Jean DePlacido
The injury couldn't have come at a worse time for St. John's Prep football player Danny Vaczy, who broke his foot on the first day of football camp in Maine last August.
The 6-foot-3, 255-pound lineman had been counted on to anchor the Eagles' line last fall, but wound up missing most of his senior season. Finally, he returned late in the regular season and wound up starting both ways on Thanksgiving morning vs. Xaverian, playing offensive guard and nose tackle.
Not only was it extremely frustrating to spend so much time on the sidelines, but Vaczy figured it would kill his chances to play at the college level.
That didn't happen, though. The Peabody native will spend the next four years on the gridiron for Williams College, following in St. John's Prep tradition.
Former Prep teammates Trevor Powers, who will captain the 2008 Ephs squad, and freshman Tim Kiely are already fixtures in the Williams lineup.
"I went for my visit last month, and it was the first time I had seen the school," said Vaczy. "I saw Kiely, but didn't get to spend time with him because he had a wrestling match. Powers was one of the kids chosen to give a speech to the recruits.
"I honestly didn't think college teams would be interested in me because I didn't play at all until the last three games, and really only a lot against Xaverian. Coach (Jim) O'Leary called in five or six of us interested in playing college ball, and right after that I started getting calls. I owe a lot to him for taking time to tell schools about me."
Once the process of looking at schools began, Vaczy was able to narrow his choices down to Georgetown, Wesleyan and Williams. He had originally thought about Boston College, but didn't think he could play there.
As soon as he made his official visit to Wesleyan, though, things started happening quickly for him. Williams head coach Mike Whalen offered him a chance to attend school there that very weekend.
"I gave Coach Whalen my word, and we had to make sure my application went through without any problems," said Vaczy. "He told me I'll play on the defensive line and should contribute right away. He told me Kiely got a lot more time than freshmen usually do."
Naturally, Vaczy had been looking forward to his senior year of football at St. John's before his injury. He was forced to use crutches for a month, then strengthened his leg by using an exercise bike and leg extensions beore going to a protective boot. He did physical therapy three times a week and stretched on his own as well.
"I tried to motivate everybody, but it was hard being on the sidelines," he admitted. "I was really looking forward to our first game against Peabody, too, going up against all my friends. I had never really been hurt before."
Vaczy, who has a 4.13 grade point average, intends to major in business or law. He played rugby at the Prep, but will throw the discus in spring track this year.
"I'm just glad that everything has worked out so well," he said.
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The Peabody High 1977-78 Greater Boston League championship basketball team that went 22-2 will be honored Friday, Feb. 15 prior to that night's Tanner home game vs. Revere.
That '78 squad went 16-0 in league play (including beating Somerville on its home court). Their only two blemishes were a loss to St. John's Prep in the regular season, and another to Lincoln-Sudbury in the Division 1 North final.
Head coach Rick Weitzman and assistant Chuck Lalikos will be on hand for the ceremony, which athletic director Phil Sheridan is organizing with the help of George Goulos. Players from that team will meet at 6 p.m. at the high school for a social hour with coffee and pastry.
Members of that team include Ken Kocher, Andy Andricopoulos, Bruce Toby, Larry Kravetz, Tim Leary, Kyle Leavitt, Kevin Murphy, Brian Murphy, Billy Ventola, Paul Kilimonis, Nick Smyrnios, Joe Carangelo, Rich Gatti, Jim McMahon, Eddie Surman and Frank Walker.
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The Catholic Conference and Greater Boston League are mulling over the idea of crossover football games. In fact, talk had been to get the two small leagues together in all sports — but nothing has been finalized yet.
"We (Catholic Conference athletics director) proposed it to them and were going to meet to talk about a proposal for a crossover schedule, but were told not to come this time," said Prep AD Jim O'Leary. "We play Everett (in football) now and other teams in our conference play Somerville and Cambridge, so it seems like a perfect fit. We could put something together for all sports.
"I've talked to John DiBiaso (the Everett AD and head football coach), and he is now going through what we've had for years — trying to find (football) opponents without having to travel a long way."
Since Revere and Peabody left the GBL in the last few years and with Arlington and Waltham about to depart, the league has shrunk considerably. There has also been talk about Malden and Medford going to the Merrimack Valley or Middlesex League.
Jean DePlacido is a part-time writer and columnist for The Salem News. Contact her at jmdeplacido@aol.com.
