About 10 minutes after the loss to Xaverian Brothers on Friday night, which followed the handshake line, the team prayer, the President’s address – Chris Sulllivan spoke to the team – and a quick few comments from coach John Sexton, came the coach’s dreaded meeting with the press … me.
It wasn’t supposed to be like this at the beginning of Sexton’s football head coaching experience.
He was the offensive coordinator on Chuck Adamopoulos’ staff for 13 years. He’s at the school every day, entering his third year as a teacher. Heck, he’s also the school’s baseball coach since November of 2018.
This was supposed to be, well, seamless, right?
Heck, Adamopoulos, the future Hall of Fame coach, is still hanging around as some sort of consultant/advisor, finding a place in the press box on game days.
Ahh, but nothing in life is seamless, particularly when you schedule non-league opponents like Central does and your starter quarterback, committed to Clemson University, is probably gone for the year.
Sexton, who wears a poker face better than most coaches, happy, mad or sad, couldn’t hide the pain, the dejected feeling that has taken over his body.
In between his comments he said, “We need really a win.”
Friday night’s loss was a lot like the other three losses. Central couldn’t get out of its own way, clawed back, couldn’t get out of its own way again, and lost the good fight.
Central did everything right in the comeback.
Its defense became stout, gang-tackling and slowing down Xaverian’s big, powerful Sean Bernier.
Then new Central quarterback Jaxon Pereira, who was one of the area’s top defensive backs, literally ran his team back into the game, moving the ball, sometimes at will, faking a pass (4-for-14, 27 yards) and taking off.
But two bad illegal procedure (moving early) penalties, both when Central was “going for it” on fourth down, one inside the 5-yard line, ruined possible game-tying drives.
Oh yeah, there was that missed screen pass, which was a great call by coaches with Xaverian blitzing, that could’ve also scored a long touchdown.
Oh yeah, again, Xaverian quarterback Henry Hasselbeck, who is headed to Michigan St. next year, ended up being more of a weapon with his legs – two long touchdown runs of 34 and 41 yards – more than his rifle arm.
The bottom line is Central and its new head coach ran into a buzzsaw on its schedule and it wasn’t ready to win.
Well, I got some news for you. Central is close. and I mean that literally and figuratively.
Best way for me deciding if a coach has got it or doesn’t, is how they are doing when things are going bad.
Central football was fighting the entire way, when things didn’t look good early, down 14-0, and late, down 28-14.
They just weren’t ready.
I’m guessing that will change soon. Other than having zero wins in the first week of October, they still look like “Central Catholic,” with just a few kinks to work out.
Stay tuned.
You can email Bill Burt at bburt@eagletribune.com.