We can never know about the days to come
But we think about them anyway
And I wonder if I’m really with you now
Or just chasin’ after some finer day…
… Anticipation, anticipation
Well, of course, Carly Simon’s song Anticipation is a love song, not a football anthem. Then again, the song isn’t about ketchup, but it had a good run helping to advertise the condiment years ago. Anyhow, the point is, after a tough 2024 season, a winter, spring and summer to prepare, and weeks of training camp this August, the Watertown Football program anxiously anticipated Friday night’s Sept. 5th game versus Whittier Regional Vocational Tech High School. It was a first chance to put last season behind them while at the same time building on a two-game winning streak at the end of last season (a non-league game and a Thanksgiving win over Belmont).
The Raiders came into this game feeling stronger thanks to a commitment to off-season lifting. They felt deeper with an additional twelve new football players. And they felt even more comfortable with a head coach in his second year and having their back, and having them prepared to play. The Senior/Junior-heavy lineup included the following on offense: junior Coleman Keuchkarian-McKeen at QB, senior running backs Patrick McHugh, Gabe Oliveira and Mike Ramirez and Junior Jayden Pineda, senior Wide Receivers Joe Wilson and Lucas Bray, Junior Shane Garey and Sophomore Mason Lamacchia, at Tight End Juniors Joe Connors and Cash Bailey, and on the line Seniors Caleb Hardy, Pedro Tancredo, Jayden Ortiz and Zac Wolfe, and Juniors Peter Pavlidis, Flavio Valenzuela and Billy Werra.
On Defense the line included Valenzuela, Werra, Hardy, Tancredo, Ortiz, Wolfe and Junior Darvin Montero, at linebacker Pavlidis, Pineda, Oliveira and Ramirez, and defensive backs Wilson, Lamacchia, Garey, Bray and freshman Mario Brown.
Watertown won the toss and deferred, so co-captain Joe Wilson literally kicked off the start of the 2025 season. Whittier plays a Wing T offensive formation. Here’s a description of this offense: “The Wing-T has a classic offensive line setup, with 2 guards, 2 tackles, a center, and the quarterback behind center. It’s characterized by having a wingback just off of your tight end on the strong side, and a split end lined up on the weak side. The tailback and the fullback can move around a little bit, but are generally split, and can often end up offset to the strong or weak sides as well.”
Well, if Watertown wanted to get off to a fresh start, they went about it the wrong way. After a 1 yard gain on first down and a Raider offside penalty, senior running back Jazavier Vazquez took what looked like an innocent 5 yard gain, bounced to the outside and through the reach of the Watertown defense and next thing you know he was taking it to the house for a 63 yard touchdown run.
Big plays killed Watertown last year, and they certainly didn’t want to start the game this way, but 90 seconds in they were down 8-0. Watertown and Whittier then traded possession twice, neither team able to do much. Watertown then put together a strong drive, which included a 15-yard run by QB Keuchkarian-McKeen and a 16-yard run by Oliveira. But, the highlight play of the drive was a scramble and pass by Keuchkarian-McKeen to co-captain Wilson in the right corner of the end zone for a 25-yard touchdown. Watertown matched the two-point conversion of Whittier and it was now an 8-8 game.
Whittier, on the first play of the next possession, had a 40-yard run, and five plays later they were in the end zone thanks to a 7-yard run by Noah Allen. The two-point conversion failed, though, and it was now 14-8. Watertown went three-and-out, and then Whittier, who had yet to throw a pass, ran play-action on first down of their next possession and fooled Watertown. A wide-open Whittier receiver caught the pass and ran for a touchdown. The 55-yard pass play and two-point conversion made it 22-8 in a blink of an eye.
Impressively, Watertown hung in and answered back on the next possession. Another run by the QB of 22 yards set up the big play of the drive three plays later – a scramble out of the pocket by Keuchkarian-McKeeen, avoiding the sack, and then finding a wide-open Joe Wilson who caught the pass and ran it into the end zone for a 42-yard Touchdown pass. PAT kick was good and it was now 22-15 with the half winding down.
A funny thing happened on the way to halftime. Wilson sent a booming kick to the 10 yard line, the Whittier player mis-judged it, and it went off his hands into the end zone. He went after it, picked it up, started to try and run out of the end zone, and was tackled by Watertown IN the end zone. So, at first blush it seemed like a safety and 2 points for Watertown and they’d get the ball back with 40 seconds on the clock and a chance to score again perhaps.
After a lot — and I mean a lot of discussion among the refereeing crew — the ruling was it was not a safety after all, and the ball was placed at the three yard line. Whittier ran one play and the half ended. Speaking with a retired official in the stands at halftime, the ruling ultimately was correct that it was not a safety. Why? Because the Whittier player receiving the kick off never had possession. It went off his hands and eventually into the end zone, and even though he then picked it up and ran, the rule book states that it’s not a safety and the ball should have been placed on the 20 yard line as though it were a touchback. Bottom line? 22-15 Whittier at the half.
Watertown got the ball first in the third quarter and put together their best drive of the game. Ten plays and 63 yards with the result a 1-yard touchdown run by Keuchkarian-McKeen. The PAT kick by Wilson was good, and 6 minutes gone in the third and this very exciting opening game of 2025 was tied at 22!
THE BIG PLAY bit the Raiders once again, as Whittier on the second play of the drive took another innocent run and turned it into a 77 yard touchdown. And just like that it was Whittier back on top 30-22. And now, the heartbreak of competition reared its ugly head. Watertown immediately completed a 10-yard pass for a first down. Play two of the drive was a 10-yard run by Pineda, and seemingly a second first down in two plays. Except, at the end of the impressive run, probably Pineda’s best of the night, he coughed up the ball and Whittier recovered it at their own 44 yard line.
Whittier put together a 9-play drive, but impressively Watertown bent but didn’t break, and Whittier turned the ball over on downs. Watertown started on their own 29 intent on tying the game, and after a 32 yard run by the QB, it looked like Watertown was on their way to a tying 4th-quarter score and a thrilling conclusion to this game. But, the drive stalled and Watertown turned the ball right back on downs.
At this point, injuries were starting to happen to the Raiders, and a group of young athletes who play both sides of the ball were clearly getting tired. Whittier took advantage of this and put together a 13-play drive that ended up with Watertown burning all their time outs and just not being able to stop Whittier’s ground game. Four first downs later, and the clock under two minutes, Watertown let Whittier run into the end zone untouched just so they could get the ball back. The touchdown /failed two-point conversion made the score 36-22.
Watertown valiantly tried to put together a quick drive and score so that they could then attempt to recover an onside kick, but it wasn’t meant to be and Watertown turned the ball over on downs. Whittier ran one play, and ran out the clock. Final score, Whittier 36, Watertown 32.
Watertown showed A LOT of promise on both sides of the ball, and hopefully none of the injuries from this game are serious, as Watertown heads to Ipswich Friday night Sept. 12 for their second of three straight non-league games to start the season. After Ipswich, a much needed bye week, and then back home at Victory Field on Friday September 26 and a date with Brookline.
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1 2 3 4 F
Whittier 8 14 8 6 36
Watertown 0 15 7 0 22
1st Q
8-0 Whittier… 63 yd. TD run, 2 pt. conversion good
2nd Q
8-8… Watertown 25 yd td pass, Keuchkarian-McKeen to Wilson, 2 pt. conversion good
14 – 8 Whittier…. 7 yd. TD run, 2 pt. conversion failed
22 – 8 Whittier… 55 yd. TD pass, 2 pt. conversion good
22-15 Whittier… Watertown 42 yd. TD pass, Keuchkarian-McKeen to Wilson, PAT good
3rd Q.
22-22… Watertown, Keuchkarian-McKeen 1 yd. TD run, 2 pt. conversion good
30 – 22 Whittier… 77 yd. TD run, 2 pt. conversion good
4th Q.
36 -22 Whittier… 5 yd. TD run, 2 pt. conversion failed