If you reach 28 years on the job, odds are – it makes you happy.
Such is the case for Bishop Fenwick football coach Dave Woods, who returns to the sideline this fall. He’s one of 58 coaches in state history with 200-plus wins, and was a New England Patriots Coach of the Week recipient last season.
That said, some things do change.
“This year is a little bit different than past years. We have a bye the first week, so we kind of deliberately planned out the preseason. I think we have 25 practices before the first game, so usually, we don’t have that much,” Woods said. “We talked to the team all through the first couple of weeks and practiced this (Friday) morning, and we told them we haven’t really had a sense of urgency up until now. Now, we have two weeks to get ready for Marblehead, so now we have a sense of urgency.”
The extended preseason also gave younger players valuable reps they wouldn’t normally have gotten.
“A lot of the time, the younger guys don’t get a lot of work in the preseason because we’re trying to get ready for our first game,” Woods said. “It was a little refreshing.”
Still, the backbone of Fenwick’s roster will be its experienced seniors.
“We have a very strong senior class with a lot of experience,” Woods said. “We lost some guys to graduation who played big roles, but we definitely have a lot of key guys back, which is nice.”
Among returning standouts are running back/linebacker duo Dylan Patturelli and Tyler Connolly, both four-year contributors. Woods also praised senior lineman Luis Levenishti.
“To say we have three of the better players around is not a stretch,” Woods said. “Dylan and Tyler have been playing since they were freshmen and they’re pretty good football players on both sides of the ball. Luis is going to be as good of a defensive and offensive lineman in the area at any level. He’s 6-2, 300 pounds, playing phenomenally, and he’s a scholarship kid. He’s looking great.”
On offense, Patturelli and Connolly will be the workhorses, but Woods expects others to contribute as well.
“We also have Jesse Timson, a senior captain and dangerous receiver out in open space,” he said. “We’ve got a few newcomers and a couple other guys who have been waiting their turn. We’re excited about the depth of our skill group.”
Woods said the Crusaders’ identity will be built around toughness.
“The identity of this team is obvious to us coaches,” he said. “This year, we have a lot of old-school, gritty kids. They’re just so tough and want to get down in the trenches and do anything they can to win and fight. It’s so much fun to coach kids like that.”
Fenwick will also have a new quarterback in Andrew Kiricoples.
“He’s getting better every day with the system and he’s a super talented kid,” Woods said. “We just need to tone things down a bit and scale back to focus on what we want to run against Marblehead.”
With a deep senior class, established playmakers, and a coach closing in on three decades at the helm, the Crusaders enter the season with high expectations.
“We’re extremely excited to start the season,” Woods said. “We have a great group of seniors who worked hard, and we’re looking forward to seeing them finally get to their senior years and hold nothing back. We’re just focused on Marblehead right now. We’ve been fortunate against them over the years, so I know we’re going to get their best game – no question about it.”
