It was the best of times it was the worst of times. This line has two meanings to me these days. One, it pretty much describes my experience the last couple of weeks with games and wings. Two, it also is the only sentence I read in tale of two cities (sorry High school English teachers). My wing choices have been a swing and a miss but the games are getting better as we get closer to the playoffs. Sometimes I think about it and it’s never a bad Friday night when you’re watching football.
This week for the first time I traveled north to Westfield, Massachusetts with great expectation for two football teams. The Springfield Central Golden Eagles and Westfield Bombers both hold 5-2 records going into the final week of the regular season. Central is a perennial powerhouse in Western Massachusetts with a 2018 State Championship under their belt. The Westfield Bombers are in playoff contention entering the game Friday night. Last season they went 8-3 with two of their losses coming from their opponent this Friday night. Both teams are jockeying for playoff position which should make for a competitive contest. Or so I thought.
As I pulled up to the sports bar this week my heart dropped into my stomach. The sign above read Shortstop Bar & Grill but through the window below told a different story. I was astonished to notice a fully operational gym as I looked thought the window. I thought to myself with the luck I have had with wings the place probably went out of business and I was going to end up reviewing their lat pulldown machine. My fear turned into relief as the building housing the gym and bar are apparently attached to each other. I am sure their elliptical machines are great but I was much more in the mood for wings. Entering the building I saw to my right an entrance to the gym and to my left an entrance to the bar. Naturally I took a hard left. Now this was more like it for sports bars. The U shaped bar wrapped around the restaurant with TVs visible from everywhere which means there isn’t a bad seat in the house. The bar was filled with neon beer signs accompanied by Boston’s professional team logos. I must admit this made me a little queasy but this is what I should expect in Westfield, Ma. 5 o’clock on a Friday the bar was crowded although I still got my favorite corner bar seat. The wait staff was buzzing around the busy restaurant still in the Halloween spirit. I ordered a “tall” beer and took a look at the wing menu.
The menu had a traditional wing sauce selection and a “special dry rub”. Tempting but I wasn’t going down that road again. Just like a coach who always runs the ball on first down I went conservative with six mild and six honey BBQ. The wings came out very quickly and were piping hot. They had a traditional presentation coming in wax paper in a basket, with celery and blue cheese. The wings were cooked and seasoned well, the meat was tender and skin crispy. One issue they had was the mild wings looked to have minimal sauce. Like a coach who puts his third down back on the field for more speed, I needed more sauce. In desperate pursuit to find good wings, I flagged down a waiter. I asked him for a side of the mild wing sauce. When the side of mild sauce came out I applied it myself. Applying the sauce yourself is not the same as the wings being tossed but the mild sauce had good spice and an orange smooth texture to it. Overall, these wings were very good despite me having to apply the sauce myself. Eating wings in a real sports bar also enhances the wing experience. These wings are a 3.5 star recruit. They are a 3 year starter at middle linebacker who makes a lot of tackles but has to come off the field on 3rd down because they don’t have enough speed (sauce). A real solid wing though.
The person I chose this week to be my “Wingman” is as about as solid as gets, Liam Kenny. I met Liam when I started coaching at New Milford High School and he was a sophomore slot receiver. He was a solid player at the high school level but I didn’t really get to know him until the spring going into his senior year. We were at an off-season Sunday 7 on 7 passing league and I was short on linebackers. Liam looked at me and asked if he could play on that side of the ball. During this time we had a ton of receivers on the team, he was caught in numbers game, and wasn’t getting a lot of playing time. As a defensive coach I always looked for wide receivers that we could turn into defensive players. During my time at New Milford we turned receivers into defensive backs, linebackers, and even defensive ends. The philosophy for me was they understood offensive football which gave them a mental advantage. They could diagnose what the offense was trying to do faster because they had done it themselves before on offense. After a quick tutorial of the position on the sideline he took to the position naturally and we never looked back after that. He had a solid senior season but his value was very much like a coach on the field. He could get any position lined up and communicate to me what the other team was running. He was a true student of the game, a hard worker in the weight room, and the kind of player a coach loves. Even after lacrosse was done his senior year he came back to help me coach linebackers during spring football. Being the son of a football coach (Paul Kenny 27 years at Dover High School in New York) he was again a natural. He worked really well with the younger players who respected him from watching him lead by example the fall prior. He is now at Springfield College a student/athlete on the lacrosse team and majoring in exercise science with military aspirations after he graduates. I have no doubt he will once again be a natural at that as well.
Liam was waiting on campus after a Lacrosse workout for me to pick him up for the game. We headed off to Westfield High School a short 20 minute trip from Springfield College. We pulled up to the high school and quickly realized the game was not at this location. If you ask my wife she would tell you any trip you take with me is not complete without getting lost at least once. As I drove around the school in utter darkness Liam made me realize something. I was driving on sidewalk. I guess since he’s not my eyes on the field anymore he could be my eyes in the car. I pulled over in the parking lot to check the email that was sent to me by the Athletic Director of Westfield High School. It turns out if I read it right the game is actually at Bullen’s Field eight minutes down the road. We were running late and the parking lot was packed. I snagged the first parking spot I could find and we walked up to the field. The first thing you notice as you’re walking to the field is the grass. Turf fields are such the norm today it was nice to be able to watch a game on grass. The venue was an old school high school stadium. There where stands on sides, a well-manicured grass field, and a no frills high school scoreboard. As we walked to Central’s side of the field, right in front of us we saw the first of what ended up being many big plays by Golden Eagles.
Joseph Griffin Jr. a 6’4” 195 pound receiver skied over the head of a bombers defender for a 32 yard Touchdown catch. This play was followed by a consecutive group of plays that I have never seen before. The next possession, defensive back Jose Nieves picked off an errant pass and returned it 52 yards for the next score. After another 3 and out for Westfield the Golden Eagles offense went back to work. Freshman Qb Will Watson threw a dart right on the money to last year’s starting Qb Isaac Boston for a 74 yard Touchdown to bring the score to 18-0. Drive number three was more of the same as runningback Marcus Crawford took the handoff and glided through the defense weaving his way to a 29 yard touchdown. The run was led by a big pancake block by sophomore center Travis Gause. In case you’re keeping score at home that’s 4 touches of the football for 4 scores. The extra point was finally booted through after 3 misses which drew a big cheer for the Central High faithful. The Golden Eagles weren’t quite done yet. The next drive Andre Ellison joined the scoring barrage by taking a jet sweep 47 yards to the house. After forcing a bombers punt Tyson Thornton took the punt and was not going to be denied as he returned it 45 yards for a touchdown. Thornton is one of the biggest punt returners I’ve ever seen at 6’0” 225 lbs. To close the first half scoring Will Watson scrambled to the outside 30 yards to build the score to 44-0 at halftime. That would be 7 touches for 7 touchdowns.
I have never seen anything like it. Every player that touched the football ran with an “I will not be denied attitude”. Without a doubt Central is an athletic group but they played discipline fundamentally sound football as well. When you combine those attributes you’re going to be extremely hard to beat. I asked a fan about Central. He told me how hard they train in the off season. He said how a lot of the guys wrestle and play multiple sports. The opening victory (40-12) over Everett High School (8-1) he mentions is what galvanized this team this season. The final scores was 58-0 clinching a number two seed in next week playoffs.
We thought about leaving at half time but decided to stick around and talk a little bit about a variety of things. We talked about Springfield Lacrosse, how physical a team they are, and that he is extremely excited about the upcoming season. I talked about traveling coach and how much fun it’s been this season seeing football from the another perspective. I brought up something with Liam that we rarely talked about before even though we talk, text, and get together as frequently as we can. Liam is one of four siblings and his older brother Greg was born with Down syndrome. Greg was a part of the football team during my first year coaching at New Milford High school. I saw Liam help his brother everyday get ready for practice and games. Even when he was hurting after games he always had a duty to his brother. I admired his patience and selflessness. This is something I never had to deal with as a coach. Having patients was never one of my strong suits. I often felt guilty that I was uncomfortable at times trying to figure out how to coach Greg. Watching Liam over the year’s coach his brother with a maturity beyond his years is great example of how it’s supposed be done.
Liam wanted to grab something to eat so I figured why not double down on wing reviews this weekend. So we head over to the Hangar Pub & Grill which was a recommendation from a friend of Liam’s from the area. The recommendation was spot on. This was a legit college sports bar. This bar was loaded with TVs, pool tables, a game room, booths and high top tables. The bar area was large with patrons locked into the 4th quarter of the Celtics/Knicks game. The most impressive part of this bar was the wing sauce selection. The Hanger offers 25 sauces and dry rubs of varying spice and heat levels. However, in the interest of fairness and my 90 minute ride home I decided to order mild or as they called it Cruising Altitude. I ordered six wings and a diet coke (so cliché). The wings came out and as a contrast from my wings earlier they had an excellent coating of sauce. They were medium sized wings and where well cooked. They had a good crunch. The mild sauce had a good flavor and the heat was just right. These wings where definitely a 4 star recruit. The kind of 4 stars that starts as a freshman starts at defensive end and becomes a first round pick. In fact you like this recruit so much you come back to recruit his brothers as well ala the Bosa’s (Nick & Joey). This is definitely a place I would return to so I could sample more of the sauces.
We finished our meal and made our way back to Springfield’s campus. I dropped Liam off and made my way back home. These rides home always make me reflect on coaching. It makes me reflect on how many games, bus rides, and moments I’ve experienced over the years. Liam was one of those unique players that used his mind to gain success. He is the definition of a coach’s player. He wasn’t all-state or even all-conference when he played but he is an all-football guy in my book. Any lessons he may have learned from me, I in turn learned just as many from him.
Next week we are local:
Game: Bunnell @ Newtown 7pm
Grub: Cover 2 sports bar
WEEK 9 : SPRINGFIELD STAMPEDE
