Perfection is one of the hardest things to attain in high school football.
There were more than 250 schools which fielded football programs this past season and only three of them left Gillette Stadium able to make that claim.
For all the complaining that the current playoff format hurts the Central Mass. schools, two of three schools who ran the table were CMass entries Uxbridge and West Boylston. Uxbridge capped off a perfect season with a 42-16 win over Amesbury, while West Boylston rolled past Carver, 41-7.
King Philip has been knocking on the door of a Div, 2 state title the last two years, but this year the Warriors kicked it in. They posted a perfect 13-0 record, including an impressive 42-14 win over Marshfield.
King Philip was one of two Hockomock League teams to win state titles. Foxboro made the most of its five-mile sojourn to the home of the Patriots, defeating Hanover 48-21 to win the Div. 5 state title. It ended a great season for longtime Warriors coach Jack Martinelli, who joined the exclusive 300-win club earlier in the year.
Justin Marques put Fairhaven on his back for 12 weeks, so why stop when his team needed him most? The indefatigable junior broke a championship game record with 46 carries for 228 yards and four touchdowns in a 26-22 win over Salem in the Div. 6 championship contest.
Two schools achieved a bit of revenge in different forms.
Having lost to Walpole by 19 points during the season, Milton coach Steve Dembowski said in the days leading up to the game his team would be more prepared to handle the Timberwolves’ vaunted passing game. The Wildcats lived up to their coach’s words, doubling up on Walpole 42-21 to snare the school’s first-ever Div. 3 state championship.
In the Div. 4 final, Duxbury was able to avenge a loss to Scituate two years earlier by turning in a record-setting performance by scoring 62 points in a 62-33 win.
Last but not least, Xaverian stamped its claim as the No. 1 team in the state by defeating St. John’s Prep for the second time in six days, 31-25. The win capped off a month-long run which saw the Hawks defeat Springfield Central, Needham and St. John’s Prep.
SIX MOST MEMORABLE POSTSEASON CONTESTS
Marshfield 52, Catholic Memorial 40: Catholic Memorial’s expected run toward a third straight Div. 2 state title was stopped by a high-powered Rams offense.
Xaverian 31, St. John’s Prep 25: The Hawks defeat their longtime Catholic Conference rivals for the second time in six days to claim the Div. 1 state title.
Walpole 39, Mansfield 31: A see-saw affair which saw the Timberwolves rally from 11-point deficit to win when Jamal Abdal Khallaq caught a game-winning touchdown pass from Noah Mackenzie in the final seconds.
Billerica 29, Plymouth South 27 (ot): A No. 2 vs. No. 15 playoff matchup usually results in a cakewalk, but the Indians were pushed to the hilt by the Panthers before prevailing.
Hanover 27, Danvers 24: A highly entertaining Div. 5 semifinal contest in which the Hawks needed a late 34-yard touchdown pass from Ben Scalzi to Mekhi Bryan to stave off the Falcons.
Fairhaven 40, Hudson 37: A wild offensive shootout featuring two of the better underclassmen in Justin Marques and Jake Attaway.
WEEKLY BEST PERFORMANCES
WEEK 1: Sam Pantera caught 12 passes for 209 yards as Hopkinton edged Wayland, 20-19.
WEEK 2: Nick Tiani rushed for 259 yards and three touchdowns as Hull rolled to a 40-11 win over Holbrook/Avon.
WEEK 3: Kayden Mills ran for 295 yards and four touchdowns, while adding a TD reception and pass as Arlington defeated Brookline, 52-21.
WEEK 4: Otto Indelicato rushed for 260 yards and five touchdowns as North Reading defeated Hamilton-Wenham 48-20 for its first win.
WEEK 5: Tyler Lennox threw for 389 yards and three touchdowns, while rushing for two more as Carver edged Cohasset in overtime, 42-36.
WEEK 6: In a wild 48-44 loss to Salem, Lynn Classical’s Brian Vaughan threw for 409 yards and five touchdowns, three going to RJ Faessler, who finished with 227 receiving yards.
WEEK 7: Eric Power turned in a workhorse effort, rushing for 302 yards and three touchdowns on 42 carries as Boston Latin defeated Weston, 28-21.
WEEK 8: A.J. Pinet rushed for 315 yards and six touchdowns as Dedham defeated Millis, 43-14.
WEEK 9: Ben Scalzi threw for 323 yards and six touchdowns in the first half as Hanover defeated Gloucester 42-16 in a Div. 5 playoff contest.
WEEK 10: Hugo Djeumeni rushed for 427 yards and seven touchdowns as Tabor rolled past Brooks, 53-20.
WEEK 11: Bo MacCormack had a lifetime performance, rushing for 430 yards and eight touchdowns as BB&N defeated Tabor 63-43 to win the John Papas Bowl.
WEEK 12: Aviren Chitpaseuth rushed for 276 yards and three touchdowns on 17 carries as Greater Lowell defeated Lowell Catholic, 42-6.
WEEK 13: Alex Barlow turned in a record-setting performance, rushing for 275 yards and five touchdowns as Duxbury won the Div. 4 state title with a 62-33 win over Scituate.
WEEK 13: Justin Marques set a championship game record with 46 carries for 228 yards and four touchdowns as Fairhaven defeated Salem 26-22 to claim the Div. 6 crown.
NAMES TO KEEP AN EYE ON NEXT YEAR
Ben Angelini, RB, Foxboro
Jayden Barber, QB, Dennis-Yarmouth
Brady Bekkenhius, OL, Arlington
Will Bostrom, RB, Norwell
Vincent Busa, LB/DB, Xaverian
Nick Cappuccio, RB, Winthrop
Hugo Djeumeni, RB, Tabor
Mekhi Dodd, RB, Catholic Memorial
Max Dresens, RB, Wayland
Shane Eason, RB, Methuen
Lawson Foley, WR, Scituate
Dom Funke, DE, St. Sebastian’s
Blake Hebert, QB, Central Catholic
Alex Jackson, OT, Peabody
Brody Joly, RB, Apponequet
Trevor Jones, QB, Duxbury
Peyton Kellett, WR, Dennis-Yarmouth
Andrew Laplante, RB, King Philip
Bo MacCormack, RB, BB&N
Justin Marques, RB, Fairhaven
Qur’an McNeil, QB, Milton Academy
Dan Moore, OT, Billerica
A.J. Pinet, RB. Dedham
Quinn Rocco Ryan, WR, Salem
Tommy Rupley, DT, Belmont Hill
Chevy Shakespeare, WR/RB, Barnstable
Sidney Tildsley, QB, Shawsheen
Davin True, RB, Marshfield
Christopher Vargas, QB, St. John’s Prep
Hardy Watts, OT, Dexter Southfield
Michael Wildfire, QB, Cohasset
