Brandon Bratek is ready to be the interim head coach. He is assuming the role and trying to do something that has not been done in three years, lead Lockport back to the playoffs.

He is taking on his first head coaching role in a season in which the program has dealt with the removal and demotion of head coach Trait Smith and junior varsity head coach Jeremy Brown. The school declined to comment on the reasons for the changes.

Once the investigation concluded, Lockport athletic director Mike Sobieraski noted he moved with quickness to fill the positions as the new head coaches. The decision to name Bratek, who has been on the staff for eight years, as the interim head coach came as a result of his familiarity with the program during his tenure.

During the first two games of the season, defensive coordinator Marcus Wyche served as the varsity head coach, with the Lions going 2-0 for the first time since 2013 and outscoring opponents 62-18. The school hasn’t commented on why Wyche wasn’t named interim head coach or why Bratek wasn’t the head coach for the first two games.

Lockport’s varsity staff will also include Smith and Mitch Tomtishen.

“Brandon is deeply invested in the success of the Lockport football program and remains firmly committed to the program, committed to its student athletes and its continued development,” Sobieraski said. “He brings a strong knowledge base, experience and understanding of the game that will be extremely important and valuable to our program and our teams moving forward.”

After serving on Smith’s staff since 2018, Bratek is not thinking about what the transition will be like going from working for Smith to being above Smith on the staff.

He is also not worried about the impact that moving to the top position will have on the coaching staff. Many of the coaches have been together for multiple years so they all know each other and have spent a lot of time together.

He knows that when the ball is kicked off to start week three, the coaches will be business-like. The coaching staff will go into the game with the thought of trying to improve to 3-0.

“I don’t think too much will change,” Bratek said. “… For football compared to other sports, you do a lot of activities all year long if it’s weight room or seven on seven and summer workouts. … If it’s during the season you see them more than your family at points. We all have the same goal and our goal is to go 3-0 this week and … just get us a home playoff game when November comes around.”

The team in Lockport’s way as it attempts to improve to 3-0 for the first time since 2003 is Grand Island at 1 p.m. Saturday. The team will have a complete coaching staff for the first time this season and the idea that it can get off to its best start in over 20 years.

In the two weeks that the team has been without Smith, Brown and the other coaches, Bratek has not seen a big drop off as compared to when the staff was complete. He was proud of how the coaches stepped up when they were shorthanded and helped the team get off to its best start in over a decade.

“We had a few coaches come out of retirement and step up for us and help with the JV staff,” Bratek said. “We still had one of our volunteers, Charles Johnson, that has helped at the JV and varsity that really stepped up in the couple weeks. … All of us doing a little extra bit coaching standpoint and just get everything situated and ready for the first couple of weeks and trying to get the kids focused.”

Source: Yahoo Sports