Everett falls to Catholic Conference power Xaverian for second straight year

Tide football looks to regroup against non-league host BC High tonight

By Joe McConnell

The Everett High School football team (1-2) played its second non-league game in three weeks with pretty much the same results. Mansfield defeated them in the opener, 45-14, and then after a convincing triumph over Greater Boston League (GBL) rival Medford, 34-14, the Crimson Tide fell for the straight year to Division 1 powerhouse Xaverian last Friday night at Everett Memorial Stadium, 56-27.

Second-year coach Justin Flores setup the regular season schedule by design to put his club in a better position to make the Division 1 playoffs that’s primarily based on the new power rankings system. Only the Top 16 clubs in each division make the postseason. But first, Flores would like to see them just play better against all opponents.

“We need to tackle better as a team,” Flores said after last Friday’s Xaverian game. “Our blocking also needs to be better. There really wasn’t much to be happy about in this game.”

As for those power rankings, they can only help his club so much. The Tide missed the playoffs in 2023, despite losing just once in the regular season. But now with two losses, he knows they also have to win to be considered for any playoff berth.

“We are only helped in the power rankings if the opposing teams continue to have good seasons,” he said.

But winning games at this stage will definitely offset any loss against quality teams.

The Tide played well in the first half until the Hawks started to wear them down. Yariel Ortiz was the team’s standout in this game with three receptions for 106 yards. He was credited with one touchdown catch.

Quarterback Carlos Rodrigues carried the ball 12 times for 30 yards that also included two rushing touchdowns. He also completed seven passes out of 17 attempts for 130 yards, one of which was the aforementioned scoring strike to Ortiz. Manny Santiago piled up 41 yards on 13 carries. Joao Barreiros ran the ball once for 74 yards. Armani Negron caught two passes for 13 yards. Gidion Legall was on the receiving end of one pass for 11 yards.

The Everett boys will take on BC High, another non-league opponent, tonight (Sept. 27, 6 p.m.) on the Eagles Dorchester campus. The Tide defeated their Catholic Conference counterparts last year, 35-34. But that was then, and this is now, according to Flores.

“Last year doesn’t matter,” the Everett coach said. “(BC High) is a brand-new team with a brand-new head coach (Weymouth native and BC High alumnus Paul Zukauskas, former Cleveland Browns offensive lineman, who retired from the NFL in 2005) and staff. We expect them to be big and physical, and try to get downhill on us. Their quarterback (Carter Carroll, a William & Mary commit) is one of the best in the state, and does a tremendous job delivering the ball in the pocket and on the run.”