PEABODY — Saturday afternoon would have been a dream scenario for noted special teams enthusiasts like Bill Belichick, John Harbaugh, Mike Westhoff and many more. Behind three punt return touchdowns and some great defensive play, the Swampscott football team earned a 41-6 win over Northeastern Conference foe Salem to open the season at Bishop Fenwick’s Donaldson Stadium. The Big Blue — who took the field for their first game since winning the Div. 5 Super Bowl in December 2019 — ran just four offensive plays in the entire first half, and they only attempted one pass for the entire game.
The special teams show was put on by junior running back Xaviah Bascon and sophomore running back Eljah Burns, as Bascon returned two punts for touchdowns and Burns took one back to the house as well. Junior quarterback Cam O’Brien threw one touchdown and rushed for another, while senior running back Jordan Cummings added a rushing touchdown and junior running back Cole Hamernick added one receiving touchdown.
On the defensive side of things, senior defensive back Zach Marks and junior linebacker Nakkaree Davis each had one interception.
The Big Blue got things going quickly on Saturday, taking advantage when Salem fumbled on the first offensive play of the game. Swampscott took over possession and immediately got a 20-yard run from Bascon to get inside the 10-yard line, then O’Brien punched in a quarterback sneak to put the Big Blue up 7-0 in the opening minutes.
Then the avalanche started.
On the ensuing drive, Swampscott forced Salem to punt after a three-and-out. Bascon was back deep to receive the punt, and after initially bobbling the catch he quickly broke a tackle and took the ball 50 yards for a score to put Swampscott up 13-0.
The next drive was much of the same. Salem was forced to punt after it couldn’t get anything going, and Bascon was back to receive the kick. Bascon didn’t bobble the catch this time, but he did go on to break one tackle, hurdle another tackler and then break two more tackles en route to a 66-yard return touchdown.
Swampscott got an interception from Marks on the next Salem drive, then O’Brien hit Hamernick for a 28-yard touchdown on the very first play. By the time the dust settled at the end of the first quarter, the Big Blue led 27-0.
Early in the second quarter, Burns got in on the fun when he took a punt back 52 yards for a score to make it 34-0. Cummings punched in a rushing touchdown from one yard out late in the third quarter to round out the scoring for Swampscott.
Salem’s one bright spot on the day came in the final seconds of the game, when offensive lineman Christian Howell picked up a fumble and took it 42 yards to help the Witches avoid the shutout.
Salem (0-1) travels to Gloucester Friday evening (5).
Swampscott (1-0) plays on the road at Danvers Friday evening (5).
