HANOVER — The Hanover High football team would like to believe that the end of the Ben Scalzi Era does not signal the closing of the Hawks' state-championship window.
With the 6-foot-3 Scalzi ripping throws all over the field, Hanover grew in stature over the last two seasons, losing in the Div. 3 state semifinals (to Milton) in 2022 and falling in the Div. 5 Super Bowl (to Foxboro) last December.
If the Hawks are going to take the next logical step and be the ones celebrating at Gillette Stadium at the end of this season, they'll need to ride something other than the big right arm of their former star quarterback, who threw for 5,728 yards and 70 TDs (41 of them as a senior) over a 25-game career.
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"Scalzi had a tremendous year; he's a tremendous quarterback," coach Brian Kelliher said. "We have two upperclassmen (senior Tyler Vincent and junior Colin Arnold), and they're going to compete this camp, and we'll see where the chips fall when it gets to be Week 1."
Scalzi's arm talent was a generational one, so no one's expecting his successor (whoever it ends up being) to mimic his toolkit. (One of the highlights of last year's tone-setting Week 1 upset win at Duxbury was 15-yard dart to fellow senior John McDonald on third and 5. Scalzi was near the right hashmark, and McDonald was outside the numbers on the other side of the field.)
"His ability to throw to any level on the field, whether on the run, in the pocket, was a tremendous asset for us," Kelliher said of Scalzi, now at Merrimack College, a Div. I FCS program. "I don't expect those kids to be able to do that."
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What Kelliher does expect is smart, pocket-based quarterbacking. Both candidates are good athletes, with Vincent averaging a team-best 17 points per game for the boys basketball team last winter.
"They look pretty good right now. I'm actually very impressed," senior running back/linebacker Aidan Boutin said.
"I think we've been good so far," agreed senior left guard Lukas Maynard, the lone returner on a rebuilt offensive line. "I think it's really up to us (on the offensive line as far as) how well they do (depending on) how much time we're going to give them. But so far they've been looking solid."
The no-huddle
Boutin, the last of four brothers to come through the program, will try to replace the production of graduated No. 1 running back Vinny Mancini. Senior Love'on Flowers and junior Tommy Regan also figure to get carries. The receiving corps also has been retooled after the graduation of McDonald (48 catches, 752 yards, 11 TDs last season). Promising junior slot guy Brandon Errico leads the new group with junior Sebastian Brown and seniors Ben Johnson and Cole Sullivan. The offensive line could feature sophomore center Nolan Ghostlaw flanked by guards Maynard (left) and senior Noah Balewicz (right) with senior Connor Godfrey at left tackle and senior Noah DeMeule at right tackle. Boutin, entering his third season as a starting linebacker, will lead the defense along with fellow two-way players Errico (DB), Johnson (CB), Brown (DE) and Balewicz (DL).
2023 recap
The Hawks surprised Duxbury in Week 1, winning 28-18 in a game that Kelliher said "set our year in motion." Hanover was the No. 1 seed in Div. 5 and beat No. 16 Gloucester (42-16), No. 9 Bishop Stang (31-0) and No. 5 Danvers (27-24) before falling, 48-21, to No. 2 Foxboro.
Kelliher served as interim head coach last season after longtime boss Chris Landolfi took a leave of absence to help coach his son, Michael, a star QB at Lawrence Academy. Chris Landolfi did not return to Hanover; he's now the defensive coordinator at Archbishop Williams, serving on the staff of his brother Mark Landolfi , a Hanover assistant last season.
Three names to know
Jr. WR/DB Brandon Errico: He had a pair of first-quarter TDs in the playoff win over Stang, and Kelliher says, "we're expecting a lot from him" this season.
Sr. RB/LB Aidan Boutin: A three-year starter on defense, he was an All-Scholastic as an 8-man in rugby last spring.
Sr. LG/DL Lukas Maynard: As the lone returning starter on the O-line, he'll have to get that group up to speed quickly. Kelliher calls him "our anchor."
They said it
Aidan Boutin on how rugby has helped his football career: "It definitely made me get in (better) shape because there's no stopping in rugby. It's all go, all gas. It also helped me be a better tackler because you can't really spear people in rugby unless you want a concussion."
Brian Kelliher on claiming the Hanover head-coaching gig fulltime: "Honestly, there's really no difference. The majority of the staff is back. Obviously, Mark (Landolfi) is at Archies now, and a couple of other guys went over with him, and that's great. Really nothing has changed for us from last year other than moving a few guys around."
Senior WR Ben Johnson on the new-look receiving corps: "I think we'll be just fine. It happens time and time again, almost every year. There are always replacements (for graduated stars)."
Hanover High 2024 football schedule
Friday, Sept. 6 -- at Somerset Berkley, 6:30 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 13 -- vs. Hingham, 7
Friday, Sept. 20 -- vs. Duxbury, 7
OFF WEEK
Friday, Oct. 4 -- vs. Plymouth South, 7
Friday, Oct. 11 -- vs. Scituate, 7
Thursday Oct. 17 -- at Quincy, 7
Friday, Oct. 25 -- at Pembroke, 7
Friday, Nov. 1 -- vs. North Quincy, 7
Thursday, Nov. 28 -- vs. Norwell, 10 a.m.
This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: With Ben Scalzi graduated, the search is on for the next great Hanover High quarterback
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