Other than the double-wing that Boothbay, Gorham and Skowhegan have run with rampant success, you won’t find too many offensive schemes more ancient than the Wing-T employed by Livermore Falls.
You also won’t find too many teams better suited to wield that run-happy attack than the Andies.
“It’s my favorite offense ever,” said senior fullback Ryan Webster. “It’s power football.”
Webster is closing on 1,000 yards and hasn’t missed a beat after moving over from halfback to step in for Brad Bryant, the Andies’ workhorse the last two years.
Karlton Jones and Mark O’Shea play the halfback/wingback roles splendidly for Livermore Falls, whose junior quarterback, Mike Nichols, had been directing the offense with a cast on his throwing hand.
“He does need surgery,” said Livermore Falls coach Brad Bishop, “but he got permission the other day and decided to hold it off until after football season. He’s a tough kid. We have a lot of tough kids and a lot of young kids.”
Livermore Falls absorbed consecutive losses to Lisbon, Foxcroft and Boothbay to start the season.
After routing Winthrop and Madison, however, the Andies appear to control their destiny in the push for a Western Class C playoff berth if they can win out against Dirigo, Old Orchard Beach, Traip and Jay.
“We know we can’t afford to lose even one,” Webster said.
The parity police
More than one-quarter of the state’s 67 varsity teams are either unbeaten or winless headed into this weekend.
Ten schools have not won a game through five weeks. Surprising names on that list are traditional powers South Portland (Class A) and Stearns (Class C), who have fallen on hard times after winning multiple state championships in the 1990s.
Dirigo is 0-5 in its first season as an independent varsity team in 15 years. But take heart, Cougars fans. After tough matchups at Livermore Falls tonight and with Boothbay next weekend, Dirigo finishes up at home with Stearns and on the road in Kittery against Traip, which carries the longest active losing streak in the state at 42 games.
Mt. Blue, one of eight unbeatens, has a bye in Eastern Class A this week.
Really Greely
Like many other Campbell Conference observers, Mountain Valley coach Jim Aylward wondered whether Greely was as good as its record said it was.
Even though his Falcons beat the Rangers, 20-7 last week to remain undefeated, Greely can now count Aylward among its believers. He’s convinced they’re for real.
“I think Greely’s a good club,” Aylward said. “People can say Greely’s only been (in Class B) three years. First of all, I know those kids have been playing football since grade school, and they’ve been playing together at the varsity level for three years.”
Some have wondered whether the Rangers could compete with the Falcons or were just feasting on a weak Campbell Conference schedule that produced wins over Gray-New Gloucester, Lake Region, Poland and Cape Elizabeth.
They answered that question by becoming the first opponent to take a lead on the Falcons when went up 7-6 late in the third quarter before Mountain Valley rallied on two Aaron Arsenault touchdowns.
“We needed that,” Aylward said. “They needed that. Both teams certainly are a lot better right now than they were before the game because neither one of us have really been challenged.” “If we’re fortunate enough to do well the rest of the season and get into the playoffs, we’re going to have to play them again,” he added. “I told the kids, we’re going to have to worry about it, and the key word is worry, in about six weeks because they’re good. I’m very impressed with them.”
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