by Matt Kupec
July 23, 2019
Last October I wrote a column thanking my Syosset High School coaches who dedicated their careers to influencing young people for life through the power of coaching. I received considerable feedback from so many former athletes of Syosset High School who also shared a great appreciation for the efforts of the Syosset coaches.
As a follow-up, I thought we’d take a look at the impressive success of Syosset High School athletes over the years who in many instances were guided and taught by these great coaches. We look at the success through the lens of those Syosset athletes and those who were recognized as Newsday All-Long Island athletes. And we look at the success of Syosset athletes as compared to their peers at all Long Island high schools.
Syosset High School is ranked an impressive #11 of the 171 Nassau and Suffolk high schools that have produced All-Long Island, NY athletes. At least that is according to a review of a Newsday database that lists all 5,907 selections to the Newsday All-Long Island teams. Syosset has produced a total of 91 All-Long Island selections, or 1.5%, out of the overall total.
St. Anthony’s High School, based in Huntington, NY, is the overall leader in producing All-Long Island athletes with a whopping total of 260 All-Long Island selections. Garden City is the highest ranked Nassau County public school while Ward Melville is the highest producing Suffolk County public high school. Syosset ranks #4th among Nassau County public high schools.
Newsday began selecting a football All-Long Island team in 1962. Boys basketball followed the next year. Many of the boys and girls athletic teams did not begin to get recognized as Newsday All-Long Island until the past 15-20 years. As a result, many outstanding Long Island athletes prior to these years did not have the opportunity to get named Newsday All-Long Island.
It is also worth noting that prior to 1975, Newsday only recognized 11 athletes to its All-Long Island Football team. That number jumped to 22 selections each year beginning with 1975.
Key Findings:
- Suffolk County public high schools have produced 47.6% of the Newsday All-Long Island athletes. Nassau’s public schools sit at 39.1% while private high schools have produced 13.3%.
- Eleven Suffolk County public high schools rank among the top 20 high schools on Long Island in producing Newsday All-Long Island athletes. Seven Nassau public schools and three private schools make up the remaining slots.
- Suffolk County public high schools have a significant lead in producing Newsday All-Long Island athletes.
Here is detailed analysis of which Long Island High Schools have produced Newsday All-Long Island athletes:
- High Schools that have produced the most Newsday All-Long Island Selections. St. Anthony’s has produced the most All-Long Island athletes with a whopping grand total of 260 athletes receiving Newsday All-Long Island recognition. Garden City is the highest ranked Nassau County high school with 213 All-Long Island selections. Ward Melville represents Suffolk County as the high school with the most All-Long Island selections recognized as 166 athletes. Syosset is the 4th highest ranked Nassau County public school.
Here is a list of the High Schools with the Most All-Long Island Selections:
| Rank | High School | # Selections |
| 1 | St. Anthony’s | 260 |
| 2 | Garden City | 213 |
| 3 | Ward Melville | 166 |
| 4 | Massapequa | 159 |
| 5 | Northport | 118 |
| 6 | Chaminade | 116 |
| 7 | Farmingdale | 110 |
| 8 | Commack | 105 |
| 8 | East Islip | 105 |
| 10 | Bay Shore | 94 |
| 11 | Syosset | 91 |
| 12 | Sayville | 82 |
| 13 | Manhasset | 81 |
| 14 | Sachem East | 79 |
| 15 | Connetquot | 76 |
| 15 | North Babylon | 76 |
| 15 | Shoreham-Wading River | 76 |
| 18 | Longwood | 73 |
| 19 | Wantagh | 72 |
| 20 | Cold Spring Harbor | 71 |
| 20 | St. John the Baptist | 71 |
Here is a list of the Top 20 producing High Schools by County & School Type
| Suffolk County High Schools | Nassau County High Schools | Private High Schools | |||||||||||
| Rank | School | # |
|
School | # | Rank | School | # | |||||
| 3 | Ward Melville | 166 | 2 | Garden City | 213 | 1 | St. Anthony’s | 260 | |||||
| 5 | Northport | 118 | 4 | Massapequa | 159 | 6 | Chaminade | 116 | |||||
| 8 | Commack | 105 | 7 | Farmingdale | 110 | 20 | St. John the Baptist | 71 | |||||
| 8 | East Islip | 105 | 11 | Syosset | 91 | ||||||||
| 10 | Bay Shore | 94 | 13 | Manhasset | 81 | ||||||||
| 12 | Sayville | 82 | 19 | Wantagh | 72 | ||||||||
| 14 | Sachem East | 79 | 20 | Cold Spring | 71 | ||||||||
| 15 | Connetquot | 76 | |||||||||||
| 15 | North Babylon | 76 | |||||||||||
| 15 | Shoreham-Wading River | 76 | |||||||||||
| 18 | Longwood | 73 | |||||||||||
| ⓫ | Totals | 1,050 | ❼ | Totals | 797 | ❸ | Totals | 447 | |||||
- Year of Origin of Newsday’s All-Long Island Team by sport:
As stated previously, Newsday began its selection of an All-Long Island football team in 1962. Boys basketball was introduced the following year. Newsday extended its All-Long Island selections to most sports within the past 15-20 years. Here is a listing of the year the All-Long Island recognition started by sport as well as a total of the number of selections for each sport.
| Men’s Sport | # All-LI | Year Started | Women’s Sport | # All-LI | Year Started | |
| Baseball | 288 | 2001 | Field Hockey | 250 | 2001 | |
| Badminton | 70 | 2010 | Badminton | 81 | 2010 | |
| Basketball | 520 | 1963 | Basketball | 376 | 1984 | |
| Bowling | 65 | 2008 | Bowling | 64 | 2008 | |
| Cross Country | 84 | 2007 | Cross Country | 84 | 2007 | |
| Fencing | 75 | 2009 | Fencing | 74 | 2009 | |
| Football | 1,232 | 1962 | Golf | 71 | 2008 | |
| Golf | 72 | 2008 | Gymnastics | 79 | 2008 | |
| Lacrosse | 288 | 2001 | Lacrosse | 299 | 2001 | |
| Soccer | 265 | 2001 | Soccer | 260 | 2001 | |
| Swimming | 69 | 2010 | Swimming | 78 | 2008 | |
| Tennis | 102 | 2008 | Tennis | 100 | 2007 | |
| Track & Field | 139 | 2008 | Track & Field | 137 | 2008 | |
| Volleyball | 114 | 2010 | Volleyball | 146 | 2007 | |
| Wrestling | 150 | 2007 | Softball | 275 | 2001 | |
| Total | 3,533 | Total | 2,374 | |||
- Analysis of Syosset’s 91 All-Long Island Selections by Sport
Football has produced the most All-Long Island athletes at Syosset High School with 17 selections in the Newsday All-Long Island team. Boy’s tennis follows with 16 selections and there is a 3rd place tie between girl’s golf and boy’s lacrosse. Again, many of these sports (for both boys and girls) only began being awarded Newsday All-Long Island recognition in the past 15-20 years so many great Syosset athletes may not have received Newsday All-Long Island recognition.
Here is a listing of All-Long Island selections by sport for Syosset High School athletes as well as the overall percentage of the total earned by Syosset High School athletes:
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- Syosset High School Does Have a Rich and Successful Athletic History
Clearly, these numbers reflect that Syosset High School has enjoyed a rich and successful athletic history. Teams have won numerous conference, county, Long Island and State championships. The list of Syosset athletes earning Newsday All-Long Island recognition is quite impressive. The High School ranks as one of the academic leaders on the Island and in the country. The success of the Syosset High School athletes is a tribute to the athletes themselves, the coaching and support from families and the community they enjoyed growing up in Syosset, and the district’s commitment to having athletics be an important part of the lives of the students. Kudo’s to Syosset and all the great athletes. You are an impressive group!!
About the Author (mattkupecsports.com)
Matt Kupec is a fundraising professional with 32 years of significant higher education development experience. He has directed three major university fundraising campaigns and nearly $5 billion has been raised under his leadership. He has led the fundraising programs at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Hofstra University, Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute and HelpMeSee, a New York City based non-profit and is currently leading the fundraising at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, IL.
A proud Syosset High School graduate, Matt was named Newsday All-Long Island quarterback after the undefeated 1974 Syosset Braves team won the Long Island Championship game and was ranked #1 in New York State. Kupec was named the winner of the Thorpe Award. Matt’s older brother Chris was named Newsday All-Long Island quarterback in 1970 after leading the Bravesto the Nassau County title. Both Kupecs went on to have prolific careers as record-setting quarterbacks at the University of North Carolina.