Q&A with Mashpee coach Matt Triveri
Even though Mashpee is a Division 7 school, the Falcons are ranked in just about every poll you can find, and are hoping to win their fourth straight state title.
For the fourth straight time, the Falcons are hitting the road this season, as they will travel to fellow unbeaten and consistently tough program Abington Friday night. This comes off the heels of trips to Nantucket, South Hadley, and Coyle-Cassidy.
We spoke to Mashpee coach Matt Triveri Wednesday night and spoke about his team, the matchup with the Green Wave, and the state of Division 7 football.
Here is an edited version of that conversation.
MassVarsity: What's that been like to travel on each game so far? I know that, at this level, obviously, I mean, you go to Western Mass. for South Hadley, you take a ferry ride for Nantucket, a little bit of everything for you guys. What's that experience been like for the kids. It seems like you've got some experienced guys on your roster, but still it's got to take its toll.
MT: Yeah, it's a bit of a grind. I think the first one's the worst, because you're on a ferry. All of our preseason games were home games. And the reality is, even though we've got three really good and special kids as seniors, we're really young. Out of our front eight guys defensively, seven of those are underclassmen, and six out of eight kids are first-time starters. So we're young. It's never easy to go on the road, but it settles down. It's a little different playing in league. Normally, we play Abington at the end of the league schedule, and it's a great game, and for many years now, it's been a game for the league title. But it's early, and it's a big game, so it's going to be a little different, too.
MV: I knew Abington lost a lot of guys from last year, but it seems like they've reloaded. When you watch them on film, what pops out to you?
MT: Will Klein pops out to you right away. Terrific athlete, terrific at adjusting to the ball in the air, great hands. Good-sized kid. Christian Labossier, the quarterback, he's a typical tough kid, an Abington kid. He plays quarterback, but he blocked a punt in a game. He enjoys contact. Just a really good all-around athlete. And they always have kids like that. Their quarterbacks are always like that. They're always tough. They can throw. They can run. They've had a great run of kids like that. And the other thing that stands out, and it stands out every year, is they're extremely well coached. Up front, very good, very physical. Michael Broomstein, their right tackle, is physical, is a two-way kid. We know every year, it's a machine up there.
MV: Do you see any parallels between your program and theirs in terms of the consistency and the toughness of the kids every year?
MT: I think the toughness of the kids is kind of a parallel. We just don't have those numbers. We went there two years ago, we walked out, they had more linemen than we had kids in our whole program. That's the first thing you notice. And, again, they've been around a long time. They've won a long time. They run the same stuff in their Pop Warner system when those kids are 7, 8 years old. The difference is we don't even have a Pop Warner system in the town. It's two really, really different programs, but philosophically, I think we're the same sort of program. I think we want to be physical, play great defense, stop the run. Defensively, we look like mirror images, exactly the same defense. So, in that sense, it's pretty similar.
MV: One of the big things between last year and this year for your team, last year you had those huge linemen across the board. This year, they're much smaller, but it doesn't seem like the production has dropped off, at least from my end looking at it. What can you say about the kids who have stepped in there, even though they're undersized against some of the teams you play against?
MT: I can't say enough. I can't say enough about those kids stepping into those positions and the job our offensive line coach, Chris Rendigs, has done with them. Out of the five kids that are playing there, four of them were either tight ends or fullbacks in sub-varsity. They never played line. They weren't linemen, per se. We had one kid get hurt, Nolan Lyons, who is probably our best lineman. We knew he was going to be pretty good, but he's been hurt for the last two years. Again, it's a sacrifice for some of these kids. They won't be able to catch passes or run the football, but they've done what a lot of our kids have done, and that's sacrifice for the team. Some of those kids may be moving back in the future, next year or the year after, but they've come together, they've listened. They play. They sell out. They play fearless, and have done an outstanding job. And they are undersized. We average maybe 180 pounds up front, 185 at the most. And those kids sell out, and it becomes more about speed than it does about brute size and power.
MV: And then there are the guys that have gotten a lot of attention for the last few years: tight end/defensive end Xavier Gonsalves, running back/defensive back Devaun Ford, wide receiver/defensive back Cam Kergo. And your quarterback, junior Ian Miller, is looking like he's starting to come into his own, as well. What have you gotten from those guys, especially considering how young some of the others are, in terms of leadership and playmaking ability?
MT: Devaun's been great. He's been a guy that's been here for four years now. He's grown as a player, but more importantly, he's grown as a guy, as a leader. He's come a long way in that capacity. He's smart. He doesn't do anything wrong, football-wise. Doesn't make a lot of mistakes. He doesn't have to say a lot. When he does, people listen, because of who he is and what he's done for three years in our program and in general. So, like I say, he's been just outstanding. Xavier's become a more vocal leader for us, and, again, a guy that makes a ton of plays. Cam is not as vocal, but certainly puts the effort in, and I think he does a good job, too. Those three, basically, those are our three seniors. We have a kid named Tyler Cuozzo who is a pretty good back who had to have surgery for a non-football thing. Our four seniors have been great. No qualms about them and their leadership at all. And Ian Miller's coming into his own. He can flat-out throw the football. And it takes time. Our system's a little bit complex, a lot of verbiage, and it just takes time. He's done a really good job.
MV: It seems like your division is as tough as it gets. They are smaller schools, but everybody is competitive. A lot of programs are getting better and raising themselves to the level of the top teams in the division. When you look forward, how tough is it with some of these teams you have to deal with?
MT: It's funny, last year I thought was our toughest run to the Super Bowl, but this year, whoever gets out of Division 7 South and eventually plays St. Mary's, who will probably win the North, but Division 7 South is probably tougher than it's ever been. Certainly, you look at Abington, Cohasset right now, us, Case is playing good football right now, Archbishop Williams I'm not sure about, but Archies is Archies. They're going to bring a lot to the table. Yeah, I don't foresee, you're not going to walk down and say, "This is going to be a cakewalk." It's just not going to be that way, especially when you get to those second round games. Last year, Cohasset may have been the second or third-best team, or could have been the best team in Division 7, and didn't get in, because, unfortunately, someone's got to be third place in the league, and it was them. But, again, they're a good football program, and you hate to do that, but that's the strength of the league (the South Shore League's small division). I don't know if this is true, but one of my coaches mentioned it the other day, he said that he thinks since the new onset of the Super Bowl (since 2013), that a South Shore League team has been in there every single year (that is, in fact, true). It's tough enough to get out of the division, but it's tough enough to get out of the league.
For the fourth straight time, the Falcons are hitting the road this season, as they will travel to fellow unbeaten and consistently tough program Abington Friday night. This comes off the heels of trips to Nantucket, South Hadley, and Coyle-Cassidy.
We spoke to Mashpee coach Matt Triveri Wednesday night and spoke about his team, the matchup with the Green Wave, and the state of Division 7 football.
Here is an edited version of that conversation.
MassVarsity: What's that been like to travel on each game so far? I know that, at this level, obviously, I mean, you go to Western Mass. for South Hadley, you take a ferry ride for Nantucket, a little bit of everything for you guys. What's that experience been like for the kids. It seems like you've got some experienced guys on your roster, but still it's got to take its toll.
MT: Yeah, it's a bit of a grind. I think the first one's the worst, because you're on a ferry. All of our preseason games were home games. And the reality is, even though we've got three really good and special kids as seniors, we're really young. Out of our front eight guys defensively, seven of those are underclassmen, and six out of eight kids are first-time starters. So we're young. It's never easy to go on the road, but it settles down. It's a little different playing in league. Normally, we play Abington at the end of the league schedule, and it's a great game, and for many years now, it's been a game for the league title. But it's early, and it's a big game, so it's going to be a little different, too.
MV: I knew Abington lost a lot of guys from last year, but it seems like they've reloaded. When you watch them on film, what pops out to you?
MT: Will Klein pops out to you right away. Terrific athlete, terrific at adjusting to the ball in the air, great hands. Good-sized kid. Christian Labossier, the quarterback, he's a typical tough kid, an Abington kid. He plays quarterback, but he blocked a punt in a game. He enjoys contact. Just a really good all-around athlete. And they always have kids like that. Their quarterbacks are always like that. They're always tough. They can throw. They can run. They've had a great run of kids like that. And the other thing that stands out, and it stands out every year, is they're extremely well coached. Up front, very good, very physical. Michael Broomstein, their right tackle, is physical, is a two-way kid. We know every year, it's a machine up there.
MV: Do you see any parallels between your program and theirs in terms of the consistency and the toughness of the kids every year?
MT: I think the toughness of the kids is kind of a parallel. We just don't have those numbers. We went there two years ago, we walked out, they had more linemen than we had kids in our whole program. That's the first thing you notice. And, again, they've been around a long time. They've won a long time. They run the same stuff in their Pop Warner system when those kids are 7, 8 years old. The difference is we don't even have a Pop Warner system in the town. It's two really, really different programs, but philosophically, I think we're the same sort of program. I think we want to be physical, play great defense, stop the run. Defensively, we look like mirror images, exactly the same defense. So, in that sense, it's pretty similar.
MV: One of the big things between last year and this year for your team, last year you had those huge linemen across the board. This year, they're much smaller, but it doesn't seem like the production has dropped off, at least from my end looking at it. What can you say about the kids who have stepped in there, even though they're undersized against some of the teams you play against?
MT: I can't say enough. I can't say enough about those kids stepping into those positions and the job our offensive line coach, Chris Rendigs, has done with them. Out of the five kids that are playing there, four of them were either tight ends or fullbacks in sub-varsity. They never played line. They weren't linemen, per se. We had one kid get hurt, Nolan Lyons, who is probably our best lineman. We knew he was going to be pretty good, but he's been hurt for the last two years. Again, it's a sacrifice for some of these kids. They won't be able to catch passes or run the football, but they've done what a lot of our kids have done, and that's sacrifice for the team. Some of those kids may be moving back in the future, next year or the year after, but they've come together, they've listened. They play. They sell out. They play fearless, and have done an outstanding job. And they are undersized. We average maybe 180 pounds up front, 185 at the most. And those kids sell out, and it becomes more about speed than it does about brute size and power.
MV: And then there are the guys that have gotten a lot of attention for the last few years: tight end/defensive end Xavier Gonsalves, running back/defensive back Devaun Ford, wide receiver/defensive back Cam Kergo. And your quarterback, junior Ian Miller, is looking like he's starting to come into his own, as well. What have you gotten from those guys, especially considering how young some of the others are, in terms of leadership and playmaking ability?
MT: Devaun's been great. He's been a guy that's been here for four years now. He's grown as a player, but more importantly, he's grown as a guy, as a leader. He's come a long way in that capacity. He's smart. He doesn't do anything wrong, football-wise. Doesn't make a lot of mistakes. He doesn't have to say a lot. When he does, people listen, because of who he is and what he's done for three years in our program and in general. So, like I say, he's been just outstanding. Xavier's become a more vocal leader for us, and, again, a guy that makes a ton of plays. Cam is not as vocal, but certainly puts the effort in, and I think he does a good job, too. Those three, basically, those are our three seniors. We have a kid named Tyler Cuozzo who is a pretty good back who had to have surgery for a non-football thing. Our four seniors have been great. No qualms about them and their leadership at all. And Ian Miller's coming into his own. He can flat-out throw the football. And it takes time. Our system's a little bit complex, a lot of verbiage, and it just takes time. He's done a really good job.
MV: It seems like your division is as tough as it gets. They are smaller schools, but everybody is competitive. A lot of programs are getting better and raising themselves to the level of the top teams in the division. When you look forward, how tough is it with some of these teams you have to deal with?
MT: It's funny, last year I thought was our toughest run to the Super Bowl, but this year, whoever gets out of Division 7 South and eventually plays St. Mary's, who will probably win the North, but Division 7 South is probably tougher than it's ever been. Certainly, you look at Abington, Cohasset right now, us, Case is playing good football right now, Archbishop Williams I'm not sure about, but Archies is Archies. They're going to bring a lot to the table. Yeah, I don't foresee, you're not going to walk down and say, "This is going to be a cakewalk." It's just not going to be that way, especially when you get to those second round games. Last year, Cohasset may have been the second or third-best team, or could have been the best team in Division 7, and didn't get in, because, unfortunately, someone's got to be third place in the league, and it was them. But, again, they're a good football program, and you hate to do that, but that's the strength of the league (the South Shore League's small division). I don't know if this is true, but one of my coaches mentioned it the other day, he said that he thinks since the new onset of the Super Bowl (since 2013), that a South Shore League team has been in there every single year (that is, in fact, true). It's tough enough to get out of the division, but it's tough enough to get out of the league.
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