We were just sitting around waiting for Obama to pay our mortgage and melt the ice on our driveway, so we had some time to come up with a few observations about 1,000-point scorers, the secret workout that has given nine players on one local high school the ability to dunk, who’s really going to win the Clark Tournament and some of the dumbest words in the English language. Plus, when you hit the “click here” link, 50 percent of you absolutely, 100 percent are guaranteed to be insulted. So, click here to read more.
First off, the best basketball player in the state is neither in CMass nor that basketball hotbed that often gets confused with Rucker Park, EMass. She is in Western Mass. Bilqis Abdul-Qaadir of New Leadership in Springfield is the new all-time state scoring leader. The Girl From Springfield surpassed the former record holder, the lovely and talented Becky Lobo last week. By the time she’s done, the Girl From Springfield, headed to Memphis on a full ride, will eclipse the 3,000-point mark and unless the next Michael Beasley transfers to Maynard as an eighth-grader, it probably won’t happen again. Here’s some quick math to put that into perspective. Let’s take a very good CMass sophomore, say Richard Rogers from SJ. He’ll play right around 20 games per year for three years. That means in those 60 or so contests, he’d have to toss up 50 per to get near 3,000. Good job by the Girl From Springfield.
We’ve been on a mission to figure out who’s for real in D2 boys, who will compete in the Clark and in the playoffs and we still can’t figure it out. We tried comparing two leagues, the Mid-Wach C and the SWCL. Seems about even, but, for what it’s worth – and admittedly, it’s not much, we give the slight edge to the MWC. It could be argued that that league’s best player is Lunenburg’s DJ Guillette, who we witnessed shred Clinton Friday night. The junior is the real deal on offense: Slashes to the rack, finishes strong, has a nice touch from the outside and hits his free throws. We have a hunch Lunenburg will at some point in March pull of an “upset,” not only because they have a go-to scorer, but also because they have reliable guard play and the personnel to simply outrun teams.
Take a small break and just read this short paragraph. A word that should make you angry is “artisan.” A really contrived synonym for artist, people who describe themselves as an “artisan” are people who spend their time working on making necklaces out of recycled cans and “waiting to be discovered.” The older folks know exactly what we mean and you younger kids will hate them just as much when you have to pay taxes.
Here’s the insult we promised. Everyone who weighed in our WWE-like manufactured debate about LeBron versus five local high school players and said LeBron would win is just a silly goose.
Finally, it’s been called to our attention that just about every player on the Mohawk Regional basketball team can dunk. We obtained secret footage of the workout that made it possible. Check it out.
Stay gold.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Sunday, January 25, 2009
HUDSON HIGH VS. LEBRON. 5 on 1. WHO WINS?
A local high school team will get its shot at LeBron and nobody’s quite sure what will happen. We’ll explain later in this article. But, first a few observations about some basketball. The season is old enough now where we can safely say that there are no runaway favorites in any division.
Here’s a quick peripheral opinion of the races and how they may shape up as the season winds down. D1: The favorites: SJ, North, Fitchburg. The Team or Teams none of the favorites will feel very good about playing in an elimination game: Marlboro, Wachusett, South, Doherty. The deal: Can we please recognize that Fitchburg is also a basketball town? With no superstars, the Raiders do, in fact, play “a tough schedule.” That’s a fact. Because the Burg is sorta out of the way from Worcester and extensive media coverage, we don’t get to see their players “grow up” the way we do with players from the I-High and the Worcester privates. Because these guys weren’t grabbing headlines from a few good games as sophomores, doesn’t mean they can’t play.
D2: The favorite: Groton-Dunstable. Teams they might not want to play: St. B's (obviously) Tantasqua (obviously), any team from the Mid-Wach C, including but not limited to Hudson, Clinton, Oakmont, Lunenburg, or Grafton and Northbridge.
D3: Favorite: Sutton. Teams that have a shot to take down the Sammies: Whitinsville, Maynard, Nashoba Tech, WB.
Here’s the LeBron thing. Move over Greatest Baseball Player Ever, step aside “Will anybody ever drop 100 in an NBA game?” This debate took place during water breaks and puffs of inhalers at a local gym where about a dozen “former athletes” play pickup hoops. Scenario: Take any above-average local high school team as it stands right now. For this argument, let’s use Hudson High. Hudson leads by 20 points heading into the fourth quarter. The other team benches everyone and sends only LeBron onto the floor for the final 8 minutes. So, it’s Hudson High, with a 20-point lead against LeBron. Five on one. Who wins? Amazingly, 75 percent of the debaters said LeBron would win.
“He would just pull up and shoot a trey, which is like a free throw to an NBA guy.” “If he missed, he would just rebound until he scored.” “He would block every shot the high school team took.”
What do you think? Let us know at tom@cmassinsider.com.
Here’s a quick peripheral opinion of the races and how they may shape up as the season winds down. D1: The favorites: SJ, North, Fitchburg. The Team or Teams none of the favorites will feel very good about playing in an elimination game: Marlboro, Wachusett, South, Doherty. The deal: Can we please recognize that Fitchburg is also a basketball town? With no superstars, the Raiders do, in fact, play “a tough schedule.” That’s a fact. Because the Burg is sorta out of the way from Worcester and extensive media coverage, we don’t get to see their players “grow up” the way we do with players from the I-High and the Worcester privates. Because these guys weren’t grabbing headlines from a few good games as sophomores, doesn’t mean they can’t play.
D2: The favorite: Groton-Dunstable. Teams they might not want to play: St. B's (obviously) Tantasqua (obviously), any team from the Mid-Wach C, including but not limited to Hudson, Clinton, Oakmont, Lunenburg, or Grafton and Northbridge.
D3: Favorite: Sutton. Teams that have a shot to take down the Sammies: Whitinsville, Maynard, Nashoba Tech, WB.
Here’s the LeBron thing. Move over Greatest Baseball Player Ever, step aside “Will anybody ever drop 100 in an NBA game?” This debate took place during water breaks and puffs of inhalers at a local gym where about a dozen “former athletes” play pickup hoops. Scenario: Take any above-average local high school team as it stands right now. For this argument, let’s use Hudson High. Hudson leads by 20 points heading into the fourth quarter. The other team benches everyone and sends only LeBron onto the floor for the final 8 minutes. So, it’s Hudson High, with a 20-point lead against LeBron. Five on one. Who wins? Amazingly, 75 percent of the debaters said LeBron would win.
“He would just pull up and shoot a trey, which is like a free throw to an NBA guy.” “If he missed, he would just rebound until he scored.” “He would block every shot the high school team took.”
What do you think? Let us know at tom@cmassinsider.com.
Monday, January 12, 2009
GIRLS' HOCKEY CATCHING ON IN SHREWSBURY
SHREWSBURY – Diving feet first isn’t exactly the ideal position for any hockey player, let alone an entire team.
But, when Shrewsbury Athletic Director Jay Costa came back from a hockey meeting and announced to not-yet-officially-named coach Frank Panarelli that the Colonials start-up girls’ team was in business and in a league, the diving began.
“We had been talking about starting a team for a few years,” said Panarelli, who coaches the inaugural edition of the Colonials’ hockey team that includes a roster made up of seventh-twelfth graders. “With budgets being what they are in all schools, we had to be a self-sufficient program and raise all the money to start the team ourselves.”
A group of parents, led by Doug Ineson , got busy raising funds. An effort to recycle old appliances and computers raised close to $9,000 and each player kicked in an additional $500 to cover costs and the program was born.
“It’s really been great so far,” said Panarelli, who is joined on the bench by his son, Nick, and Paul Wood, who volunteer as assistants. “I was kind of expecting to show up at practice and see kids holding on to the boards to keep their balance while they skated, but that wasn’t the case. We have a lot of girls who have played hockey for a while, both on boys’ teams and on girls’ teams, and they’re very enthusiastic and coachable.”
The Colonials started out like many new teams – slowly - but rebounded after a pair of season-opening losses to reel off four straight wins. That’s thanks to some talented players, led by sophomore goalie Steph Folsom. Shrewsbury was also able to get a waiver that allows seventh and eight-graders to play, which came in very handy for Panarelli. Turns out his leading scorer is Samantha DiReda and she’s still in junior high. The Colonials also have some talent along the blue line in junior Julia Martin, a converted forward.
Shrewsbury is captained by Martin, Alyssa Ineson and Tess Parks. Then, there’s Monique Arsenault. The last name should be familiar to hockey fans, but they may have a tough time drawing the connection to Shrewsbury.
That’s because there isn’t one really. Arsenault, you see is from Maynard, and plays on the team via co-op agreement.
“It makes perfect sense geographically,” Panarelli said with a laugh. “Jay [Costa] told me there was a girl from Maynard interested in playing and I said, ‘Sure.’ I think the MIAA is really pushing to have girls’ ice hockey on Central Mass. become as big as it is in Eastern Mass., so they’re going out of their way to find chances for kids to play.”
Panarelli is no stranger to rebuilding or to making Shrewsbury hockey history, so taking on this challenge completed a hockey circle of sorts.
“I was on the first hockey team Shrewsbury High ever had [in 1981],” Panarelli explained. “My son, Nick, played in the school’s 500th game. It’s pretty cool because I scored a goal in the first game and he scored a goal in the 500th.”
The Colonials, who call the New England Sports Center home and practice about once per week, play a schedule composed predominately of Eastern Mass. teams but do face local competition in Algonquin, Gardner and the St. Peter-Marian-St. Bernard’s co-op.
But, when Shrewsbury Athletic Director Jay Costa came back from a hockey meeting and announced to not-yet-officially-named coach Frank Panarelli that the Colonials start-up girls’ team was in business and in a league, the diving began.
“We had been talking about starting a team for a few years,” said Panarelli, who coaches the inaugural edition of the Colonials’ hockey team that includes a roster made up of seventh-twelfth graders. “With budgets being what they are in all schools, we had to be a self-sufficient program and raise all the money to start the team ourselves.”
A group of parents, led by Doug Ineson , got busy raising funds. An effort to recycle old appliances and computers raised close to $9,000 and each player kicked in an additional $500 to cover costs and the program was born.
“It’s really been great so far,” said Panarelli, who is joined on the bench by his son, Nick, and Paul Wood, who volunteer as assistants. “I was kind of expecting to show up at practice and see kids holding on to the boards to keep their balance while they skated, but that wasn’t the case. We have a lot of girls who have played hockey for a while, both on boys’ teams and on girls’ teams, and they’re very enthusiastic and coachable.”
The Colonials started out like many new teams – slowly - but rebounded after a pair of season-opening losses to reel off four straight wins. That’s thanks to some talented players, led by sophomore goalie Steph Folsom. Shrewsbury was also able to get a waiver that allows seventh and eight-graders to play, which came in very handy for Panarelli. Turns out his leading scorer is Samantha DiReda and she’s still in junior high. The Colonials also have some talent along the blue line in junior Julia Martin, a converted forward.
Shrewsbury is captained by Martin, Alyssa Ineson and Tess Parks. Then, there’s Monique Arsenault. The last name should be familiar to hockey fans, but they may have a tough time drawing the connection to Shrewsbury.
That’s because there isn’t one really. Arsenault, you see is from Maynard, and plays on the team via co-op agreement.
“It makes perfect sense geographically,” Panarelli said with a laugh. “Jay [Costa] told me there was a girl from Maynard interested in playing and I said, ‘Sure.’ I think the MIAA is really pushing to have girls’ ice hockey on Central Mass. become as big as it is in Eastern Mass., so they’re going out of their way to find chances for kids to play.”
Panarelli is no stranger to rebuilding or to making Shrewsbury hockey history, so taking on this challenge completed a hockey circle of sorts.
“I was on the first hockey team Shrewsbury High ever had [in 1981],” Panarelli explained. “My son, Nick, played in the school’s 500th game. It’s pretty cool because I scored a goal in the first game and he scored a goal in the 500th.”
The Colonials, who call the New England Sports Center home and practice about once per week, play a schedule composed predominately of Eastern Mass. teams but do face local competition in Algonquin, Gardner and the St. Peter-Marian-St. Bernard’s co-op.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
BLOWOUTS A PLENTY, BC IRRELEVANT
Well, at least we’ve outlasted the 375-pound guy who vowed to make 2009 the year he finally gets to buy dress pants without elastics. Our resolution for 2009 was pretty simple: To be right about every opinion we have regarding the big stories in sports. So far, we have been. If you need proof, or if you weren’t really quite sure which you were leaning toward an issue – local or national – we’ve got you covered with the following entry. Here you’ll be educated about local high school hoops and college football. Click here for more.
Since there was more ice in the area over the few weeks than in all of the alleys of Lawrence combined, getting a handle on local hoops has been a little tough. Mostly, folks have been guessing. Educated guesses, mind you, but guessing nonetheless.
Here’s where us being right begins. This year there will not be a slew of repeats as far as Central championship winners go. We’ve seen a talented Tantasqua program come back to earth a bit, although they’ll be around in the end. A team we like now in D2 boys in Groton-Dunstable. If the postseason began now, they’d be our pick to win it all. The Crusaders have a chance to pull off the rare sweep in basketball championships, as we think their girls squad will be in the mix as well. Unfortunately, they’ll have to get through what we feel is the best girls team in the area period in Millbury.
In D3 boys the rust from the lack of gym time is starting to come off, so the contenders have emerged and it looks like Sutton and Maynard will get to know each other quite well in postseason tournaments. Do not count out West Boylston just yet.
Speaking of high school hoops, there’s been some pretty eye-catching scores popping up aside from some perceived upsets. How about teams pounding opponents so badly the losing club didn’t break double-digits? Yikes. This brings up another issue entirely and it’s one that we’ll rant about on the site very soon. The amount of blowouts seems to be a little steep this season. We’ll have to check our history books to see if anything like this has occurred before, but, it seems that on both the boys and girls sides, there is a huge gap between the good teams and those still searching for the winning formula.
Raise your hand if you care at all about Boston College. Just as we thought. The school’s football team is dead to the common sports fan in what is believed to be an area that is crazy about sports. This is because the school’s elitist attitude does not appeal to the regular guy. It’s that simple. Until the school decides it wants to sacrifice some of its “integrity” and lower admissions standards for athletes like BCS schools do, it will remain anonymous to those without a direct connection to the school (graduates, families of players). There’s nothing wrong with having academic standards, but it really can’t be both ways. We’re still trying to jog the memory a little bit, but we seem to recall some sort of story about the BC hoop team and academic standards a few years back that caused a slew of moral stances to be taken and minds to be changed.
Check back again later. We’ll try to do better next time.
Since there was more ice in the area over the few weeks than in all of the alleys of Lawrence combined, getting a handle on local hoops has been a little tough. Mostly, folks have been guessing. Educated guesses, mind you, but guessing nonetheless.
Here’s where us being right begins. This year there will not be a slew of repeats as far as Central championship winners go. We’ve seen a talented Tantasqua program come back to earth a bit, although they’ll be around in the end. A team we like now in D2 boys in Groton-Dunstable. If the postseason began now, they’d be our pick to win it all. The Crusaders have a chance to pull off the rare sweep in basketball championships, as we think their girls squad will be in the mix as well. Unfortunately, they’ll have to get through what we feel is the best girls team in the area period in Millbury.
In D3 boys the rust from the lack of gym time is starting to come off, so the contenders have emerged and it looks like Sutton and Maynard will get to know each other quite well in postseason tournaments. Do not count out West Boylston just yet.
Speaking of high school hoops, there’s been some pretty eye-catching scores popping up aside from some perceived upsets. How about teams pounding opponents so badly the losing club didn’t break double-digits? Yikes. This brings up another issue entirely and it’s one that we’ll rant about on the site very soon. The amount of blowouts seems to be a little steep this season. We’ll have to check our history books to see if anything like this has occurred before, but, it seems that on both the boys and girls sides, there is a huge gap between the good teams and those still searching for the winning formula.
Raise your hand if you care at all about Boston College. Just as we thought. The school’s football team is dead to the common sports fan in what is believed to be an area that is crazy about sports. This is because the school’s elitist attitude does not appeal to the regular guy. It’s that simple. Until the school decides it wants to sacrifice some of its “integrity” and lower admissions standards for athletes like BCS schools do, it will remain anonymous to those without a direct connection to the school (graduates, families of players). There’s nothing wrong with having academic standards, but it really can’t be both ways. We’re still trying to jog the memory a little bit, but we seem to recall some sort of story about the BC hoop team and academic standards a few years back that caused a slew of moral stances to be taken and minds to be changed.
Check back again later. We’ll try to do better next time.
Monday, November 24, 2008
THANKSGIVING PICKS
We’re hoping the weather cooperates for Thursday morning. We just got a text message from Dick Albert that said, “Good weather, great games and I can totally crush Bruce Shwoegler.” Whatever that means. Even if Dickie’s forecast is wrong, ours is exactly right. We have the winners of all the games right here. Read our picks, fill out this form with yours, e-mail it to publishers@cmassinsider.com and win some prizes if you get the most correct.
On to the picks:
Nipmuc at Valley Tech: Nipmuc has proven that last year’s success wasn’t just a blip on the program building plan. The Warriors end the season on a high not with a win over the Beavs.
Gansett at Murdock: Narragansett is a team that was somewhat forgotten in 3 West, even after playing some tough football against the division’s best. Likewise for Murdock over in the East. Look for Gansett to come up with a big play through the air to squeak by the Devils.
Monty Tech at Nashoba Tech: The Bulldogs score a big win for the program.
Tyngsboro at Groton-Dunstable: The Crusaders’ impressive program debut continues with a throttling of Tyngsboro.
Littleton at Ayer: The Panthers are a proud bunch that will be back (we’ll tell you more on that in the December issue), but Littleton gets a win in a primer for the playoffs.
Maynard at Clinton: Clinton won’t be down for long. In fact, the Gaels are already on the upswing. Clinton set a lofty goal and that was to make it out of November unbeaten as a program (varsity and JV). So far, so good and the Gaels make that happen Thursday.
Hudson at Marlboro: The Panthers simply have too much depth for a Hawks team that has watched the injury bug destroy its season.
Lunenburg at St. Bernard’s: Whether or not you think the Bernardians pulled off the biggest upset of the season, you can’t argue that their win over Holy Name didn’t add even more to this game. In the end, the Blue Knight offense finds a crease or angle to beat the stout St. B’s D for a game-changing play.
West Boylston at Quabbin: The Lions had playoff aspirations this year. Unfortunately for Quabbin, it has become the Lions’ biggest game of the year and WB gets it done.
Auburn at Oxford: We could write something really dumb here like “Rockets take flight,” but there’s no need to look for anything fancy. Auburn is one of the area’s most physical teams and that’s why it’ll win Thursday.
Grafton at Millbury: It wouldn’t be Thanksgiving football without a few upsets. Prior to the season, we bet the corporate jet that Grafton wouldn’t go winless under Mike Ross. We still have the jet and we still think the Indians have another win in them.
David Prouty at Leicester: Leicester puts it all together at home and the team that gave some of the toughest teams on its schedule trouble shows up to stop the Panthers.
Uxbridge at Northbridge: Speaking of Thanksgiving upsets, was there any bigger than what went down in this rivalry a few years back? The Rams still remember, and don’t let it happen again in a close win over the Spartans.
Southbridge at Bartlett: The Pioneers offense will run up enough points to win while cell phones all over the bleachers will be running up minutes trying to see if the playoff hopes are still flickering.
South at North: The Polar Bears were a team worth checking out this year and played everyone tough. North puts a nice touch on a fine season with a big win.
Shepherd Hill at Tantasqua: You get the feeling that the playoff spot and the 10-0 record really won’t mean too much to the Warriors if they can’t beat the Hill. The Rams, however, hold the ball long enough to pull of a win.
Oakmont at Gardner: This one could be a shootout or could be a defensive struggle. How’s that for fence walking? Look for Gardner to slow down the Spartan athletes just enough to pick a win.
Holy Name at Wachusett: An interesting game for the armchair coach in all of us. To save something for the playoffs or not to save something. Our bet is these two teams will try to rip each other apart. It is, after all, Thanksgiving football. Holy Name gets the W.
Nashoba at North Middlesex: The Chieftains have proven to be more than a one-man team this year and the added dimensions are too much for the Pats.
St. Peter’s at St. John’s: Neutral fans picking the winner of this game with their hearts will give the edge to the Guardians for sure, but St. John’s has a little too much for an SPM team that will push Big Red to the limit on emotion alone.
Algonquin at Westboro: The T’Hawks have been piling up the points as of late and that trend will continue on Thursday in a win over the Rangers.
Doherty at Burncoat: The Highlanders won’t waste any time wondering “what if” and worrying about things now out of their control. They’ll have their hands full with Burncoat, but come out on top.
Shrewsbury at Milford: If Milford is indeed getting an early start on its farewell tour of CMass they will do it in style by way of a somewhat shocking upset over the Colonials.
Fitchburg at Leominster: Is there any way this one won’t live up to the hype? The Blue Devils have had their way with Fitchburg as of late, but the Red Raiders get it done in this year’s main event.
On to the picks:
Nipmuc at Valley Tech: Nipmuc has proven that last year’s success wasn’t just a blip on the program building plan. The Warriors end the season on a high not with a win over the Beavs.
Gansett at Murdock: Narragansett is a team that was somewhat forgotten in 3 West, even after playing some tough football against the division’s best. Likewise for Murdock over in the East. Look for Gansett to come up with a big play through the air to squeak by the Devils.
Monty Tech at Nashoba Tech: The Bulldogs score a big win for the program.
Tyngsboro at Groton-Dunstable: The Crusaders’ impressive program debut continues with a throttling of Tyngsboro.
Littleton at Ayer: The Panthers are a proud bunch that will be back (we’ll tell you more on that in the December issue), but Littleton gets a win in a primer for the playoffs.
Maynard at Clinton: Clinton won’t be down for long. In fact, the Gaels are already on the upswing. Clinton set a lofty goal and that was to make it out of November unbeaten as a program (varsity and JV). So far, so good and the Gaels make that happen Thursday.
Hudson at Marlboro: The Panthers simply have too much depth for a Hawks team that has watched the injury bug destroy its season.
Lunenburg at St. Bernard’s: Whether or not you think the Bernardians pulled off the biggest upset of the season, you can’t argue that their win over Holy Name didn’t add even more to this game. In the end, the Blue Knight offense finds a crease or angle to beat the stout St. B’s D for a game-changing play.
West Boylston at Quabbin: The Lions had playoff aspirations this year. Unfortunately for Quabbin, it has become the Lions’ biggest game of the year and WB gets it done.
Auburn at Oxford: We could write something really dumb here like “Rockets take flight,” but there’s no need to look for anything fancy. Auburn is one of the area’s most physical teams and that’s why it’ll win Thursday.
Grafton at Millbury: It wouldn’t be Thanksgiving football without a few upsets. Prior to the season, we bet the corporate jet that Grafton wouldn’t go winless under Mike Ross. We still have the jet and we still think the Indians have another win in them.
David Prouty at Leicester: Leicester puts it all together at home and the team that gave some of the toughest teams on its schedule trouble shows up to stop the Panthers.
Uxbridge at Northbridge: Speaking of Thanksgiving upsets, was there any bigger than what went down in this rivalry a few years back? The Rams still remember, and don’t let it happen again in a close win over the Spartans.
Southbridge at Bartlett: The Pioneers offense will run up enough points to win while cell phones all over the bleachers will be running up minutes trying to see if the playoff hopes are still flickering.
South at North: The Polar Bears were a team worth checking out this year and played everyone tough. North puts a nice touch on a fine season with a big win.
Shepherd Hill at Tantasqua: You get the feeling that the playoff spot and the 10-0 record really won’t mean too much to the Warriors if they can’t beat the Hill. The Rams, however, hold the ball long enough to pull of a win.
Oakmont at Gardner: This one could be a shootout or could be a defensive struggle. How’s that for fence walking? Look for Gardner to slow down the Spartan athletes just enough to pick a win.
Holy Name at Wachusett: An interesting game for the armchair coach in all of us. To save something for the playoffs or not to save something. Our bet is these two teams will try to rip each other apart. It is, after all, Thanksgiving football. Holy Name gets the W.
Nashoba at North Middlesex: The Chieftains have proven to be more than a one-man team this year and the added dimensions are too much for the Pats.
St. Peter’s at St. John’s: Neutral fans picking the winner of this game with their hearts will give the edge to the Guardians for sure, but St. John’s has a little too much for an SPM team that will push Big Red to the limit on emotion alone.
Algonquin at Westboro: The T’Hawks have been piling up the points as of late and that trend will continue on Thursday in a win over the Rangers.
Doherty at Burncoat: The Highlanders won’t waste any time wondering “what if” and worrying about things now out of their control. They’ll have their hands full with Burncoat, but come out on top.
Shrewsbury at Milford: If Milford is indeed getting an early start on its farewell tour of CMass they will do it in style by way of a somewhat shocking upset over the Colonials.
Fitchburg at Leominster: Is there any way this one won’t live up to the hype? The Blue Devils have had their way with Fitchburg as of late, but the Red Raiders get it done in this year’s main event.
Sunday, November 23, 2008
THANKSGIVING FOOTBALL WARMUP
Before we get going on a few items of interest, we ask you to join us in extending our prayers to the friends and family of Owen Kilcoyne, the legendary coach and friend to so many. He taught a lot of football players how to win, but we all know his impact is much greater than his effect on a game.
When it comes to local sports, we really don’t care about who wins and who loses, but, with all due respect to St. John’s and its fine program, we’d love to see the Guardians come up with some magic this Thursday morning.
Kilcoyne was still a wet-behind-the-ears 26-year-old when he was hired as the first head coach in the history of the Hudson Catholic High School football program. That was the fall of 1960.
The year before, 1959, was Kilcoyne’s only one as an assistant coach before moving out of the limelight at St. Peter-Marian prior to last season, His football coaching internship, as it were, occurred at Notre Dame High of Fitchburg.
During his time as a head coach Kilcoyne compiled some staggering statistics. He retired as a head coach with:
Exactly 250 victories and a career record of 250-164-8.
Three undefeated seasons – 1980, ‘93 and ‘95. Four if you count the Green Wave’s 1-0 varsity record in that inaugural 1960 season.
Six one-loss seasons – 1977, ‘78, ‘92, ‘94, ‘96 and 2002.
Six Super Bowl victories overall – 1980, ‘92, ‘93, ‘94, ‘95 and ‘96. The five consecutive Super Bowls he won from ‘92-‘96 are a state record.
The distinction of having never lost a Super Bowl.
Speaking of Thanksgiving football, picking one game to go to will be a tough task for fans hanging out in a neutral corner. There’s always a lot on the line on Turkey Day, but for some schools it will literally make or break their seasons.
In a couple of accidental conversations with local coaches, each one said if their game happened to be on Wednesday night and they had Thursday free, they’d go to see Fitchburg and Leominster duke it out. There probably won’t be any room, anyway. Be sure to join us this week to make your picks. You’ll win a prize for being the “most right,” also known as the “best guesser.” We’ll get to read e-mails from you about how dumb we are when we pick against your school. So, really, we don’t have to wait until next year’s football playoffs to experience “everybody wins.”
On to another subject. We tried to bring up a little controversy without discussing religion, politics, race or proclaiming that there was more than one guy who played the Undertaker in wrestling. We figured declaring Bromfield boys’ soccer the greatest dynasty in the history of Central Mass. sports would get some resistance. It got very little, although we did hear about some great baseball programs (Leominster, Milford), Gardner swimming, another Bromfield team – girls’ cross-country - and the NDA field hockey team. Still couldn’t compare and Bromfield distanced themselves even further by winning the state championship yet again.
That’s it for today. Start studying your game films and talking to sources about injuries and locker room tension to be prepared to win the Turkey day Pick ‘Em contest.
When it comes to local sports, we really don’t care about who wins and who loses, but, with all due respect to St. John’s and its fine program, we’d love to see the Guardians come up with some magic this Thursday morning.
Kilcoyne was still a wet-behind-the-ears 26-year-old when he was hired as the first head coach in the history of the Hudson Catholic High School football program. That was the fall of 1960.
The year before, 1959, was Kilcoyne’s only one as an assistant coach before moving out of the limelight at St. Peter-Marian prior to last season, His football coaching internship, as it were, occurred at Notre Dame High of Fitchburg.
During his time as a head coach Kilcoyne compiled some staggering statistics. He retired as a head coach with:
Exactly 250 victories and a career record of 250-164-8.
Three undefeated seasons – 1980, ‘93 and ‘95. Four if you count the Green Wave’s 1-0 varsity record in that inaugural 1960 season.
Six one-loss seasons – 1977, ‘78, ‘92, ‘94, ‘96 and 2002.
Six Super Bowl victories overall – 1980, ‘92, ‘93, ‘94, ‘95 and ‘96. The five consecutive Super Bowls he won from ‘92-‘96 are a state record.
The distinction of having never lost a Super Bowl.
Speaking of Thanksgiving football, picking one game to go to will be a tough task for fans hanging out in a neutral corner. There’s always a lot on the line on Turkey Day, but for some schools it will literally make or break their seasons.
In a couple of accidental conversations with local coaches, each one said if their game happened to be on Wednesday night and they had Thursday free, they’d go to see Fitchburg and Leominster duke it out. There probably won’t be any room, anyway. Be sure to join us this week to make your picks. You’ll win a prize for being the “most right,” also known as the “best guesser.” We’ll get to read e-mails from you about how dumb we are when we pick against your school. So, really, we don’t have to wait until next year’s football playoffs to experience “everybody wins.”
On to another subject. We tried to bring up a little controversy without discussing religion, politics, race or proclaiming that there was more than one guy who played the Undertaker in wrestling. We figured declaring Bromfield boys’ soccer the greatest dynasty in the history of Central Mass. sports would get some resistance. It got very little, although we did hear about some great baseball programs (Leominster, Milford), Gardner swimming, another Bromfield team – girls’ cross-country - and the NDA field hockey team. Still couldn’t compare and Bromfield distanced themselves even further by winning the state championship yet again.
That’s it for today. Start studying your game films and talking to sources about injuries and locker room tension to be prepared to win the Turkey day Pick ‘Em contest.
Monday, November 17, 2008
The Trojan Dynasty
You probably haven't won more than half of the pickup basketball games you've played in. You definitely haven't won more than half of the fantasy cricket leagues you've been in. Using that logic, it's safe to assume that unless you're Red Auerbach's great-nephew, you've never seen a dynasty up close. But there's one closer than you think. In the tiny town of Harvard, home to the Bromfield boys' soccer team.
The term "dynasty" being used to describe a high school team usually makes me want to do this to the describer. It's just silly. It's high school, four years and see ya later. There are no drafts or free-agent signings or organizational philosophies. Just 15-18-year-old kids playing a sport.
At Bromfield, though, it's been consistent. Consistently dominant. Seventeen-out-of-29 CMass championships, multiple CMass titles in each decade from the '80s through Sunday afternoon.
Last year's state championship team was stacked with senior talent. This fall, other quality teams were getting that "championship feeling," perhaps thinking the Trojans were down a bit, or "rebuilding" (another word that should not be spoken in relation to high school sports).
Didn't happen.
The reasons for the Bromfield Dynasty are as numerous as the blue and white soccer banners that hang in their small gymnasium.
The first is talent, obviously, which is as much nature as it is the nurturing the players get from a very competitive youth program.
The most obvious is coaching. Bromfield coach Tom Hill has been in the game for a long time, coaching the same way in the same place. His style certainly wouldn't appeal to Dr. Phil. He sometimes even raises his voice to players when they aren't following directions or playing to their potential. That's a novel concept. Credit here should also go the decades of parents who have trusted Hill and not started a petition or gone running to the school board because a coach "was a meanie" to their kids. The same parents who pretend to subscribe to the sports is an extension of the classroom belief, apparently believe that their kids' future bosses will coddle them when they fail to be accountable for their actions.
The dynasty is even more impressive when you consider that Bromfield, on a yearly basis, houses about 200 boys in grades 9-12. (See for yourself here). And it isn't like the school's standout athletes all rush to the soccer team every fall. Keep in mind that Bromfield has a solid cross-country team and is part of the Littleton football team.
While banners, championship and scores of players moving on to play in college are the factual evidence, the anecdotal evidence is more impressive. Many teams talk about, but few are about it when it comes to "playing anyone, anywhere." The Trojans do, annually pitting themselves against D1 and D2 opponents to test their mettle before the postseason. Don't be surprised if it gets harder and harder for Bromfield to fill out a schedule in the future. They have proven to be the Beast of D3, and any school with a larger enrollment is in a no-win situation when Bromfield comes asking for a match. Beat a D3 school and "you were supposed to," lose and face the ire of chatroom analysts and coaches.
That's our take and, believes us, we tried and tried to think of another program that even comes close in any sport. Try for yourselves. We enjoy friendly arguments, but the list of teams that have won more than half of the possible CMass championships in the last three decades is fairly short.
The term "dynasty" being used to describe a high school team usually makes me want to do this to the describer. It's just silly. It's high school, four years and see ya later. There are no drafts or free-agent signings or organizational philosophies. Just 15-18-year-old kids playing a sport.
At Bromfield, though, it's been consistent. Consistently dominant. Seventeen-out-of-29 CMass championships, multiple CMass titles in each decade from the '80s through Sunday afternoon.
Last year's state championship team was stacked with senior talent. This fall, other quality teams were getting that "championship feeling," perhaps thinking the Trojans were down a bit, or "rebuilding" (another word that should not be spoken in relation to high school sports).
Didn't happen.
The reasons for the Bromfield Dynasty are as numerous as the blue and white soccer banners that hang in their small gymnasium.
The first is talent, obviously, which is as much nature as it is the nurturing the players get from a very competitive youth program.
The most obvious is coaching. Bromfield coach Tom Hill has been in the game for a long time, coaching the same way in the same place. His style certainly wouldn't appeal to Dr. Phil. He sometimes even raises his voice to players when they aren't following directions or playing to their potential. That's a novel concept. Credit here should also go the decades of parents who have trusted Hill and not started a petition or gone running to the school board because a coach "was a meanie" to their kids. The same parents who pretend to subscribe to the sports is an extension of the classroom belief, apparently believe that their kids' future bosses will coddle them when they fail to be accountable for their actions.
The dynasty is even more impressive when you consider that Bromfield, on a yearly basis, houses about 200 boys in grades 9-12. (See for yourself here). And it isn't like the school's standout athletes all rush to the soccer team every fall. Keep in mind that Bromfield has a solid cross-country team and is part of the Littleton football team.
While banners, championship and scores of players moving on to play in college are the factual evidence, the anecdotal evidence is more impressive. Many teams talk about, but few are about it when it comes to "playing anyone, anywhere." The Trojans do, annually pitting themselves against D1 and D2 opponents to test their mettle before the postseason. Don't be surprised if it gets harder and harder for Bromfield to fill out a schedule in the future. They have proven to be the Beast of D3, and any school with a larger enrollment is in a no-win situation when Bromfield comes asking for a match. Beat a D3 school and "you were supposed to," lose and face the ire of chatroom analysts and coaches.
That's our take and, believes us, we tried and tried to think of another program that even comes close in any sport. Try for yourselves. We enjoy friendly arguments, but the list of teams that have won more than half of the possible CMass championships in the last three decades is fairly short.
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