As Westfield took the field, the stadium’s atmosphere was astonishing. The marching band was blasting music, and the fans, decked out in blue, were cheering so loud it felt like the stadium was shaking.
It was clear that the Blue Devils wanted to capitalize off of the home-field advantage in their home opener. However, on the first drive of the game, things were not panning out as planned while Westfield faced a third and 19 from Elizabeth’s 49-yard line. The Blue Devils would be forced to punt on their opening drive.
As all hope seemed lost, junior quarterback Cole Weidler dropped back to pass and released a 49-yard bomb. With an impressive catch, senior wide receiver Enzo Ferrero torched the Minutemen defense to score a touchdown, putting the first points on the scoreboard.
It was the Weidler-Ferrero connection that propelled the Blue Devils to a 37-21 victory over Elizabeth moving them to a 1-1 on the season. Ferrero was not done lighting up the field. He snagged another 2 touchdown passes, and a total of 180 receiving yards from only 6 receptions.
“When the cornerback is inside shade, I know I can use my speed to get outside of him,” said Ferrero. His ability to read the defense allowed for wide openings down the sideline.
Assistant coach Sam Haimann said, “This win goes to the offensive linemen. They did a really good job pushing the Elizabeth defensive line all over the field.” Haimann added that their main goal for the game was taking “advantage on the line” which would result in a “really good shot at winning this game.”
This game plan illustrated by Haimann was perfectly executed, and only one sack was given up which was designed to be a quarterback run, but the O-line was just outnumbered.
Senior captain and offensive lineman Jack Martin said, “It feels awesome that we kept No. 15 off the ground and it’s all a result of great coaching.”
Not only did the O-line create passing opportunities, but they also showed up with their ability to run the ball up the field. Senior running back Blake Rudow was able to ice the game with an 8-yard rushing touchdown with under two minutes left on the clock.
Next week, Westfield looks to carry this momentum as they take on Union, away, on Friday at 7 pm.
