FITCHBURG — Take a look at any football field across the state and the scene was the same on Friday afternoon.
Athletes gathered and adjusted equipment. Coaches laid out their plans for the fall. Teams came together and, for the first time in 2022, gridiron practices got going.
High school football season is officially underway.
Be it Doyle Field, Crocker Field, the Bernardian Bowl or the satellite practice fields nearby. Players poured onto turf and grass alike to kick off the fall season with aspirations of future Super Bowl victories.
Under the watchful eye of new athletic director Ray Cosenza, St. Bernard’s head coach Tom Bingham assembled his players on the practice field adjacent to the Bernardian Bowl and got to work under a scorching sun, but with a smile nonetheless.
“It’s good to be back out here,” Bingham said. “I’m excited for this group and to see what they can do. It’s (the players’) team every year and it’s really up to them what they make of it. We’re just here to keep them between the lines and let them power their way and see how far they want to go.
“These kids have a lot of energy and they’ve certainly worked hard, so we want to see how that translates out on the football field.”
In a scene likely repeated at hundreds of fields and facilities statewide on Friday, the Bernardians gathered outside the team’s clubhouse prior to practice for helmet adjustments and to collect other equipment. Though the first practice featured helmets and no pads, Bingham — who spoke with his team in the locker room about expectations and procedures for 15 minutes prior to Friday’s session — was thrilled with the turnout for his team to start the season.
“We had one of the biggest groups that we’ve ever had for our offseason weight training,” said Bingham, noting that he had 41 players lined up to play this fall. “Attitudes are good and these kids have terrific energy. We just have to get to work, win today and then start over tomorrow.”
While less than four dozen players may not seem like much, Bingham has won Super Bowl titles with similar rosters. The focus of the Bernardians, especially early on, will be working to be in peak game shape as quickly as possible, thus the emphasis on condition over the course of the first week or so of practice sessions.
“When you look down our sideline, we have what we have and we’re thrilled and grateful for that. We have to be in shape and be better as games go on,” Bingham said. “We need to have more wind than anyone else when the fourth quarter rolls around and that starts today.”
Cosenza, hired as the St. Bernard’s athletic director earlier this month, says he likes what he has seen from the football program in terms of philosophy and commitment in his short time back with the Bernardians. A Massachusetts Football Coaches Association’s Halls of Famer, Cosenza is optimistic about the direction that the team — and the entire athletic department at St. B’s — is headed in.
“I’ve said this to a lot of people: I was very happily retired and not looking for anything, but this came along and it’s an honor and a great opportunity to be involved here,” said Cosenza, who served as the head coach of the Bernardians football and baseball teams in the mid-1980s before beginning his storied career of three decades at Fitchburg High. “There’s great coaches, great kids and a great administration here and I’m excited to get this season going.”
