After a winless 2009 season, the Haverhill football team is back with a vengeance, with a new coach, philosophy and attitude to start the 2010 campaign.
In the mid-August heat, 35 players showed up to the high school weight room on Monday, Aug. 9, to continue training for the season.
New head coach Tim O'Connor brings a wealth of high school coaching experience to Haverhill. He spent three years at Malden Catholic, where he coached the freshman team and worked his way up to the varsity squad. He then spent a year at Marblehead High School as the offensive line coach and offensive coordinator. Then came four years as defensive coordinator, one at Peabody and three at Malden High School. He spent last year as Marblehead's defensive coordinator, and says that the Haverhill coaching position was particularly exciting because of the program's reputation and room for growth.
"What enticed me was the potential," O'Connor said. "With a program this size, with this history, it has no place to go but up."
And it should. After a dismal 2009 campaign that resulted in then-coach Tim Briggs' departure to Andover High School, O'Connor sees the talent on the current squad and says that a total bottom-out isn't necessary.
"(The program) doesn't have to be rebuilt," he said. "It has to be rejuvenated through hard work. I'm here six days a week. It's about getting everyone on the same page."
He's been successful so far, says senior wideout and cornerback Jeromy Waterman.
"We're starting to connect," Waterman said. "(Coach O'Connor) is bringing us closer and made us more of a family."
O'Connor, who played collegiate ball at Wesleyan as a defensive lineman, teaches sixth-grade social studies at Malden Middle School and hopes to one day teach at Haverhill High.
The coach is bringing new offensive and defensive philosophies to the team. The previous offense was a veer offense, which is a system that focuses on ball control and can help minimize mismatches. It is known for its conservative, grind-it-out-type style that showcases the running game. It usually features the quarterback under center with two halfbacks split behind him, giving the team three running options per play.
This won't be the style under O'Connor, who expects to completely change the offense to a spread scheme, featuring a minimum of three wide receivers on each play.
"We're going to throw the ball 70 percent of the time," he said. "Lots of motion. We're going to use our speed to make up for our lack of size. (This will) allow our playmakers to get outside."
On defense, O'Connor is a self-proclaimed "zone guy." Because of a lack of speed on the outside, he says he'd rather have a guy cover an area than get burned down the sideline for a long completion.
"A zone is a safer defense for a first-year, new defensive philosophy," he said.
The zone O'Connor will utilize is either the common 3-4, where each of the four linebackers will patrol a certain section of the field, or a 3-5-3, where an additional player from the defensive backfield would be placed closer to the line to help with short passes and perimeter running plays.
For now, though, the team is focusing on hitting the gym. O'Connor says seniors Brett Pettis, David Herook and Waterman have been leading the way in showing the team the work ethic it'll need to get better.
"(These guys) have just been consistent in the weight room," he said, "really helping with the younger players."
While O'Connor doesn't expect success overnight, he wants to see continual progress and give the fans a competitive product each time the Hillies take the field.
Waterman agreed.
"We need to get this thing back rolling," he said.
The Hillies' first practice is on Monday, Aug. 23, at 4 p.m.
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