“The real big difference has been on the defensive side of the ball.”

Paul Withee

One sign of a strong football program is the ability to maintain success while adapting to available resources.

The Foxcroft Academy Ponies, fresh off a 14-12 win at previously undefeated Mattanawcook Academy of Lincoln, are proof positive of that belief.

Foxcroft’s success this fall – the Ponies have won five straight since an opening-night loss – is based on a mix of veterans and younger players that has blended into a team deep at virtually all positions.

Take the offense. A year ago, Fitzpatrick Trophy finalist Bobby Gilbert rushed for 2,000 yards as Foxcroft advanced to the Eastern Maine Class C final for the fourth straight year.

This year, it may take four or five backs to reach that total, but that’s OK by the Ponies. In tailbacks Joey Caparrelli and Jerod Rideout, fullback James McPhee and wingbacks Brad Bellemare and Shane Adkins, Foxcroft has a deep corps of ground-gainers.

“I think anytime you have a kid like a Bobby Gilbert or a Nick Tymoczko [of Bucksport, the 2004 Fitzy winner], they can carry an offense for you,” said 16th-year FA coach Paul Withee. “Their quickness, their speed and their strength are not things you can coach. This year, we have the luxury of five or six kids we can use who are all very effective and all bring something different to the table, and we’re going to utilize those skills.”

Foxcroft also has three solid receivers in Jon Catell, Shayne Croan and Scott McKusick, all targets for quarterback Logan Forrest.

“Having the ball spread around so much is awesome because teams can’t focus on one thing,” said Croan, a converted quarterback. “We can throw the ball, we can run the ball, and Logan’s been on fire at quarterback. It’s good to have that versatility all around the field on offense.”

That offense has worked behind a quickly maturing line that features Josh Pelletier as its lone senior starter. He is joined by Tim Nason, Bill Macomber, David White, Adam Dow and Adam LeProvost.

And only Pelletier among that group plays full time on defense – another example of the Ponies’ depth.

“The young guys have stepped up, getting in the weight room this summer and lifting and trying hard,” said McKusick, “They’ve really come around.”

But while the offense has been as explosive as it has been diverse, defense was the catalyst for the Ponies’ recent wins against Orono and Mattanawcook – foes that carry a current combined record of 9-3.

“The real big difference has been on the defensive side of the ball, the way we’re really swarming to the ball and playing real good, sound, fundamental football,” said Withee.

That defense is anchored by inside linebackers Pelletier and McPhee, two state champion wrestlers who give the Ponies a unique mix of strength and quickness that proved pivotal in holding 1,300-yard Orono tailback Mardy Simon to less than 100 yards in a 28-6 win and contributed to a goal-line stand in the fourth quarter that enabled Foxcroft to preserve its win at Mattanawcook.

The return of Ian Imbert and Shaw Weeks from injuries to the defensive front also has proven beneficial, as has the secondary play of Catell, Croan, McKusick and Bellemare.

“Once we shut Simon down, we realized we were a good football team,” said Caparrelli, an outside linebacker. “We knew our offense was always going to be OK because we have so many threats on the field, but with the defense, once we held Orono down we knew we were good both ways.”

Foxcroft has regular-season games remaining against Stearns of Millinocket, John Bapst of Bangor and Dexter before the playoffs begin in early November. But should the Ponies win out, there’s no certainty they would enter postseason play as the No. 1 seed, particularly if Mattanawcook wins its final three games. The Lynx likely would have the advantage in the decisive Crabtree Point Ratings, because their nonconference win against 5-1 Lisbon would be worth more than FA’s nonconference win against 3-3 Livermore Falls.

That’s a sore point among the Ponies, but they can take some solace in the fact that should they have to play at Mattanawcook again, they’ve already proven they can win in Lincoln.

“I anticipated us being a pretty good team by the end of the year just based on the fact that these kids are good football players who have been very successful from fifth grade on up through,” said Withee. “It’s a confidence factor, just believing in themselves ability-wise, and we’re really gotten tremendous leadership.

“They’ve kind of grown up by the seat of their pants. They had to get better, and they really have.”

Milo fields renamed for Harrises

The Milo Board of Selectman has dedicated the town’s athletic fields on Elm Street in honor of longtime recreation director Murrel Harris.

The fields, home to many of the athletic teams from Penquis Valley High School, now bear the name of a family that has been synonymous with baseball, athletics and recreation in Milo for decades.

Murrel Harris has served as the town’s recreation director for nearly 30 years, as well as the former varsity baseball coach and athletic director at Penquis, president of the local Kiwanis Club, director of the Milo Fire Department’s annual fishing derby, and as a member of the SAD 41 board of directors.

Harris also is active in bringing baseball to the youngest players in the community by working with youths in summer T-ball and youth baseball programs.

The field dedication also recognizes the baseball legacies of Murrel’s father, Lewis, and uncle Gippy, who were baseball standouts in the area in the 1930s, ’40s, and ’50s.