Medfield Determined to Play Four Quarters of Football Tonight in Millis

With two games remaining in the 2011 season, head coach Erik Ormberg expects his football team to compete and execute its game plan for four quarters, starting Friday night in Millis.

“We have to play four quarters of football, limit mistakes and penalties
and convert big plays on special teams,” Ormberg said.

Last week, , but in the span of 23 seconds, the Hillers pulled ahead for good.

“The game changed in 23 seconds going from 0-0 to 13-0,” Ormberg said. “We hung in there until the fourth quarter, our players refuse to quit. Our seniors continue to play hard and our juniors are stepping up in a variety of ways.”

Ormberg said at 2-7 (0-4 in TVL Large), the Warriors “still have a long way to go in a short amount of time.”

On Friday, Medfield takes on a Millis-Hopedale team that won its TVL Small Division with a perfect 4-0 record and has knocked off TVL Large foe Westwood. The Mohawks’ success this season has been a result of a strong running game and an aggressive and talented offensive line.

“What they do well is attack you with different sets and formations,” said Ormberg. “They have a great offensive line and a running back who sees the field and anticipates where the openings will appear in the defensive front.”

Ormberg said Medfield has prepared this week on limiting Millis’ running back Jim Perkins and quarterback Bay Tangney.

“[Perkins] is a key player,” Ormberg said. “[Tangney] is a huge passing threat. Wide receiver Ian Strom is a deep threat. Jon Baker is a sophomore lineman who might
be the best in the state at his position. He is a human highlight reel. Connor Sayles is a captain and two-way player who is consistent at tight end and defensive end.”

In order to be successful Friday, Medfield will look to attack the Mohawks in all three phases of the game.

“Our goal is to play four quarters, be aggressive on defense and attack them in the
places where they overload the field,” Ormberg said.

The first-year Medfield coach said he expects a battle between both teams offensive and defensive lines and each team’s talented skill players to have an impact.

“We both have linemen that attack and are big and aggressive,” Ormberg said. “They have some talented skill people to complement their lines. Our skill players like [TJ] Valente, [Jake] Mintz, [Alex] Opiela and [Tim] Bernard will need to turn in their best performance.”

Ormberg is looking forward to coaching against a former teammate and his players are looking forward to taking the field against familiar faces.

“There exists a positive relationship with the players and coaches in
Millis and Medfield,” Ormberg said. “I played high school football with head coach, Dale Olmsted, we've been friends for years. Our players played Pop Warner with
a lot of the Millis kids. Our staff knows their staff from Bay State Camp and we have a huge respect for how small the town of Millis is and how
they have played playoff football every week this year.”  

Ormberg credited the efforts of Millis’ coaches and players to return the program to stability.

“Millis is a team that almost folded its program two years ago,” Ormberg said. “They are now a playoff team. Things like that do not happen overnight. Their coaches and
players are committed to keeping Millis competitive. Our games with Millis have always been competitive and we expect this year's edition to be no different.”

Kick-off is 7 p.m. at Millis High School.

Can’t attend the game? Don’t worry; we’ve got you covered! Be sure to log on to Medfield Patch at game time for live updates in real time with the Friday Night LIVE.