Two paths to perfect starts
When Carver quarterback Tyler Lennox takes a snap, opposing defenses are left guessing where the ball is going.
The Crusaders have been explosive and balanced throughout their 4-0 start. Carver is averaging 48.5 points per game and has yet to punt. Five different players have scored touchdowns in each of their wins, and 13 players logged a catch or carry in a 50-12 win over Martha’s Vineyard Friday night.
Second-year coach Ben Shuffain ,a math teacher at Carver Middle-High School, feels his skill position players can match up against any team in the state, and they proved it this past summer with a stellar record in 7-on-7 tournaments against MIAA Division 1 and NEPSAC schools.
“These guys have been running the offense for a while now and they’ve got it down,” said Shuffain, who coached two seasons at Oliver Ames and spent one year as an assistant at Stonehill College. “We have a couple of secondary receivers who would be starters on most teams. It’s a problem, but it’s a nice problem to have.”
At the controls is Lennox, a senior and the school’s career passing leader with 4,561 yards and 53 touchdowns. The 6-foot, 165pounder is targeting a list of receivers that are all at least 6-feet tall.
Robbie Peterson, Derek Lopes, Jackson Helms, Patrick Attaya, and JJ Grimes all have at least 100 receiving yards, with Attaya and Helms combining for 300 rushing yards. Jack Balzarini and Tegan Zakrzewski are standouts for a defense that has allowed 4.5 points per game.
After a 3-8 finish in 2022, Carver is surging into league play against four South Shore Tobin teams (Mashpee, Hull, Cohasset, Randolph) that have all won Super Bowls over the past decade.
“Our first goal was to go 4-0 in September and we’re off on the right foot,” said Shuffain. “It does get tougher, but I think we have the ability to be the best team in this league. We just have to prove it every week.”
Meanwhile, Needham (4-0) has gotten defensive during its start.
The Rockets have pulled out close wins over Natick (14-6), Lincoln-Sudbury (14-13), and Walpole (21-19) with a quartet of elite linebackers spearheading a complex 3-4 scheme under new defensive coordinator Tony DiCicco.
Senior captain Jake Reiser is the anchor at middle linebacker, Andrew Spezzano is a second-year starter in the middle, and junior Aidan Williams is an athletic linebacker with an offer from UMass. Playing the “Monster” linebacker is Ben Schreiber, where the senior can line up at end, tackle, or outside linebacker on a given down.
“It’s a group I’m privileged to coach,” said Needham coach Doug Kopsco
(’99), a former standout Rockets linebacker. “It’s one of the most talented groups we’ve had at Needham, and we’ve seen some really good groups.”
Playing without Reiser on Friday, the Rockets lost quarterback Josh Morant on their second offensive play.
They rallied from an early 13-0 deficit to beat Walpole, with senior tailback Tate Hoffmeister (37 carries, 228 yards, 2
TD) running behind 6foot-4, 295-pound left tackle Charlie Simeone and others.
Hoffmeister has rushed for 430 yards over the last two weeks, following in the footsteps of his dad, Greg (’88), who played at Dartmouth after graduating as Needham’s alltime scoring leader, and is now an assistant on Kopsco’s staff.
“This year, nobody has panicked,” said Kopsco. “We know who we are, and we know how to play together.”
Extra points
R Cape Cod Tech senior quarterback Aidan Choukri made sure a historic night ended with a positive outcome. Playing in the school’s new athletic stadium for the first time, Choukri rushed for three touchdowns to help guide the Crusaders (2-1) to a 28-0 victory over Mayflower rival Atlantis Charter on Friday in Harwich. The game marked Cape Tech’s first home night game in the school’s 48-year history.
R Woburn senior Bryan Ferreira ran for 185 yards in a 30-14 win over Reading, breaking the program’s career mark which had stood since 2005 . . . Plymouth South senior Casious Johnson topped 4,400 career rushing yards in a 42-7 loss to Hanover, becoming the leader for any program in Plymouth . . . Fairhaven senior Justin Marques became its TD leader with his 42nd in a 46-10 win over Bourne.