Canton Patch Athlete of the Week: The Blue Hills Football Team

It all started way back on December 4, 2010. The Blue Hills’ Regional Technical School Football team was playing in the. It was the second time that the Warriors played in a Super Bowl. The first time, in 1984, was a defeat, and in 2010, the Warriors had a bye and awaited Shawsheen, a victor in the semifinals. Unfortunately, for Blue Hills it lost and still remained without a post-season win or Super Bowl Title.

Right after that heartbreaking loss, a year ago, the 22-members of the class of 2012 got the team together and made a commitment to work as hard as they could and win the Super Bowl in 2011.

The Blue Hills’ players worked real hard in the off-season and came back to school ready to go. The team would be under the guidance of head coach and Athletic Director Ed Catabia and his staff.

Right away, the Warriors dominated with a strong defense and an offense that could run and pass and protect the quarterback. Blue Hills would rush for over 2500 yards and pass for six touchdowns throughout the regular season, but the strong offense would be matched by a superior defense.

Blue Hills would outscore its opponents by a whopping 348-50 over 11 games, with the starting defense allowing only two touchdowns throughout the regular season. The Warriors would have six shutouts and clinch the Mayflower (Large) Division with three games remaining. They would be a perfect 5-0 in league play and finish the regular season 10-1, for a second straight season. The only setback was a close 14-8 battle against non-league Greater Lawrence, after starting the season 9-0 with the six shutouts and running a regular season winning streak to 19 games over two seasons.

Blue Hills then advanced to the playoffs, and a rematch against East Boston, a team that the Warriors had dominated the last two regular seasons, including this year’s season-opener. A miracle finish, 25-22, on a winning field goal by a player who never kicked on a team that never kicked. It would be the school’s first-ever post-season win, and a sense of a magical and special ending of the season was in the air, and a return trip to the Super Bowl.

Then the journey came full circle, a year to the day of the team’s bitter 2010 Super Bowl defeat and the vow it wouldn’t happen again. Blue Hills would be disappointed that it would again not get a chance to play at Gillette Stadium the home of the New England Patriots, but that would be the end of the disappointment.

The team would play at Bentley University, and like the Patriots, Blue Hills would finally be successful in its third appearance (1984, 2010, 2011). Last Saturday, the Warriors got off to a quick start and a 16-0 lead after one quarter, but had to hold on to defeat Cathedral, 16-14, for the Division 4A State Championship. Blue Hills became the first-ever Vocational School in Massachusetts to advance to two consecutive Super Bowls and win one.

Blue Hills’ one year journey and commitment to avenge its heartbreak Super Bowl defeat had been successfully completed through hard work and a total team effort.

We salute the Athlete(s)-Of-The-Week, the Blue Hills Football Team for its first State Title and Division 4A Super Bowl victory.

“This was a total team effort and I would like to thank my Assistant Coaches for preparing the team for every game. They are Michael Walsh, Edward Madden, Brian Murphy, Dave Walsh (Michael’s dad) and Matt McGaughey, with Madden and McGaughey being former players for me. This was my first senior class that I’ve coached from start to finish and I would like to thank them for their leadership and setting a great example and work ethic. I would also like to thank the entire team for its hard work, trusting us coaches and buying into our system and for playing for us and giving us an exciting season. This is my 33rd year, but my fourth as head coach and Athletic Director and I’ll never forget this team and this season," Ed Catabia, Blue Hills’ Head Coach and Athletic Director.