Up until this season, it had been years since the ConVal football team played a game of major importance with playoff implications on the line. Now, it seems like the 6-1 Cougars are faced with the season’s biggest game each and every week. But much like their stellar offensive line, the team isn’t letting the pressure affect their play.
“I think they’re kind of enjoying the ride at this point,” said head coach Paul Landau. “It’s kind of preparing them for the grind of playing in the playoffs. It’s something you can look at as a stressor, or you can embrace the challenge, and I think our guys are embracing the challenge.”
The next big challenge comes on Saturday, when ConVal travels to defending champion St. Thomas (5-2) with a chance to clinch a playoff spot and break the school’s single-season wins record. It promises to be a hard-fought game between two of the state’s top teams.
“[St. Thomas] expects to win,” Landau said. “They’ve been to the state championship game for the past two years, they’re the defending champs and they’re going to have that title until someone takes that away from them.”
Despite any previous accomplishments, ConVal and St. Thomas find themselves in similar situations this year. Both teams started the season with high expectations for their star quarterbacks, and both have had to turn to their backups after key injuries at that position.
St. Thomas’s Shawn Dekorne started the season and played in three games before being knocked out at Souhegan. Since then, it’s been Tim Bouchard — probably the Saints’ best all-around athlete — under center. St. Thomas scored just 15 in the two games after Bouchard took over, but they’ve since figured it out, scoring 91 total in their past two, wins over Milford and Hillsboro-Deering Hopkinton.
“They’re certainly using him as a running threat,” Landau said, adding that on film, he “looks pretty confident back there throwing the ball.”
Bouchard’s gone 17-38 for 359 yards with four TDs and three INTs since taking over.
Likewise, the Cougars turned to Keenan Wilson at QB after Dan Spezzaferri went out at Hollis-Brookline; Spezzaferri is still in concussion protocol, and Landau said they are preparing for St. Thomas with Wilson the likely starter.
Wilson went 13-20 for 188 yards with two TDs and no picks last week.
Another of St. Thomas’s strong points, Landau said, is discipline; the Saints are well-coached under Eric Cumba, and a ConVal performance like last week’s, where they racked up 110 penalty yards, will play right into the Saints’ strengths.
“Against a team like St. Thomas, they’ll absolutely take advantage of that,” Landau said.
With three undefeated teams (John Stark, Hanover and Windham), another three at 6-1 (ConVal, Plymouth, Bow) and three more at 5-2 (St. Thomas, Milford, Hollis-Brookline), it will be a battle for the eight playoff spots.
Kickoff is at 1:30 p.m.