MARBLEHEAD — Several different trophies and awards were presented throughout the night at Thursday’s 74th Item All-Star Football Dinner. The recipients of the six major awards had one thing in common– they were humble.
That started with 2019 Peter Gamage Coach of the Year, Swampscott’s Bob Serino, who coached the Big Blue to the Division 5 state championship.
The Big Blue defeated Amherst 21-0 last Saturday at Gillette Stadium to earn the state title and after accepting the award, Serino was quick to recognize last year’s recipient, another Super Bowl champion (Division 1) in St. John’s coach Brian St. Pierre.
Serino also thanked Fenwick coach Dave Woods for sharing his practice field after last week’s snow while both teams prepared for games at Gillette. And while the Big Blue were gearing up for their big game, the coaches of the Northeastern Conference made sure Serino’s players were represented on the All-Conference team.
Most importantly, Serino thanked his own staff and players for the hard work they put in day in and day out this season.
“My staff is unbelievable, I’ve been saying it all year,” Serino said. “The kids are a great group of kids. One of their parents said, ‘You had their attention from day one.’ And we had the best practices the week before the Super Bowl and it showed Saturday.”
One of those players, Zack Palmer, left his mark on the field, especially on special teams. Palmer returned three kickoffs and two punts for touchdowns in his senior season, earning him Special Teams Player of the Year.
“We spend a lot of time on special teams,” Palmer said. “We do two different special teams a day at practice and on Friday we go over all the special teams. My teammates are very disciplined. They block for me, I just hit a seam and I’m gone. That’s how it was all season.”
The Daily Item/Agganis Foundation Offensive Player of the Year went to the leader of Lynnfield’s high-flying offense, quarterback Clayton Marengi. Marengi set single-season program records in passing yards (2,542), single-season touchdown passes (31) and career touchdown passes (39).
“It means everything,” Marengi said. “I definitely wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for my teammates. We had a tough season last year and all credit goes out to them.”
Fenwick’s Chrys Wilson was recognized as The Daily Item/Agganis Foundation Defensive Player of the Year after helping lead a stout Crusaders’ defense at linebacker.
“This isn’t just for me,” Wilson said. “This defense is built for the three linebackers. I credit the defensive tackles and coaching more than anyone. I just did my job and this is the outcome of it.”
KIPP has progressed over its first three seasons and junior captain Mike Brice has been there for it all. Brice finished the season with 52 tackles and three sacks, holds a 3.6 GPA and is a member of KIPP’s Black Student Union and Student Council, earning him the William F. Connell Student-Athlete of the Year Award.
“I’m super surprised,” Brice said. “Me and my teammates, we work really hard in the weight room all offseason. All the summer mornings we were working out, I’m just really happy it came to fruition.”
When it came to the Edward H. Cahill Player of the Year award, there were no surprises. If you watched Revere senior Joe Llanos carry the ball this season odds are you didn’t walk away disappointed. Llanos rushed for a single-season program record 1,960 yards and 27 touchdowns.
“This is a big credit to (Revere football),” Llanos said. “I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for my coaches and teammates. My teammates mean everything to me. They’re a big part of the success and the chemistry on our team. Our coaches have our back no matter what. I know I can ask them for anything.”