Published: 9/10/2022 6:42:44 PM
Bow High School’s football coach left it up to his players.
How did they want to handle Saturday’s pre-game tribute before opening the season at home against perennial power Plymouth?
After all, the date marked one year since their teammate, Nick Ouellette, and his little brother, Gavin, had died in a car crash that rocked the town and saddened the state’s entire high school football community.
The players responded: They wanted something low-key, something that would place the memory of their fallen teammate in their minds and hearts and all over the bleachers, but not at the expense of failing to focus on the game.
“They chose to do it as a team, to do it small,” Bow High coach Paul Cohen said. “What we’re trying to do is put this in the kids’ hands. What would make sense to the football team? They were hit the hardest by this, and this is a big rivalry game that could have playoff implications. We want to recognize that we are doing well and moving on.”
They showed that on a hot day, beating Plymouth, 28-18. They dominated after a scary start that saw Plymouth’s Dylan Welch return the opening kickoff 71 yards, leading to a touchdown and a 6-0 lead.
But this was not a typical game, despite its early lead. Plymouth had had winning streaks that lasted years and a laundry list of state titles.
Bow, however, would have none of it. Not this year. Not after Dylan Ouellette, the 11-year-old brother of Nick and Gavin, led the team onto the field for the powerful-yet-low-key tribute. He wore his brother’s No. 55. There was a moment of silence. Then, game time.
Hollis Jones scored three touchdowns and gained 131 yards on the ground, spinning and twisting away from defenders like his uniform had Vaseline on it.
Ryan Lover, nicknamed the Freight Train by some, barreled over the defense, gaining 101 yards rushing and scoring a touchdown. Often, the 215-pound back carried three and even four Plymouth defenders at one time, his legs refusing to stop pumping.
On defense, players like Ben Berube, Jared Dolder and Josiah Funches led a gang-tackle mentality that basically bottled up Plymouth through the second half.
Still, Lover was critical of his team’s play.
“It was a very undisciplined game and we had a lot of errors and setbacks,” he said. “The score could have been better than it was. So now, on to next week.”
Asked about his feelings before the game, Lover said, “It was very emotional at the start of the game. All morning it was just tears and we obviously wanted to come out and win the gamer for Nick. He was obviously on the field with us.”
Bow plays Gilford-Belmont next weekend, a fact that the players began addressing shortly after the game ended. Cohen believes his team can contend for a state championship, and Saturday’s performance did nothing to disprove that.”