After finishing last season winless — a streak that, at the time, dated back to Nov. 2012 — the Princeton High School football team and head coach Charlie Gallagher had a single goal in mind coming into 2014.
“We just wanted to get competitive,” said Gallagher.
Now at 5-1 more than halfway through the season, it’s safe to say the goal was met. The Little Tigers notched wins against Hamilton West (who put a 34-0 “whooping” on Princeton last year, according to Gallagher), Ewing, Hightstown, Lawrence and Steinert, but that first win, Gallagher said, was the sweetest.
“It was a relief,” he said. “That’s the best way to put it. I thought we had a pretty good ball squad, so I thought we could compete with Hamilton, and the kids competed really hard, better than expected. I don’t know if Hamilton was completely ready, but we just came out. It was nice.”
The squad’s best start in recent memory was its four consecutive wins to open the season in 2009. Beyond that, though, Gallagher says it may have been more than 20 years since Princeton’s last 5-0 start. The Little Tigers suffered their first defeat to South Jersey’s Winslow Township on Oct. 17.
With sizeable first-time football player and underclassmen presences on last year’s varsity squad, due mostly to a lack of a JV program, the Hamilton West victory was the first Princeton win some players on the team had experienced. But a number of starters, like senior wide receiver, safety and corner back Ben Danis were around for the last victory back in 2012.
“It’s awesome to feel what it’s like to win again,” he said. “It’s really cool. I’ve been through the preseason where you don’t get results, but now, we’re getting results.”
Students, parents and teachers alike noticed those results. The attitude towards the team on campus has totally changed, said wide receiver and cornerback Jack Cook.
“The students and parents are so excited that we’re finally winning,” he said. “I think there’s a different attitude. I know last year, since we’d lose, it wasn’t too much fun to come and watch the games, but this year, everyone wants to come and it’s great to have that support.”
The varsity experience that younger players earned the last two years, coupled with the grit many team members gained by playing on both sides of the ball, is what players and coaches credit with this year’s turnaround.
“Experience definitely plays a role,” said Sam Smallzman, a senior middle linebacker and running back who has two fumble recoveries for touchdowns this season. “I think we know how to win now. After last season, we know how to fight and stay in games and overcome. When we get down in games, we can tough it out and come back. It’s just about going out and believing we can win the whole game every game.”
Danis agreed, adding that everybody is “on the same page.”
“It’s just a lot of heart,” he said. “That’s what we’ve been calling it. There’s nobody here that a D1 athlete, nobody with a huge size advantage. It’s just a lot of effort.”
It helps that returners like juniors Dave Beamer at quarterback (11 touchdowns and 990 yards) and Rory Helstrom — who’s had a “phenomenal” season, said Gallagher — who has rushed for 625 yards for four touchdowns, gained 354 receiving yards for four touchdowns and returned a punt 90 yards for a touchdown against Hamilton West, have only continued to develop over the last three seasons.
“Dave has a really live arm, and he’s starting to make better decisions, which is great,” Gallagher said. “Every once in awhile, we’re asking him to make big plays, and he’s stepping up.”
Gallagher noted that tight end and defensive end Brian Tien and brothers Tad and Tommy Moore are other key experienced Little Tigers, citing Tad’s recovery of a fumbled punt in the fourth quarter versus Steinert that “sealed the win.”
Some first-timers, though, are contributing like vets. Cook, a senior with a Pop Warner background, tried out for the first time this year at the urging of Smallzman and defensive end Colin Buckley and is having a banner year, said Gallagher.
And Joe Hawes, whose first-ever football game was this season’s opener, is making a dent on offense, defense and special teams, racking up three receiving touchdowns and one interception, as well as serving as a punter.
“He really doesn’t come off the field,” said Gallagher of Hawes. “He’s a great student-athlete, and we were just happy to get him. He’s acclimated really well to the football atmosphere, and he gets along really well with his teammates. Obviously, he’s a playmaker, so we’re happy about that.”
Danis shared a similar sentiment, saying that the newcomers have been a positive addition to the team.
“I’ve known Jack since kindergarten, so that’s really cool,” he said. “We’ve had Joe come in, who’s played like every sport at the school, and he’s really making a difference.”
As for the rest of the season, more wins and a playoff berth are on the agenda. But, perhaps most importantly, Gallagher just wants to stay true to the team’s original goal.
“I’m not going to get away from the first thought, which was that we want to be competitive and win games,” he said. “After the next game, we’ll look at the one after that. I know it’s terribly cliche, but it’s the truth. The next game is what we’re worried about now.”
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