Week 3 stars: How these seven high school football players stood out from the crowd

There were many standout players across the gridiron in Week 3 across the Seacoast with all 10 local teams playing for the first time in this young season.

Some of those standout athletes include Portsmouth/Oyster River's Colton Brisard, Exeter's Dylan Drunsic, Marshwood's Brady Isabelle, York's Ben Brown, St. Thomas Aquinas' Trent Salyards, Winnacunnet's Mason McDonald and Somersworth's Tayshawn Sheppard.

Let's take a further look at these eight players and what they did in this weekend's games.

Two-way lineman Colton Brisard helps get Portsmouth/Oyster River going

Sure, he likely won't be throwing any touchdowns, nor catching and running for any, but Colton Brisard does play a part in generating the offense for Portsmouth/Oyster River.

And the same goes for defense.

"He was our player (of the game) Week one when everyone was touting the running backs and all that," Portsmouth head coach Brian Pafford said. "He had like eight tackles in the first game, three for losses, a sack, three pancake blocks, he was just incredible, and he's still learning the game. (Today), he got caught a little bitl (Dover) did some really smart things, and extended its offensive line and spread him out. He kept following, not knowing if he should have stayed where he was, and when he did, he made the play."

Pafford added, "he's a big kid, he moves really well, clearly both sides of the ball all game," he said of the junior lineman.

Brisard said he feels like he's improving a lot.

"Last year, I wasn't able to do this, but I grinded this off-season and that's what you've got to do," Brisard said. "Everyone's got to do it as a team, you've got to stick together and over the offseason you've got to grind, and I think that's what's doing it for us this year."

On Friday, Brisard was in on an early momentum-shifting play as Dover was set to punt, but the snap flew over Dover punter Tucker Johnson's head. Johnson went back to recover and couldn't get far as Brisard chased him down for the tackle.

Later in the game, Brisard tackled Dover quarterback Ryder Aubin, who was looking to scramble,  for no gain on a pivotal third-and-10 play with Portsmouth protecting a 24-14 lead..

Numerous times, even if he wasn't in on the tackle, Brisard made his presence felt defensively.

"The ends have to do the job with containing the quarterback and containing the running back, and if they contain, they go right to me," Brisard said. "And I just have to make the tackle, it's a team effort."

-Brandon Brown

Exeter football head coach Bill Ball has always emphasized the kicking game

ROCHESTER - Yes, he's a captain on the Exeter High School boys soccer team, but Dylan Drunsic's talent extends to the football field where entering Thursday's game Spaulding, he hadn't missed on any of his 10 extra-point attempts, nor his two field-goal tries.

In Thursday's 31-6 win over the Red Raiders, Drunsic's kicking brilliance remained without a blemish on his short, but growing, resume.

More: Exeter football scores 17 points in second quarter, beats Spaulding, 31-7 in 1st road game

Drunsic connected on all four extra-points and connected on a 30-yard field goal as time expired in the first half that gave Exeter a 17-0 lead.

"I'm a soccer guy, but I just keep my head down and kick the ball," Drunsic said. "I owe a lot of props to the guys in front of me, they've helped me out this entire season. They don't make mistakes, and Kenny (Verhelle) the holder, he hasn't made a mistake, and that's why I've made every single (kick)."

With the departure of previous kicker Ethan Moss, Drunsic said he was recruited by Ball, and Drunsic couldn't resist.

"I think there's no better atmosphere than Exeter High School," Drunsic said.

With 44 seconds remaining until the half, Exeter marched down to the Spaulding 13, and with about 2 seconds on the clock Drunsic was called upon to add to the 14-0 lead from 30 yards out. He even had to wait a little bit and think about the attempt with Spaulding calling two timeouts.

"He's been outstanding," Ball said. "He's a great kicker, comes from a great family. Terrific family, great kid and he's fit in like a glove."

"I think my first kick of the season, I was very, very nervous," Drunsic said. "But after that, they just started rolling through, and once again (Verhelle) is there with me every single time. High-five before the kick, high-five after the kick, same thing every time, and that's just helped me get it through the uprights."

-Brandon Brown

Winnacunnet's Mason McDonald rushes for 67 yards, also delivers as backup quarterback

McDonald entered as the quarterback in last year’s Thanksgiving Day game at Lowell, Massachusetts when starter Riley McDaniel went out in the first quarter with an injury.

McDonald stepped right in and led the Warriors to a season-ending, 8-7 win at historic Edward D. Cawley Stadium.

In Friday’s game against Memorial, McDonald was again pressed into the role of quarterback as McDaniel was shaken up on a play that McDonald rushed for six yards on first down - late in the fourth quarter.

More: Friday football roundup: Winnacunnet scores first touchdown of season in loss to Memorial

McDaniel walked off the field, but had to miss one play as trainers went onto the field.

Winnacunnet head coach Ryan Francoeur figured Memorial wouldn’t expect a pass in that situation with the backup quarterback in.

“I love (McDonald) as an as an athlete, and as a kid,” Francoeur said. “Last year (McDaniel) gets hurt really early in the Thanksgiving game and Masonjust comes in and leads us to victory on to end the season. I had no hesitation there to put him tonight.”

McDonald dropped back to pass and hit Jake Magri over the middle for a 28-yard gain and giving Winnacunnet a first down at the Memorial 7.

“I thought maybe we could sneak in a pass with a new quarterback coming in for one play,” Francoeur said. “It’s not something probably a lot of defensives would suspect in that situation, and I wouldn't either. I thought Mason did a job of executing the play, and (Magri) had the catch.”

The Warriors scored their first touchdown of the season on the next play, a 7-yard run from junior DJ Sciaccia with 2:40 left in the game.

McDonald then connected with Logan Brown on the 2-point conversion.

McDonald, a starting running back this season, ran for a team season-high of 67 yards in Friday’s loss.

“I thought (McDonald) was a huge spark for us tonigh in the running game,” Francoeur said. “I could see it when he got the ball. He was really trying to get downhill and that really set up some of the other things we did."

-Jay Pinsonnault

Somersworth senior captain Tayshawn Sheppard delivers on opening night

SOMERSWORTH – Big things are expected this season from Tayshawn Sheppard and the senior co-captain delivered Friday night.

Now the focal point of the offense he rushed for four touchdowns and set up another as the Somersworth High School football team ambushed visiting Mascoma Valley to the tune of 50-0 as the two-time Division IV champions look to make a serious run at a three-peat.

“He was fantastic,” said Somersworth coach Jeremy Lambert. “He’s a marquee back. He’s incredibly talented. He’s a two-year captain so he leads in every aspect of the word. When we put the ball in his hands good things happen. He’s explosive and hard to take down. I think this is going to be the year he makes big things happen. He’s not running behind anyone else. He’s our guy.”

Sheppard, who spent most of his career up to this point stuck behind the now graduated Calvin Lambert, finished the game with more than 200 yards on just 15 carries highlighted by gains of 52, 32 and 59 yards. The latter two went for touchdowns while the 52-yarder down the right sideline set up the game’s first score.

“I came out here and just gave it my best,” Sheppard said. “I couldn’t do it without my line and my lead blockers. I trust I can just run up the middle and the hole will be there.”

His other TD runs covered 4 and 8 yards. On his 32-yarder early in the second quarter he ran straight ahead and reached the end zone virtually untouched.

Sheppard's 59-yard touchdown run in the third quarter that made it 43-0 was his final carry and capped a terrific, opening night performance.

“One of the best things about him is he’s still got that level of humility,” coach Lambert said. “He understands he can’t do it all, he’s got to rely on his line. He needs his quarterback. What’s great is the whole offense knows that too so they all know that this is a team win and that's the best part of it.”

-Al Pike

York's Ben Brown scores two touchdowns in 9 seconds

YORK, Maine – Trailing 21-0 just 8 minutes and 30 seconds into Friday night’s game against Leavitt, York needed a spark.

And Ben Brown just about caught fire.

Brown, the senior wide receiver and defensive back, caught four passes for 63 yards, including an 8-yard touchdown reception that cut the Leavitt lead to 21-7 with 10:59 left in the half.  Brown wasn’t done though. On the ensuing kickoff, Brown stripped Leavitt kick returner Mason Henderson of the ball, then gathered it up and sprinted 20 yards for a touchdown to cut the lead to 21-13 just 9 seconds after his touchdown catch.

The play was remarkable in any situation, but what made this one stand out was the fact that Brown wasn’t even supposed to be on the field. An injury to one of his teammates on the kickoff coverage team forced the team to scramble for a replacement.

“It was kind of random because usually I’m not on kickoff, but they said they needed someone and I was closest, so I just ran out there,” he said. “We were down two scores and needed something, so I did what I could to strip it. The ball just kind of landed in my hands and I turned around and ran it in.”

Although York wouldn’t find the end zone again after cutting the lead to 21-13, Brown’s impact was notable. He finished with six catches for 99 yards, to go along with the big defensive play, before sitting out the second half due to the lopsided score.

“I was really happy with (Brown’s) effort tonight,” said York coach Matt Nelson. “With all those big catches, and ripping the ball away on the kickoff. Having a senior captain perform like that in a game like this is something the young kids can look up to and say, ‘This is someone I could emulate.’”

Brown said he just tries to do whatever he can to provide a jumpstart to his team. Brown said he doesn’t necessarily call for the ball, but he always tries to be ready when the opportunity arises.

“That’s just the way the game came to us,” he said. “We have a lot of guys who can make plays, it just happened to be me. I have confidence we can string those plays together. We just can’t shoot ourselves in the foot like we did tonight. We made too many mistakes early in the game. We’ve got to give ourselves a chance to win. WE can’t have that many mental errors that early in the game.”

That message was received loud and clear by his teammates, who came out in and continued to scrap and claw, even when the odds – and the scoreboard – were stacked against them.

“I just try to energize, however I can, especially in a game like that. Just trying to get the energy up however I can.” I still have confidence we can move the ball. We have a lot to build on. Hopefully we can bounce back next week against Lisbon,’ he said. “We know there’s stuff we can build on, so at the end of the day there’s stuff that we can build on. We just have to work on the kinks.”

With leadership like Brown, Nelson said, moving past a difficult game like this is a little easier.

“He’s a big positive influence on the team,” Nelson added. “I was happy with his play on both sides of the ball tonight.”

-Terrill Covey

Marshwood's Isabelle connects on game-winning 28-yard field goal

GORHAM, Maine – Sophomore Brady Isabelle made his first varsity field goal attempt for the Marshwood High School football team one to remember. With 31 seconds on the clock Friday night, Isabelle broke a 27-all tie with a 28-yard kick to lift the Hawks to a 30-27 win at Gorham in Class B South action.

According to coach Alex Rotsko, Gorham tried to freeze Isabelle by calling two timeouts. “He’s a pretty confident kid,” Rotsko said. “For a sophomore to step up in the fourth quarter and kick a field goal to win it (was big).”

Marshwood was down 27-20 after the Rams scored with 4:55 to play. Sophomore Graham Goodwin tied it up with a 69-yard run and an Isabelle PAT. That set the stage for the late-game heroics as the Hawks ended up scoring the final 10 points of the game after trailing most of the night.

Going into the season, Isabelle found himself battling for that position. “He and (Ty) Hussey were competing and he ended up winning the job,” Rotsko said. “He’s done a good job.”

Isabelle started on defense for Marshwood at safety. He played some offense as a split end and is the back-up QB behind Hussey.

Junior Ryan Essex scored both of the Hawks’ first-half TDs on runs of 4 and 5 yards. Hussey’s 20-yard keeper early in the fourth quarter tied the game at 20-20.

Marshwood hosts Class A Sanford Friday night at 6 p.m.

-Mike Whaley

Salyards shifts momentum in St. Thomas Aquinas’ win

DOVER – Sanborn was marching down the field on the game’s first drive in Friday’s Division II clash at St. Thomas Aquinas.

And then the shift of momentum changed as senior Trent Salyards intercepted a Sanborn pass and returned it 79 yards for a touchdown.

“I mean, they’re driving right down the field, and you think they’re going to punch it in, and the next thing you know we’re up 7-0 and our offense never touched the football,” St. Thomas Aquinas head coach Ed McDonough said. “That interception was huge. (Salyards) put it into second gear, and was able to take down the sidelines and go the distance. That was the highlight play of the game.”

Salyards also rushed for a team-high 49 yards on just nine carries.

“He’s a veteran, a leader,” McDonough said.

The Saints, after recovering a fumble, ran the final 15 plays of the game and killing the final 6:30 minutes. McDonough said Salyards had a key third down conversion which kept the drive going.

“He ran the ball hard all night,” McDonough said. “On that final drive, we ran power off-tackle and he hit for 7 yards and a first down. He had some good hard runs. He lowers his shoulder. He played well, and he blocked well on the belly.”

-Jay Pinsonnault

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: High school football stars: Top players and performances of Week 3