New Oliver Ames High football head coach coach John Sperrazza said that coaching football in Easton has had a very “town feel” to it.
His neighbor happens to be the grandmother of starting quarterback Pat Deloughrey. Sperrazza will often run into her, as well as Deloughrey, telling him how excited she is for the upcoming season.
Elsewhere in town, residents will vocalize their support for Sperrazza and the football team whenever they see him about.
“Everyone’s rooting for you. Everyone’s saying, ‘Good luck coach, go get ‘em’,” Sperrazza said. “It’s nice to be associated with the town and the school. It’s been nice.”
Sperrazza takes over for former Oliver Ames head coach Ed DeWitt, who left for a head coaching position at Quincy.
It’s also a town feel in a literal sense for Sperrazza as he has been a resident of Easton since 2016. Prior to taking the job at Oliver Ames, he was in his second stint as an assistant coach at Mansfield, where he played quarterback in high school.
Before that, Sperrazza was in Milford for three years after his initial tenure with Mansfield that began in 2009. Regarded as one of the strongest programs in the state, Mansfield has won eight state titles.
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Sperrazza was a part of two of those championships, one as a player in 2003, and one as an offensive assistant in 2019. He also played quarterback at Northeastern University, finishing his career as a Husky just one year before the school decided to cut the program in 2009.
He’s been a winner before, and now hopes to bring that track record of success to an Oliver Ames program that is in need of it.
The Tigers went just 1-9 last season, starting the season 0-8 before obtaining their first win on Nov. 9. In 2022, the team posted a record of 4-7.
This year, Sperrazza is beginning to build a winning culture with consistency and improvement each week with his players.
“We’re going to be as consistent as we can,” said Sperrazza. “We’re going to show up to work every day, do the same things, and just try to get a little better every day.”
He added that the goal for his team is to be in contention at the end of every game.
“Our goal every year is to be in a position to win the game in the fourth quarter. That’s what we want to do. It’s our goal, and it’s going to be our expectation going forward,” said Sperrazza.
Focusing on the fundamentals
The buy in to those goals mentioned by Sperrazza started early this summer in the weightroom and has continued into practice.
On Saturday, the team held a scrimmage against Whitman-Hanson, where he was looking for a number of things from his players.
Offensively, Sperrazza said he was looking for players to execute blocking assignments correctly, as well as for quarterbacks to make the right reads and for tailbacks to be attacking the right gaps.
Defensively, he emphasized he wanted his players to be “flying to the ball.”
However most importantly, Sperrazza said a big focus this year will be on what he calls the “no talent things.”
As a state champion, and as a former starting quarterback in college, Sperrazza understands the role that strong fundamentals play in creating and maintaining a winning culture.
“That’s what we’ve been pressing this year, this idea of being great at the no talent things,” Sperrazza said. “Running on the field, running off the field, running to the ball, tackling correctly. That’s kind of what we’re looking for.”
Players to watch
Harold Smith, wide receiver: An athletic senior, Smith gives Oliver Ames flexibility by being able to also line up at running back on the offense, and at cornerback on the defensive side.
Andrew Whiteside: Brother to Thomas, Andrew is a two-way starter for the Tigers.
Thomas Whiteside: Like his brother Andrew, Thomas is also a two-way starter. Sperrazza said both Whiteside brothers give the team “felxibility” on both sides of the ball
Pat Deloughrey, quarterback: A senior, Deloughrey will be the starting quarterback for Oliver Ames this season.
Thad Bloomfield, linebacker: A starter and captain, Bloomfield has made the transition from playing in the secondary as a corner, to playing outside linebacker.
Milon Banks, defensive lineman: Banks will play a key role in the middle of the defensive line at nose tackle.
Ryan Loring, running back: Only a sophomore, Loring is a tailback that Sperrazza said he is “excited to see play.”
Mitchell Callender: Another sophomore that Sperrazza is looking forward to seeing on the field, Callender plays defensive end and running back.
Collin Howarth: The sophomore will contribute as a wide receiver and in the secondary this fall.
This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: New Oliver Ames football coach wants team to be fundamentally focused
