Salem looks just as dangerous for 2010

By David Willis and Jeff Hamrick

SALEM, N.H. — New Hampshire football beware. Salem, which won the Division 1 state title yesterday over Nashua North, is only getting better.

"It's crazy," said Blue Devils running back Max Jacques. "We have everyone returning. We'll be back. I have confidence."

Jacques leads an eye-popping cast which led Salem to the title this season, and will be back for another run next season.

"We're returning so many skill guys," said Blue Devils QB Matt Cannone. "It should be some sort of season."

Salem returns arguably the two most dynamic running backs in the state in junior Jacques (1,848 yards, 24 touchdowns) and sophomore Jerickson Fedrick (1,186 yards, 18 TDs). The two are also key defensive players, with Fedrick at linebacker (seven tackles yesterday) and Jacques at cornerback.

The Blue Devils also return their two-year starting quarterback Cannone (48 of 100, 795 yards, 7 TDs) and yesterday's hero Mike Lorenz.

"I'd love to do it all right over again," said junior tackle Andrew Ivas, who had key downfield blocks on two of Salem's four touchdown drives. "There's room for improvement every year. We'll work hard and see what happens."

Ivas' coach, however, prefers to enjoy the moment for now.

"I don't want to think about that right now," Jack Gati said. "We replaced a lot of kids this year. Thank God we had two guys who were special (Jacques and Jerickson). And we've had some nice receivers."

Record-setting Devils

With his second-quarter touchdown, Max Jacques hiked his Salem school-record season-point total to 152 and his career record to 198. ... The Blue Devils finished with 421 points on the season, breaking the old mark of 413 set by the 1995 team, which had been the last to win a state title ... Kicker Chris Saulnier, a former soccer player who didn't join the football team until after preseason practices began, set a school record with 50 PATs.

Rozumek takes in another title from opposing sideline

The last time Salem won the state title — the Division 2 crown in 1995 — Adam Rozumek was the quarterback for the Blue Devils, firing nine TD passes including two in the title game win over Londonderry.

But the former Salem star was on the opposing sidelines yesterday. Rozumek, the nephew of Salem athletic director David Rozumek, is an assistant coach for Nashua North.

Tricks galore

With the title within reach, Salem pulled out all the stops.

"You have to save the good stuff for the end," said senior fullback Darren Brown.

With less than a minute left in the first half, Salem shocked Nashua North when Brown took a toss and threw the ball to a wide-open Mike Lorenz for a 28-yard gain. Salem scored two plays later to make it 14-7 at the half.

"They weren't expecting it because we hadn't run the play all season," said Brown. "We just put it in this week. I play baseball so I know I could throw a little, but I had no idea if I could throw a football. I guess I got kind of lucky. That play was huge."

Emotions high for exchange student

Salem's Philipp Becker could not hold back his emotions as the Blue Devils were awarded the championship trophy, taking a knee to shed more than a few tears.

"I didn't know what to do," he said. "I was crying. I couldn't hold back the tears."

Becker, the backup kicker, is a German exchange student in Salem for a one-year stay. He said he grew close to his teammates while away from his family.

"Football has become very emotional for me," he said. "I didn't know a thing about football 14 weeks ago. I could have played soccer and my real sport is tennis. These football guys have become my family."

Continuing dominance

The victory kept Salem perfect in seven games against Nashua North, which opened its doors in 2004.

The first year saw the Blue Devils whip the Titans 55-0, but North has been narrowing the gap, losing by three points in 2006 and one in 2008, when the Titans failed to convert a two-point conversion in the final minute.

Hair-raising

No one stood out in Salem's victory celebration more than back Rich Bourgoin.

The senior sported a Mohawk that stood approximately six inches off his head. The hairdresser: his teammates.

"I figured, it's senior year in the championship game," he said with a laugh. "I let the team cut it. It's all about fun."

Junior Joe Scire, who pulled down the game-clinching interception in the final seconds, was seen signing autographs for little kids in front of the Salem locker room after the game.

He, along with Zach Solomon, Alex Sobrado and Jake Matthews, have played together for seven years.

Surprising themselves

If you would have asked many of the Blue Devils back in August if they would've have been playing football when Nov. 21 rolled around, you might have been surprised by the pessimism.

"The past two years we've had some attitude problems and came up short," senior tight end/linebacker Darren Brown said. "Even coming into this year (after going 4-6 in 2008), I didn't think we had a great shot. All the papers were ranking us seventh or eighth (in the division). But this year, we've had a great group of kids. And now we've made the championship and won."

Even after earning the top seed in the playoffs, the Blue Devils weren't too sure of themselves entering the title match against Nashua North. After all, the then unbeaten Blue Devils were pummeled 45-7 by Manchester Central in the regular-season finale.

"There was a little less confidence than you'd think (entering the game)," Brown said. "We lost that one game to (Manchester) Central where they just blew us out, and then (Nashua North) beats Central (in the semifinal). We learned never to take anything lightly in football."

Some of Brown's teammates, however, had title dreams early.

"Our group of seniors were motivated," senior running back/linebacker Alex Sobrado said. "We all worked together as a team the whole time. After our first game when we destroyed Dover, I knew we had a chance. We just blew them off the line. I saw the incredible talent we had, and if we worked together and used that potential, we could win a state championship."

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