H.S. football: Easthampton’s depth steps up in 36-14 win over Chicopee (VIDEO)

EASTHAMPTON — For the second week in a row, the Easthampton football team put up 36 points on offense. But on Friday night against Chicopee at the Mountain View School, the Eagles had a slightly different cast of characters who found the end zone.

Easthampton relied on its depth as three players who did not touch the ball in Week 1 scored a touchdown in its 36-14 win over Chicopee to improve to 2-0 on the season. Through two games, seven players have scored for the Eagles, making life easier for first-year head coach Tom Hogan.

“I thought we came right out of the rib and punched them in the throat and didn’t hold back,” quarterback Patrick Larson said.

Freshman Camilo Campo, junior Liam Koske, and senior Miguel DeJesus all scored their first touchdowns of the season after not seeing much action in the first game of the season. The trio were part of a group effort to step up after last week’s trio of scorers of Taylan McColgan, Zach Raffa and Martin Charron were out due to injuries and illness.

“I thought they played pretty well,” Hogan said. “I’m happy that they were able to fill in for one another.”

Easthampton faced a fourth and long from the Pacers’ 40-yard-line. Putting trust in Larson to make a play, Hogan left his offense on the field.

Larson rewarded his coach by launching a deep pass over the defense to Koske who was streaking up the middle of the field. The receiver nabbed his first catch of the year by his fingertips and secured the ball for his first touchdown. After a successful two-point conversion, the Eagles turned an almost dead drive to a 8-0 lead.

Chicopee took possession after the kick-off looking to respond, though not a lot went right.

A run for no gain was followed by Easthampton’s Harrison Farrar sacking Chicopee quarterback Francisco Nieves. On fourth down, a bad forced the Pacers to abort the punt and get tackled at their own 12-yard-line to set the Eagles in the redzone.

While they needed 13 plays on their first drive to reach the end zone, Easthampton operated more efficiently the rest of the game. On the team’s first play after starting at the 12-yard-line, Campo took the hand-off from Larson and ran to the left side of the end zone for the score, another successful two-point attempt pushed the score to 16-0.

The freshman ended the day with 25 yards on four carries. Though he was nervous before taking hitting the field for the first time as a varsity player, but once he got through his first carry, he was locked in. His coaches had confidence he could do the job.

“He’s a brave athlete and we are happy for him and the success that he helps bring us,” Hogan said. “He practices like he plays.”

After watching his team team score five touchdowns the previous week, he learned what it felt like to receive the praises from his teammates.

“They were all hyping me up,” Campo said. “Just saying congrats and all of that stuff.”

In the second quarter, DeJesus became the seventh player to score a touchdown for Eagles with a 32-yard run dashing through the left side of his offensive line to put the team up 30-0 heading into halftime. He totaled three carries for 42 yards.

While it seemed like almost anyone who touched the ball for Easthampton was destined to score, the engine that made the offense move is still their junior quarterback in Larson. In addition to a solid day throwing where he completed 3-of-6 passes for 76 yards, he once again was a threat in the run game.

Early in the second quarter, Larson used his speed on a quarterback keep and beat the Pacers defense up the right side of the side for a 75-yard touchdown.

On the team’s first play after halftime he followed with another incredible score. Starting from Chicopee’s 48-yard line, he wiggled his way through the first line of defense up the left side of the field. With one defender to go through, he showed off this athleticism with a sharp cut to back to the middle of the field to put his team up 36-0.

“I saw the last guy who was going straight for the pylon,” Larson said. “I knew there was no way he was going to be able to match my cutback.”

Larson carried the ball five times for 159 yards and the two scores on the day.

“He is a tremendous athlete and leader,” Hogan said. “He understands the game the well.

After serving as an assistant under previous head coaches Matt Bean and Kyle Dragon, Hogan stepped up to become a head coach at the varsity level for the first time. Add on about 16 years volunteering in the youth program, he is already a familiar face on the community. He said he’s grateful for the tremendous support from the school administration, parents, players and the rest of his coaching staff.

Before the start of the season, Dragon told Hogan, “to trust the players and that they will find a way to be successful.”

That advice has proven to true early in Hogan’s tenure. The Eagles have outscored their opponents 72-30 through two games. The team heads to Smith Vocational next Thursday to take on the Vikings, who are also 2-0.