Shrine notes: Parsons, Russell get a head start as teammates

MERIDEN - Ian Parsons won't have to look far when he wants to see a familiar face at Stonehill College this fall.

He's getting to know Taylor Russell real well.

Parsons and Russell will be part of the freshmen class when the Stonehill football team opens training camp on Aug. 12, but the two will already know plenty about each other before then. Before they become Skyhawks, the two are teammates on the New Hampshire team that will take on Vermont in Saturday's Shrine Maple Sugar Bowl. The two teams will meet at 2:30 p.m. at Windsor (Vt.) High School.

While they're starters on New Hampshire's offensive line - Parsons at right tackle, Russell next to him at guard - the pair will be on opposite sides of the field at Stonehill.

"I’m playing defensive line, so we’ll be going against each other for four years," Russell, a Keene High School graduate, said. "I’m just thankful that he’s on my team. I’m really excited to play with him. He’s a good kid and he’s a big kid. It’s going to be nice to play now and get to know him."

Russell will have his eye on Parsons, who graduated from Nashua South, but not to pick up anything he can use once college practices start. Instead, he wants to learn how the tackle plays.

"I’ve never seen him play before, so I’m looking at him to see what kind of player he is going to be," Russell said. "They said he’s that big lineman type, that big tackle on the edge watching the quarterback’s blind side. I think he can do it. He’s got a lot of talent and he’s been playing a long time."

Gate City O-Line

Parsons is one of three New Hampshire offensive linemen from Nashua, joining North's Zach Hunnewell (left tackle) and James Murphy (left guard). With all three players standing 6-4 or taller and weighing in at at least 255 pounds, it made New Hampshire coach Chris Childs, who is the head coach at Lebanon, wonder what it was like to coach a unified Nashua High School.

"As a coach in that area, it’d be pretty impressive," he said. "Both the North kids, both those kids were on the same team and they’re on the same side. I coached Lebanon and I’ve got one kid that’s 6-2, 300 pounds. To have two kids like that must be amazing. And then you throw the Parsons kid in there, you’re talking about three big, strong kids."

First-timers

There will be two New Hampshire programs that will have players in the game for the first time. Hollis/Brookline’s Brian Liamos and Bedford’s Sam McClain will be the first players from their respective schools to participate in the annual game.

“That’s quite an honor, to be the first kid to be picked from that school,” Childs said. “That’s a stepping stone for the program. Both programs are starting to make that step in the right direction.”

While both programs may have opened eyes around Division III, not everyone in the state is on board yet. The New Hampshire roster lists Liamos as having played at “Brookline-Hollis,” while McClain said not everyone knows that Bedford even has a high school, let alone a football program.

“No one really knows about us, not even at these Shrine meetings,” McClain said. “It’s a big win for the program.”

Although Liamos is the first Cavalier who will play in the Shrine game, he isn’t the first from H/B to be nominated. A year ago, Cavs coach Milt Robinson pushed to get Justin Shutt in the game, but Shutt came up short.

Instead it’s Liamos, a longtime friend of Shutt’s, who will be the first.

“I didn’t think I’d ever wear that helmet again,” Liamos said. “I get to wear it again for one last game. It will be cool.”

Switching for good

Nick Hession played outside linebacker at Souhegan and was also a receiver for the Sabers' offense, but he'll be playing a new position when he takes the field for Saturday's game. Hession is making the switch to defense end, something he'll have to get used to, since that will be his position when he heads to Bentley College this fall.

"I’d always played outside linebacker in high school, but I’m starting to like the position of defensive end, where I can rush the quarterback and kind of have that freedom," he said. "I’m going to have to start liking it anyway, because that’s what I’m going to have to play in college. I think I prefer it now."

"I always loved catching the ball and trying to score. I’ve always been more of a defensive player and I was more of a possession receiver, which is fun, but defense was where I was always consistent and what I’ve always enjoyed."

Hession will be joined by Merrimack's Tyler Baulier on the line, which will try to slow down Vermont's spread offense.