Game of the Week: Mounties Keep Egos, Opponents in Check
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — Every time the Mount Greylock Regional High School football team takes the field, it has two opponents: the opposing team and the danger of overconfidence.Mounties coach Shawn Flaherty has all the respect in the world for the first foe.
The latter? He does not give it much thought.
"I think myself and the staff have done a great job setting the tone right away in the film session last week," Flaherty said as his team gets ready for its second straight game against a second-place team in Berkshire County. "Last week, St. Joe was the team to beat. They were second in the league, and this was their opportunity.
"This week, it's Wahconah. They're on their way back. They're hungry. They've been super successful this year. They're now the No. 2 team in the league, and this is their opportunity.
"You put it in that perspective, and you say, 'You fought so hard to get to this point, and now we're going to become full of ourselves?'"
Truth be told, most people would understand if the Mounties (7-0 Berkshire County, 7-0 overall) did start feeling just a little too confident coming off a 44-6 win over the Crusaders (4-2, 5-2). And that is not even mentioning Mount Greylock's 33-game winning streak — a subject that gets mentioned far too much for Flaherty's taste.
"'Paranoid' is too strong a word with the streak, but you're in the papers all the time with 'the streak, the streak, the streak,' and it would be easy for them to be big-headed," he said. "But for us to play as well as we have ... I don't have any concerns about being overconfident."
Flaherty and his coaches had an easy sell this week with Wahconah (5-1, 5-2), which handed St. Joe its only other loss back in Week 1, a 14-6 decision in Pittsfield.
Wahconah is led by quarterback Lane Grogan, a double threat who has run for more than 400 yards and passed for more than 600.
Back in Week 2, Wahconah allowed Pittsfield 365 yards on the ground and nearly blew a 32-point half-time lead before prevailing, 40-36. But since then, coach Gary Campbell's squad has posted two shutouts. Wahconah has lost twice, but those came against Division 1 Northampton and Hoosac Valley (4-2, 4-3).
"They've gone back to basics and done good job," Flaherty said of Wahconah. "They block and they tackle. Their No. 1 threat is Grogan, who runs the ball well and has a great arm. He has great touch for the deeper ball, and they have a great crew of receivers.
"I think their defense definitely has improved throughout the season."
With two games left in the regular season Wahconah is the only Berkshire County team currently in the top four in the Western Massachusetts Division 2 power rankings. The Warriors are ranked second with 10.5 points; Hoosac is currently fifth with 8.5 points. The top four teams at the end of the season make the MIAA post-season.
In Division 3, Mount Greylock is in second place with 15.1 power-ranking points.
The Mounties feature one of the region's most powerful rushers in Ethan Ryan, who has gained more than 1,100 yards on the ground and scored 140 points — more than four different teams in the county have scored this fall.
Mount Greylock also allowed just 42 points (six points per game) — less than half the point total of the county's second-best defense, St. Joe, which has allowed 100 ... of course, nearly half of those points came last Friday night in Williamstown, which brings us back to the question of overconfidence for the Mounties.
"I think the thing that stands out for me is it's really about mental toughness," Flaherty said. "Are we going to be affected by all the excitement and all the hoopla around us. You've got to put that aside and stay focused."
Two things Flaherty does know: Playing with a target on your back means you've been winning, and winning sure beats losing.
"It's a double-edged sword, but you want to embrace that and savor it and enjoy the moment," he said. "There might be six or seven teams in the county that would love to play in a game of this magnitude."