Catholic until 2010.
Hoosick Falls football coach Ron Jones died Monday of an apparent heart attack. He was 51.
Hoosick Falls captured a Section 2-record six straight sectional titles from 2009-14, including the state Class C championship in 2012 when the Panthers ended Hornell's 51-game winning streak.
Jones played at Hoosick Falls for legendary coach Ken Baker, graduating in 1986, and then played at Cortland. He returned to his alma mater and reshaped a struggling program.
"Ron had that special knack, no matter who he was talking with, whether it was kids, administration or coaches, to connect with people," veteran Section 2 coach Jack Burger said. "There was nothing fake about Ron Jones. He was a great human being. My heart goes out to his family and the Hoosick Falls community."
More deaths reported recently: Retired Deer Park baseball coach Carmine Argenziano, died Saturday at the age of 74 of complications from COVID-19. The Italian immigrant was part of the first graduating class of Deer Park High School in 1964.
• Thomas Wetzen, a retired coach, physical education teacher and athletic director at Akron, died Saturday of COVID-19 at the age of 92. He was Akron's baseball coach from 1956 to 1989, winning five Section 6 titles. He also served as football coach from 1953 to 1981, with 105 wins and six league championships.
• Charles Bullock, a star athlete at Tappan Zee who later became a trailblazing African-American fire chief, died from COVID-19 on April 20 at age 80.
Bullock's wife Lois died of the same illness on April 3, as did their daughter, Chanda Lori Bullock-Ogburn, on April 17.
Charles Bullock graduated from Tappan Zee in 1958 and was inducted into the school's Athletic Hall of Fame in 2012. He co-captained TZ's 1958 Rockland County Championship basketball team and earned All-Rockland County honors in football and basketball.
Back to the sidelines: Art Troilo Jr., the former longtime Harrison coach, has been hired to coach football at Valhalla, pending board of education approval. He replaces Steve Boyer, who resigned to spend more time with his family and will assist at Byram Hills.
Troilo, 59, won 196 games and NYSPHSAA titles in 1999 and 2002 at Harrison, where he coaches for 28 seasons.
Valhalla is coming off its first Section 1 championship since 1998.
Extra points: Hudson Falls junior basketball star Jonathan Beagle, an honorable mention all-state pick, will transfer to St. Thomas More School in Connecticut in the fall. The 6-foot-8 forward averaged 19.8 points per game and also had double-digit rebounds per game last season. Beagle plans to reclassify to the Class of 2022.