The state’s high school football playoff field was sliced in half last weekend from 128 teams to 64 across the eight divisions.
Three of our local teams won their Round of 16 home games as expected: St. John’s Prep, Peabody and Danvers. That advanced each of the three into this week’s quarterfinals, with the Tanners of Peabody hitting the road while the two bird mascots — the Eagles and Falcons — won’t have to leave their home nests just yet.
So what new challenges await our trio of teams — who sport a collective record of 24-2 — as they aim to get one step closer to playing for a Super Bowl?
Happy you asked. We are here, after all, to serve you, our loyal readers.
So here’s a look at each of the three matchups and what you can expect to happen.
Let’s start in Peabody, move to Danvers and wrap up across town at the campus of St. John’s Prep.
PEABODY
Record: 7-2
Division and Seeding: No. 6 seed in Division 2
Opponent: No. 3 Billerica (8-1)
Where and when: Tonight at Billerica, 7 p.m.
Previous playoff meetings: None
All-time record against: None
Last week: The Tanners whitewashed Lincoln-Sudbury, 21-0, at home by feasting on five Warrior turnovers and riding their ground game. Billerica had no trouble in handling another Tanner team, Woburn, at home by a 40-7 score.
Key matchup: Peabody’s defensive front seven against Billerica’s offensive line. The Tanners have been pretty good up front all season, having allowed just 12 defensive touchdowns, with linemen like Matt Dresser and Zaiden Nazaire controlling the trenches while linebackers like Stylz Bonaventure, Joe Fagundes and Andrew Senfuma, plus safety Aniel Espinal, cleaning up. Billerica, on the other hand, has scored more than 12 TDs just in its last two games, so something has to give. The Indians have the biggest front that they’ve faced, so the Tanners will have to finds ways to shed blocks and use their speed.
Intangibles: To paraphrase James Carville, it’s the quarterbacks, stupid. Any credible list of the state’s most dangerous dual threat QB’s must have Peabody’s Dominik Mercier (832 rushing yards 16 TDs; 1,100 passing yards, 13 TDs) and Billerica’s Jackson Gearin (over 2,000 career rushing yards, over 200 career tackles) near the top. The Tanners may have a slight edge in the passing game, but the bottom line is both teams feel very comfortable with the football — and the game — in their star signal caller’s hands. Come the fourth quarter Friday, one of them is going to take over and will his team to the Final Four.
Peabody wins if: It forces at least two turnovers. The Tanners are 6-0 when doing so this fall, and getting a couple may be the surest way to keep Billerica’s dangerous offense to a manageable point total.
Peabody loses if: It fails to convert in the red zone; you can’t leave points on the table in a potential shootout.
DANVERS
Record: 8-0
Division and Seeding: No. 3 seed in Division 4
Opponent: No. 6 Tantasqua Regional (7-2)
Where and when: Tonight at Deering Stadium, 6:30 p.m.
Previous playoff meetings: None
All-time record against: None
Last week: The Falcons survived a scare against visiting Bedford, hanging on for a 30-27 triumph at home in the rain. The Warriors of Tantasqua also had a close contest before taking out visiting Wayland, 27-21.
Key matchup: Danvers’ ground attack vs. the Tantasqua defense. Behind a large and athletic offensive line, the Falcons have run roughshod over most of their opponents this season while picking up 2,037 yards in eight games, averaging nearly 255 rushing yards a night. Junior Zach Fultz (886 yards, 15 TDs) and senior captain Jack Houston (705 yards, 4 TDs) have accounted for most of that damage. Can Tantasqua, which has only given up a combined 43 points in its four road games to date, slow them down and stop the hosts from putting up points? On what’s supposed to be a miserable evening weather-wise, holding on to the football and moving the chains consistently will go a long way towards achieving the success the Blue-and-White crave.
Intangibles: No doubt the DHS defense has been challenged by the coaching staff this week after giving up an un-Falcon-like 27 points a week ago. Can Julian Capece and his mates in the secondary come up big if Tantasqua is forced to go the air trying to catch up? Can ferocious Matt Nikiforov and the Danvers linebackers bring down Warrior ballcarriers on first contact? Can Nick Xerras, Hunter DeDominics and the defensive line get into the backfield and cause havoc? We’ll find out tonight.
Danvers wins if: They control the football via the ground, mix in the a surprise pass or two for big yardage, and lock it down defensively.
Danvers loses if: Tantasqua is able to exploit holes in the Danvers defense, control the clock and force the home team to play catch up.
ST. JOHN’S PREP
Record: 9-0
Division and Seeding: No. 1 seed in Division 1
Opponent: No. 9 Andover (6-3)
Where and when: Tonight at Glatz Field, 6 p.m.
Previous playoff meetings: St. John’s Prep has won two of the three encounters, with a 21-0 victory in the Division 1 North semifinals and a 35-7 pasting in the 2023 state semifinals. Andover won their 2016 matchup, 35-28, in the Division 1 North semifinals.
All-time record against: St. John’s Prep leads, 4-1
Last week: While sloppy at times, St. John’s Prep was never seriously threatened in a 35-7 first round home victory over Weymouth. Andover, behind 144 yards rushing and four touchdowns from Marcus DeJesus, walloped Franklin, 56-21.
Key matchup: St. John’s Prep defensive front vs. Andover backs. It’s been a great year for Eagle defensive ends Vinny Graziani and Jay Arnett, as well as D-tackles Leo Turosky and captain Will Seaha. By constantly pushing the offensive linemen trying to block them backwards and/or getting around them completely via a violent pass rush, they’ve prevented teams from chewing up yards on the ground while giving their fellow defenders confidence to drop back in 6- and even 7-man pass coverage at times. If they can continue to do so and make life miserable for not only DeJesus by also Kyle Olson and Golden Warriors quarterback John Stadler, it’ll be a long night for the visitors from the Merrimack Valley.
Intangibles: Andover has put up a ton of points (334) but also given up a lot (251). St. John’s Prep can virtually score at will (351 points) but has given up only 151 against a much tougher schedule. The thinking here is they’ll again do their thing offensively — especially if they get much more ball possession than they had a week ago — and then count on their defense to lock it down. We could see defensive back Dayvian Sullivan having a big game.
St. John’s Prep wins if: Maxwell Parent continues to pound away for big rushing totals, QB Chris Vargas does his Chris Vargas thing, and the Eagles’ overall intensity is ramped up from what it was a week ago.
St. John’s Prep loses if: They take Andover lightly or lose focus at any time.
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Moving The Chains, a column on North Shore high school football, appears each Friday during the fall sports season in The Salem News. Contact Phil Stacey @PhilStacey_SN and Matt Williams @MattWilliams_SN.