Andy Edwards makes a catch while Sean Houck pursues him during a practice on Aug. 16, 2013. (Staff photo by Samantha Sciarrotta.)
Nottingham High School’s football teams looks to repeat last year’s championship.
For the first time in high school football history, a team from Hamilton Township has opened training camp as a reigning state champion.
And it’s certainly a little different for Nottingham, in good ways and bad, after going 11-1 and winning the Central Jersey Group III crown last year.
“We already know that everybody we play will give us their ‘A’ game,” senior quarterback Stephen Adams said. “We’ve heard it from everybody. They want us bad, so for sure the bullseye is on our back.”
“Everybody has their eye on us,” agreed defensive back/running back Josh Lajuenesse. “We don’t really pay too much attention to that, we just stick to our game and we’ll see what happens along the way.”
And while success has its price, it also breeds an even higher degree of confidence and hunger.
“We have quite a few guys that can play this game at a very, very high level,” coach Jon Adams said on Aug. 12, the first day of training camp. “They’ve got to understand that they can’t sit on their laurels or pat themselves on the back after what they accomplished last year.
“A lot of the seniors have been echoing all day today about not even talking about what we did last year. They’ve gotta focus on what they want to achieve, what their legacy is. Last year was the legacy of the senior class, the Class of 2012. They want their own legacy of the Class of 2013, which is exactly what I want to hear.”
Indeed, last year will always be looked upon as something special as Nottingham — the youngest school in Hamilton Township – became the first to win a football championship. The Northstars did the unthinkable, defeating three straight Shore Conference teams, including the defending champ Neptune in the title game on a memorable December day at The College of New Jersey.
It sparked a whirlwind of excitement that lasted through the off-season, including proclamations from Mayor Kelly Yaede (a Nottingham graduate), a plaque in the team’s honor mounted in Veterans Park, countless awards for Adams and the players and the chance to march in the St. Patrick’s Day Parade.
And while that might puff up some kids’ egos to the point where they might get complacent coming back, Lajuenesse said it’s just the opposite. Which is important, since 32 seniors return to a program that had roughly 160 players come out in the four classes.
“Honestly, we came in with more competition, we came with more hunger,” said Lajuenesse, who could see some time at quarterback this year. “During the summer everybody was competing for a spot, everybody still is. The young guys are working harder, even us veterans. I feel like it was a great experience for us to go to the championship and come back this summer. Everybody looks in synch.”
“I guess we just feel a little more experienced, I know I definitely do,” said Stephen Adams, who split time at quarterback last year with graduated Luke Westerberg. “Taking in all that playoff experience, even just getting the snaps I did in the state championship I just feel like a better, more complete quarterback this year.”
Stephen Adams will be in charge of running the Northstars newly installed pistol offense, which new offensive coordinator Dom Cuniglio, a Steinert High Hall of Famer, brought with him after two successful seasons running it at Union High. Cuniglio and Jon Adams, who has a clean bill of health after fighting a cancer scare at this time last year, have a long history together.
In the pistol, the quarterback isn’t under center but is closer to the line of scrimmage than in the shotgun, and has a running back directly behind him.
“He’s very knowledgeable,” Jon Adams said. “Dom and I have always been close, it was a no-brainer for me to bring him on board. He’s our fifth assistant coach who was a head coach, so it just makes the staff better, takes a lot of pressure off of me. I don’t have to call any plays anymore. I can manage the game, manage the team.
“But as far as the offense, we have so many weapons and so many kids and so much talent, we had to take a step forward. We had to spread the field, and let our athletes be great athletes, and try to get them the ball.”
And there are tons of great athletes. Jameel Bailey and Bryan Butchon highlight a talented receiving core, Wroway Williams, Lajuenesse and Alexis Santiago are all dangerous runners, and Chuck Parker anchors a solid offensive line.
“We’ve got 32 seniors this year,” Stephen Adams said. “We’re very experienced all around, that’s just gonna helps us down the line. We have a lot of depth working for us all the way through.”
Defensively, Nottingham is coming off a mind-numbing statistical season in which set school records with six shutouts, 93 tackles for losses and 73 sacks under defensive coordinator Frank Gatto.
“They could even be county records, we don’t know,” Jon Adams said. “Those stats just blew my mind.”
“To me, the most impressive stat was the tackles for losses,” Gatto said. “That’s just amazing.”
Nottingham lost some talent from that crew but still has some formidable players returning, including linebacker Ryan Malagrino, defensive backs Saquan Hampton, Tevin Williams, Santiago and Lajuenesse, and linemen Mario Boswell, Clayton Sary and Kevin Meneus.
When suggested it might be tough to get another six shutouts, Lajuenesse disagreed.
“Don’t speak too soon, it just might happen again,” he said. “That’s not cocky, just confidence. We’re trying to even be better than that. We’re trying to go perfect. We’re trying not to lose a game. We’re just striving to have another great season and another ring.”
Technically, however, the Northstars do not enter the season as defending champion, since they got moved up to Group IV in mid-summer.
Asked about the move, Lajuenesse just smiled.
“What about it?” he asked. “It’s just another group of kids. It’s just another group of teams to get past to get what we really want.”
“It’s just a better challenge, better competition,” Stephen Adams said. “The whole team is ready for it and we want better competition. We want to prove we’re a good team, and we’re one of the best in the state.”
They already proved it once, and are itching for an encore.
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