After the heartbreaking overtime loss to Nantucket in last year’s Island Cup at Fenway Park, William Nicholson had been looking forward to leading the regional high school football team to a win over the Whalers this season. 

But the starting quarterback won’t get that chance because the team was forced to cancel the remainder of its season last week due to the lack of healthy players to send out on the field. On Saturday, Coach Tony Mottola called his team to the high school and broke the news that the team was forfeiting the storied rival game. 

For seniors like Nicholson, the decision has been a tough pill to swallow, but a medicine he said he and his fellow teammates understand was prescribed for their health and safety. 

“We were all very upset,” he said. “We wanted to play....The team has been training for this one.” 

Coach Tony Mottola made the tough call on Saturday.

Tim Johnson

Coach Tony Mottola made the tough call on Saturday.

Tim Johnson

Nicholson himself has been battling a sprained ankle since week three, and would have also had to contend with a fractured finger if the Vineyarders did end up hosting Nantucket this weekend. 

For Coach Mottola, though, it was a numbers game and the possibility of more students getting injured, potentially seriously, was too big of a risk.

“We were teetering on someone getting significantly hurt,” he said in an interview.

The team started the season in September with 36 players on the roster. A couple players dropped off, seven had season-ending injuries and six in the past week were dismissed from the team due to disciplinary reasons. 

The team had dropped to about 22 active players, and then more players were injured in recent weeks, meaning there were times where there would be between 15 to 18 players at practice for 11 positions on each offense and defense. 

Several positions had no backups, and the team had a large contingent of freshmen who had little game experience.

“Each week we have been trying to put it together,” the coach said. “Their bodies are getting worn down....It kind of all came to a head and became a safety issue.”

Continuing to play would have entailed asking 14- to 17-year olds to play 100-plus snaps, potentially all while harboring bumps and bruises from the season. 

“I know the timing isn’t ideal because it’s the Island Cup,” Coach Mottola said. “My job is to have the safety of the kids in the forefront....We obviously felt as a staff that this was the right thing to do.”

Harrison Lazarus, a senior defensive end, said the team had been limping through several games, but the loss against Dennis-Yarmouth last Friday was the final nail in the season’s coffin. 

“It kind of was driven home that night when a lot of people had to play positions they were unfamiliar with,” he said. “All of the good fight that could have been given was given.” 

Lazarus found himself playing in the “monster” position – lining up as a fifth linemen while also covering the flat like a linebacker. By the end of the D-Y game, he was filling in for another linebacker who had a calf issue. 

“There were a lot of positions with no back ups,” he said. “We simply didn’t have people to play.” 

When the coaches broke the news to the team, they took more than an hour to explain the situation and answer questions from the players. Many were upset that the season was ending so abruptly and without a chance to take on the undefeated Nantucket. 

“The kids were upset,” Coach Mottola said. “Obviously they are competitors and they want to play.”

Lazarus said that while the team was disappointed, he wouldn’t trade his time playing for the Vineyarders. 

“Despite the unfortunate circumstances of the ending of this season, playing football has been one of the most enthralling experiences of my life,” he said. “Every time I played in a football game, I was genuinely having fun.”

Nicholson hopes to continue playing at the next level, and said he would now turn to getting his game in front of college coaches. While there is no Island Cup game, the team is planning to go to a Yale-Brown football game, where they will meet the collegiate players. 

Liz Barnes, Lazarus’ mother and the president of the football team’s booster club, hoped this would be a one-off situation as the football program has put an emphasis on the younger grades in an attempt to bolster the future numbers.

“This is a glitch and the Vineyard has been through tougher things and we will win in the long run,” Ms. Barnes said. 

In a letter to parents, Coach Mottola said he was proud of his players throughout the season.

“We are proud of the effort, dedication, and heart our players have shown all season,” he wrote. “We will continue to support them through the remainder of the school year and look ahead to rebuilding and returning stronger.”