It was billed as the Game of the Year, undefeated Erasmus Hall against one-loss Tottenville, rivals set to determine the top seed in the PSAL City Championship division playoffs.
Only it never happened because of Hurricane Sandy. The final week of the regular season was washed away.
The two top teams, however, will meet anyway, with much higher odds at stake: a city championship.
“It just seems its only fair we finally meet up anyway,” Erasmus coach Danny Landberg said. “It was meant to be.”
No. 1 Eramus Hall and No. 2 Tottenville will face off Dec. 4 at 5 p.m. at Yankee Stadium, the PSAL announced during a press conference in The Bronx on Wednesday.
“It’s going to be a great game,” Tottenville wide receiver Kevin Coughlin said. “I know we’re the underdogs and everybody’s rooting against us, but we have a really good game plan.”
They are familiar playoff foes, having seen one another in the semifinals two of the last three years, splitting the matchups.
It will be the third title game held at the new ballpark. Fort Hamilton won the first showdown two years ago and Lincoln defeated Erasmus last year.
Erasmus, with its dynamic array of weapons led by highly recruited junior Curtis Samuel, is looking for its first ever crown at the highest level while Tottenville is hoping to win its first title since 2003 despite the suspensions of stars Augustus Edwards, who has committed to Syracuse, and Malique Belfort.
In their absence, quarterback Brandon Barnes and Coughlin have emerged and been backed by arguably the league’s top defense, led by safety James Munson and defensive tackle Richie Lam.
“Everyone on our team has a lot of heart, everyone wants it really bad,” said Coughlin, who caught two touchdown passes in the semifinal victory over Lincoln. “Everyone stepped up when the players got suspended. Everyone worked their hardest, just to get to this one spot.”