With New Coach, Football ‘Cats are on Cue

The Weston High football team will experience more than the usual changes that take place each season this fall. In addition to adding new players and competing without those who were graduated last spring, the Wildcats have a new head coach on board and will play in a division with a different look from recent years.

Sean McHugh, who teaches English at Weston Middle School, takes over the lead coaching duties for longtime mentor Bob Desaulniers, who left on a high note after almost guiding Weston to a division title last year, and leading the Wildcats to a thrilling victory over Wayland in the Thanksgiving rivalry game. Weston also finds itself among a group of teams that has added Boston Latin to the circuit while subtracting Arlington and Tyngsboro.

“So this year we have four [division] games as opposed to five last year," said McHugh, who assisted DeSaulniers for the last five seasons. “Each one of those games becomes like a playoff game. Certainly, those are the games you want to win.”

Since the Wildcats, who open the season at Canton on Sept. 9, don’t play a divisional game until October 21 – by which time they will have already played six non-division games – “it’s truly how you finish [that matters], not how you start,” McHugh said.

McHugh had high praise for the Dual County League, and he’s familiar with the different offensive formations his opponents are likely to offer.

“The Dual County league is a great football league. Every team you play is well coached and well prepared,” McHugh said. “Traditionally, teams like Wayland attack you with the spread offense while Concord Carlisle attacks you with the Wing-T. In contrast, Boston Latin and Bedford both attack you with a multitude of formations and offensive plays. So really week to week is a completely different preparation which makes it a pretty interesting league in which to coach and play."

While the Wildcats haven’t selected their captains yet for the upcoming campaign, they do return several senior standouts. Quarterback and defensive back Jarrett Rowe has explosive speed and “great toughness [and] is also talented enough to play football at the next level,” McHugh said.

The coach had similar praise for Igwe Igwe-Kalu, who will play guard on offense as well as linebacker and defensive end. “[He] will surely play college football after his senior season,” McHugh said. “Igwe is strong, fast, and physical.”

Other solid two-way players include Harrison Fontaine (running back/slot receiver/defensive back), Matt Atkins (center/defensive lineman), Jorge Castro (running back/ linebacker), Robert Bennett (guard/linebacker), Paul Scott (offensive/defensive lineman), and Jon Tamboro (receiver/defensive back). 

Fontaine and Castro will help lead in the backfield with Rowe, who piled on the rushing yards and touchdowns last season. Fontaine is more of a power back, while Castro is crafty and quick.Tamboro, meanwhile, “has a history of making big plays” at wideout, McHugh said. 

Atkins, Bennett, and Scott give the Wildcats depth on both the offensive and defensive lines. McHugh said Atkins and Bennett both have great technique, while Scott has “good explosiveness out of his stance.”

As a team, Weston is hoping its hard work in the offseason pays off.

“Many have worked hard this offseason to get stronger and faster,” McHugh said. “We plan to play a fast and physical brand of football in all three phases – offense, defense, and special teams – so our conditioning will be critical.” 

As for the competition in the DCL Small, McHugh said, “I think it is a long season and right now everyone has a chance to win the [division]. Between now and [November] each team in the league will go through a lot of changes both in terms of their schemes and especially in terms of their personnel. So who knows what each team will look like three months from now. We can't control that…

“Last year we had a very strong squad, but they had to start from scratch and take it one day at a time,” added McHugh who will be assisted by Seth Wyman, Robert Lescinskas, Ian Gagnes, and Casey O’Keefe, all who have had experience leading student-athletes on the field as well as in the classroom. "It is truly a season long process. This year's team is a different team, but we will approach the season the same way. We will work to get better every day… As head coach, I feel really privileged to work with a great group of coaches who really know football and who truly care about kids.”