Beyond the Glory: Lessons from Cohasset Football
Transition Years: Cohasset Football After Its 1980s Peak
As a guy who had to play a junior varsity schedule as a Cohasset High School football player during the 1990 season—we were only able to field three seniors—I've been so proud to see the resurgence of the football program in Cohasset.
My head coach was Phil Pisano—he left for the greener pastures of Scituate High School after my senior year—and I was a bit angry with him over the years for making that decision. Our coach left when the program was on its knees. When he called me “lackadaisical” one day, it stung, but I still remember that admonition because it’s true, and it’s still an issue that I try to continually correct.
If I’m being honest, I thought that was the end of the football program, and in many ways, I'd bet that Coach Pisano thought the same. There was talk of combining with Hull High School, which would’ve been way too weird for both of the rival factions. I don't know how close that proposal was to becoming reality.
Returning to the Football Field: Community and Growth
I've attended a few games over the past 15 years. The new field is so much better than the old field up at Bancroft Road. The atmosphere of today is a lot of fun for kids of all ages. I've seen the kids rolling down that hill next to the grandstand, and yes, it can be a bit annoying and scary—I don't want to see any young kids get hurt by the older ones—but it adds to the festive atmosphere. I also love that the opposing sideline stands make those supporters feel so damned distant.
Once a Cohasset Skipper, Always a Skipper
I know I'm being a bit dramatic here, but it's something I can identify with and continue to keep an eye on as I get older. In my twenties and thirties, high school football seemed a bit silly, but as I’ve gotten older, the lessons resonate. I'm 52 years old now, but I'd still love to suit up in those pads and whack the living shit out of an opposing player.
I was not a good quarterback, but I got promoted to “monster back” on defense—a sort of unconstrained backfield rover—my junior year because my coaches, including our defensive coordinator Coach Bob Silvia, could see that I could generally understand the offense's next play before the ball was going to be snapped, and I also learned to love to hit.
I played a little at Ithaca College during its 1991 Division III National Championship season, but I got my collarbone broken in half while being tackled after making a blind over-the-shoulder catch on the football field as a wide receiver, so that didn't last long. I never would've thought about playing college football if it weren't for Coach Silvia, who believed I could play defensive back. I should’ve taken his advice.
SciCoh Football and the Power of Youth Programs
This brings me to SciCoh Football and Cheer, which was established in 1992. It seems that Brian Pattison, one of my old teammates, is now involved with that program after serving as an assistant coach at Cohasset High School for many years. It’s evident that the football program—kids can start playing in second grade—has been crucial to the resurgence of both Cohasset and Scituate high school football teams.
Carrying Cohasset Camaraderie
The lessons these kids are learning about camaraderie—I only felt those kinds of feelings on the football field and as part of the United States military—are feelings that cannot be taught, only experienced.
