RUMFORD – He’s the centerpiece of the most prolific passing attack in his team’s history, but Mountain Valley quarterback Andy Shorey still knows where he is

“I still think we’re a little bit of a smashmouth team. I think we’ve caught some teams off-guard with some big plays,” he said.

“You’ve got to run the ball to win games,” he added.

That’s been the formula for offensive success at Mountain Valley for its entire 18-year history, and the Falcons still rely on a potent running game. But this year, with Shorey at the controls for his second season, they have gone to the air more than ever and have developed a big-play passing offense.

With some help from backup Matt Lyons in mop-up duty, the Falcons have scored 20 touchdowns through the air this year, including four in last week’s Campbell Conference championship against Cape Elizabeth. In previous years, they’d sometimes barely complete 20 passes in a season, let alone half that many touchdowns.

“I’ve never had an offense that can make big plays like this one,” Falcons coach Jim Aylward said.

The big plays have almost become routine this year, especially in the last three weeks. In the regular-season finale with Cape Elizabeth, Shorey hooked up with Justin Staires on a 73-yard TD pass. The following week, he completed another 73-yard scoring bomb, this one to Steve Lizotte in the quarterfinal win over Greely. Then in last week’s rematch with Cape, Shorey and Staires teamed-up again for an 87-yard TD pass on the second play of the game.

The emergence of Staires, a sophomore, has stretched the field and given Shorey a go-to guy in third-and-long situations. It’s no surprise that the two developed a rapport pretty quickly.

“The first exhibition game against Gardiner, we didn’t throw the ball very well. It just seemed like after that game, we just clicked,” Staires said. “We knew everything that was going to happen. We knew exactly where things were going to be and the routes that were going to be open.”

“A lot of the time, it’s get him the ball and he’ll do the rest,” Shorey said. “Just get it in his hands.”

Devin Roberts, Matt Laubauskas, D.J. Gerrish, Zach Bradley, Owen Jones and Dean McCrillis have also made contributions to the passing game. Shorey completed his first five passes in last week’s game to five different receivers.

“That’s something good to have – a lot of talent to throw to,” he said.

“I’ve got a lot of faith in my wide receivers to go up and get the ball, too. Like Justin goes up and gets it a lot and Owen Jones did in the game last week,” he added. “Just because they’re not open doesn’t mean you don’t give them a shot at the ball.”

But having confidence in so many weapons isn’t much help if you can’t find them when they’re open. Besides adding a deep threat in Staires to the offense, Aylward said the biggest difference in the passing game this year is the 6-foot-4 Shorey’s ability to read the defense, pre- and post-snap.

“I think he sees the field so much better than he did last year,” Aylward said. “I don’t think he’s any better an athlete. I think he’s a smarter athlete.”

“I’ve had a lot of confidence this year, a little more than last year now that I’m a senior,” said Shorey, who eclipsed the 1,000-yard passing mark in the Greely game. “I have nothing to lose, really.”