MC-Peabody looks to be pretty even

One came to his current coaching position after successful stops at other schools. The other spent 20 years as an assistant before landing the top job. But regardless of their differing paths, Scott Wlasuk of Peabody and Robert Almeida of Malden Catholic will arrive at the same destination on Thanksgiving: the concluding game of an inaugural season.The game will feature two opponents whose records stand one game apart. MC comes in with a 5-5 record, while Peabody stands at 4-6. Each coach has found highlights and challenges this season, as well as players who have emerged as leaders when their team takes to the gridiron.Tanners back on targetWhen Wlasuk – who once played Peabody football himself, for Art Adamopoulos – assumed the reins of Peabody this year, he inherited a program whose seniors had played for three coaches in three seasons. The Tanners had endured one-win seasons the previous two years. He said that realistically, a turnover would not occur overnight.”We have a whole new offensive and defensive system,” Wlasuk said, “and a strong influence on improving the kicking game. Things started moving pretty smoothly.”Wlasuk praised the efforts of several players, including tri-captains Tom Ciulla, Kevin Bettencourt (850 rushing yards and “our leader on defense”), and Nick Hiou (836 yards, 8 TDs). Junior Mark D’Addario racked up over 600 yards at halfback and tailback, and Howard Brown, a 6-4, 275-pound two-way tackle, has played well on the line since coming over from the West Coast (he is a transfer from what his coach called a small community in California). Several players have come back from injuries incurred last season. Anthony Panopoulos sustained a fractured vertebra in his back last season, and Ciulla has come back after undergoing shoulder surgery in the offseason. Justin Provencher and Will DeRoo have impressed in the kicking game.Peabody has quadrupled its win total from the last two seasons, often in exciting fashion. The Tanners defeated Arlington on Provencher’s 35-yard field goal with 37 seconds left (Bettencourt’s 99-yard touchdown run also helped). They sealed a victory over Danvers on Jon Balcacer’s last-minute interception.Against Lynn Classical, they roared back from a 14-0 deficit in the first five minutes, then rallied from another deficit and ran the clock out.Then, facing Salem, Bettencourt rushed for 150 yards at fullback and Jeff Egitto and Panopoulos combined for a game-ending sack with the Witches on the Peabody five-yard line.Intensive? Maybe not, for a coach who gets by on two-hour increments of sleep due to his other commitment, serving as a lieutenant on the Peabody police force.”it’s tough sometimes,” Wlasuk said. “I drink a lot of coffee. I think a lot is just adrenaline. I love coaching, being around a football field. I love doing something positive for student-athletes. Even if they do not play at the next level, they can go on to a good college.”MC seeks winning seasonAlmeida has enjoyed success at his previous coaching stop, Wilmington High School. Before he took over in 1996 as its head coach, the program had not had a winning season in 12 years.Over his 12-year tenure, Wilmington averaged almost nine wins a year. That span also included four league titles and a trip to the playoffs in 2004, where the team lost to Hingham.Then the chance intervened to take over the struggling Lancers.”I’ve never been interested in taking over a program at its best,” Almeida said. “You kind of know where to go. At MC, we’d be able to turn the program into one of the outstanding Division 1 programs.”After 10 games into his first season, Almeida has found moments to savor, including his first victory at MC, over Lowell, as well as decisions over Woburn, Burlington, and another former coaching stop, Somerville. (He spent time there as both an assistant and a head coach.)There was also, however, an introduction to joining the Catholic Conference. The Lancers went 0-4 against Boston College High, St. Jo