MA High School Football: Top 10 Storylines

By Bob Holmes, Patch Correspondent

Patch tackles high school football this fall and for starters, here are 10 things to look for as practice begins Friday across Massachusetts.

1. Everett, Beverly, Bishop Feehan, and Cathedral, will finally get to defend their respective Division 1A, 2A, 3A, and 4A Super Bowl titles. Sort of. The MIAA is adding two divisions this fall and going back to the 2012 alignments (minus a Division 5). The only problem? Those four schools aren't in the same divisions as 2012. In the new alignments, Everett is in Division 1, Beverly and Bishop Feehan are in Division 2, and Cathedral is in 4. For the record, the new divisions are 1, 1A, 2, 2A, 3, 3A, 4, 4A.

2. Wait a minute, Gillette can only handle six games in one day. What about the two new divisions? Good question. Ideally the MIAA will convince their friends in Foxboro to allow for two Friday night games, in addition to the six on Saturday. Discussions have been going on for months and the MIAA should announce the result at the first MIAA Football Committee meeting Sept. 19. And remember Sunday, Dec. 4, isn't an option. The Patriots host the Los Angeles Rams that day. If no Gillette, it's back to local colleges for two Super Bowl games.

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3. Wayland will not play Arlington in the postseason this year. Finally something new for these two football programs. In the first year of the new playoff format (2013), Wayland lost to Arlington in the first round of the Division 3 Northwest tourney, 14-7. In 2014, the Warriors again lost to Arlington, again in the first round, this time 37-29. And last fall, Wayland beat Arlington, 41-7. But this fall Wayland is in Division 2A. Arlington is in Division 2. Nothing lasts forever.

4. Who has the longest win streak in the state? That would be Catholic Conference power Xaverian. The Westwood school has won 24 straight, including two straight Division 1 Super Bowl titles. With nine starters back on defense, don't be surprised if the Hawks keep the streak going. But we'll know soon. Xaverian opens at home against Everett.

5. Just because Newton South's Austin Burton transferred to West Orange High School in Winter Haven, Fla., doesn't mean we won't have a great quarterback competition. Between Duxbury's Bob Maimaron, Andover's EJ Perry, and BB&N's Jeff Costello, fans can still see three of the best in state history. Natick's Troy Flutie leads the state with 112 career TD passes. Costello is fourth with 84, Maimaron is fifth with 82, and Boston College commit Perry is at 67. Maimaron has the best shot to catch Flutie. He had 31 last year. Costello is limited by BB&N's eight-game schedule and Perry needs an improbable 45 TD passes to tie (Flutie has single-season record with 47 in 2013).

6. With back-to-back 7-4 seasons, Brockton has consecutive winning seasons for the first time since 2009-10. And with that success, the Boxers remain the all-time winningest program in state history with 785 wins. In second, after a 5-5 season, is Everett with 778 wins. Brockton had 11 Big Three All-Stars last fall and nine were seniors. Only senior tight end Kingsley Ejiogu-Dike and senior defensive back Dion Amado are returning all-stars.

7. It's last call for Woburn coach Rocky Nelson. Heading into his 32nd season as the Tanners head coach, Nelson is calling it quits after this fall. Nelson (202-111-7 career record) made headlines when he announced his decision during his induction into the Massachusetts High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame earlier this year. Nelson blamed the current playoff system and restrictions to practice as reasons to retire.

8. No. 8 comes with a tear. This will be the last season of football for the Greater Boston League, a once powerhouse league that started the century with nine schools but this fall has its own version of the Final Four. Starting with the spring season, Malden, Medford, Somerville, and Everett will blend into the Northeastern Conference, joining schools like Danvers, Marblehead, and Peabody on the playing field. Malden enters this fall as the defending GBL champion, going 3-0, which included a win over longtime GBL power Everett. But GBL schools struggled, combining to go 14-29 overall.

9. So, aside the quarterbacks, who are the best players this year? Let's start with the running backs, led by a pair of seniors all-stars, Abraham Toe of St. Mary's and Mike Pedrini of Melrose. Toe is the leading returning scorer in EMass, with 27 TDs last fall for the 8-4 Spartans. He also ran for 1,577 yards. Pedrini ran for 1,202 yards and 20 touchdowns for the 12-1 Red Raiders. The best lineman out there could be Hanover's Patrick Flynn, a three-time Patriot League All-Star and last year's MVP.

10. It's not a sexy subject but there's actually good news for the many fans/parents/coaches concerned about concussions. Thanks to the Massachusetts Concussion Management Coalition, a group formed from a partnership between the NHL Alumni Players Association and Boston Children's Hospital, the MIAA is offering free ImPact baseline testing to all member schools. It means everyone, not just the schools with money, can offer free baseline testing to their athletes.

Bob Holmes has spent three decades covering high school football in Massachusetts for The Boston Globe and The Boston Herald. Contact him at masspatchfootball@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @robertholmes630