Football Season Preview: FGR hosts Flint Beecher on Friday

Coach Matt Giarmo begins his second season running the Father Gabriel Richard football program and the Irish are like most teams around the state – excited to be playing the great game of football.

“Our players are excited to be back on the field after being laid off for a few weeks,” said Giarmo. “We look forward to competing this season through a tough schedule.”

The Irish went a respectable 5-5 last season but were 0-4 in the tough CHSL. They started off strong, winning four of their first five games before dropping four of the next five. A 58-6 win over Pontiac in the final week pushed FGR into the playoffs but the Irish fell 45-28 to Whitmore Lake, a team they had beaten earlier in the season.

FGR has reached the playoff in 10 of the last 12 seasons.

The Irish will be led by a strong senior class including George White (HB/LB),

Griffen Kaiser (DL/HB), Paul Hehmann (TE/OLB) and Mitch Foley (QB/DB). Junior Jack Smith (HB/LB) also returns.

“I feel that our team will be strong in the offensive and defensive backfield,” says Giarmo. “We will need to mature and improve quickly on the offensive and defensive lines.”

The Irish open up against visiting Flint Beecher at 5 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 18.