Patriots run into buzzsaw against Peabody

  Leading into last Friday’s season opener at Peabody, Revere High School football Head Coach Lou Cicatelli emphasized the importance of what a victory over a strong program like Peabody would do for his team’s chances of landing a berth in this year’s playoff tournament. Despite finishing last season with an overall 8-2 record, the Patriots were denied a spot in the tournament based mostly on strength of schedule. On Friday, Revere didn’t get the 2022 season off to a promising start. The host Tanners proved to be an unstoppable buzzsaw and rolled to an impressive 40-0 shutout victory.

  Peabody quarterback Shea Lynch had a monster game, throwing for 174 yards and four touchdowns. All told, the Tanners produced 280 yards of offense. The Patriots found themselves in a 24-0 hole by halftime, and Peabody put up 16 more points in the third quarter to secure the win.

  Meanwhile, Revere struggled on both sides of the ball. Quarterback Carlos Rizo completed just three passes for 40 yards (one was a 27-yarder on the team’s first offensive play). The Patriots mustered just 66 yards of total offense against a stingy Tanner defense.

  Chris Cassidy was on the receiving end of Revere’s one sizable gain (the 27-yard completion), while Domenic Boudreau hauled in two passes for 13 yards. Maykin Gonzalez was the leading rusher for the Patriots with 16 yards on three carries.

  The Patriots have had some success against Peabody in recent years. In fact, Friday’s result was the Tanners’ first win over the Patriots at home since 2014, and it marked the first time Revere had lost to Peabody in consecutive seasons since 2003-04.

  The Patriots now hope to duplicate the events of last season when they bounced back to win four straight after an opening-season 28-7 loss to Peabody at home. Revere hosts its home opener this Friday against Plymouth South (scheduled 6 p.m. kickoff) at Harry Della Russo Stadium.