HANOVER — Hanover High School football continued its undefeated run to begin 2021 on Friday, taking down John Stark, 41-8, at Merriman-Branch Field.
Hanover (4-0) scored touchdowns on its first six drives of the game — and only saw one drive end without a trip to the end zone. Defensively, HHS shut down John Stark’s double-wing rushing attack for much of the game. The Generals didn’t cross midfield for the first time until the middle of the third quarter.
Hanover head coach Sam Cavallaro thinks his squad is in a good spot so far this season.
“What I like about this team is we give them one goal each week, and we say ‘This is where you gotta get better,’ ” Cavallaro said. “This week it was play faster, speed, every guy play one mile an hour faster. And I think we did that tonight.”
Hanover took the lead less than 90 seconds into the game, when senior quarterback Colin Pierce hit junior wide receiver Brendan Logan for a 26-yard touchdown pass.
Logan caught three passes for 48 yards and two touchdowns. He also went 3-for-4 on extra-point attempts. Pierce finished 4-for-4 for 58 yards and three touchdowns, the last on a six-yard pass to sophomore running back Jeffrey Vidou.
Vidou added a rushing touchdown in the third quarter.
Hanover’s rushing stalwart, senior running back Seamus Murphy, saw plenty of action. He rushed for 106 yards on 13 carries with a touchdown and a two-point conversion.
Cavallaro said one of Hanover’s goals in the game was to stay balanced offensively and spread the ball around a lot of players. As his team built a comfortable lead, he was able to emphasize that balance and try some things.
“Seamus still got his yards,” Cavallaro said. “But I think you come back with like a Jeffrey Vidou, who’s a young sophomore that is a pretty tough runner. You got Brendan (and) Colin. I think a lot of people did a lot of good things tonight, which is great. Our offensive line continues to do fantastic.”
Junior running back Cameron Bonner scored Hanover’s last touchdown on a 52-yard run just one play after HHS recovered a John Stark fumble.
The Generals (1-3) struggled on both sides of the ball while the starters played.
John Stark head coach Ray Kershaw — the former Mascoma coach who led the Royals to the NHIAA Division VI state title game in 2012 — is in his first year in Weare. With just seven upperclassmen on the roster, many of the Generals’ starters are sophomores.
John Stark’s lone points came in the fourth quarter, after Hanover put its junior varsity players in the game. But even though that pitted many of John Stark’s starters against Hanover reserves, those players were the same age. Kershaw takes that as a sign of his team’s potential down the road.
“(After the game), I said, ‘Your future is bright.’ I said, ‘Remember this game, because in a couple years, when you’re their age, it’ll be a lot different,’ ” Kershaw said. “I’m very proud of them because they all stuck together. They know going into every game that they’re going to be outmatched, but they don’t use that for an excuse.”
Hanover will look to keep it rolling on the road against Sanborn next Saturday.