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Bedford quarterback Mikol looks to grow from first varsity season
Bedford junior quarterback, Joe Mikol, helps run his non-profit organization, Fueled by Kids, in his time away from the football field. (Courtesy: joemikol/Instagram)

Bedford quarterback Mikol looks to grow from first varsity season

BEDFORD, N.H. (BVM) — Last summer, Joe Mikol competed against five of his teammates for the starting varsity quarterback spot. The then-Bedford High School sophomore turned some heads on the Bulldogs’ coaching staff.

“When I came in, we had about five kids in a quarterback competition, so last fall Joe ended up winning the quarterback competition as a sophomore and he started for us all of last year,” Bedford head football coach Zach Matthews said.

What stood out to the first-year head coach was the sophomore’s mature skill-set at the position.

Composure is a big thing and with quarterbacks, there’s a lot of things that change in front of you,” Matthews said. “You know defenses are blitzing, they’re changing coverages, and no matter what you throw at Joe, he’s very even-keeled and he keeps his composure. 

“The other thing is his ability to process information. When it comes down to us talking about scheme and certain plays and identifying coverages and where to go with the football, I think Joe’s very advanced in that regard.”

Now as a junior, his coach is looking forward to the growth he saw from his quarterback last season. When it comes to the quarterback position, the focus is always on technique.

“The biggest piece is technical skills,” Matthews said when talking about Mikol’s growth. “Joe doesn’t just go out and work on throwing passes with those guys, repetitions are great, but he goes out and works on improving his footwork or improving his delivery, and I think that’s kind of the biggest piece. 

“I’ve seen some real advancement in his footwork and his delivery angles as far as his arm is concerned. I’ve seen a lot of growth in that regard when it comes down to his footwork.”

After just missing the playoffs in his first varsity season, Mikol will look to get his team off to a hot start early on in 2020. With the pandemic creating a difficult offseason situation, the Bulldogs’ head coach doesn’t think the new changes were an issue for his junior quarterback.

“It was a very untraditional offseason because for a lot of us, we are spending a lot of time apart,” Matthews said. “I know Joe had to do a lot of work on his own and I think that’s something that has always been a strong suit of his, he’s always had a great work ethic and has always put in the time away from our teams’ structured activities, so I think he definitely put in the time.”

For Mikol, it’s not all about his football traits. The Bulldogs’ junior, who his coach says isn’t  someone that is loud or outspoken, showcases his low-key attitude when it comes to his work off the field. 

Helping alongside his siblings, Joe and the Mikol family run their non-profit organization, Fueled by Kids, to help distribute bags of food to needy kids in the area.

“The thing I love most is, that isn’t information that Joe puts out there with hopes of being recognized for it,” Matthews said when talking about Joe’s work with the organization. 

“Last Thanksgiving, Joe and one of his siblings were at one of our local supermarkets helping out with the food drive, trying to get supplies and getting people at the supermarkets to donate food items for people that didn’t have the money or resources to have a Thanksgiving meal. Joe does a lot of those things, community service type things, to help out others, but it’s not something that he puts out there or tries to get accolades for, I think it’s just part of who he is.”

In the early start to Mikol’s 2020 season, the junior quarterback has gotten his team off to a (1-1) start.