Zac Iovanella drives his pickup truck to football practice every day. The 2003 Chevrolet Silverado is his baby.
"He loves to rev the engine," his mother Kimberly said with a laugh.
Recently, Iovanella was given a new set of keys. This fall, he'll be at the wheel of North Andover's offense. Expect pedal-to-the-metal action all season long.
"Not to compare him to Andrew Foote, but he's kind of in the same mold," Lawrence coach Mike Yameen said, name checking Iovanella's record-setting predecessor. "There are kids who play football and there are football players. He's a football player."
At 5-foot-11, 175 pounds, Iovanella doesn't possess the raw power of a Chevy. But like Foote, who at North Andover rushed for 4,549 yards, the 10th highest total in Eastern Massachusetts history, he gains ground in chunks. Last year, Yameen watched Iovanella roll up 321 yards, score four touchdowns and make a game-clinching interception during the Scarlet Knights' 35-27 win over the Lancers.
Iovanella's defensive instincts are exemplary. The second game of 2007, a 16-13 loss to Hamilton-Wenham, he flew across the field, leapt above the intended receiver, and plucked the ball out of the air for a pick.
"You try to teach that," said North Andover football coach John Rafferty, "but it's a different story when (a player can) do it."
At that point, Rafferty knew Iovanella was on to something.
"It just kind of grew from there," Rafferty said. "He had a heck of a season for himself."
In nine games as a starter at tailback, Iovanella rushed for 1,170 yards on 170 carries and 12 scores. This season, he's playing quarterback. But don't assume his numbers will dip. The Scarlet Knights' new attack is still run based.
"I love it," Iovanella said. "It's sick. At any point in time, anyone could be carrying the ball. It's confusing for other teams."
He spent the summer studying up. QBs, running or throwing, need to be in command of the offense.
"We have our own sheets," he said. "I write down the plays (for) half an hour a night. It helps your game to know what you're doing."
It's that attention to detail Iovanella uses on his truck. When the exhaust recently needed fixing, he fixed it himself.
"It's always good to learn," said Zac's father John, who owns Henry's Auto Sales in Nashua, N.H.
When they're not working on the truck together, they're probably at Walsh Stadium; father in the bleachers, son on the field. Zac's brother Josh, a junior at Assumption College, is also a big supporter.
"He wouldn't miss it," John said. "It's still in his blood too."
Iovanella is off to a nearly unprecedented start at North Andover. Complete Eagle-Tribune records go back to 1994. In that span, the only Scarlet Knight sophomore to gain more yards was — you guessed it — Foote, who rushed for 1,201 in 2004.
It's natural to compare Iovanella and Foote. But Rafferty said Iovanella reminds him of former North Andover back ('03) Matt Rock. As a junior, the 5-8, 180-pound Rock gained 1,500 yards on 223 carries and scored 17 touchdowns.
"He's not a power guy, but he's a tough kid," Rafferty said of Iovanella. "He surely doesn't shy away from contact. He has a great first step; he's got good vision, good balance. He runs hard."
Iovanella is quick to credit everyone else for his success. He said he was "lucky" to rush for 321 yards against Lawrence. It was the line's great blocks that did it, he said. His buddies, however, offered heaps of praise.
"You didn't even really need to block," teammate Chris Buco joked. "He just took care of everything."
Before Lawrence, Iovanella already had five 100-yard games. But that performance was his coming out party.
"Everyone just realized how good he could become," Buco said. "Nobody was really surprised. We all really knew how capable he was. It was just about getting the opportunity."
Buco is confident Iovanella will succeed under center.
"He's matured very well," he said. "He'll accept responsibility and do whatever it takes."
A summer's worth of lifting (four times a week) and running (five times a week) has prepared him well. Although he said he can't hold a candle to his brother in the weight room ("I can't do anything close to what he could do."), Iovanella doesn't lack guts.
"The emotions come out on the field," Buco said. "He gets everyone jacked up."
Buco is sure his friend has what it takes to drive the Scarlet Knights, who finished 7-4 last season, to new heights. Like his Chevy truck, Iovanella is like a rock.
"He's someone who loves football," Buco said. "He's someone to rely on."
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