After enjoying its most successful campaign in over a decade last fall, the Massachusetts Maritime football team enters the 2012 season with great excitement, enthusiasm and experience, as Head Coach Jeremy Cameron welcomes back 49 letterwinners and 14 starters as part of a 103-man roster for his eighth campaign at the helm. 

The Buccaneers are looking to build upon back-to-back seasons of five overall victories, as last year’s win total included their first Admiral’s Cup triumph over Maine Maritime in seven years as well as a season opening victory over eventual New England Football Conference champion Western New England, as Cameron’s crew will tackle a nine-game schedule as part of its final season of NEFC play.

Leadership has always been a staple of Massachusetts Maritime Football, and that will be no exception during the program’s 40^th NCAA Division III varsity campaign in 2012, as Cameron has tabbed seniors Barry Reopell (South Dennis, Mass./Dennis-Yarmouth) and Nick Mazurkiewicz (Attleboro, Mass./Attleboro) as team co-captains.  Cameron, the 2009 NEFC Bogan Division Coach of the Year, says the duo “have played instrumental roles in the continued growth of our program, both on and off the field.  Their level of commitment, both on and off the field, is unmatched, and they are not satisfied with the success we’ve had—they want to take it to a higher level.”

Here’s a look at how things are shaping up for the 2012 edition of Buccaneer Football:

OFFENSE.  Junior Mike Stanton (Quincy, Mass./North Quincy) returns as Massachusetts Maritime’s signal caller after turning in another solid season at quarterback, as he threw for nearly 1,400 yards and 11 touchdowns while completing nearly 52 percent (109-211) of his pass attempts and posting a 115.51 pass efficiency rating.  Stanton has notched a 10-7 mark as the Buccaneer starter during his career, and he will be pushed at the position by sophomore John Trudel (Niantic, Conn./Ledyard), who threw for 95 yards and a touchdown as a rookie in 2011.

Reopell, who is serving as a Buccaneer co-captain for a second straight season, is the top returning rusher for Cameron after collecting 394 yards and scoring a team-best six rushing touchdowns a year ago, and he is joined in the backfield by sophomore Austin Pierce (Peabody, Mass./St. John’s Prep), who amassed 39 yards in six contests as a freshman. 

Junior Keith Caruso (Hingham, Mass./Hingham) emerged as a top receiving threat last season, as he led Massachusetts Maritime with 49 receptions for 577 yards (11.8 yards per catch) to go with a pair of touchdowns.  Sophomores Jonathan Wright (Newburyport, Mass./Newburyport) and E.J. Bennett (East Wareham, Mass./Wareham) combined for 14 receptions and 215 yards in 2011, as Wright hauled in three touchdowns, including a pair in the season-ending three-point setback to Bridgewater State in the Cranberry Bowl.  Juniors David Wilson (Weare, N.H./John Stark Regional) and Brian Donaghey (Quincy, Mass./North Quincy) lend additional experience at the tight end position, while junior Ted Mello (Acushnet, Mass./Old Colony) and sophomores Kyle Hardy (Salem, Mass./Salem), Jeremiah Stancombe (Winchendon, Mass./Narragansett Regional) and Bobby Rosano (North Reading, Mass./North Reading), will also look to make an impact in the receiving corps.

Senior Bryan Norberg (Walpole, Mass./Walpole) anchors an experienced Buccaneer offensive line that includes fellow senior Christopher Flynn (Orange, Conn./Amity Regional), juniors Sean Marshall (Sandwich, Mass./Sandwich), John Bochman (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth South), Ian Bradley (Burlington, Conn./Saint Paul Catholic) and Josh Bevilacqua (Raynham, Mass./Bridgewater-Raynham) as well as sophomores Jeffrey Wallace (Marshfield, Mass./Marshfield), Timothy Lawler (Newburyport, Mass./Newburyport) and Jared Roark (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth South).

DEFENSE.  Cameron welcomes back a pair of all-NEFC Bogan Division performers on the defensive side in seniors Sean Carver (Summerfield, Fla./The Villages) and Eddy Ramos (Sunny Isles, Fla./Michael Krop), as Carver leads the way on the defensive line after notching 34 total tackles (22 solo) to go with four sacks, 12 tackles for losses, two forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries.  Ramos led the Buccaneers with four interceptions, returning one 55 yards for a pick-six against Worcester State, while amassing 32 total tackles (24 solo) and seven pass break-ups.

Mazurkiewicz leads a linebacking corps that is still solid despite the graduation of 2011 NEFC Bogan Defensive Player of the Year Walter Butler as well as two-time all-conference selection Mike Bois, as he ranked fourth in total tackles with 51 (30 solo) as a junior.  Sophomore Victor Andrade (Yarmouthport, Mass./Dennis-Yarmouth) made an immediate impact as a rookie with nine tackles and a 17-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown in the Admiral’s Cup win over Maine Maritime, while juniors Max Devoe (Quincy, Mass./Quincy), Andrew Peterson (Fennville, Mich./Catholic Central) and Chris Pisani (Wakefield, Mass./Wakefield) lend additional experience.

Andrade leads a deep sophomore class at the linebacking spots for Massachusetts Maritime, as fellow third class Avery Tavares (Dartmouth, Mass./Dartmouth) gained experience and also performed well on special teams.  Sophomores Kyle O’Keefe (Carver, Mass./Carver), Reynard Ortiz (Lowell, Mass./Lowell) and Jack Radke (York, Maine/York) will also be vying to contribute for the Buccaneers this fall.

Carver is joined on the defensive line by fellow senior Kevin Griffin (Worcester, Mass./St. John’s), who enjoyed another solid campaign in registering 37 total tackles (21 solo) to go with a sack and 5.5 tackles for losses of 16 yards.  Junior Donnie Sheridan (Raynham, Mass./Bridgewater-Raynham) established himself in the starting lineup as the season progressed and recorded 24 total tackles (18 solo) to go with a sack, while sophomore Zachary Ryan (Danvers, Mass./Danvers) added 12 stops (10 solo) in six contests.  Sophomores Richard Ford (Lynn, Mass./Lynn Classical), Gordon Fitch (Wilmington, Mass./Wilmington) and John Dee (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth North) will also be vying for spots on the Buccaneer d-line this fall.

Ramos heads an experienced defensive backfield that includes fellow senior Evan Sheridan (Chelmsford, Mass./Chelmsford), who collected 28 total tackles and a pair of interceptions before missing four contests due to injury.  Junior Stefan Gustafson (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth South), the 2010 NEFC Bogan Defensive Rookie of the Year, is back at the corner spot after ranking fifth on the team with 49 total stops (37 solo) to go with six break-ups and a pick, while fellow junior Michael Sylvia (Lincoln, Mass./Lincoln-Sudbury) stepped into a starting role at mid-season and ranked only behind Ramos in interceptions with three picks while amassing 29 total tackles (23 solo). 

Junior Sheldon Roper (Sharpsburg, Ga./Northgate) moves from the linebacking corps to defensive back after ranking behind only Butler and Bois with 55 total tackles (35 solo) and an interception for an impressive second season, while sophomores Kevin Stanton (Abington, Mass./Cardinal Spellman), Samuel Shonk (Allentown, N.J./Allentown), Julio Ruiz (Winchester, Conn./Northwestern Regional), James Nguyen (Quincy, Mass./Quincy) and Peter Markarian (Hyannis, Mass./Bishop Stang) will look to contribute in defensive backfield roles as well this season.

SPECIAL TEAMS.  Junior Brandon Rodrigues (Brockton, Mass./Brockton) is the lone experienced placekicker and punter on the Massachusetts Maritime roster, as he handled both duties as a freshman while also excelling in the classroom with a perfect 4.00 grade point average over his first two years of matriculation.  Gustafson is back as the Buccaneers’ kick returner after averaging 24.8 yards per kickoff return a year ago that included a game-opening 79-yard touchdown return against MIT, and he also averaged 10.8 yards per punt return that featured a 54-yard game-winning touchdown in the season-opening triumph over Western New England.

SCHEDULE.  For the second time in three seasons, Cameron will see his Buccaneers open with four of their first five contests away from Clean Harbors Stadium, as Massachusetts Maritime will play at SUNY-Maritime and Nichols in non-league play to begin the year before hosting Coast Guard in its NEFC Bogan Division opener.  Cameron’s crew will also play league contests at Framingham State and Worcester State as well as the 40^th Annual Admiral’s Cup clash at Maine Maritime, and the Buccaneers will also host Fitchburg State (for Homecoming) and Westfield State while also entertaining Bridgewater State for the 34^th Annual Cranberry Bowl Presented By Ocean Spray to end the regular season.

The tide of good fortune has certainly surrounded the shores of the Massachusetts Maritime football program over the past two seasons thanks to the leadership of Jeremy Cameron, and the Buccaneers will look to sail into more successful waters once again in 2012.  Cameron’s squad will begin the year on Friday, September 7^th by renewing rivalries with SUNY-Maritime in the Fifth Annual Chowder Bowl clash in Throggs Neck, N.Y. that kicks off at 7:00 p.m. EDT.