Brunswick School’s football team was in an unfamiliar situation following the first quarter of its game against Phillips Academy Andover this past Saturday: the Bruins were trailing for the first time all season.

Yet that scenario didn’t last long.

The Bruins seized control of the game with a 14-point second quarter, then broke this Northeast 10 League matchup open with a big second half, resulting in a Happy Homecoming Day.

Flourishing on both sides of the ball, Brunswick continued its season of perfection, rolling to a resounding 42-7 win over Phillips Academy Andover at crowded Cosby Field. The decisive victory raised the Bruins’ record to 6-0 heading into Saturday’s home game versus Phillips Exeter Academy. Senior quarterback Blake Hebert ran for two touchdowns and passed for a score to pace the Bruins’ potent offense.

“That was awesome, a great team effort against a really well put together team, so it felt really good,” Hebert said. “Those are the fun ones where we have to face a little adversity. There’s a lot of stuff to clean up, so we’ll be back at it tomorrow.”

The adversity came in the first quarter, as Andover took a 7-0 lead with 2:15 remaining in the quarter. Junior Nathan Parker completed a pass in the flat to senior wide receiver Nathaniel Cook, giving the Big Blue a one-score lead. The host Bruins tied the score at the 7:20 mark of the second quarter. Freshman running back Colt Inman took a handoff from Hebert and dashed his way into the end zone for his first varsity touchdown. Senior Oliver Reynolds split the uprights with the ensuing PAT, evening the score at 7-7.

“We had a slow start, obviously, we talked about it all week, they’re a great team, they have talented football players,” Brunswick coach Wayne McGillicuddy said. “Our message to the team all week was that we can’t take those guys for granted. They sat on the ball in the first quarter, we might have had seven plays in the first quarter offensively, which we are expecting things to do to us with how explosive we’ve been.”

Photo provided by Brunswick School: Brunswick’s defense swarms a Phillips Andover Academy running back.

Indeed, scoring certainly hasn’t been a problem for the Bruins, who have lit the scoreboard for more than 30 points in each of their first six games of their 2024 season. Including Saturday’s 42-point showing, the Bruins are averaging 35 points per game.

Before their Homecoming Day crowd, the Bruins took the lead for good on Phillips Academy Andover with 58.6 seconds to go in the second quarter. Hebert’s 3-yard run set up a short scoring drive that was set up by a blocked punt by senior Arnez Dowe.

“It was a great team effort,” McGillicuddy noted. “It’s not just the offense. On special teams we had a blocked put that set us up inside the 10. The defense has had some big turnovers that set us up with great field position. Ethan Long has had a lot of great punt returns that set us up in short field. All three phases are playing really well.”

Homecoming kept getting better and better for the Bruins as the game progressed. At the 8:45 mark of the third quarter, Herbert completed a short pass along the sideline to junior wide receiver Matt Colella. Breaking several tackles and eluding another defensive player, Colella sprinted down the left sideline for a touchdown of more than 30 yards. Reynolds converted another PAT, putting the home team on top, 21-7.

Meanwhile, Brunswick’s defense didn’t let up many yards after Andover reached the end zone in the opening quarter. Senior defensive lineman Jaylen Pray registered a sack, while senior linebacker Tyler Georgs, senior defensive lineman EJ Perez and junior defensive back Kieran Edwards were among the defensive players that made several tackles for the Bruins.

“We made sure we held gap integrity, got off blocks and got to the ball,” Pray said. “This was a team effort, everyone was flying to the ball and overall we did our job.”

Perez discussed the Bruins’ standout second half performance.

“We had an understanding that we needed to bring up the effort,” Perez said. “They’re a talented team and we understood that we had to come out, execute, limit penalties and create big plays.”

As for competing before the big Homecoming crowd.

“It was great, Homecoming is always huge around here, we had so many people here, so many alumni, so it was great to put on a really good show,” Perez said. “It was great to do that in front of all of those fans.”

“It was a great environment and atmosphere for sure,” Pray said.

Photo provided by Brunswick School: Ethan Long of the Bruins returns a punt vs. Phillips Andover Academy.

Senior Zay Smith ran for a pair of touchdowns in the third quarter, both from approximately 10 yards out. His second score occurred with 52.1 seconds left in the third quarter, giving Brunswick a 35-7 advantage.

“Colt Inman stepped up as a freshman and was hitting his holes and Zay did a really good job,” McGillicuddy said. “Those guys did what we asked them to do.”

Hebert capped the Bruins’ scoring with 3:13 to go in the fourth quarter, running into the end zone behind the team’s bruising offensive line.

“Blake – he’s a smart football player with a high IQ,” McGillicuddy noted. “His feet can really extend plays and teams are going to have to account for him in the run game.”

Senior Matty Augustine helped anchor Brunswick’s offensive line, which has gotten the better of all its opponents so far this season. Smith, who turned in a strong performance from the backfield, discussed the Bruins’ running attack.

“The running game was great,” Smith said. “This year, we’ve been running very well. Everybody is doing good, the running backs are getting touches and the O-Line is blocking for us. We can’t do it without the big guys.”

Homecoming got the Bruins especially psyched up to play Andover in their sixth game of the season.

“Homecoming is a big weekend for us,” Smith noted. “We have a lot of Alumni come back – that’s when we really have to dig deep and play for the name across our chest – Brunswick.”

McGillicuddy discussed the versatility of his squad’s offense.

Photo by Brunswick School: Zay Smith of Brunswick runs with the ball during varsity football action vs. Phillips Andover Academy at Cosby Field in Brunswick. The Bruins won their Homecoming Day game, 42-7.

“Teams are going to have to decide are you going to take the pass game away, or are you going to take the run game away with our O-line,” he said.

Brunswick has allowed only 55 points through its first six games – nine points per game.

“Our defense is playing lights out,” McGillicuddy said. “Coach (Sean) Stanley is our defensive coordinator, he gets those guys fired up. They put together one drive, we made our adjustments and we were good the rest of the game.”