Quinn Doyle and Tionne Brown punctuated their high school football careers by picking up some giant hardware on Sunday afternoon.
The Turners Falls High School quarterback (Brown) and running back (Doyle) were each named winners of the prestigious Anthony “Cannon” Novak Award during the ceremony at St. Kazimierz Society in Turners Falls.
The award is named after Novak, who grew up in the Patch section of Turners Falls and excelled in four sports — football, basketball, baseball and track & field. The 1936 graduate was given the nickname “Cannon” due to his speed and strength, and he took that with him to the U.S. Navy, which he joined after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. He moved home after his service ended, married and moved to Connecticut, where he died on Dec. 7, 1958 due to leukemia. One year later, the school began handing out an annual award in his honor, given to the player or players who exemplify the character and athleticism attributed to Novak during his athletic career.
This year saw no shortage of potential winners, including Doyle and linebacker/offensive lineman Tahner Castine, who each won the award last year as juniors. The two offensive stars wound up taking home the hardware, and Doyle joins a select group of players to have won the award twice in his career along with Ryan Togneri (2000, 2001), Ryan Wilder (2010, 2012) and John Ollari (2011, 2012).
“I’m fortunate enough to have won it not once, but twice now,” Doyle said. “I didn’t think I was going to win it this year because we had so many seniors step up and play so well. It really could have gone to anyone, I think.”
While Doyle may have been surprised, his numbers speak for themselves. He led the Indians (11-1) with 1,500 rushing yards this season on 300 carries, that number thought to possibly be an area record for number of hauls. He also scored 19 touchdowns on the season.
“It didn’t feel like I carried it that much,” Doyle said with a smile, “when your name gets called, you go with it and do the best you can. These past two seasons have been something that I will never forget. It’s been great to play with these guys and I’m definitely going to miss it.”
As for Brown, he began his career as a sophomore who converted to quarterback to help a team dealing with injuries at that time. Always thought to be undersized, Brown elevated his game this season, and was arguably the best quarterback in the area. He stepped up in a big way during the postseason, helping to lead the Indians to a come-from-behind win in the Western Massachusetts Division IV-A title game, and was named MVP on Turkey Day.
“It’s a great honor to win this award, I know it means a lot to this community and this team, and it means a lot to be part of this club of guys who have won it,” Brown said.
Brown completed 46 of 99 passes this season for 948 yards. He also threw for 14 touchdowns against just six interceptions. He also picked off five passes on defense as the team’s safety.
“It really is a fun ending,” Brown said. “But I’ve got to give credit to my teammates, because they’ve pushed me over the years to improve and be the best I can be.”
St. Kaz was filled to capacity on the day for the banquet, and the Indians celebrated their WMass championship along with the Novak Awards. Bill Brown was back as the master of ceremonies for the event, and among the festivities was a speech by guest speaker Peter Kowalski, who just finished off his third season as head coach of the Westfield State University football team, after previously serving as defensive coordinator at the school for 18 years. His stint as defensive coordinator overlapped the time that Turners Falls coach Chris Lapointe played quarterback at the school. Kowalski also has a pair of former Indians and a pair of Novak winners on his roster in Ollari and Wilder.
Kowalski is a retired high school teacher, serving 34 years, and he said he was nervous to deliver his speech on Sunday, even though standing in front of a room and talking is nothing new to him.
“It’s different when people are actually listening,” he joked.
Kowalski spoke about the three pillars that he looks for in his players: Be champions of the classroom, champions of the community, and champions on the football field. He said he was proud of the fact that 49 players on his team have a grade-point average of 3.0 or higher, and 40 were named to the Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference All-Academic team. He also spoke about players speaking out against bullying, as well as doing other things in the community, something the Indian players have done this season.
After his speech, the coaches handed out their awards, but first, they celebrated the seniors. In the four years that the senior class has been with the team, the Indians have a 37-9 record, and are 2-1 in WMass championships.
“That’s not too bad for a team that’s been said to be too small, too slow and doesn’t have enough numbers,” Lapointe quipped.
Doyle was named Offensive MVP for his numbers, while Castine was named Defensive MVP. He finished with 110 tackles this season, and in two years has 230 tackles and 11 sacks. Castine and Kyle Bergmann were named Linemen of the Year, and wide receiver/defensive end Owen Ortiz was named Most Improved. Ortiz led the area with 354 receiving yards this season on 14 carries. Michael Babcock, a backup running back/defensive back was named the 12th Man.