At Milford High, the Scarlet Hawks are feeling confident as the team goes through camp and prepares for the 2023 season.
Last year, Milford finished with a 9-2 record and reached the MIAA Division 2 Final Four. Now, Milford seems ready to translate a hard-nosed camp into a productive season while the team makes the move down to Division 3.
THREE OBSERVATIONS:
The team is ready for the move to Division 3 –One of the biggest changes for Milford this year will be the competition they find themselves up against if the Scarlet Hawks can make the state tournament for the third consecutive season. After falling in the Division 2 semifinals in each of the last two tournaments, Milford has been realigned to play in Division 3 this year, a division featuring the likes of defending-champion Wakefield, Milton, Hanover and Hockomock League-rival North Attleboro. At camp, the Scarlet Hawks were excited by the opportunity to prove themselves against new competition.
“Division 3 is definitely a loaded division,” Milford head coach Dale Olson said. “There’s going to be a lot of good football teams.”
“We feel very confident in the new division,” Milford senior captain OL/DL Keith Lee said. “In division two, we saw a lot more Hockomock teams like King Philip and Mansfield. It’s hard to play them in the regular season and then see them again in the playoffs because both teams know each other’s stuff. It’s good for us to be in a different division than those two, to feel more comfortable and see less familiar faces.”
No Wrong Answers at QB – With the graduation of signal caller Evan Cornelius, Milford will be starting a new quarterback for the first time since 2021. And unlike the case when Cornelius took over as a junior, there is not a clear-cut number one heading into camp.
The ongoing competition is between senior Owen Callahan and junior Jack Buckley. Callahan, a lengthy, left-hander with a bit more varsity experience than Buckley, showed quick feet between the tackles and a good delivery of the ball during Monday afternoon’s non-padded practice.
Buckley, a taller, right-handed thrower, showed that he and Milford’s offensive play callers were comfortable calling bootleg and designed run plays for the quarterback. Buckley most resembles Cornelius’ build and presence with the Scarlet Hawks’ offense last year.
Despite their different styles, Milford players and coaches are both confident in either player winning the job.
“I like the two guys we have here competing for the job,” Olson said. “Hopefully within the next week or two we’ll know who the guy is.”
Said Olson, “Both of our quarterbacks have been really grinding. Whoever it is, I feel comfortable with.”
Expect toughness and physicality alongside whichever starting QB – With losing Cornelius, Milford also graduated some other impactful names offensively in the backfield and the trenches. RB Romeo Holland was a big-play waiting to happen in the Scarlet Hawks’ backfield last season and ran behind an offensive line that was anchored by then-senior Ryan O’Connor, who’s now playing collegiately at Division 1 Bucknell.
Olson believes the offense can be retooled alongside either quarterback with the addition of bruising running backs and two new, 6’5+ tackles to accompany the three returners on the inside of the line: Anthony Dew, Oliver McKee, and Keith Lee.
From Coach:
“We have a good system in place, but we try to adapt to the players we have and their talents,” Olson said. “We’re going to be big and physical this year with a couple of new faces on the line and… three running backs over two-hundred pounds that like to run the ball between the tackles.”
Milford will open up their season at Bridgewater-Raynham on September 8th at 7 P.M.