As Delaware high school football returns, Hodgson prepares for title defense
NEWARK, Del. (BVM) — With the Delaware Board of Education’s 4-3 vote on Sept. 17, the fate of high school football in the state was made. Teams would once again be able to return to the field after the board voted to uphold the Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association’s decision to restart fall sports at the end of September. With practices scheduled to begin Sept. 28, high school football players eagerly counted down the days until they could return to the gridiron.
One of the teams that was particularly excited about the fall season was the Hodgson Vo-Tech High School Silver Eagles led by head coach Frank Moffett Jr. Last season, Moffett led the team to an undefeated 12-0 season including capturing the school’s first Division I state title. Although the team had won three previous titles at the DIAA Division II level, this one had a different feel to it as the team was coming off of back-to-back state semifinals appearances.
“Last season our theme was unfinished business because we had come so close the years before,” Moffett said. “It was a great season and when we won it was business finished. It was really cool.”
The last time the Silver Eagles hit the field wasn’t a bad showing either as they trounced the Middletown Cavaliers 54-31 at Delaware Stadium in November in what was the highest scoring Delaware state football championship game ever. Leading Hodgson was then-junior quarterback C.J. Henry, who scored four touchdowns on 161 yards passing in the championship game.
Henry was a force throughout his junior campaign racking up 2,351 yards and 31 touchdowns through the air and 362 yards and six touchdowns on the ground. Henry was also an efficient quarterback for the Silver Eagles completing 115 of 176 passes with just one interception the entire year. For his efforts, Henry was named the Gatorade Delaware Football Player of the Year becoming the second Hodgson player to ever do so.
just know how i’m coming 😈! #DelawareOffensivePOY pic.twitter.com/vxlD0u1Yec
— 2 l i i t 💚 (@CJ2liit) December 2, 2019
Moffett understands what he has in Henry, a rare breed of quarterback who is equally as driven as he is talented. With the quarterback staring down his senior season, Moffett sees nothing but success for Henry in his final Silver Eagles season.
“He’s such a good player and I’ve watched him mature every year,” Moffett said. “He has that special leadership quality, a knack you look for in players. The kid’s a winner. He loves to win and competes at a high level. He will try to be as good or better this next year and we are blessed to have him come back and lead us.”
While Henry will make his return to the Silver Eagles, the team will not be without some impact losses, most notably defensive lineman Amir Mitchell-Marville. Mitchell-Marville was named the state’s Lineman of the Year with 29 tackles for loss and 15 sacks on the season. The senior was among six Hodgson first team all-state selections to leave the program through graduation which included fullback Darius Hale, wide receiver Elizjah Lewis, offensive guard Nicholas Doe, defensive end Tashan Fitzgerald and linebacker Eric Shimko.
“We lost a lot of key people, but we expect some of the young guys to step in,” Moffett said. “It’s a challenge, but they’re driven and they work hard. … We’ve got a good core and it’s their opportunity to shine. We’ve got holes to fill, but I trust and believe in them.”
With Henry set to return to the Silver Eagles for his senior season, expectations are high for Hodgson to not only return to the postseason, but to also make another deep run. Henry will not be alone as a top player returning for the Silver Eagles this fall as Ny’Ghee Lolley, a first team all-state defensive back and third team all-state wide receiver, will also enter his senior year and second team all-state running back Josh Ames will only be a junior this season. Currently ranked by the recruiting website Maxpreps.com as the top team in the state of Delaware, the Silver Eagles have a good opportunity to make good on the high expectations.
“I think offensively we bring back a strong core and we should score,” Moffett said. “It’s great to have experience. The offensive players know [the system]. They’re ahead of the game at this point because they remember it. The transition has been second nature and it’s more just polishing.”
As the team has made its way back to the field, players have felt good about being back according to Moffett. Though there was a slight learning curve with the new regulations regarding the pandemic, the team is now slowly beginning to return to form, much to Moffett’s delight.
“I’ve been pleased with the effort,” Moffet said. ”We got over the early learning curve and the kids have been great. … They’re great kids and they love winning and will work hard.”
Of course, regulations have made for interesting practices. Social distancing, temperature checks, screening questionnaires and masks are commonplace for the Silver Eagles these days. Even with the changes, the team has been able to make it through.
“The kids show up, come out of their cars with masks on, we do screening and we social distance and spread out,” Moffett said. “We’re into the second week and the kids have acclimated well, but we make sure to stress the protocols. The energy level is definitely up and there’s more comfort. The primary goal is to be in a safe and healthy environment for everyone involved.”
Moffett feels good about his team’s odds to make more history for the school when it eventually returns this season. He openly challenged his seniors about what kind of legacy they want to leave the school and their answers did not disappoint the coach.
“[The seniors] want to win back-to-back,” Moffett said. “The goal we want to continue to do is to get better every week. The goal is to go out there and take care of our business. We want to respect who we play, but fear nobody.”
With a number of top returning playmakers including the state’s Offensive Player of the Year in Henry, the Silver Eagles have a chance to stretch their winning streak and retain their title this fall. The team’s mantra this year? One for the thumb — a nod to the team’s goal to win the school’s fifth state championship.
“One for the thumb,” Moffett said with a laugh. “To win a fifth would be awesome for our kids and our program as a whole. It would be a nice accomplishment [to win back-to-back]. We did it in DII [2013-2014] and if we did it at DI? I don’t think many in the state can say they did both.”
