After long offseason, dawn of promising central Maine football season nears

The News Guy

2 months ago

After long offseason, dawn of promising central Maine football season nears

Messalonskee quarterback Tatum Doucette fires a pass against Cony defenders during a 2023 Class B North semifinal football game in Oakland. Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel

It’s a cliché, perhaps, but it’s one that’s oh-so true: “It’s always darkest before dawn.”

You can’t, by definition, get lower than the lowest of lows; darkness doesn’t last forever because something, inherently, comes along to end it.

Sports in Maine are in that darkness right now. The spring sports season is long gone, and as of Monday, we’re now in the “hands-off” period, during which the Maine Principals’ Association prohibits offseason activities by high school teams. American Legion baseball and Babe Ruth and Little League baseball and softball have, for the most part, concluded. Maine’s two major summer races, the Ironman 70.3 Maine and Beach to Beacon 10K Road Race, are also in the rearview mirror.

Rest assured, though, that an end to that darkness is coming.

As of this week, we’re less than two weeks away from the first fall practices and less than one month from the first games of the 2024 fall season. I wrote late last July about how I was “ready right then and there” for some central Maine high school football, and this year, two weeks closer to that first Friday night than I was last summer, I’ve gone from being ready to downright craving it.

There’s never a bad time covering football, but it’s been a while since I’ve been as excited going into the season as I am for 2024. Right when last year ended, I knew we’d be in for a good time when the action rolled around again in 10 months, and that opinion has only strengthened as a new season has gotten closer and closer with each passing day, week and month.

FIRST, THE QUARTERBACKS. Sure, there’s talent at every position, but one of the stories of high school football in central Maine was the bevy of underclassmen signal-callers. Six of the seven Class B North teams had an underclassman at the position. Cony’s Parker Morin and Messalonskee’s Tatum Doucette put up gaudy numbers; Michael Hamlin delivered Lawrence its first regional title in 11 years; Gardiner’s Chase Burgess and Asher Nagy and Skowhegan’s Jason Aubin both settled in nicely at the position. In Class D South, Winthrop/Monmouth/Hall-Dale/Kents Hill’s Braden Branagan and Oak Hill’s Kai Taylor thrived under pressure. It’s a polished group, one I can’t wait to see back in action.

THE TURNAROUNDS. One of the best parts of covering sports is when a team that struggles begins to turn it around, and that’s exactly what Cony, Winthrop and Oak Hill did last season. The Rams and Ramblers, despite starting 1-3, won their next six games before falling in their respective regional championship games. The Raiders, who started 0-3 and were outscored 94-6, won their next five before narrowly falling to Winthrop in the Class D South semis. Those teams were all underclassmen-heavy in 2023, and it will be rewarding to watch that growth continue as they contend again in 2024.

THE RECOVERIES of so many programs. After four years of eight-man football in Maine, some teams are beginning to matriculate back to the 11-man ranks. Among them is Maranacook, a program that’s been power in eight-man since its inception in 2019 and has grown increasingly ambitious under head coach Skip Bessey. There’s also Mountain Valley, which will face both Maranacook and Winthrop, and there are Dirigo and Mattanawcook Academy, both of whom will play the Black Bears. Brunswick, in Class C after a year in eight-man, will face Mt. Blue. It’s a refreshing sight to see so many programs making the jump back to the 11-man game, and it’s one that will enrich Maine high school football this fall.

THE GAMES. Oh, the games. I can’t say I’ve ever been this excited for a Week 1 of football, and as someone who anticipates Week 1 like no other, no matter the contests, that’s saying something. Messalonskee vs. Cony and Lawrence vs. Gardiner in a matchup of both Class B North semifinals last year, Winthrop hosting Leavitt in an intriguing crossover, and the aforementioned Maranacook-Mattanawcook battle — and that’s just the opening week. Cony also has Lawrence in Week 2, Leavitt in Week 5 and rival Gardiner in Week 7; Winthrop travels to Oak Hill in Week 4 and hosts Maranacook in Week 7; Messalonskee hosts Lawrence in Week 5. They’re just a few of the pivotal matchups I’ve had circled on my calendar months in advance.

THE EMOTIONS. The way football (or any sport, really) makes us feel goes a lot further than statistics or Xs and Os. I’ll never forget the emotions of the Class D South quarterfinal game between Winthrop and Lisbon last October on the Charlie’s Field turf, just days after both communities were hit hard by the mass shooting in Lewiston. It was about more than football that night, just as it was about more than football to see Cony rally behind head coach B.L. Lippert following the unexpected passing of his sister, Melissa. There’s moments like those every year, and the way they bring people together makes you feel.

All of this is coming soon, and of course, much of what will mean the most to us in 2024 are things that haven’t been listed here. A new season will bring its own unexpected developments, surprise teams, rising stars and more. It’s part of what makes watching sports — and especially covering sports — such an enjoyable experience.

Sure, it’s dark now. The dawn, though, is almost here.

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