I had a chance to catch up with Methuen’s Drew Eason after his commitment to Stonehill on Tuesday.

Eason has been one of the most prolific passers in Massachusetts the past four years. He was a big factor in the resurgence of the Methuen football program in recent years and led the Rangers to the Division One semi-finals in 2022.

Now Eason moves on to Stonehill to play for coach Eli Gardner and the Skyhawks. He is excited about the opportunity to play Division One College Football at a school like Stonehill. 

Here is what Eason had to say after his commitment.

NEFJ: What ultimately led you to commit to Stonehill? What did you like about the program and the school?

DE: “There was a bunch of things that lead me to commit to Stonehill. The academics are great which will help me propel my goal of going into med school afterwards. The coaching staff is all very young and very knowledgeable with the game of football and really are setting this program up for success down the road. All the players there have a similar mentality to me and truly love the game of football with self development always on the mind. Stonehill is close to home which is awesome. And they gave me a pretty good offer which was the final piece.”

NEFJ: What does Coach Gardner and Coach Moody envision for you? Can compete for the starting job at some point?

DE: “They expect me to come in and give it 100% effort like I always do and compete for the job.  They said I’ll be able to compete for the starting job right away, ultimately whoever is the best and getting the job done regardless of age will be the one playing is what they envision.”

NEFJ: How excited are you to be committed to a school and be done with the process? 

DE: “I am very relieved to finally be done with this process. It is a huge weight that has finally been lifted off my shoulders. A ton of stress has finally gone away and I can really enjoy being apart of the Stonehill community now. I can really start to focus even more now on basketball, volleyball and developing as a football player.”

NEFJ: How much did playing close to home factor into your decision? 

DE: “I wouldn’t want to say that being close to home was necessarily a huge factor but it was definitely a big plus. Ultimately I wanted to go to a school where I felt at home and could succeed at. If it were to be a school far away then so be it but if it is close to home I only see that as a good thing. So in the end it’s awesome to be close to home and I’m really happy about it but a lot of other things came into play in the decision.”

Eason has good size at 6-2 190. He is athletic in and out of the pocket and can make throws in all three levels. He will be a great system fit for the Skyhawks.

Drew has been a pleasure to cover the past four years. He is mature beyond his years. He is talented young man who will do great things on and off the football field. We at NEFJ wish him the best of luck.