LYNN — The Lynn Classical football team is putting in work this offseason. From team bonding activities, to a post-Thanksgiving program, and a 7v7 tournament, the Rams are primed to make noise this fall.
Last year, the Brian Vaughan-led Rams changed up their style. Classical went from a no-huddle, uptempo spread offense to a double-wing, ground-and-pound team. The change was due to personnel.
“I would describe last year as a pretty good season. We changed our philosophy and what we did on offense,” Vaughan said. “We played a lot of freshmen, too. A lot of those freshman guys had success. It was a step in the right direction.”
The Rams lost eight seniors, however, whose impacts will be felt according to Vaughan.
“Six of the eight have been two or three-year starters for us,” Vaughan said. “We’re losing a lot of experience with those guys and they were two-way guys, too.”
The good news for Classical is the class of 2024 brings lots of experience to the young squad.
“Our senior class this year is a small class, but 90 percent of them have been playing varsity since freshman year,” Vaughan said. “We’re still young. All the freshmen who played last year and got a lot of field experience are still only sophomores. The experience will help them and we hope they get more experience this season.”
Vaughan, who has been a coach for more than 20 years, said this offseason has been the best he’s seen – ever.
“I’ve been coaching high school football as an assistant or head coach since 2000,” Vaughan said. “This offseason, probably, has been the best offseason I have ever been around. We started our strength and conditioning program the Monday after Thanksgiving and it continued all year round. The guys are really excited to put the work in.”
Vaughan is a big believer in team chemistry and bonding. Last month, Vaughan took some players to Penn State for a 7-on-7 tournament.
“We try to do as much team bonding throughout the year. A month ago, we took the team to Penn State for a 7-on-7 tournament,” Vaughan said. “That was fun staying the night [and] playing in the tournament. It was a lot of fun. They got a great experience and they got to experience Pennsylvania football.”
More recently, Vaughan took a few players to watch the New England Patriots practice.
“I took a couple of the players to the Patriots practice last week,” Vaughan said. “It was a fun time. We couldn’t take many kids to it because a lot of them work during the day.”
Adding to his coaching philosophy, off-the-field gelling is just as important as what happens on the turf.
“The best teams I’ve played on or coached are the teams who were really close with each other and bonded the best,” Vaughan said. “I think when the team is close, it’s tough to let the guy next to you down. Guys will go 120 miles per hour for each other. I think, on this team, no one wants to let anyone down.”
Win off the field before you put the pads on, also.
“A successful season for us isn’t necessarily winning a state title,” Vaughan said. “It starts off the field. We want our team GPA to be high and then we want to win a league title. We want to have a deep playoff run and to win on Thanksgiving. We want everyone to reach their full potential – not just in football, but to be successful in the school community and in your local community.”
