Coaches talk about it all the time: Leadership and team leaders.

It typically comes from seniors, although a strong-willed junior may sometimes take the reins and guide a team. How important is leadership to a team? Do coaches rely on it? Is it overrated? We asked our six Chenango County football head coaches their opinions on senior leadership. Coaches and teams are listed alphabetically:

Tim Mattingly, B-G: “We have a couple seniors this year, Justin Pepper and Ethan Mazzarella, who have led the way and set the tone by example. They play at a high level, and other kids see that. I think leadership is vital for a team to be successful. You need seniors passionate about the game. Players will hear coaches say the same things over and over. When they hear those same things from seniors, it has a greater impact. Those are kids the rest of the team look up to. Seniors like Justin and Ethan, they don’t just talk the talk, they walk the walk.”

Tim Paske, Greene: “In general good senior leadership can dictate how your season goes. If there are guys the team can rally around and trust, you can go a lot further in the season. I’m a strong believer that the stronger the leadership you have, the more success your team will have. I’ve also seen things go the other way (bad leadership), and it can be a big distraction to the team.”

John Martinson, Norwich: “As coaches, we expect kids to be leaders, but we do not put them in position to be leaders. That is something we have learned. This year, we’ve had seniors that have taken ownership and put it on their own shoulders. You need leadership out there, otherwise your team will be an empty shell – especially on defense. Andrew (Austin), Paddy (Law), and Alex (Williams) are leaders out there and in the huddle. They bring a lot of confidence to the rest of the team.”

Mike Chrystie, Oxford: “Coaches will say a lot of things, but when it comes down to it, players will listen to other players. If it’s the right player who is considered a leader, it will steer the team in the right direction. Good leaders can be extensions of the coaching staff. The players are with their teammates all the time, and they can police themselves. This is my third year here, and this is by far the best team leadership I’ve seen.”

Mike Jasper, Sherburne-Earlville: “Leadership on a team is something that can really make or break a season. The thing about good leaders, they are usually unselfish individuals that have all the right work ethic and higher vision about what the team can do. I hate to say it, but I think leadership is a inherit thing, for the most part. Good leadership will carry a team through tough times, and can become infectious. Poor leaders can also become infectious, and it rapidly becomes easier to blame poor results on everything else, like coaching.”

Jack Loeffler, UV-Edmeston: “The lack of leadership can have an adverse effect on the whole team, and the younger guys are left wondering where it was. This year we had good senior leaders, and it was very important. Many of our senior leaders were injured and missing games. In spite of being injured, they were still coming to practice and encouraging the other guys. We put a lot of stock into the leadership, and it’s important for the younger guys coming up. It sets the tone for the next guys to assume leadership roles as they become seniors.”

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On now this weekend’s slate:

Class B playoffs

Johnson City (7-1) at Norwich (5-3), Friday, 7 p.m.

Norwich returns to the playoffs for the first time in four years, and unless it wants to make a quick exit, it must avenge a week three 23-7 loss to the Wildcats.

In that game, Norwich drove for a touchdown on its opening possession as Andrew Austin scored on a 26-yard TD reception from Casey Edwards. That would be Norwich’s lone score as it finished with just 87 total yards. Opportunities for further damage were there as the Tornado recovered four JC fumbles, but did not cash in on any of them.

On the flip side, the Wildcats made Norwich pay dearly for its miscues. Two fumbles and a bad punt snap led to three Johnson City scores – and the total distance of those scoring drives was just 13 yards. “We had so many opportunities, yet we made too many mistakes,” Martinson said. “Early in the season we had costly penalties and we turned it over at bad times. We’ve been doing a better job with that, and the key in this game is that we can’t hurt ourselves.”