Resurrection may not be the right word, but it's the first one that comes to mind.
After almost three full seasons of nothing but defeat, the Ipswich High football team rose from the ashes of 31-consecutive losses last Thanksgiving to upend rival Hamilton-Wenham, 14-13, in front of a home crowd at the newly named Jack Welch field.
Head coach Ted Flaherty, who is in his sixth season with the Tigers, hopes his team can feed off of the taste of victory despite losing 17 players to graduation.
"I think when the smoke cleared all these underclassmen had a taste of what winning felt like," said Flaherty. "We had a banquet in January and I could sense they were starting to see it was their turn, this whole idea of resurrection it is pretty exciting. I was impressed with their off-season activity."
Ipswich will once again be featuring the Wing-T offense however with returning senior Brendan Gallagher once again under center the Tigers will look to utilize the option and passing games more often. Jake LeBlanc, a senior who tore his ACL in the Thanksgiving Game last year, will see a lot of carries from the full back position. LeBlanc is a powerful runner who earned the Elliot Roundy Award last year for the team's best player as voted by the opposing teams' coaches.
With a below-average sized offensive line, the Tigers will rely on their athleticism and intelligence in an offense predicated upon pulling and misdirection. Juniors Matt Takis (tackle) and Chris Desmond (center) are the biggest of the bunch while John Elnagger and Peyton Primack will anchor the guard positions and senior Nick Manos gives the Orange and Black a tough, athletic weapon at tight end. Finally senior captain Nils Swenson brings his leadership to the other tackle position.
Defensively the Tigers will work out of the 4-3 and will be small but fast on the defensive line. Juniors Louis Galanis (safety) and Cam Murray (linebacker) will lead the undersized but ferocious Tiger defense that Flaherty believes resembles the 2006 team which boasted seven shutouts and won the Division 3A Superbowl.
"We want to attack some of these spread offenses," said Flaherty. "So we are going to try and be more in attack mode, penetrate and spill, play man and pressure the quarterback. The three words we use are simplicity, aggression and quickness."
Ipswich will be on the road for its opener, with a Friday night game under the brand new lights and turf field at North Reading — one of many schools that has had great success against the Tigers lately.
"They (North Reading) have had our number the last three years, so we are hoping to go in there and play the spoiler," said Flaherty. "I think if we can stay healthy, we will be competitive all season."
TIGER TREMORS
Last year's record: 1-10
Head coach: Ted Flaherty (6th season, 17-38)
Team captain: Nils Swenson, Sr., DE/OT
Top returning rusher: Jake LeBlanc, Sr., FB (212 yards)
Top returning passer: Brendan Gallagher, Sr., (601 yards, 4 TDs)
Top returning receiver: John Eldridge Sr., (injured last season)
Last league title: 2006
Did You Know?: A lot of new faces and potential competition for positions fueled a very productive offseason for many members of the team. This year's group of Tigers should be the fastest and physically athletic team since their Super Bowl squad of 2006.
2010 Schedule
DateOpponentTime
Sept. 10at North Reading7 p.m.
Sept. 16at Marblehead7 p.m.
Sept. 24Newburyport7 p.m.
Oct. 1Triton7 p.m.
Oct. 8Pentucket7 p.m.
Oct. 15at Manch. Essex7 p.m.
Oct. 22Georgetown7 p.m.
Oct. 29Amesbury7 p.m.
Nov. 6at Lynnfield2 p.m.
Nov. 25at Ham-Wen10 a.m.
