St. John’s Prep head coach Brian St. Pierre doesn’t usually mince phrases. That is true with regards to his admiration of senior captain Mason McSweeney.
McSweeney, the Eagles’ star defensive finish who impacts the sport in all three phases, is the center and soul of an undefeated St. John’s Prep workforce pursuing its fourth Division 1 state title since 2018.
“Mason is the ultimate football player,” St. Pierre mentioned. “We started him as a sophomore and he was already incredibly mature. He’s played so much football now that he is always ready to go regardless of the moment or game.”
McSweeney is much from the lone athletic star within the household. Both his dad and mom have been athletes in highschool and his mom, Melissa, was an all-American area hockey participant at Drew University. Mason’s older sister, Caroline, performs area hockey at Assumption. Already dabbling within the waters of ice hockey and baseball, McSweeney’s household pushed him to check out the gridiron as he entered sixth grade. He by no means left.
“The people around me pushed me into football more and more as I got older,” McSweeney mentioned. “Playing the game repeatedly made me fall in love with it and play it as much as possible.”
For the previous three years, McSweeney has been an integral a part of St. John’s Prep’s success. The Topsfield resident began each recreation as a sophomore. St. Pierre was blown away by his capability to come out on movie. Then, as a junior, McSweeney wreaked havoc on opponents together with his physicality, motor, agility and quickness, particularly alongside the defensive position. He routinely discovered himself within the backfield, leaping brief yardage move makes an attempt, and sporting down offensive traces.
That was by no means extra prevalent than in final 12 months’s Division 1 Super Bowl when McSweeney led a defensive effort that shut out a Springfield Central offense that averaged over 30 factors per recreation.
“Some kids shy away from those types of moments but not Mason,” St. Pierre mentioned. “He is a kid that is a Division 1 talent. He went against two Division 1 tackles that day against Springfield but for him that is the good stuff. He was as good a player as anyone on the field that day.”
McSweeney’s defensive prowess has solely grown this 12 months. A 12 months after totaling 7.5 sacks, he already has 9 in the course of the 2023 marketing campaign. He had a double-digit deal with efficiency in a win over BC High to shut out the common season. Yet his affect isn’t just restricted to his play up entrance.
The 6-foot-2, 232-pound star is a go-to playmaker within the passing recreation for St. Pierre’s offense as evidenced by a key insurance coverage landing he had in week one versus Marshfield. On particular groups he has amassed 4 blocked punts for his profession and two blocked PAT’s.
Perhaps most notably, McSweeney is named a frontrunner not by way of his phrases however fairly his relentless type of play. He is smooth spoken. The noise he emits comes from his pads, not his voice.
“You can go the whole day and not hear the man’s voice,” St. Pierre mentioned. “He’s not a vocal guy. He’s our ‘lead by example’ captain. You will hear his pads, though. I can promise you that.”
For McSweeney, this 12 months is about showcasing that even when a program brings dwelling a championship, the requirements proceed to get larger.
“We have a standard as a school and team to always be better than last year,” McSweeney mentioned. “The bonds and lessons that you are taught throughout football really made me love it.”
NAME: Mason Alexander McSweeney
SCHOOL: St. John’s Prep
AGE: 18
HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 6’2/232
POSITION: DE/OLB/TE
NICKNAME: None
FAMILY: Father (Kevin McSweeney), mom (Melissa DellaRusso McSweeney), two sisters (Gabriella, Caroline McSweeney)
ACCOMPLISHMENTS: 2022 D1 state champion, soccer sophomore chief, soccer coaches award sophomore 12 months, MHSFCA honorable point out 2022, Catholic Conference All-Star 2022, National Honor Society
FAVORITE PERSONAL MOMENT IN SPORTS: profitable the 2022 D1 state championship
FAVORITE COURSE IN SCHOOL: Economics
LEAST FAVORITE COURSE IN SCHOOL: Sciences
FAVORITE PIGOUT FOOD: Kipos, roast beef
FAVORITE TV SHOW: Ted Lasso
FAVORITE MOVIE: Whiplash
FAVORITE MUSICIAN: Travis Scott
FAVORITE VIDEO GAME: Call of Duty: Black Ops 4
FAVORITE SMARTPHONE APP: Instagram
FAVORITE TWITTER ACCOUNT TO FOLLOW: Footballism
FAVORITE PRO TEAM: Liverpool Football Club
FAVORITE ATHLETE: Cristiano Ronaldo/Maxx Crosby
HOW DO YOU PREPARE FOR A GAME: Get locked with my teammates
IF YOU COULD BE SOMEONE ELSE FOR A DAY, WHO WOULD IT BE: Cristiano Ronaldo
CAREER AMBITIONS: Take soccer so far as I can and use it to set myself up. Also to acquire wealth in each side of my life.
Source: www.bostonherald.com
