The end of the 2016 football season left a sour taste in the mouths of the Lynn English Bulldogs. English held a lead over rival Classical with just eight seconds to play before Marcus Rivera scored the game-winning touchdown on an 83-yard kick return to stun the Bulldogs and give the Rams a Thanksgiving Day victory.
But with the start of the 2017 season quickly approaching the Bulldogs, which finished last season at 2-9, are ready to put their 2016 campaign behind them. With team players like senior Jacob Miller leading the way, English looks to be in good hands this season.
Miller, a two-way player who plays linebacker on defense and multiple positions on offense, is entering his second season as a team captain. A fourth-year starter for the Bulldogs, English coach Chris Carroll is hopeful that Miller will bring both experience and leadership to the team this fall.
“Jacob brings experience to the team,” Carroll said. “He’s in his fourth year as a starter and his second as captain. He’s a great student, high honors student. He brings a commitment level that excels both on and off the field. It has been a pleasure, for me, being able to coach him the past three years.”
As he approaches the beginning of his final high school football season, Miller, who also stars on English’s outdoor track team, is aiming to go out on a high note. Miller acknowledged that English has seen a handful of down seasons since he has been on the team and turning those tough years into positive memories is a feat he’s looking to accomplish.
“Making the playoffs would be one of the greatest memories,” Miller said. “I don’t remember the last time English went to the playoffs. We’ve had some pretty tough years, especially last season. To turn all of that around and make a playoff run this season, that would be phenomenal.”
Before English can look forward to clinching a spot in the postseason, the Bulldogs have to take care of their opponents in the Northeastern Conference. It all starts next Saturday afternoon when English hosts Beverly at Manning Field.
In preparing for the upcoming season, Miller said, the team has shown early signs of commitment and dedication.
“The team’s mentality is a lot better than it was last year,” Miller said. “Everyone’s brought it and everyone’s working hard. We’re expecting really big things from ourselves this season.”
“We’re really excited,” Miller added. “We’ve been working nonstop since June. We’ve been lifting in the weightroom, we’ve been learning the plays and working hard on the field. I think we’re really excited to get on the field and see what we can do.”
Carroll, who has coached the majority of the seniors on this fall’s roster for multiple seasons, has also seen signs of commitment and dedication from his players. A former English quarterback, Carroll’s confident that Miller and the rest of this year’s seniors can lead the Bulldogs to a winning season.
“I think for the seniors it would be a culmination of hard work that I’ve seen over the last three offseasons,” Carroll said. “They’ve worked really hard in the winter, spring and summer months. We’ve had a great camp. Guys are working hard. With Jacob leading the way, among others, we’re ready to turn the table and win some football games.”
The key to turning things around this fall for the Bulldogs will be finishing close games. English held a handful of late leads last season but saw them slip away in the closing minutes.
“We have to finish games,” Miller said. “We lost a lot of games last year by a touchdown or less. We lost five games by that margin so we want to finish games better this season and come out on top more.”
The Thanksgiving Day clash against rival Classical was a prime example. Although English suffered a stunning loss at the hands of the Rams, Miller and the Bulldogs made it clear in training camp that they’re only focus is on the 2017 season.
“We’re not going to let that derail that for this season,” Miller said. “It’s in the back of our minds but we’re just using that as firepower to motivate us for this season.”
With Saturday’s season opener at Manning against Beverly just a day away, Miller and the Bulldogs are excited to get on the field and make an early statement as towards what type of season it’ll be.
“Opponents can expect a hard-nosed team,” Miller said. “We weren’t as tough as we could’ve been last season. We weren’t playing Bulldog football. This year, we’re going to play Bulldog football and every team should be ready for that.”
