Roster is smaller, but solid, for Bishop Guertin football
MANCHESTER - This year, it's about quality for the Bishop Guertin High School football team.
The numbers are a little down for head coach Travis Cote and the Cardinals, but what they lack in quantity, they make up for in the number of players who can contribute.
"Everybody that we have can contribute in some way, so that’s a big plus for us," Cote said. "We’ve got a lot of young kids and we’ve got some inexperience. We’ve got some sophomores who are playing for us, and obviously, that’s first-year, varsity football."
Some of those sophomores stood out during Bishop Guertin's scrimmage last Friday against Manchester Central at the Queen City Jamboree. The Cardinals won, 10-7, and got good contributions from Chase Hughes, Jackson Housman, Matt Theriault and TJ Hart, to name a few.
"We’re going to look for those guys to contribute," Cote said. "I thought we really made some big strides (Friday) from where we were at the beginning of the week when we scrimmaged Bedford. We’ve really worked hard. We’ve watched some film and we’ve talked about some things, and I think we took a step in the right direction."
Bishop Guertin - which will play in Division I's West Conference with Nashua North and South, along with Alvirne and Keene - will also lean heavily on a couple of seniors, including quarterback Tom Hurley and running backs CJ Boykin and Mike Devereaux.
After being forced into the lineup a year ago because of injuries, Hurley has taken big strides toward being the signal caller the Cardinals are looking to get behind.
"He’s got a whole year under his belt now and he’s coming back as a senior with a lot of confidence," Cote said of Hurley. "He’s been in the system now for three years. We’ve still got a few things to work on that we’ve talked about, but we’re on the same page with what we want to do. He’s going to be a good leader for us."
If there's an X-factor for the Cardinals, it could be Boykin, who missed all of last season with a shoulder injury, but looked good Friday against Central until leaving early with an undisclosed injury. He scored Bishop Gueritn's lone touchdown, and almost had another on a punt return that was called back.
"The kid is a difference maker," Cote said. "He’s got speed, he’s got quickness. He makes people miss. He had a couple of huge plays for us. Every time he touches the ball, he’s got a chance to take it. We certainly want to keep him healthy."
Bishop Guertin starts the regular season on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Stellos Stadium against Winnacunnet.
