Jake Umberhind, left, and Logan Baird, from Winthrop/Monmouth, will represent the West team during the Maine ShrineLobster Bowl Classic. The players are shown during media day Tuesday at Foxcroft Academy in Dover-Foxcroft. Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel
For Logan Baird and Jake Umberhind of Winthrop/Monmouth/Hall-Dale, and now members of the West team at the Lobster Bowl, their loss to Foxcroft Academy in the 2021 Class D state championship game hasn’t left their brains.
Foxcroft Academy coach Dan White just so happens to be the head coach of the East team this year, adding more motivation for the Ramblers players to show out on Saturday at the 32nd annual Maine Shrine Lobster Bowl at Lewiston High School.
“I don’t like to hold grudges, but we lost states to them,” Baird said. “Of course there is something, but it’s all friendly competition.”
“We haven’t connected at all with the East team,” Umberhind added. “We’re kind of cutting it off until Saturday. I am talking to a few linemen here and there, but not much.”
Baird has been working with the West cornerbacks and safeties, while Umberhind has been practicing with the defensive line.
White said he knows the kind of competitors the former Ramblers are and has told his coaching staff and players about them and other athletes he is familiar with.
“Not necessarily specific game-planning, because they’re playing different spots and are being asked to do different things,” White said. “Just knowing who they are as competitors, I think that’s an advantage, if you want to call it that. We had the opportunity to play them in two highly competitive games and so I have a pretty good understanding of how those two will handle their business on Saturday. We talked to the kids about it and all of these other coaches can give their perspective on the guys they’ve coached, and likewise on the other side. It’s pretty neat.”
Baird is preparing to play at Husson University in the fall, while Umberhind will play at Massachusetts Maritime Academy. Each leave for their respective college programs on August 10.
Both have been soaking in as much knowledge as they can.
“It’s an honor to be playing in the Shrine Bowl,” Baird said. “It’s amazing to be back in pads and in the football spirit. There are great coaches. It’s cool. We don’t have any Winthrop coaches, so we get to see how other coaches do their thing. It’s a new way to play defense.”
“I was coming in here expecting to play O-Line but it’s really good, and so we needed more on the D-Line and I am really flourishing there,” Umberhind added. “It’s fun playing against some Thornton Academy and Bonny Eagle guys and those guys are really tough. We’re getting better.”
DEVIL IN HIS OWN DOMAIN
Donovan Jackson is the lone Lewiston representative in the Lobster Bowl, and that has been a source of pride for him during the last week.
“It means everything to me. I just want to make my family proud and my team proud of what I do in this game,” Jackson said.
Jackson, a graduate of Lewiston High School, will be playing wide receiver and defensive back for the East team at Don Roux Field in Lewiston.
The game venue will be familiar to the former Blue Devil, but training camp at Foxcroft Academy has been a learning experience.
“I’ve been learning a lot every single day,” Jackson said. “Technique, positioning, it’s all new.”
“These practices, I’m not used to them, but I’m getting the hang of it,” Jackson added.
The star Lewiston athlete has also been taken aback by the level of talent around him.
“These are definitely the best players I’ve been around, for sure,” Jackson said.
Jackson, whose football career will come to an end after the Lobster Bowl, is excited for one last hurrah in front of his family, friends and community.
“We’ve worked hard all year to get to this point, so I’m excited to show them what I got,” Jackson said.
RED EDDIE RAISES HIS LEVEL
Gavin Lepage is using Lobster Bowl week to prepare for the next level.
The standout offensive/defensive lineman at Edward Little has been forced to pick up his game while in the presence of the best talent he’s been around in his career.
“It’s been eye-opening,” Lepage said. “It’s amazing the amount of talent that’s here. You really have to raise your level if you want to compete. It’s helping me get prepared for playing in college.”
Lepage, who will play defensive line for Worcester State University next season, is on the East team in this year’s Lobster Bowl.
“Being around so many great players is shell-shocking,” Lepage said. “If I can raise my game to their level, and then more, I can prepare myself for the next level.”
Lepage is also enlisting the help of his coaches at the Lobster Bowl.
“I’ve been having conversations with those coaches,” Lepage said, “and they’ve just been telling me to work on my skills every day, and to come to practice every day with a nasty attitude.”
Lepage noted that he has been looking forward to playing in the Lobster Bowl since his early days at Edward Little.
“This has been one of my goals from the moment I stepped on the field for EL,” Lepage said.
“It’s a great opportunity to represent the guys who have come in the program, but also my family and my community,” Lepage added. “There’s a lot of pride in that.”
HUNTER HAYES, THE JACK OF ALL TRADES
While every other Lobster Bowl player has one or two positions listed next to their name on the roster, Hunter Hayes has “Utility” listed.
That’s because Hayes, who was a standout player at Leavitt, is effective at a multitude of different spots on the field.
“I played a bunch of positions in high school,” Hayes said. “During my younger years, I had a bunch of guys ahead of me at quarterback, so I played running back, wide receiver, and a little bit of tight end here and there.”
Hayes credits Leavitt’s system and program for his ability to adapt to various positions.
“At Leavitt, a lot of the guys know the system very well because we’ve been running it forever,” Hayes said, “so you can kind of just switch to whatever position you’re needed.”
Hayes said he’s most effective on the defensive end, though, and that’s also where he enjoys playing the most.
He’ll get his wish in Saturday’s game, as he will line up at safety for the West team, but he’s slated to be a linebacker for Springfield College this fall.
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