By Liam O’Brien
Managing Editor of Sports
Many high school football players, coaches, and supporters would describe the pinnacle of high school football as playing under the lights on a Friday night in front of your home crowd, looking to defend your undefeated record against a formidable in-conference foe boasting their own unblemished mark.
This is exactly the situation the members of the Newton South football team finds themselves in heading into what could possibly be the most anticipated matchup in school history. The 5-0 Lions prepare to play host to the 4-0 Grey Ghosts in their annual “Friday Night Lights” matchup in front of what is expected to be a raucous crowd at Winkler Field on Friday at 7:00 p.m.
South enters the contest riding a tremendous wave of momentum after eking out a nail-biter of a 34-30 victory at Acton-Boxborough last Friday night. After recovering from an early 20-7 deficit, the Lions took the lead with 2:51 remaining on a touchdown strike from junior quarterback Austin Burton to senior captain Anthony DeNitto.
The Colonials promptly drove down the field and positioned themselves on the NS one-yard line with just 11 seconds left in the ballgame. The suffocating goal line defense of the Lions, though, halted Acton-Boxborough at the mouth of the end zone on two consecutive plays to clinch a whirlwind of a victory.
Burton accounted for four passing touchdowns and one rushing touchdown on the night, while DeNitto hauled in three touchdown passes. If South wishes to win against the Grey Ghosts on Friday night, both must play magnanimous roles in the Lions’ offensive attack.
Burton currently leads all MIAA Division 2 quarterbacks with 17 passing touchdowns on the season, so look for him to take advantage of his full arsenal of receiving weapons, including DeNitto, senior captain Frankie Barros, and junior tight end Sasha Hoban.
The Lions’ offense will be up against its most challenging test of the season to date, with Westford’s defense allowing an average of just 12.5 points per game. The turnover differential and time of possession battle will be crucial.
If South does prevent any unforced errors from occurring, while utilizing the arm of Burton and the legs of senior captain Jamyre Soberanis to control the tempo of the game, an increased amount of pressure will be placed on the Grey Ghosts’ offense to produce, allowing the Lions’ defense opportunities to create turnovers of their own.
While Westford’s junior starting quarterback Connor Degenhardt has proven his worth as a field general, guiding the Grey Ghosts 80 yards in 10 plays for a victory-sealing touchdown drive in the closing minutes of the team’s 21-10 win over Waltham last weekend, he can make questionable decisions at times, exemplified by the pair of interceptions he threw against Waltham.
If the Lions allow Westford to retain control of the ball for the majority of the game while using bruising running back Ben Cassidy (119 yards against Waltham) to churn up yards, expect South to be subjected to a long game in between the trenches.
In a matchup of undefeated DCL rivals, the DCL championship and an undefeated regular season could be on the line.
