Fearsome fivesome fueling Holy Cross

The 2013 season ended for the Holy Cross football team with a 28-18 victory over Willingboro on the Friday after Thanksgiving.

By Monday, five players were ready to get back to work.

"They were mad at me," Holy Cross coach Frank Holmes said of his offensive linemen. "They were like, 'Why are you making us take a week off?'

"I said, 'Coach needs a week off.' "

The Lancers' fearsome fivesome of James Chattin, Raphael Jackson, Jalen Singleton, Tim Wagner, and Gary Whelan bided their time through the offseason's first week.

By Dec. 8, they were back in the weight room, pumping iron and preparing for their senior season.

Those sweaty sessions through the winter, spring, and summer have been paying off in a big way for the Lancers this season.

Holy Cross is 6-0 and ranked 12th in South Jersey by The Inquirer. The Lancers are averaging 43.5 points, have twice scored 62, and have won every game by at least two touchdowns.

They have a dangerous dual-threat quarterback in senior Brandon Simmons, a top running back in senior Chris Liggio, explosive wide receivers in seniors Tymere DeShield and Brandon Anderson, and a productive tight end in junior Matt Correnti.

But the Lancers' heartbeat is produced by the five seniors who man the front line.

"It starts with us," said Jackson, the team's left guard.

Said Wagner, the center: "We're at our peak right now."

The front line has imposing size. Whelan is the "runt of the litter," according to Holmes, as the right tackle is 5-foot-11 and weighs 240 pounds.

Chattin, the right guard, is 6-3, 310. Wagner is 6-3, 285. Jackson is 6-2, 300; Singleton, the left tackle, is 5-11, 278.

But Holmes said the key to the group's success is not size or even strength. It's the know-how, continuity, and sense of responsibility developed by five guys who have spent four years in the program - and much of that time in the starting lineup.

Chattin, Jackson, Singleton, and Wagner have been starting along the offensive line since sophomore year. Whelan is a recent arrival, although he saw spot action as a sophomore and junior and was a regular on the defensive side.

"It's our dedication to the program," Singleton said of the source of the group's dominance. "We've been together for a long time, and we've paid the price."

Wagner said the group took some lumps as sophomores. But that only increased their determination to work in the ensuing offseasons to prepare for their senior year.

"We took that to heart," Wagner said. "It taught us discipline. We never skipped a workout."

Holmes, who works with the team's offensive line, said his five seniors could "run practice" because of their experience.

"They're like coaches on the field," said Holmes, whose team will travel to Bordentown (4-1) for an important West Jersey Football League Liberty Division game on Friday night. "I don't even have to tell them what to do. They know.

"They've embraced our program. They've embraced the weight room. They've embraced the system."

Whelan says the "chemistry" among the five linemen has enabled them to make in-game adjustments and react to odd defensive approaches, such as when one opponent had its lineman try to "cut" the Holy Cross blockers on nearly every play.

Chattin said the group doesn't mind that its dominance often is overshadowed by the big plays made by the team's so-called "skill position" players.

"We're offensive linemen. We're not supposed to get a lot of credit," Chattin said.

The best offensive lines do more than block. They serve as burly body guards of a sort, escorting teams through tough games and tough times.

They don't get the acclaim. They don't hear their names broadcast by the public-address announcers on those Friday nights with the fans in the stands and the cheerleaders on the sidelines.

The Holy Cross linemen don't care about that stuff anyway. They built their reputation when nobody was watching, through all those sessions in the weight room.

They've laid the foundation for the Lancers' special season in the same way, laying down block after block.

"There's a lot of pride inside those kids," Holmes said. "They are tough football kids. They love being linemen."