Perfection is within reach of Fitchburg
Red Raiders have history on their side 
Friday, December 04, 1998

By Dave Nordman
Sports Editor 
FITCHBURG -- The last time the Fitchburg High football team
played a Western Mass. opponent the Boston Bruins were big
and bad and on their way to their last Stanley Cup, Richard
Nixon was president of the United States and the New England
Patriots were playing in 2-year-old Shaeffer, Sullivan,
Foxboro Stadium.

In 1972, Red Raiders coach Ray Cosenza was a budding
freshman at St. John's High in Shrewsbury. It was also the
year Fitchburg, led by coach Marco Landon, defeated
Greenfield, 22-6, in the first-ever Central-Western
Mass. Division 1 Super Bowl played at Springfield College.

Twenty-six years later, the only thing that stands between
Fitchburg (11-0) and its first unbeaten and untied season
since 1933 is Western Mass. foe Springfield Cathedral
(10-0).

Live on the radio

The Red Raiders and Panthers will square off at 3:30
p.m. Saturday on the Omni Turf at WPI in Worcester. The game
will be aired live on WEIM (AM-1280) beginning at 3:15 p.m.

"There are a lot of unknowns with a game like this," said
Cosenza, whose team will be making its seventh Super Bowl
appearance in eight seasons. They are 2-4 in those
games. "We've exchanged two game films and from what we've
been able to see, they are a very impressive team."

Cosenza is not alone in his assessment. The New England
Sports Network (NESN) lists Springfield Cathedral as the
seventh best team in New England, while the network ranks
Fitchburg eighth.

"We've been in a lot of these games this year," Cosenza
said. "We beat Brockton on the road and, of course, nothing
compares to Thanksgiving. The kids know what this game is
all about. They know what's at stake."

Indeed. Big games are nothing new to the Red Raiders, who
have beaten the likes of Nashoba, Brockton, North Middlesex,
Westboro and Leominster this season.

Business as usual

"We're not going to do anything different," said Cosenza,
whose team pounded Milford, 50-0, in their last Super Bowl
appearance, the Central Mass. Division 1 title game, two
years ago. "We're going to go with what got us here. We'll
run the ball and try to wear them down."

In other words: if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

That means fullback Dustin LeBlanc and tailback Andy LeBlanc
will each carry the ball about 20 times behind a mammoth
line that features the likes

of tackles Keith Leavitt (6-foot-8, 285), Derek Johnson
(6-1, 240), guards Matt Hudson (6-2, 240) and P.J. Roy
(5-10, 255) and center B.J. Keenan (6-0, 200).

Dustin LeBlanc, a 5-9, 195-pounder, is at his best when he's
buries his head and runs straight ahead, while Andy LeBlanc,
at 5-10, 185, specializes in running off tackle and around
tight end Andy Roy, one of the best run blockers on the
team.

Dustin has rushed for over 1,500 yards and a Montachusett
Region high 17 touchdowns this season, while Andy has added
1,200 yards and 16 touchdowns. The pair totaled 319 yards
and a pair of touchdowns in the Red Raiders' 21-7 victory
over rival Leominster on Thanksgiving Day, a game which
Fitchburg amassed nearly 400 yards on the ground as a team.

When the Red Raiders aren't pounding the ball down your
throat, they'll surprise you with an occasional pass. The
combination has proved effective all season, keeping
opposition defenses from overpursuing the run.

As they did last week against Leominster, quarterbacks Dave
Masciarelli and Jason Twomley will again share the duties
behind center against Cathedral.

Masciarelli, a senior captain, will start his first game
since suffering a hip-pointer back on Halloween eve. One of
the team's leaders, on and off the field, Masciarelli has
thrown for seven touchdowns, while Twomley, a sophomore, has
thrown six in four games, including a 50-yard screen pass to
Dustin LeBlanc last week.

The wideouts will be a pair of seniors, Dallas Heckel (6-0,
180) and Tom Snow (5-8, 175). The two have given opponents'
defensive backs fits all season. Snow had the best game of
his career (3 TDs) in the Red Raiders' win over Division 2
Super Bowl participant Westboro on Nov. 13.

Fitchburg High School Athletics and Competition Home Page