The Hockomock League is widely considered one of the top public school leagues in the state of Massachusetts. The league is strong in all sports, specifically football.
One of the strengths of the league is it’s coaches. The programs in the league have been well coached for years, specifically the old “Big Three” of Foxboro, Mansfield and North Attleboro. Jack Martinelli is still coaching at Foxboro and Mike Redding is still manning the sideline at Mansfield. Martinelli won his 300th game last season and Redding is not too far behind.
The league did experience some coaching changes this off-season as two familiar faces moved on. After 13 seasons at Sharon, Dave Morse left the program. Morse did a terrific job leading the Eagles to an EMass Division 3 state title in 2012.
Morse was replaced by Sharon alumnus and former Carver coach Ben Shuffain. Shuffain is a terrific replacement for Morse, especially this late in the process. He took Carver to the Division 8 Super Bowl last season and is a proven program builder.
When asked why he decided to apply for the Sharon job, Shuffain said it was all about timing.
“There are a lot of of coaches in the Hock that have been there for decades and Coach Morse had been there since 2011. If I passed on it now, I’m not sure that there would ever be a good time again.”
Franklin also saw a coaching change for the first time in eight years after Eian Bain left the program in April to take over at Bridgewater-Raynham. It was a tough decision for Bain but he lives in Raynham and it was the right move for his family.
After an extensive search, Franklin did not have to look very far for Bain’s replacement. In fact, the program’s next head coach resided in a neighboring community.
Todd Kiley, who led Holliston Football for 20 years and won three Super Bowls was ready for a new challenge and applied for the job. He was hired after going through the process.
For Kiley, the opportunity to takeover a program like Franklin and to coach in the Hockomock League was too good to pass up.
“Having said all that, to leave a place where I’m extremely happy, that we’ve loved for 20 years, it speaks volumes for the opportunity that presents itself at Franklin. I just saw it as a phenomenal opportunity. I’m extremely hungry for a new challenge. I’ll miss Holliston dearly, but I’m excited for this new challenge to be able to coach – in my opinion – the best league in the state.”
Milford Coach Dale Olson said it best when asked about the hires.
“Two great coaches replacing two great coaches.”
Olson would know a thing or two about good coaching. He and his brother Dana have transformed Milford Football into a perennial title contender. The two won back to back state titles at Millis-Hopedale in 2016 and 2017.
Brian Lee, led the King Philip Warriors to the Division Two state title this past season and won his 150th game at Fenway Park. He is one of the top coaches in the league and proof of what a coach could build if he gets the buy-in.
Lee said that it speaks to the reputation of the Hockomock League that Kiley and Shuffain wanted to coach in the league.
“It says a lot about the Hock and the competitiveness of the league. Guys don’t usually leave good jobs but coaching in the Hock is special. Every week is a battle.”
Lee continued: “Two good coaches leave the league and two good coaches enter the league. For us, nothing will change. We expect that both programs will be well coached.”
As someone who has coached in the Hockomock League for years, I can attest to how good the coaching is. Coach Bain and Coach Morse built good programs at Franklin and Sharon. Now Coach Kiley and Coach Shuffain have an opportunity to take each program to another level in the coming years.