11/22/2007
enlarge
Staff photo by Joe Phelan
enlarge
Staff photo by Joe Phelan from the Kennebec Journal
Sport of Kings
New Medicaid billing system inspires doubts among some
Christmas spirit
Guidance counselor: Dismiss complaint based on criticism of same-sex marriage
CHELSEA: 'Practice burn' provides thrill for 9-year-old
Trust eyes orchard purchase
GOLFER OF THE YEAR: Bonenfant rises up Cony ranks
YOUTH SOCCER: Local team gives 'care package' to children in Afghanistan
All of today's:
News | Sports
from the Kennebec Journal
from the Morning Sentinel
YES ON 1 BACKER REBUTS CLAIM
New system for Medicaid payments worries providers
After petition drive, Clinton police force budget will go a third time before voters
A rock musician makes trip home via Black Taxi
MADISON: After revaluation, abatement requests reviewed
Parks to have facelift
GOLFER OF THE YEAR: Sweet does job for Madison
YOUTH SOCCER: Local team gives 'care package' to children in Afghanistan
All of today's:
News | Sports
from the Morning Sentinel
Staff Writer
As football fans, Mark O'Brien and Rick Lovely hail from different communities, cheer for different teams and will likely stand on different sidelines Friday at the annual Cony-Gardiner showdown.
As proud parents, they share similar emotions as their sons prepare for their high school football finales.
"It's special," said O'Brien, whose son, Cam, starts at fullback and defensive end for the Rams. "He'll have played in four Cony-Gardiner games, and no one has played in more. It's going to be special."
"It's going to be pretty emotional," added Lovely, whose son, Zach, plays on the line for the Class B state champ Tigers. "It's my son's last game. It's come to an end. It's hitting a lot of parents. Come Friday, it's the last time we'll see our boys play together."
The conclusion to their sons' high school football careers is particularly bittersweet for O'Brien and Lovely, because they have walked in these cleats before. O'Brien was a standout running back/safety for Cony in the mid-1970s. Lovely, who is considered one of the most prolific players in Gardiner football history, shined for the black and orange in the early 1980s.
Cam O'Brien and Zach Lovely are among a robust group of current Cony and Gardiner players who can say a parent or relative played in the storied series, which dates to 1893.
"We can count three generations in the Cony-Gardiner game," said Mark O'Brien, who still keeps a roll of athletic tape marked with personal and team accomplishments from the 1974 game, a 59-14 Cony victory. O'Brien rushed for two touchdowns in that game.
"They are always something to look forward to," he added. "It's a great source of pride to be able to say I played in the same game in the same series as my dad did and my son is today. To have that connection is special."
Mark O'Brien's father, Curtis, played for Cony in the late-1940s, when the Rams controlled the series.
Mark O'Brien played in three Cony-Gardiner games, from 1974-1976.
"My dad was a better player than I'll ever be," Cam O'Brien said.
"He doesn't look like it right now, but he had wheels. He was a great football player. My dad is a soft-spoken guy, but you can tell he wants it. This is my last game in football, so it's going to be extra special. I know he wants that for me and I want it for him. To beat Gardiner is all that matters in the end."
Lovely and current coach Matt Brown overlapped a few years in the early- to mid-1980s at Gardiner. Lovely, however, graduated before the Tigers won the 1985 Class B state championship. Still, the running back was a force. His personal highlight in the series came in the 1984 game, when he scored four touchdowns in a 41-8 victory against the Rams.
"This family is passionate about football," said Lovely, who wore No. 15 in his playing days, while Zach dons No. 51 today. "Zach's first comment to me after the championship game Saturday was, 'I'm one up on you dad.' But the one thing I can always keep on him is that he lost to Cony his freshman year. I always bring that up. I say 'I didn't lose to Cony.' We have some fun with it."
The list of players and coaches whose relatives are linked to the series is impressive and extensive.
For Gardiner, names such as Stilphen, Grover, Michaud, Williams, Jamison, Godfrey, Coan, Hall, Caradonna, Kozma, and Chadwick, among others, have tasted the rivalry in different decades.
Pullen, Rende, Vachon and Lippert, among others, are names associated with past and current Cony teams.
"We always talk about the big rivalry," said Cony quarterback Matt Rende, whose father, Nate, played for the Rams in the early 1970s. Nate Rende, a halfback, scored a touchdown in the 1974 game. "My dad doesn't talk about it much unless I start bragging about what I've done at quarterback. Then he'll bring it up."
Rob Chadwick, a former all-state guard for Gardiner in the 1980s, has enjoyed watching nephews Bass and Forrest develop with the Tigers this season. Senior Bass Chadwick led the Pine Tree Conference Class B in rushing this season while Forrest, a sophomore, made several contributions on both sides of the ball. Bass and Forrest have never played in the Cony-Gardiner game.
"Every time I go to the games I feel a little older," said Rob Chadwick, who was a member of the 1985 state title team. "Bass and Forrest have unbelievable skills, the stuff I wish I had. But this is their first Cony-Gardiner game, and I don't care if you're playing Cony in checkers, marbles or tiddly-winks, it's a big rivalry."
Several coaches on both squads also played in the series as well.
At Gardiner, Charlie Lawrence, Mike Gammon, Jim Palmer and Matt Brown all played for the Tigers on the 1985 team. Cony coach Robby Vachon played against that Gardiner crew.
"I mostly remember Matt (Brown) because he put me on my back a few times," said Vachon, a former quarterback.
Cony offensive coordinator B.L. Lippert also played for the Rams. Lippert played quarterback while his father, Bob, was a defensive coordinator for the Rams in the late 1990s.
Furthermore, Bob Lippert coached Forrest Chadwick on a Senior Babe Ruth team that reached the World Series last August. Bob and B.L. Lippert were breaking down film of the Tigers earlier this week.
"It used to be complete hate," said Bob Lippert, who stepped down from the Cony football team in 1999. "But now I'm getting older and quieter. I know Forrest and some of the guys, so it's easy to cheer for Cony in Class A."
Bill Stewart -- 621-5692, ext. 515
bstewart@centralmaine.com
Reader comments
There are not yet any comments. Post your comment and it will appear here.
You must be a registered user of MaineToday.com to post a comment. Register or log in.