Rep by rep, Niskayuna is looking to take another step.

“Each week, go out, execute, really focus in on what we have to do,” said Brian Grastorf, head coach for Niskayuna. “Do our jobs and you’re going to have a lot of opportunities.”

Grastorf and the players don’t take anything for granted, especially now that the Silver Warriors have a target on their back.

“That is the final goal each year, to win a sectional championship and get into the state playoffs,” Grastorf said. “A lot of these guys were returners. And now that’s the goal, and I think that puts us in a different spot than where we’ve been in past years.”

Niskayuna is entering the 2023 season as the defending champions after winning the program’s first sectional title ever last year and reaching the state semifinals. The Silver Warriors are embracing the role reversal now, being the hunted instead of the hunter.

“Obviously, we want to get to the spot where we were last year,” said senior Matthew Lavigne. “We want to do better, of course, also. But just kind of the hard work week by week. Goals, that’s going to get us there.”

“Nothing really changes here. We just want to win,” said Dan Miller, a senior tight end and linebacker. “So that means we got to come out. We got to hit the person across from us like the best that we can.”

Luckily, Niskayuna will be able to take everybody’s best shot at home this season. Their field was under renovation all of last year, as the Silver Warriors played home games at Union College and Schenectady High School.

“Seeing the whole town. Seeing everybody come to the games. It’s great,” Lavigne said. “Everybody cheering you on, familiar faces. It’s amazing.”

Niskayuna is currently 1-1 with a win over Section 3’s Auburn and a loss to Shenendehowa. They will look to get above .500 this week in a rematch of last year’s Section 2 Class A Super Bowl, with Averill Park coming to town.

“We’ve been in the film room. We’ve been repping it in practice. Short week, obviously, so we kind of have to be on top of our preparation,” Miller said.

“It’s going to be a tough battle,” Grastorf said. “It’s going to be a battle upfront, and whoever makes the most plays is going to come out the winner.”

This will be the second game this season for Niskayuna on the brand new turf field. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. Thursday night.