Needless to say, the first two contests of Chris Demarest’s tenure as the new head football coach and athletic director at Hudson Catholic High School haven’t gone exactly as planned.
Under Demarest’s tutelage, the Hawks have lost to Weequahic of Newark, 38-0, and to Malvern Prep of Pennsylvania, 44-0.
And Demarest took over a program that was less than a yard away from winning a state championship a year ago.
So what gives?
“Any time you come into a new situation and follow what was done before you, it’s going to be very difficult,” said Demarest, who was an assistant coach at Rutgers for four years before taking the Hudson Catholic position over the summer. “We started completely from scratch and we put in our own philosophy. It’s a total revamp of what was there in the past.”
What also plagued Demarest in the early going is the rash of injuries that the Hawks suffered even before they played a down this season. Returning quarterback Steven Soto broke his thumb in an early season scrimmage and has been trying to play wearing a cast. Standout lineman Hector Garcia broke his hand and also has been playing with the hand all bandaged. And senior linebacker Will Bustillo, who earned Hudson Reporter All-Area honors last season, has been hobbled by an ankle injury and has not been at full strength all season.
Those are three key players from the Hawk team that fell a few inches shy of winning the school’s first-ever NJSIAA state football title at Rutgers Stadium last December.
“I’ve really been scratching my head a little, wondering what else could go wrong,” Demarest said. “We have a mix of the older kids being banged up and the younger kids learning the ropes with a new head coach. I think everyone is just trying to find their own way. The guys who are hurt are among the only ones we have returning from last year. The rest are completely new. It’s not an easy thing to do.”
Soto (5-10, 160) led the Hawks to the Non-Public Group 2 state title game last year, but the injured thumb has prevented him from doing anything like he did a year ago.
“He holds the ball and protects the ball with that hand,” Demarest said. “The hand is not serving him any justice. The whole offense starts with the quarterback and he’s trying to play with the broken hand. If he’s healthy, he’s more than capable of throwing the ball.”
The halfback is senior Aaron Villette (5-8, 170), who has been a workhorse for the Hawks over the first two games.
“He’s a hard-nosed kid who runs hard,” Demarest said of Villette. “He’s going to get his yards.”
Junior Oscar Torres (5-8, 170) is another running back, while the fullback duties are being shared by junior Declan Walsh (5-10, 180) and sophomore Byron King (5-9, 170).
The wide receiver slots are being manned by senior Kadeem Johnson (6-2, 185) and senior Issaacar Albert (6-3, 180). Demarest is high on Johnson.
“We have to find a way to get the ball into Johnson’s hands,” Demarest said. “The kid can really run and moves forward.”
The tight end is junior Matt McGonagle (6-4, 195).
The offensive line features Garcia (6-1, 270) and senior Mike Rowland (6-0, 220) at tackles, senior Tyler Solan (5-10, 210), a transfer from now-defunct St. Joseph of the Palisades, where he was a two year starter, and seniors Carlos Crayton (6-0, 260) and Ruaidhri Walsh (6-0, 230) at guards.
The Hawks’ defense features a lot of the same personnel. Walsh has been a downright beast in the Hawks’ first two games at defensive tackle.
“Right now, he’s our most productive player,” Demarest said of Walsh.
The defensive ends have been junior Sage Williams (5-11, 190), who has been a pleasant surprise in Demarest’s eyes, and senior Fabian McPherson (6-0, 190). Garcia is the other defensive tackle alongside Walsh.
The outside linebackers are King and freshman Kevin Albert (5-9, 160), who has a bright future. The inside linebackers are Rowland and Bustillo (5-8, 225), who was clearly the Hawks’ best defensive player a year ago.
“But you can see that his injury is 100 percent limiting what he could do,” Demarest said. “Will knows what kind of player he can be.”
The cornerbacks are Torres and Villareal, with Johnson serving as the safety.
So it appears as if the Hawks are playing against a stacked deck. They have basically a new team, with the handful of returnees not fully healthy. They also have a new coach and a new system. Thus, you have the results of the first two weeks – and it has not been pretty.
“But I think once we get into league play and face teams in similar situations, with similar size and similar rosters, we’ll start to see improvement,” Demarest said. “We want to give the seniors the opportunity to win some games. I think the true tests of what we are will be coming in the next few games.”
Right now, the Hawks have only one place to go – and that’s past the opponents’ 50-yard line, which hasn’t happened in two scoreless losses. – Jim Hague
Jim Hague can be reached at OGSMAR@aol.com.