The roar of the crowd fills the air as the team marches out. Decked out in their black and white war-gear, they fill their opponents with raw fear and apprehension, for they know they will be defeated at their hands. This team simply wins, and doesn’t ever give up as their warrior tradition states. They defeat their foes swiftly and severely, with destruction often times following behind. Their history is littered with glory and pride, and the future, as the team knows, has even more in store. This is Xavier Football, our team.

In recent years, their success has been well documented. This story isn’t about those teams, however, but rather the beginning. This is the story of how this team became the greatest high school football program in the State of Connecticut.

Our epic harkens back to an earlier age, 1965 when Xavier itself was only two years old. Like any true high school, this young private school would need a football team. Thus, under Coach Larry McHugh, a former player for the New York Titans (now the Jets), Xavier Football was born! The only problem was that, in 1965, the whole school was freshman and sophomores. That year, however, we played a full varsity schedule, though with no seniors on the team. 1965 was also the freshman year of a Xavier icon: Mr. Anthony Jaskot, our current Athletic Director.

I am indebted to Mr. Jaskot for his assistance with this article, as I sat down with him to collect all the information I have here. He actually dressed for a varsity game in 1965, in a loss to St. Bernard’s. Luckily, the same team came back the next year (as none had graduated) and decimated St. Bernard’s. He played safety for the varsity team as a junior in 1967. During the eighth game of the season, however, he was moved to quarterback, where he spent the rest of his time at Xavier.

Coach McHugh never had a losing season before coming to Xavier and, though close to one in 1967, was spared one for a long period of time thanks to a punt return touchdown against Northwest Catholic. At the helm of the team his senior year, Mr. Jaskot led Xavier to an 8-1 season and a ranking of 8th in the state. Also under him, our offense changed from strictly running to split between passing and running. (Mr. Jaskot beat out Kevin Gilbride for the quarterback position at Southern Connecticut State University; Mr. Gilbride ended up becoming the Offensive Coordinator for the New York Giants. Also while at Southern, he played against The Patriot’s Head Coach Bill Belichick). The most memorable game that season, to Mr. Jaskot, was actually the one loss we had: a nail-biter against Notre Dame of West Haven. ND’s star running back, Art Spence, and future UCONN Husky quarterback, Ray Tellier, ended up defeating Xavier in a dogfight of a game, 26-22. We originally played our home games split between Palmer Field and the field behind Xavier, but Palmer eventually became our true home.

The story of our rise, however, would not be complete without mentioning 1974, our first state championship. Our team that year was one of the greatest imaginable, with Mr. Jaskot, now an assistant coach, personally coaching three high school All-Americans. From the moment we first raised that championship trophy, Xavier has been held to a higher standard. Our teams began to be recognized as a force to be reckoned with, and one that would truly inspire hundreds of young men to reach their potential both on the field and off. We have sent countless players to big-name colleges, and even a few to the NFL. However, anyone that has ever put on that uniform shares a common heritage with all those before and after them. It is a fraternity that connects hundreds of players over decades of football and will continue to do that for years to come.