Bishop Guertin's Mike Kelly runs with the ball during a scrimmage.
The success of the Bishop Guertin High School football team this season could come down to how well the kids play on defense.
The Cardinals graduated 34 seniors from last year’s undefeated championship team, and many of those players were on a defense that allowed just 57 points on the season and pitched six shutouts, including the team’s final four games.
This year, the players stepping in are either young, inexperienced, or both.
“This is the youngest group that I’m ever going to have,” BG coach Tony Johnson said. “There are 10 new positions that I had to fill. (Mike) Kelly is the only guy in his old spot and he’s comfortable with it. We’re starting to establish a bit of an identity for ourselves, but this is a brand new team.”
Kelly and Kyle Karaska are the only two returning starters, and Karaska was moved from outside linebacker to defensive end to fill one of the empty positions. With so many new faces on the defense, Johnson is looking for his offense to shoulder some of the load at times.
“Sometimes a good defense is predicated on a great offense,” he said. “The offense is much more of a veteran unit, so I expect them to score. The defense is not going to be the defense we had last year, nor should I expect them to be the defense that I had last year. We’ve just got to make sure we get better every week and that we get stingy.”
Kelly and quarterback Steve Cuipa are the key returners at the skill positions for BG, while offensive linemen Danny Folger and Nick Cook return to anchor that unit. Sophomore Andrew Crane has stepped up at one of the tackle positions and Johnson said he has looked “phenomenal.” The only question mark are the guard and tackle positions on Cuipa’s blindside, where a handful of players have been competing for time.
“We’ve got three or four kids we’re looking at,” Johnson said. “The good news is, we’re creating a lot of depth. We’re still not sure who we’re going with.”
No matter who the Cardinals end up with on the offensive line, it will come down to the defense.
“We can’t give up the big play,” Johnson said. “We hope that if you’re going to score against us, you’re going to have to give us a 15-play drive.”
Although BG remains one of the favorites in Division II, last year’s runner-up, Winnacunnet, is expected to be just as good as a year ago. Johnson expects teams with plenty of returning players – Keene, Merrimack and Alvirne – to be there, along with teams that are traditionally strong – Timberlane, Dover.
The Cardinals start their season with a non-division game at Salem on Saturday before opening division play at Timberlane on Sept. 10.