GLOUCESTER — You hear it all the time: skill players such as quarterbacks and running backs earn the headlines, but it's the players on the line that win football games.
That was certainly apparent yesterday morning at Newell Stadium, where unbeaten Gloucester controlled the line of scrimmage thoroughly on both sides of the ball in hammering Danvers, 35-7, in their annual Thanksgiving Day battle.
"They beat us up front, without a doubt," said Danvers head coach John Sullivan. "Their line just won the game in the trenches. Even if we hung in there, that was going to be the telltale sign of the game, no matter what."
Adroitly running their Wing-T offense to near perfection, the Fishermen opened big holes for their backs to run through and gave quarterback Brett Cahill plenty of time to find open receivers when it was time to pass.
"We came out of the locker room at halftime looking to respond to what happened in the first half, but in reverse, it was they who responded," Sullivan said of the Fishermen.
"You have to concentrate and prepare so much of your game for their running attack that they're able to throw the ball when you don't expect it. And up front, it's not that they're that much bigger or more athletic than our guys — it's that their guys played much better than we did."
The Falcons' lone score came on a 90-yard run in the third quarter from John McInnis, who finished with 103 yards on the day. He along with senior tackle Jeff Turner were singled out for their strong performances by Sullivan.
Danvers, which finished with its first winning season since capturing the Northeastern Conference Small crown in 2005 with an 8-3 mark, has not won on Thanksgiving at Newell Stadium since 1993, a span of eight games.
Playoff bound Gloucester (11-0), the NEC Large champions, dominated defensively. Its starters held the Falcons starters to just 34 yards of offense, allowed two first downs (one on a penalty), and did not allow the visitors to cross teir own 44-yard line.
With his team now set to face Westford Academy in the state Division 1A playoffs Tuesday, Gloucester head coach Paul Ingram took time to praise the Falcons for their much improved play this fall.
"They come to play and they have a lot of pride," noted Ingram. "Coach Sullivan has done a great job bringing their program back. They had a very good season and they gave us a little trouble up front early."
Danvers stacked the box hoping to shut down Gloucester's running game and it worked on the opening drive of the game as Gloucester was forced to punt. But they turned the ball over on a fumble deep in their own end, and the Fishermen capitalized as Cahill hit Gilbert Brown with a 10-yard touchdown pass.
A 1-yard TD plunge from Jordan Shairs and a 55-yard Cahill (5-for-7, 107 yards) to Brown pass made it 20-0 for the hosts at intermission. Conor Ressel (110 yards) added a 4-yard score in the third quarter and junior fullback Marc Giacalone took it in from two yards out.
"No doubt about it: Ressel is the real deal. He broke so many tackles against us that it wasn't even funny," said Sullivan.
Gloucester 35, Danvers 7
at Newell Stadium, Gloucester
Danvers0070—7
Gloucester713 15 0—35
G- Gilbert Brown 5 pass from Brett Cahill (Sal Favaloro kick)
G- Jordan Shairs 1 run (Favaloro kick)
G- Brown 55 pass from Cahill (kick failed)
G- Conor Ressel 4 run (Brandon Cusumano run)
G- Marc Giacalone 2 run (Favaloro kick)
D- John McInnis 90 run run (Greg Ladd kick)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING: Danvers — John McInnis 7-103, Nick Valles 2-27, Clinton Lutz 8-17, Kevin Davis 5-15, Harrison Gillis 3-11, Paul Nicolo 1-6, Greg Ladd 1-0, Alex Moore 1-(-4); Gloucester — Conor Ressel 10-110, Ali D'Angelo 4-50, Ben Chianciola 8-41, Marc Giacalone 5-10, Brandon Cusumano 1-4, Santo Parisi 1-2, Mark Horgan 1-2, Jordan Shairs 1-1, Brett Cahill 1-0, Zachary Smith 1-(-4).
PASSING: Danvers — Greg Ladd 4-11-9-0-1, Paul Nicolo 1-1-7-0-0 ; Gloucester — Brett Cahill 5-7-107-2-0.
RECEIVING: Danvers — Dan Skinner 1-9, Harrison Gillis 1-7, Clinton Lutz 1-3, John McInnis 2-(-3); Gloucester — Gilbert Brown 4-89, Conor Ressel 1-18.
