By Mike Sidhly
NEFJ Correspondent

WESTWOOD – For the last few seasons, Xaverian football has owned MIAA Division 1 winning three consecutive state titles after its 41-35 victory against St. John’s last year.

Now gunning for their fourth in a row, Xaverian kicks their season off on September 11th against Bishop Feehan.

Focusing On The Present – For coach Al Fornaro and his staff, the focus remains in the here and now.

“Beat Feehan. Bishop Feehan is our first opponent, last year is last year,” he said bluntly.

“Our aspiration is to get better everyday. When we go into a game, get better every series, every quarter, every half, every game. If we win? Great!. If they give their all, the scoreboard is for the fans, I don’t care about that. Just get better.”

Xaverian’s Star QB Is Always Improving – Attending Xaverian’s practice today, it’s evident that getting better is truly the goal day in and day out. Just listen to senior quarterback Will Wood, who recently committed to Penn State. He’s been hard at work perfecting his craft for the upcoming year.

“I wanted to get bigger, faster, stronger in the weight room. On the field, I think it was big play emphasis for me,” he said.

“A couple weeks after the season I wanted to work on tightening some things up mechanically, in my backstroke. Then just becoming more consistent and more intentional with my footwork.”

Everything was intentional on Monday, there was very little wasted time. Even when Will wasn’t needed on the field, he was throwing on the sideline to stay sharp.

The Devil Is In The Details – In defensive line drills, the emphasis was about exploding from the hips, while making sure not to jump offsides.

During seven-on-seven work, positional coaches would step in after every rep to go over adjustments with their group, ensuring every detail was accounted for.

The safeties were really honing in on assignments, and what to do on certain route concepts based on alignment. Though Xaverian wasn’t in pads today, the intensity lasted from agility drills until the end of team sessions.

“There’s only two speeds here,” said Fornaro. “Full speed, or walk through”.

For Xaverian’s Committed Players, They’ll Be Looking For Big Performances This Season – It’s no secret that Three Star QB Will Wood will be taking his talents to Penn State next year, but senior offensive lineman Jack Warren will also be playing at the next level, for Villanova in 2026.

Both players are looking to really hit the ground running this season in order to prepare themselves for the next level.

“Obviously I want to get better every day,” said Warren in regards to his preparation for the college landscape. “It starts in practice and games. Just getting better, that’s pretty much it.”

For Wood, he’s looking to see himself jump to new heights in order to affirm that power four status.

“I’m just looking to see the improvements I made and how it shows up,” he said. “Just to be better on time and become a better passer in the pocket – take that with me into college”

This Team Is Primed For No. Four – Xaverian is very confident that they have the right team to go for their four championship in a row.

“We’re different, we have a lot of guys that want to prove themselves, and may not be as well known. We’re just excited to play football and be back for week one at home,” said Wood.

Warren shared similar sentiments.

“It’s a blank slate, we’re going into it with the mindset that this is a new year and we need to make our own name”, he said.