After surprising 2013 campaign, Salem football thinking title

Salem linemen hit the blocking sled during practice.

Salem linemen hit the blocking sled during practice.

The Salem High School football team went from an 0-10 season in 2012 to 6-4 and an appearance in the NJSIAA South Jersey Group I semifinal last year.

No one saw the turnaround coming. Not the players. Not the town.

And certainly not the rest of the football community.

The only person who believed it was possible, and even expected it to happen, was Dennis Thomas.

The first-year coach, who took over the proud but recently beleaguered program just a few months before the start of the 2013 season, surveyed his roster and started thinking big.

“I didn’t know if we’d go that far, but those were my expectations,” Thomas said. “I usually set high expectations for the guys and our coaches. It was a fun ride.

“I am an optimistic person and I am really optimistic about a lot of things. We had certain pieces on the team and if we utilized them differently I knew we could be successful.”

OK, fine, we get it. He’s optimistic.

But six wins and sitting 24 minutes away from reaching the S.J. final following a winless season? That is practically delusional.

After beating Schalick in the first round of the playoffs, the Rams went into halftime leading top seed Penns Grove 17-0 but couldn’t hold on and lost 22-17. The Red Devils lost to Glassboro in the title game — a title that Thomas felt should have been won by his team.

“My first message to the team this year was a lot of people did not think we were supposed to be in that position and we overachieved,” Thomas said. “I think we underachieved. Our expectation was to go and win a state championship and we didn’t do it. This year we are going to endeavor to get to the state championship and win.”

Admittedly, the team wasn’t on board with its new coach’s immediate vision. At least not right away.

“At the beginning of the year I didn’t think we could play for a championship,” senior running back Dione Alston said. “I didn’t believe him because the year before nothing worked. Coach came in and told us on day one we were going to win a championship. At first I thought he was messing with us. Then I realized the talent we had and that we could get it done.”

Thomas has the tools again this year to make a run.

Alston, who led the Rams with 1,030 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns and added another 16 catches, 380 yards and seven TDs, will undoubtedly anchor the offense. It should be noted that Alston was injured early in the second half against Penns Grove and he missed two regular season games.

Shareef Jeffries is back at quarterback after completing 15 passes, including to eight different targets, for 409 yards and nine touchdowns. A new spread offense, which will get more players involved in the offense and put an extra emphasis on throwing ball, should give the junior an even bigger factor in the offense.

“Alston is going to get a lot of touches, but a lot of people are going to break out this year,” Thomas said.

The Rams are also being motivated and fueled by the way last year ended. If the stunning loss to rival Penns Grove in the semifinals wasn’t enough, they suffered a deflating 19-0 setback against Woodstown five days later on Thanksgiving.

“I know we are hungry this year,” Alston said. “We should have won that game against Penns Grove, and the Woodstown game was closer than the score and was a defensive game. This year a lot of guys, you can tell, after last season came together and said we are not losing again this year. We want a state championship and we have worked hard this whole offseason to get it.”

And as usual, Thomas is optimistic the Rams are going to accomplish their goal.

“Expectations are just as high as last year,” he said. “At that first practice we had when I took over, I told the guys we have a shot to win a championship if we come together as a team. I did the same thing this year.

"If we come together, stay focused, work hard and put together a good game plan, we can have the same expectations."

Contact Eric Goldstein at 856-845-9478 or egoldstein@southjerseymedia.com

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