The defending league champion, undefeated and riding high after steamrolling through the non league portion of their schedule, easily defeats a weaker league opponent away from home. Feeling good about themselves, this favorite to win the championship heads out on the road for a second consecutive road league game. Their opponent, though sporting a pedestrian 3-4 record after a tough non-league schedule, remains a dangerous foe and still one of the top contenders for the title.
So what happens?
Sound familiar?
It should.
The 2010 Pioneers were that undefeated, league favorite and the above is exactly what played out last year in Newburyport. The Pioneers were 7-0, coming off an impressive 30-13 come-from-behind win over Amesbury at Landry Field when they traveled north to Newburyport. The Clippers had played a tough CAL Large-heavy non league schedule and came into the game under .500, but still regarded as a major roadblock to the Pioneers' repeating as champs.
The Clippers played an inspired game, dominated the Pioneers on both sides of the ball and scored a decisive 24-7 win. The Pioneers rebounded the next week with a 41-0 rout of Ipswich then lost 16-15 on a last second field goal in Hamilton that clinched the title for the Generals.
Though painful, ultimately that loss to H-W didn't cost Lynnfield the title. The Clippers won the rest of their games and would have beaten out the Pioneers anyway thanks to that head to head win. However, Newburyport lost their matchup with H-W earlier in the year and that gave the crown to the Generals.
So fast forward to this week's game at the Middle School Field.
This year it's Hamilton-Wenham who is rolling into town undefeated off a big league victory, 35-6 over Manchester Essex. Attempting to play the role of Newburyport is your Lynnfield Pioneers.
After playing a fortified non-league schedule and struggling past a revved up Ipswich team 13-6, the Pioneers come in to the game 4-3. But they are still one of the key contenders the Generals have to beat to retain their crown.
The parallel to last season goes even further.
Before the Newburyport game last year, there was plenty of hoopla surrounding the undefeated Pioneers. Fox News selected the game for its High School Friday feature and the Pioneers were the focus of the hype. The pregame circus included interviews with Fox personalities.
This year, Hamilton Wenham is getting all the ink. They were profiled in this feature in Thursday's Globe North and this article in the Salem Evening News.
The Evening News site includes two video podcasts, one featuring sportswriter Matt Jenkins interviewing the three General captains and another in which Jenkins and fellow News sportswriter Dan Harrison preview Saturday's game. Interestingly enough, Jenkins and Harrison spend nearly 10 minutes lauding the Generals, mentioning a half dozen Hamilton Wenham players by name. Guess how many Pioneers they mention. Can you say none?
Talk about flying under the radar.
Danny Ventura of the Boston Herald is also picking the Generals to win in his Thursday Pickorama.
The Generals have obviously earned the plaudits being laid at their cleats.
They are one of only 14 undefeated teams in eastern mass and have now won 11 straight regular season games. They have dominated, particularly on the defensive side of the ball where they have allowed only 29 points in six games, and 13 of those came against the Generals' second team.
Offensively, the Generals present enormous problems.
Quarterback Trevor Lyons is settling in after being converted from tailback last year. He has run for almost 700 yards, over 400 in the past two weeks, and 50 points. Running back Elliot Burr has just over 600 yards rushing and 44 points. He gets most of his pounding on the inside and if you try to shut that down, Lyons will kill you on the edge.
Making them even more difficult to stop is that they are operating behind one of the best offensive lines in the area. Seniors Taylor Drinkwater (6'4 220), Shane Jenkins (6'2 225), Kevin Anthony (6'0 190) and Matt Forninger (6'1 205) and junior Matt Vogus (6'3 220) have been devastating.
"We have three or four wide open holes every time," Elliot Burr told Jenkins in the podcast interview. "We don't have to worry about getting tackled until you get to the second tier so it makes it really easy."
"They're good," said Pioneer head coach Neal Weidman. "Right now they're head and shoulders above everybody in our league. They are definitely the team to beat."
The Pioneers have been playing a series of wing T variation offenses which feature tricky inside handoffs, misdirection and sleight of hand. There is no such problem figuring out what the Generals are going to do. They are about as subtle as a sledgehammer. But there is a big difference in knowing what's coming and then being able to stop it.
"What they do, they do really well and you have to stop it," Weidman said. "That's what it comes down to."
They have blown out Bishop Fenwick, Pentucket and Manchester Essex, but they barely got by Amesbury 7-0 and Triton 6-0. They overcame Newburyport 18-6 in a hard fought game.
"They know us and they always do a good job defending us," Weidman said. "They are a physical, tough team and it's always a grind and a battle."
So can the Pioneers fight pull a "Clipper" and halt the General express train?
It won't be easy, but this is high school football, so anything is possible.
Here are my keys to the Pioneers' springing the upset.
1. Fast Start. The Pioneers have struggled out of the gate allowing both Pentucket and Ipswich to score first the past two weeks. They were able to come back and win, but falling behind to a juggernaut like Hamilton-Wenham would be fatal. On the reverse side, if the Pioneers can score first, it would be the first time all year the Generals will have trailed in a game. It's a lot different "grounding and pounding" when you are behind, than when you are ahead.
2. Neutralize the H-W Offensive line. The Pioneers were able to comeback and beat Pentucket by dominating the line of scrimmage. Tri-captain Jonathan Roberto, Andrew Kibarian, D.J. DeGeorge and Zack Panzini will have to do that Saturday against the best offensive line they will probably see all year. If the General O line allows Burr to get to the Pioneers' young linebackers or lets Lyons get to the edge, the home team will be in for a long day.
3. No mistakes. Frankly, the Pioneers are going to have to virtually play a perfect game. Turnovers and penalties will be deadly. H-W is too good. The Pioneers can't help them.
4. Force Lyons to pass. If the Generals are allowed to run roughshod and pick up over 300 yards on the ground as they have the past two weeks, the Pioneers are doomed. Lynnfield has to find a way to contain Burr and Lyons (way easier said than done) and force Lyons to go to the air. He is still learning the position and has a nice target in Matt Putur, but the Pioneers' chances go up exponentially with ball coming out of Lyons' hands rather than it being under his arm.
5. Move the ball. The Pioneers are going to have to find a way to move the ball and score against a stout General defense. It will be tough to run against them, but quarterback Mike Karavetsos is going to have to be quick and accurate and receivers Alex Pascucci, Steve Yobaccio, Nico Varano, Dan Ashwell and A. J. Gallo are going to have to find space in the General secondary and make some yards after catches.
6. Convert opportunities. When the Pioneers get into the redzone either by driving or via turnovers, they have to convert. They may not get many of them so they have to cash in when they can.
7. Want it more than H-W. When you look back at Newburyport's win over the Pioneers last year, one thing was obvious - the Clippers wanted it more. The Pioneers have to bring that same level of enthusiasm and desire, a level that they haven't shown yet this year but will need this week.
One last note. Tom Waisnor, the Voice of the Pioneers, is urging Pioneer fans to get to the field early and pack the stands, particularly in front of the press box to support the home team.
Finally, this is obviously a huge game for the Pioneers. I'm sure coach Weidman is preparing his pregame pep talk, so I will live him with this famous pregame speech as inspiration. Just substitute "football" for "hockey."
Game time at the Middle School field is 11 am. Let the fun begin.
Check back Saturday afternoon for my post game post.
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