Put an exclamation on it!
After Bonny Eagle’s dominating 41-13 win over Mt. Blue on a crisp, clear Saturday at Portland’s Fitzpatrick Stadium, there’s no doubt which high school football team is number one in Maine.
Again.
The victory comes on the heels of last fall’s undefeated season and Class A state championship and, for this year’s upperclassmen anyway, Saturday’s win brought with it a new level of euphoria.
“Last year the seniors told me nothing compares to winning a gold ball your senior season, and today I found out they were right,” said John Wiechman, who for the second year in a row, rushed for more than 200 yards in a title game victory.
But to find the heart and soul of this team, and to learn the intricate reasons the Scots repeated as Class A champs – something only South Portland and Biddeford have done in the last 25 years – one needs to dig deeper than the phenomenal runner Wiechman. The team’s offense, defense and kicking game underwent constant adjustments throughout the season. And everything head coach Kevin Cooper did to make this group better seemed to work.
“The philosophy of our offense is to have multiple weapons,” said Cooper.
And boy did he.
Mike O’Donnell was the big question mark in pre-season, playing quarterback for the first time since middle school and filling in for graduated brother Matt. That question mark has been eliminated.
In his final game, O’Donnell played at or near his best, and much of his success came early in the game.
His 14-yard TD run in the first quarter tallied the first points in the game and his 1-yard sneak in the second period gave his team the lead for good.
Also in the second period, Mike had a 10-yard touchdown pass to Ben Delcourt. And in the third period his return of an interception of nearly 50 yards set up the backbreaker TD, on Wiechman’s 34-yard run (giving the Scots a 28-7 lead).
Wiechman would later deliver points again, scoring on a 4-yard run in the third period, with Erik Hanson’s PAT capping the Scots’ scoring.
Both Wiechman, who finished with nearly 230 yards, and O’Donnell are quick to point out their heroes on the team.
“I would rather run behind my offensive line than the best offensive line in the NFL,” Wiechman said of blockers Dan Avery, Mitchell Boulette, Mason Tripp, Charlie Butler and Brett Cartwright.
And O’Donnell just shakes his head when Delcourt’s name comes up.
“He has surprised me this year,” O’Donnell said. “That last ball (the touchdown pass), I tried to keep it low, but not that low. He just makes great catches. I don’t feel I need to make the greatest passes and that cuts down on interceptions.”
O’Donnell threw only one pick through the regular season, “and I credit that to my receivers,” he said. “I keep it away from the defense, and they go get it.”
But wait. There’s more.
Big tight end Anthony Atkins became another great target for O’Donnell and does anybody think Stanley Watts got enough carries this fall? But, hey, there’s only one ball.
Watts showed a bit of what’s in store for next year (he’s back for a senior season) with some impressive running Saturday, especially in the second half.
And how nice to see Neil Patnaude, bum knee and all, scoring on a 1-yard rush in the third quarter to make it 34-7.
“I tripped up on my first try,” said the senior running back with a smile, “but my linemen told me they’d get me in.”
Ah, those linemen.
Patnaude has been a contributing force since returning punts and kicks his sophomore season and adds to that dimensional offense Cooper is so proud of.
Add to that O’Donnell’s outstanding season punting the ball and the addition of soccer star Eric Hanson joining the squad for his senior year to give the team a legitimate field goal threat, and there is no visible weakness on this team.
Topping the list of successful adjustments this season was the move of junior Dan Avery from tackle to center. The younger brother of last year’s snapper Josh Avery, Dan helped clear up an early fumbling problem for the Scot offense when he switched positions in the seventh game of the season (vs. Deering). That seemed to unleash the attack’s true potential.
“Yea, I felt a little bit of pressure, because coaches expect something when they put somebody in a new position halfway through the season,” Avery said. “But I played center for the jayvee team last year and Josh gave me some pointers, so that helped.”
Defensively, the Scots were well-schooled in multiple offenses, thanks to tough games against Gorham, Portland and Massabesic.
“Playing in the Western Maine Conference helps prepare you,” Cooper said.
Chase Murray and Nick Davis added interceptions in the game and Cartwright and Butler led the way pressuring talented Mt. Blue quarterback Mason Barker. Watts and Spencer Dunzik gave the team terrific cleanup linebackers.
“Mt. Blue, offensively, was as dangerous as any team we’ve played this season, because they have so many offensive weapons,” Cooper said.
But the Cougars scored only twice on championship day, Justin Lowe scoring on a 2-yard run to tie the game 7-7 in the first quarter, then Barker finding Arthur Trask on a 54-yard TD pass with just about a minute left in the game.
The turning point, Cooper said, came at the end of the first half, when the defense held the Cougars on three downs and Murray returned a punt 30 yards to set up O’Donnell’s TD pass to Delcourt.
“I feel great about this,” said O’Donnell. “To win it your junior year is nice, but to win it as a senior is really something special.”
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