LINCOLN – One hallmark of the Mattanawcook Academy football program for years has been the presence of big, talented players along the line of scrimmage.

As the Lynx prepare for Saturday’s 2006 Eastern Maine Class C final at Foxcroft Academy, nothing has changed.

MA had to replace nearly all of its offensive and defensive backfield personnel from a year ago, yet in large part because of a veteran presence in the trenches the Lynx are back in the regional final for the second straight year.

“Certainly the strength of our team has been the offensive and defensive lines,” said MA coach Art Greenlaw. “The entire group that we started in the Eastern Maine championship game was back – on both sides of the ball – so we felt good about that.

“We knew that was a strength for us, we feel even better about it now than we did a few weeks ago, and I think that will be a strength to carry over another year from now as well.”

Left tackle Dan Lifer, left guard Ian Nevells, center Matt Brown and right guard Nate Nevells all are two-year starters for the Lynx along the offensive front, joined by Darren Smart, a first-year starter at right tackle.

That group, along with senior tight end Isaac Young, has helped a first-year backfield tandem featuring tailback Brady Vose, a sophomore who has topped 1,000 rushing yards this season, and senior fullback Steve Braley thrive along with quarterback Shey Gardner (now injured) and wideouts Derek Libbey, Jesse Miller and Nick Leonard.

Lifer and Young also provide a veteran presence at defensive end for the Lynx, with Brown and Devin Ireland at tackle.

“We knew our defense was going to be one of our strongest points,” said Young. “We had Ian and Nate coming back at linebacker, and our whole defensive line besides Ross [Clapp, who graduated last spring] was back, so we felt pretty confident.”

But front-line play has not been without its challenges for the Lynx, particularly early in the season when after wins over Orono and Maine Central Institute of Pittsfield, the need for quality depth became apparent in a 27-0 loss at defending state champion Lisbon.

“In the first part of the year those kids were never coming off the field, and that’s an awful lot to ask,” said Greenlaw. “So moving some people around and having them step in to create some depth has really been an important factor for us.”

That depth has come from a couple of sources. Smart moved from tight end to offensive tackle on offense, while Evan Haskell has played both center and guard on offense and now has been incorporated into the defensive line rotation.

“The key is finding the places where people can fit,” said Greenlaw. “You can’t just play with 15 kids. We feel we’ve got good people, and it’s a matter of having the right people on the field in the right place at the right time.”

Mattanawcook has won four straight since a 21-15 loss at Foxcroft on Oct. 6 – a defeat that left the Lynx with a 3-3 record.

“After the Foxcroft game is when we started to realize there was a chance we might not make the playoffs and be where we wanted to be,” Lifer said.

But the Lynx rebounded with victories over two teams they were battling for playoff position, John Bapst of Bangor and Rockland, before closing out the regular season with a shutout victory over Stearns of Millinocket to earn the No. 3 seed in the LTC playoff field.

MA avenged one of its losses last weekend by topping No. 2 Bucksport 15-6 in an LTC semifinals despite losing Gardner to a dislocated left elbow.

Now the Lynx look forward to another test against Foxcroft, an undefeated team that not only defeated them earlier this year, but also twice last year – including the Eastern C final.

“I knew it was a possibility,” said Young of the title-game rematch, “and certainly something we wanted to do.”