Quarterback Matt O'Keefe and 12-0 Duxbury (Mass.) have embraced a cause much larger than football, raising funds for the widow and daughter of a soldier.
File photo by Mike Braca
Even if it defeats Tewksbury in Saturday's
Eastern Massachusetts Division 2 Super Bowl at Gillette Stadium, this year's
Duxbury (Mass.) football team may be best remembered for what it did away from the football field.
Duxbury native Lt. Timothy Steele died Aug. 23 during combat in Afghanistan after insurgents attacked his unit with an explosive device. He left behind a wife, Meghan, and a 1-year-old daughter, Liberty.
Steele was a three-sport athlete at Duxbury High, and since his death the Duxbury football team has spearheaded a fundraising effort to help the Steele family. To date, the team has raised nearly $35,000.
"The members of the football team took it upon themselves to raise money for Liberty," Duxbury Athletic Director Thom Holdgate said. "They call it the 'Liberty Fund.' It started with freshman players carrying buckets and asking for change at home games, then it turned into a letter-writing campaign. Each player wrote 10 letters to friends and relatives asking for contributions. We have 110 kids in our football program, so that's a lot of letters. The money just kept coming in.
"Our coach, Dave Maimaron, was a big person behind the effort. We also have a very strong Gridiron Club that helped things get off the ground, but the kids are the ones who kept it going."
Steele attended Duxbury High from 2001 to 2004, and was a three-sport athlete for the Green Dragons. He was a captain on the cross country and swimming teams and also ran outdoor track.
"He had his appendix removed during his senior year, otherwise he probably would have been a three-sport captain," Holdgate explained.
Steele, who graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 2009, had been stationed in Afghanistan since March. He came from a military family, and would often carry the American flag while finishing his cross country races.
"Our home course ends with a lap around our track," Holdgate said. "When there was no one running right next to him or when his position wasn't going to be affected he would carry the flag for that last lap. I saw him do that several times."
Don Webber has 10 touchdown catchesfor Duxbury, which is seeking its second-straight undefeated season.
File photo by Mike Braca
The Duxbury football players have been wearing "Liberty" decals on their helmets all season and have adopted the slogan "Strength, Honor, Liberty." T-shirts with that slogan have also been sold at Duxbury games.
"This is just a tight-knit, small community and attending his service was a very powerful experience. The team felt like we should do something to help the family," Maimaron said. "When you talk to veterans you always hear that their biggest fear is if something happens will the family be taken care of. Tim sacrificed for us, so we felt we should do something to take care of the family.
"Liberty has been a big part of our motivation this season. Meghan [who lives in New York] even brought her to one of our practices when she was back here around Thanksgiving. We mention Tim before every game and we mention Liberty every day. It means something to these kids."
The Duxbury players also raked leaves and did yard work at Steele's parents' house during the Thanksgiving holiday. Holdgate said a scholarship will be established in Steele's name, and the school may present an annual athletic award that bears his name as well.
Duxbury quarterback
Matt O'keefe said he was among the many who felt compelled to help the family after Steele's sister, Army Major Julie Maxwell, spoke at the memorial service at Duxbury's Holy Family Church.
"She talked about how he dreamed of being in the military," O'Keefe told the Boston Herald. "By the time she was done speaking there were quite a few teary eyes in the church. He was a true American hero who was doing something far more important than anything we could have done."
The football team's fundraising efforts extended into December when Duxbury beat King Philip 7-0 in Tuesday's Eastern Massachusetts semifinals. Running back
Jon Hurvitz scored the game's only touchdown late in the third quarter and the Duxbury defense preserved the lead, which raised the team's record to 12-0.
Duxbury will be attempting to win its second Super Bowl in as many years when it faces Tewksbury on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. The Green Dragons beat Concord-Carlisle to win last year's title. Duxbury, which has qualified for the Eastern Massachusetts playoffs in each of the last four years, will enter Saturday's contest with a 25-game winning streak.
Tewksbury (7-5) advanced by beating Reading 21-6 in Tuesday's other Division 2 semifinal. The Duxbury-Tewksbury game is one of six Super Bowls being played Saturday at Gillette Stadium, home of the New England Patriots.
O'Keefe, who has committed to play college lacrosse at Johns Hopkins, has thrown for 32 touchdown passes this season. Wide receiver
Don Webber caught 10 of those TD passes.
The defense has improved throughout the season, and is allowing an average of 6.7 points per game. Tuesday's 7-0 triumph over King Philip was Duxbury's fifth shutout of the season. Nine of Duxbury's 12 opponents failed to score more than seven points, and the Green Dragons have allowed 27 points in their last seven games.
"We've been in big games before and I think that big-game experience is something that has helped us all season," Maimaron said.
Regardless of Saturday's outcome, it's unlikely that the Duxbury community will look at this team as anything but winners.
"We have a special group of kids here," Maimaron said. "I've never been prouder of a team for anything they've done on or off the field. They've shown great character."
Roger Brown is the editor and publisher of the New Hampshire Football Report, and also covers high school sports throughout New England as a freelance writer. He can be reached at rbrown@nhfootballreport.com.
