By Peter DiGiovanni
@PeteDLNontwitter
DOWNINGTOWN – The Bishop Shanahan football team under head coach Paul Meyers has always boasted a completely open, innovative offense that confuses opposing defenses and allows them to score from anywhere on the field.
The 2024 edition in Bishop Shanahan is expected to be similar. There is a lot of optimism one season after the Eagles reached the District 1 4A final, where they lost to Pope John Paul II.
“We were very young last season and I think we should take advantage of the experience of all these guys,” Meyers said. “We have seven players back on both sides of the ball and I think the strength of our team will be our skill position players. We’ll continue to play the spread offense and utilize the (run-pass option) with our quarterback a little more than we have in the past.”
“The key for us is depth up front. If we can keep our linemen healthy and fresh for the fourth period, we should have a good season. Depth is always an issue for us because we have about eight or nine guys that play both ways.”
One lineman the Eagles will count on is 6-foot-2, 250-pound junior Mike Cleary. Meyers says Cleary had a great season as a sophomore last year and believes he is one of the best linemen in the Ches-Mont League. And since the Eagles are in the tough Ches-Mont North Division with heavyweights Coatesville, Downingtown West and Downingtown East, line play will be crucial for the Eagles.
“I think we’re going to have a really good season,” Cleary said after practice. “We’re very strong at running back and wide receiver. And our line is coming together. I want to be a leader with these guys. I try to be a leader by example and I can be a vocal leader as well. And playing against teams like Coatesville and the Downingtowns only makes us better, I think.”
“These teams usually have some Division I college players on them and that’s a good benchmark for me as a player and for our team to see how we stack up against top competition. We love the fact that we’re a small school playing in the top division. And it prepares us for our district playoffs.”
One of the wide receivers Cleary talked about is Aidan Civitella. Meyers said Civitella is getting a lot of attention in the FCS and Division II. Civitella can spread the field wide and is very fast. He won the 4×100 at the Penn Relays last spring for the Eagles’ track and field team.
“I like to stretch the field or catch a short pass,” Civitella said. “I just want to do whatever I can to help our quarterbacks and give them a lot of options in the passing game. We have a lot of guys that play both ways, so if we stay healthy, I think we have the talent to make the 4A championship and win the district this season.”
“I also love playing against the big schools in Ches-Mont. It’s a good opportunity to play in front of a big crowd and show what we can do. We’re very well prepared for district after playing against those 6A schools.”
The quarterback position is still undecided, but Anthony Aquila will see plenty of action for the Eagles. Aquila was named an All-League selection as a safety last season, and Meyers believes he can use Aquila as both a passer and a runner from the quarterback position.
“He’s a very good athlete and has really good football instincts,” Meyers said. “He was an all-Chess-Mont safety last year and we expect big things from him this season.”
With the Ches-Mont League expanding from two to three divisions this season, the Eagles were under pressure to move up to a division with the smaller 5A schools – but Meyers wanted nothing to do with those talks.
“We were once again under pressure to move,” Meyers said. “They wanted us to move to the South Division, but we like where we are. We want to play top-completion and see this as a challenge for us. We will always be with the big schools. That was part of the agreement when we joined Ches-Mont.”
In addition to games against Coatesville, Downingtown East and Downingtown West, the Eagles will face Pope John Paul II and Philadelphia Mastbaum, who they crushed last season.
