RallyNorth.net

The talk surrounding the Peabody High football team throughout the offseason has been unusually positive for a team that suffered one of its most disappointing seasons in program history last fall.

The hiring of Peabody High teacher Dick Woodbury | after the resignation of two-year coach Paul Uva last winter | was met with immediate excitement, mainly because the 62-year-old math teacher had the backing of the players. Woodbury's decision to assemble a coaching staff built entirely with former Peabody coaches and players only solidified the sentiment of joy.

Peabody High School athletic director Phil Sheridan stood outside the McVann-O'Keefe Rink one night last winter and watched a slightly chaotic scene as the parking lot was overflowing with cars for a Peabody-Beverly hockey game. "The police came to me and said, 'There are too many cars here. We're going to have to get extra policemen (for traffic flow),'" Sheridan recalled.

It has been nearly 50 years | yes, a half century | since Peabody High's football program suffered three consecutive losing years.

"Is that right?" asked junior quarterback Tom Ciulla. "I don't think anyone (on the team) is aware of that. It definitely gives us more motivation."