Shrine Camp: Day 6
Roger Brown
nhfootballreport.com
New Hampshire Shrine Maple Sugar Bowl coach Ken Sciacca has called running back the deepest area on this year's team, but defensive line may not be far behind.
"We expect Vermont to throw three out of four downs, so we picked some aggressive kids who we think can put pressure on the quarterback," Sciacca said.
Michael Flynn (Bishop Guertin), Colin Cray (Souhegan), Kevin Rosenberg (Nashua North) and Bryan Airoldi (Milford) are expected to see the most time at defensive tackle. Ben Proulx (Pinkerton Academy), Ryan Simpson (Pinkerton Academy) and Tom Poitras (Bow) will rotate at defensive end.
By rule, both teams must use a four-man defensive front.
"Right now those are the guys who are getting the most reps," Sciacca said.
New Hampshire will be facing a Vermont team that will use a no-huddle offense with four receivers.
Two of New Hampshire's original selections are defensive backs who are no longer with the team: Mike Montville (Portsmouth) and Nick Fredrickson (Nashua South).
Sciacca said Harry Knowles (Winnacunnet), Josh Luciano (Pelham), Colin Hay (Plymouth), Tanner Balllageron (Kennett), Ben Callahan (Exeter) and Lquan Desir (Manchester Central) will likely see significant time in the defensive backfield.
This year's Shrine Maple Sugar Bowl will be played Saturday at Windsor (Vt.) High School. The opening kickoff is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. New Hampshire, which has a 41-13-2 edge in the series, extended its winning streak to nine games by posting a 40-6 victory over Vermont last summer.
General admission tickets for the game are on sale at more than 80 outlets throughout New Hampshire and Vermont. General admission tickets are $8 if purchased in advance or $10 on game day.
Reserved seats are $20 and can be purchased by contacting the Shrine Football Office: (603) 448-1042.
Footnotes
Sciacca said he's been told that the decision to use 12-minute quarters instead of 15-minute quarters will be reviewed after this year's game. ... Matt Kaplan (Franklin), Rosenburg, Cray, Dylan Ryan (Exeter), Jesse Green (Winnacunnet) and Darren Brown (Salem) have been penciled in as New Hampshire's starters on the offensive line. Kaplan and Rosenberg will play tackle, Green and Ryan will play guard, Cray will be the center and Brown is the tight end. .. Sciacca and Vermont coach Charlie Burnett have been asked to release their offensive and defensive starters Thursday. .. Knowles, Proux and running back Mike Cavanaugh (Manchester Central) have been held out of some practices because of minor injuries this week.
