Commodores seek return to glory under Shannon
Mike Shannon talks with Andrew Bandish during a Frazier game last season. Shannon enters his second season as coach of the Commodores while Bandish returns for his junior year.
Frazier's Austin Wilson (2) runs the ball against Monessen during a game last season. Wilson, who ran a 4.5 40 at the Tri-County Coaches Association combine, returns for his senior year with the Commodores.
Now in his second year as the head football coach at Frazier, Mike Shannon knew it was going to take time to get the program turned around after it went through a few rough seasons.
Last year was tough for everyone, but Shannon feels things are now headed in the right direction.
“The culture is improving,” he said. “We were in a rebuilding phase last year and we want to get back to what Frazier, in my opinion, truly is.
“This is a school with a tradition of winning. The attitudes are much better this year, there is a much more positive environment, and they are working hard.”
Shannon is happy to see how the numbers are growing.
“When I took over, we had 19 players,” he said. “Now we have 35. We graduated eight, and we have a lot of sophomores.
“We are young, but we have time to grow.”
A History teacher at Frazier, Shannon had been on the staff there under Mike Steeber before going to Hampton for a few years. He returned to Frazier as an assistant for the 2021 season before taking the program over last year.
Now that things are turning around, Shannon has expectations this year.
“We want to build on the previous year,” he said. “All I heard was that we had the longest active losing streak and there was a dark cloud over the program.
“We got the win at Springdale, and everyone took a deep breath. That’s not good enough anymore. We aren’t just a one-win team. We expect to be competitive, come out, play hard, win games and put ourselves in the position to do so. We have the talent to do so and the work ethic to do so.”
Shannon said the team has set goals.
“Our goal is to be competitive in every game,” he said. “We weren’t highly penalized last year, but we would turn the ball over.
“We would make a big play, then turn it over. We would get a turnover, and then give it back. We have to take advantage of the opportunities given to us, and we will not quit on the field.”
Shannon wants to see his team back in the postseason.
“The playoffs are an expectation, and we want to be one of the four (from the conference),” he said. “We should have been there last year.
“The conference is tough; it is what it is. We have an opportunity to play some big teams. Clairton was young, Jeannette won’t stay down for long, GCC is always there, and Leechburg will still be good.”
The Commodores return seven starters on offense, including a pair of All-Conference players in senior running back Austin Wilson, who ran a 4.5 40 at the Tri-County Coaches Association combine, and junior wide receiver Andrew Bandish.
The other returning offensive starters include a trio of linemen in seniors Lucas Stevens and Bruno Sammartino and junior Josh Girvin, senior quarterback Brennan Stewart and junior quarterback/wide receiver Dailan McManus.
Other linemen battling for starting positions and providing depth are sophomore Alex Selinger, junior Connor Reams, senior Caden Dye and freshman Brant Rice.
Joining Bandish and McManus at wide receiver are junior Ethan Farquhar and sophomore Jacob Fabus while sophomores Derek Diamond and Gus Lion are the tight ends.
Frazier also returns seven starters on defense, including a quartet of linebackers in Sammartino, Stewart, Girvin and Wilson.
Stevens returns in the trenches while McManus is back at corner and Bandish returns at safety.
Joining Stevens on the defensive line are Selinger, senior Aiden Mansberry, Lion and Diamond.
Junior Dagan Baccino and senior Sam Butts will back up Sammartino and Girvin at middle linebacker while senior Jayden Gardner provides depth at outside linebacker behind Stewart and Wilson.
Joining McManus at corner will be sophomore Chase Fulmer, Dye and Farquhar.
Senior Ram Ten will handle the kicking and punting duties.
Stevens, Sammartino and Wilson are the captains for Frazier, which opens the season Week 0 at California.
“We will be successful if we minimize our mistakes, stay healthy, and believe we can win,” Shannon concluded.