Successful football seasons aren’t exactly a rarity in Bucksport, but after two straight 4-5 seasons with no playoff appearances, people have reason to be excited about their Golden Bucks.

The Bucks are the lone 6-1 team in the Eastern Maine Class C ranks, hold a four-game lead in their division, are unbeaten against Class C competition, and have already knocked off each of the three teams with the next-best records in the East.

What has this turnaround resulted from? Maturity, depth, intelligence, speed, athletic ability?

All of the above, says head coach Joel Sankey.

“They’re older now and that experience has made a whole lot of difference with a senior-laden team,” said Sankey. “We’re deep and most people play only one way, which keeps everybody fresher.

“Each team is different. In the past, we’ve probably had individually better athletes, but overall, the chemistry and teamwork these guys have makes each other better.”

The Bucks are averaging 34.9 points per game on offense while their defense is holding teams to 9.7 and has three shutouts to its credit.

“Coach [Wayne] Richards has done an outstanding job,” said Sankey. “It’s all predicated on speed and quickness. That allows us to be much more aggressive.”

Bucksport’s primary aggressors are senior defensive ends Chris Atherton-Dow and Matt Carrier, a pair of 6-foot-3, 185-pound bookends who have made the going outside nearly impossible for opposing offenses. Dow already has six blocked punts to his credit and the pair has combined for more than 90 tackles.

Senior linebacker Kyle Milan leads the team in tackles with 70 while junior linebacker Phil Harvey has 56.

Want offense? Senior tailback Warren Chase is among the top-five point producers in the LTC while he and sophomore back Chris Woodman, who subbed for Chase for two games while Chase rehabbed a knee strain. They’ve combined for 15 touchdowns and 942 yards.

Quarterback Chris McHale (surprise, another senior) is just now starting to heat up and is 17-for-43 for 230 yards and five touchdowns. Another big weapon is junior placekicker Trevor LaLonde, who is 4-for-4 on field goal attempts after booting two 27-yarders last week. LaLonde, whose longest field goal is 35 yards this season, is also 26-for-28 on extra-point kicks.

An unheralded offensive line of David Mushrall, Jeff Pierce, Todd Cotier, Shawn Allen, and Donnie Eldridge has been a big reason for the Bucks’ offensive success.

“It was a question coming into the season, but our offensive line has just been unbelievable,” Sankey said. “They’ve just been able to wear defenses down as the game wears on.”

Even injuries have failed to slow the Bucks down.

“We’re so deep, most of our players play just one way [offense or defense] and we’ve been able to replace our injured starters without much trouble,” said Sankey.

Baxter heads farther north

After a year coaching JV boys basketball at Fort Kent, former John Bapst basketball player Mark Baxter is back at the varsity level.

Baxter, who led the Central Aroostook boys of Mars Hill to back-to-back Eastern Maine Class D semifinal tournament appearances in his first two seasons as a varsity coach (1998-2000), takes over in Fort Kent for Rob Plourde, who left after one season to take a principal’s job in Madawaska.

The CAHS Panthers were 32-8 under Baxter, who teaches physical education for grades kindergarten through fifth in Fort Kent.

“We had two great years there, but my certification was in phys ed and when this job opened up, I couldn’t turn it down,” said Baxter, 26. “I just hoped something might open up and it did.”

The Warriors are coming off a 6-9 season ended by a loss in the Class B preliminary round.

“They lost three starters plus their sixth man in the five players who graduated, but I don’t necessarily think it’s a rebuilding year,” said Baxter, who must make a 60-mile drive, one-way, each day from his home in Presque Isle. “We have a good mix between older and younger players.”

The schedule will be especially tough this year as Fort Kent has replaced Limestone with Class A Hampden Academy on a schedule that already includes tournament teams like Caribou, Houlton, and Class A Presque Isle.

Faulkner returns to Katahdin

Four years after ending a 21-year run as boys varsity coach at Katahdin, Phil Faulkner has returned to Sherman Station – as the new boys JV basketball coach.

The coach with 438 wins to his credit will work with Bill McAvoy, who was an assistant coach for Faulkner during Faulkner’s last season at Katahdin.

“It’s a long, cold winter up here and I just had to keep busy coaching,” he said. “It’s a different capacity, different situation. I can get back to basics and teach kids to help make them better players.”.

Faulkner, who was not rehired as boys basketball coach at Southern Aroostook in Dyer Brook last month despite leading the Warriors to two tourney appearances in two years, turned down a more lucrative offer to become a varsity coach due to travel concerns.

“They were really great to me, but I decided to do this instead,” said Faulkner, 62. “I think it’s a good fit for me right now. Another year, and I’ll look around again to see what’s available.”

Andrew Neff’s High School Report is published each Wednesday. He can be reached at 990-8205, 1-800-310-8600, or aneff@bangordailynews.net.