PHS Quarterback Dave Beamer drops back for a pass during a home loss against Pemberton High School on Nov. 9, 2013. Beamer also plays Free Safety. (Staff photo by Samantha Sciarrotta).
Princeton High School football players weigh in on how to improve the program
Week in and week out, the players on the Princeton High School football team take the field and week in and week out, they leave it battered and exhausted.
The number of kids in the entire program — only 49 — is a number around which most schools’ varsity sqauds alone hover. Almost every athlete on the team pulls double or even triple duty, playing multiple positions on either side of the ball each game. They get no breaks during possession changes, instead staying on the field and making the switch from offense to defense and back again.
And you’ll never hear one player complain.
“It gives me a great chance to improve on the positions that I need to,” said Tommy Moore, who plays at right guard, defensive end and defensive tackle. “The more time I get to play each position, the better.”
Moore, a junior, is used to the pace after three years in the program, but for the sophomores and even freshmen who often suit up for varsity games—there is no junior varsity team—it can be a harsh introduction to the game. That’s why first-year head coach Charlie Gallagher and his staff, many of whom are also new to the team, tailored the team’s conditioning to focus on endurance.
“With the young cats that are out here, you get more experience,” Moore said. “With the seniors, I guess you just get to have more fun. We do enough running in practice with Coach Gallagher that we aren’t that tired by the end of the game. Most teams are more tired than we are. We do enough running for us to be in good shape. Most of the time, we’re just having fun. My freshman year, we did a lot of running. It slacked off my sophomore year. When [Gallagher] came in, we did a lot more. It definitely helps.”
Rory Helstrom covers a lot of ground as a running back, cornerback, kicker and punt returner — and he does it all as a sophomore. He craves the responsibility, but admits it can get tough for him and his teammates.
“Not coming off the field is pretty hard,” he said. “It’s tough seeing the other teams’ sidelines, how they have so many guys and we only have a couple of subs. We’re suiting up freshmen. For them, it’s scary.”
For many of the freshmen, this is their first exposure to the game. Princeton doesn’t have a Pop Warner program and only recently introduced a youth flag football league, so many prospective players don’t get an opportunity to learn the sport until high school.
Senior Jojo Kuranchie is one of those players, though his lack of football experience was due to something far different than an absentee youth program: he spent a good portion of his childhood in Ghana, where soccer and rugby are mainstays. He joined the football team in his sophomore year as a way to get more active. For most of his initial season with the squad, he was totally lost.
“It was hard,” Kuranchie said. “Oh my God, it was horrible. I had to learn how to tackle. I just had to learn everything about the game from offense to defense to who’s the quarterback. During the offseason, I learned the game and learned the plays and went to the weight room. I got very committed to it.”
He did all of that while becoming proficient on both sides of the ball as an offensive tackle and defensive tackle. Kuranchie came back in 2012 in better physical shape and with a stronger grasp on football, quickly becoming one of the team’s top players and earning a co-captainship this season.
“I was very dedicated to learning this game because I felt as though I had a chance to be better,” he said. “It did take a lot of time, but overall, I have no regrets. The pain, getting injured, you still always have fun when you come back.”
The Little Tigers finished the season winless. Gallagher said they don’t necessarily go into games expecting to win, but they don’t expect to lose, either. Despite setbacks like injuries, the small roster, and the overall record, the team consistently comes out to play—and looks forward to it, just like Kuranchie said.
“If we have a good week of practice, the game will take care of itself,” Gallagher said. “That’s how we have to look at it. We’re not the type of team right now that can come out on a Saturday and play a good game and expect to win. We just can’t do it. We have to have a good week of practice, make sure we cross our T’s and dot our I’s. On Saturday, we’ll let the cards fall where they may.”
The guys are just happy to get out and play. Senior quarterback and middle linebacker Sam Smallzman, who has spent most of the season on the sidelines after tearing his ACL, said Gallagher and senior wide receiver and middle linebacker Liam Helstrom keep the team motivated.
“It’s a great atmosphere,” Smallzman said. “I think Liam does the best job of keeping everyone’s spirits up. He’s always having fun. Coach Gallagher, also. We’ve had a rough season, but he’s really kept spirits up.”
Moore said the small roster actually contributes to the team’s unity and continued commitment to playing each year.
“We all love playing the game,” he said. “With the small amount of people we have, we’re all like brothers. We just love being together, we love playing together and we hope we can do it forever, but we can’t. We just have to make the best out of it now.”
Kuranchie agreed.
“Football is one of the best sports out there,” he said. “I have no regrets even if we go on losing. Those memories of having fun and everything is just what creates the game. That’s what creates the game. It’s not winning or losing. You just have fun.”
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