The sledgehammer came off the field draped over Adam Burek’s right shoulder, a ceremonial prop for a senior two-way lineman who had just helped Columbia flatten another opponent. The Blue Devils beat Bethlehem 31-0 on Thursday night in Delmar, a Class A road shutout that backed up their Week 1 statement and left little doubt about the direction of their season.
Columbia (2-0, 2-0 Class A) opened with a resounding 48-27 win over Queensbury, the team that knocked them out of the Class A playoffs in both 2025 and 2024. Thursday’s performance was arguably more complete. The Blue Devils outgained Bethlehem 443-138 and never allowed the Eagles (0-2, 0-2) to reach the red zone.
“It feels great. We had a great offseason with all the guys. We had a good camp and we have really just brought it together the last two weeks,” Burek said.
The first quarter, though, belonged to neither side. Columbia stalled twice and the game stayed scoreless until the Blue Devils put together an eight-play, 66-yard drive that ended with quarterback Tyler Connolly scoring on a 4-yard run. During that series, Columbia never faced a third down, running six times and passing twice.
The offense opened up from there. Connolly connected with Trey Pettograsso for a 12-yard touchdown pass, and a sophomore kicker drilled a 41-yard field goal to close out the first half. Tyler Connolly, Desmond White and Shudipto Sikder each rushed for a touchdown.
Sikder led the ground game with 113 yards on 13 carries, including five double-digit gains of 14, 15, 17, 13 and 13 yards. White added 117 yards. Together, Columbia rushed for 324 yards on 42 attempts.
Sikder also made his presence felt on defense at linebacker, helping the Blue Devils hold Bethlehem to 14 rushing yards on 16 attempts. The Eagles ran 12 offensive plays that generated negative yards.
The senior two-way starter was not thrilled with how the first quarter unfolded.
“The slow start was on us, but we bounced back and put up 31 points and held them to zero,” Sikder said. “That was pretty good.”
Columbia coach Jake Preston credited the team’s collective mindset rather than any individual performance.
“This team gets so excited when someone else makes a play,” Preston said. “They went through it last year and had to learn some stuff with some close-game adversity. It is still early in the season, but I’m proud of what we’ve done so far.”
Sikder framed the early-season form as the payoff of a longer process.
“We knew what we had coming in. We put the work in,” Sikder said. “The seniors have put in the work for four years. This is just the fruits of our labor.”
Columbia will look to improve to 3-0 in Class A play on Sept. 19 at Amsterdam. Bethlehem will host Mohonasen on Sept. 18 in Class A action.
According to Yahoo Sports.