By Cary Shuman
These are the football games in which you want to compete as a Winthrop football Viking.
Your biggest rival. A large hometown crowd led by the phenomenal support of the spirited student body. NEC title implications.
Add in the fact that it is Winthrop Senior Night, and Miller Field should be rocking and rolling Thursday night when the Big Blue of Swampscott come to town.
“Obviously Swampscott’s been a great program throughout their history,” said Winthrop head coach Jon Cadigan. “It’s always been a good game, a good rivalry. All the other stuff just adds to it – two teams with pretty good records, Senior Night, all that stuff.”
Winthrop (3-2), coming off a bye week, is playing its best football of the season, having outscored their past two opponents, Danvers and Saugus by a 76-19 margin. Swampscott (3-2) showed its firepower last week in a 27-6 win over Gloucester.
Senior captain Matt Noonan has emerged as an All-NEC-caliber quarterback. Noonan has handled the offense very well. He perfectly executed a screen pass to Will Murphy for a touchdown versus Saugus.
“That’s our screen, off of buck sweep, which is one of our top plays,” said Cadigan. “That play has been very effective for us.”
The backfield of All-Scholastic Nick Cappuccio, arriving star Will Murphy, and super-consistent Seth Sacco has been basically unstoppable the past two games. Senior Sean Dolen is also making a huge impact.
Swampscott’s most impressive victory was a 41-12 decision over Peabody. The Big Blue run their customary spread offense.
“They’re a complete team with a very good offense,” said Cadigan. “Their special teams are very well coached, and I think that’s one of the areas where they take advantage of their opponents. They have two kickoff returns for touchdowns this season. It’s going to take a total team effort. I do think we’re equipped to handle it.”
In addition to the NEC South Division title likely on the line, both teams are looking to enhance their standing in the MIAA Power Rankings.