Wood counting on Salvati to lead defense

WINCHESTER — With just three defensive starters back from a team that gave up 389.5 yards and 31.1 points per game in 2023, the James Wood High School football team has a chance to create a new identity on defense in 2024.

Colonels second-year head coach Todd Wilson couldn’t be happier to have a player like senior inside linebacker Vincent Salvati returning to set a standard for his teammates to emulate in pursuit of improvement.

“Character-wise, he’s just a good human being, a good kid,” Wilson said. “He works hard. He’s dedicated. He’s very intelligent. The other kids love him. And he likes to have fun. He does goof around and joke around. He’s not just yelling and screaming at guys to lead them that way. He knows how to address guys when they need to be addressed. He knows when to be serious and when to have fun. Those are the types of things you look for.”

When asked earlier this month about things he learned last year that he’s trying work on for this year, Salvati’s thoughts immediately went to the team.

“Finishing the games,” Salvati said. “We were in a close game at Liberty [a 35-29 overtime loss] that had we won, that could have sent us into the playoffs. If we just learn how to finish in the fourth quarter and learn how to execute properly for the whole game, we’ll be in better positions.”

James Wood only had three All-District defensive players total on last year’s team, and the 5-foot-10, 200-pound Salvati was one of them as a result of a season in which he ranked second on the team in tackles with 87.

Salvati’s football career began when he was 10 with flag football. His older relatives played football for Oak Glen High School in Hancock County, West Virginia. Linebacker has always been his favorite position to play.

“You just get to hit people,” Salvati said. “I think stopping the run is one of my strengths. And then you get to kind of control the defense [as a linebacker], which is very nice, especially when you’ve got guys on the defense like [linemen] Jordyn Sweetser and Tyler Walter. Guys like that on the line make things a lot easier.”

Salvati has loved every minute of his time with James Wood’s varsity team. He made the team as a sophomore.

“I finally got to run out of the helmet on Friday nights,” said Salvati, referencing the giant inflatable James Wood football helmet that Colonels players run through before home games. “I was so excited. It was just fun to be out there on the D-Line. I was only 14 years old at the time. It doesn’t get much better than that.”

Salvati was assigned to play defensive end, and he handled the adjustment well by making 25 tackles.

“I think it made me better with my hands, and that’s helped me at inside linebacker,” Salvati said.

Salvati earned a starting inside linebacker spot as a junior. He had the benefit of playing alongside fellow inside linebacker Zach Smith, a 2024 James Wood High School graduate. Smith led all Winchester-Frederick County football players in tackles in both 2022 (when Smith was The Winchester Star’s Defensive Player of the Year) and 2023.

Salvati likened Smith to a big brother. Wilson said their similar approach to the game paid dividends for the Colonels, and he expects Salvati’s influence to to be guiding light this year.

“Zach is a student of the game, and Vinnie is a student of the game,” Wilson said. “Both of those guys have high GPAs, above 4.0 students. They know the playbook. They study film. By the time they get the scouting report on Sunday, they’re already into it. When we watch film as a group on Mondays, they’re telling coaches things like, ‘The guard is leaning this way when he’s pulling across.’ It’s almost like having another coach.

“We’ve got some young guys around Vinnie that haven’t played the position, and now Vinnie is that leader saying, ‘This is how we do things, this is how we watch film, this is how we study,’ and he’s out there correcting guys.”

Salvati had four double-digit tackle games last year, including a season-high 18 while Smith had 20 on 75 Meridian offensive plays in a Homecoming win, and 17 against Millbrook in the season finale.

The game against the Pioneers was a 47-23 loss, but James Wood played without Smith against Millbrook’s single-wing attack. For Salvati to perform the way he did in that game showed the James Wood coaching staff that he could be an even bigger force as a senior.

“We played some young guys next to Vinnie,” Wilson said. “Vinnie could have got washed up in what [Millbrook’s] scheme was and got out of position. But he was making plays, getting a lot of tackles in that game. It shows he’s ready to be that guy on our defense like Zach Smith was.”

It’s hard to say how much Salvati will be used on offense because of his defensive responsibilities, but Wilson said he could be someone who gets several carries in a game or lines up in the slot when needed. Salvati had a 1-yard touchdown run on a direct snap in last year’s season opener against Warren County.

This year, Salvati hopes he can execute throughout the game and make open-field tackles when the opportunities present themselves. And he plans on doing whatever he can to be a strong leader for a team that only has 11 seniors on a 56-player roster. He has the utmost faith in his teammates.

“The younger guys are high-motor guys,” Salvati said. “They’re learning really quick, and they can definitely help us.”

— Contact Robert Niedzwiecki at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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