Loudoun Football 2008: Briar Woods

Falcons' Senior Class Is First to Go Fourth

By Matt Brooks (Contact)

Monday, August 11, 2008

Charlie Pierce stood on the edge of the practice field behind Briar Woods High School on Wednesday, surveying the drills going on before him and counting on his fingers.

"Andrew Davidson, J.T. Bailey and Jake Ashton," he said. "We've got Austin DeMoss and Jamie Caldwell. Michael Girolami and Jeremy Gray..."

And the list went on. For the first time in his four-year stint as head coach of the Falcons, Pierce has a senior class that started with the program as freshmen. With 18 returning starters from last year's squad - including numerous four-year players – Briar Woods enters the season with a confident group of experienced players who know the system and are eager to exceed last year's results and leave their mark on the program that is entering its third year of varsity play.

"This is our year," said Gray, a wide receiver. "It's time to step up and dominate and show everybody that we're not the underdogs any longer. This is our time."

It hasn’t taken long for the Falcons to ascend the ranks of Virginia AA Region II football. After a season at the junior varsity level when the Ashburn school opened in 2005, Briar Woods finished 2006 with a 6-4 mark, playing an independent schedule and notching victories over Loudoun County and Manassas Park. Then last year – their first in the Dulles District – the Falcons wasted no time asserting their brand of high-octane offense and stingy defense on their league opponents. With a 7-3 (4-3 in Dulles District) regular-season record, Briar Woods earned a trip to the Region II tournament, narrowly missing a spot in the semifinals with a 27-24 loss at Millbrook.

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Briar Woods Season Preview

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Briar Woods Coach Charlie Pierce addresses his team following the first of two practices on Wednesday. (Matt Brooks)

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Briar Woods senior linebacker Andrew Davidson, right, runs through conditioning drills with assistant coach Scott Bayless, center in gray, during Wednesday's practice. (Matt Brooks)

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Sophomore running back Steven Fields breaks through pads during Wednesday's practice at Briar Woods High School. (Matt Brooks)

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Junior running back Tavis Henry runs through pad drills during Wednesday's practice at Briar Woods High School. (Matt Brooks)

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Briar Woods junior quarterback Austin Fratelli receives a snap during Wednesday's practice. In his first year as a starter, Fratelli will be looking to carry on the success the Falcons experienced with graduate Alex Munro at the helm last season. (Matt Brooks)

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Members of the Briar Woods offensive and defensive lines get set to run through plays at Wednesday's practice. (Matt Brooks)

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Briar Woods senior wide receiver Jeremy Gray runs through drills at Wednesday's practice. Gray - who caught 40 balls last season - will be a top target for new Falcons quarterback, Austin Fratelli. (Matt Brooks)

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Briar Woods senior linebacker Andrew Davidson, center, works through conditioning drills during Wednesday's practice. Davidson anchors a strong group of a returning defensive starters who held opponents to 14 points or fewer in 7-of-11 games last season. (Matt Brooks)

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The Falcons break following their first of two practices on Wednesday at Briar Woods High School. (Matt Brooks)

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With each year’s accomplishments come a new set of higher expectations, and this year is no exception.

"You just hope that with what guys work on individually during the offseason, and the goals they set for themselves for what they want to get out of this year that this team is really focused on leaving a great legacy here at Briar Woods," Pierce said. "The first freshman class that is now the senior class, they have high expectations and so do I. We’ll all be pretty disappointed if we don't go far."

On the Defensive

Two keys for the Falcons' strong 2007 campaign were a balanced offensive attack and a hard-nosed, aggressive defense. Despite the loss of several standouts, Pierce will rely on a similar formula to fuel his team this fall.

On the defensive end, Briar Woods returns nine starters from last season including first team all-district seniors Davidson (LB), Caldwell (DT) and Bailey (DB). Senior linemen Austin DeMoss and Michael Girolami help round out a strong defensive front that will key in on opponents' ground attacks.

"Our core guys – our front seven from last year – are all back and five or six of those guys made first or second team all-district last year," Pierce said. "We've got all kinds of interior guys and I expect a lot from them."

Davidson was one of 12 Falcons who competed on a power lifting team during the off-season to improve individual strength and conditioning.

"Everyone was trying to get bigger, stronger, faster," he said. "We're really trying to exceed what we did last year and that all starts in the offseason."

With the exception of a few holes left in the secondary following the departure of second team all-region defensive back Devin Barber, the Falcons' defensive unit is a reflection of the group that held opponents to 14 or fewer points in 7-of-11 games last fall.

A New Face Under Center

The tougher test facing Briar Woods will be replicating its potent offensive attack following the departure of second-team all-district quarterback Alex Munro, first-team all-region wideout Tim King and first-team all-region center John Maghamez.

Junior Austin Fratalli – who quarterbacked the junior varsity team each of the last two seasons – will look to fill Munro's 26-touchdown, 2,000-yard shoes and will be aided by several senior playmakers including Gray at wide receiver and Bailey and junior fullback Billy McDonald in the backfield. After spending the spring on the mound with the baseball team, Fratalli is confident in his ability to handle the offense and

"I'm just trying to be myself out here," Fratalli said. "I know I've got big shoes to fill with him graduating, and he was a great mentor for me the two years I played behind him. But I really need to focus on my strengths and playing my game so I can make a name for myself and help this team win. I don't want to be that new guy anymore."

The young gunslinger has already gained the confidence of his teammates and his coach, who expect him to step right in for Munro and lead a balanced attack that averaged 28.6 points per game last season.

"We can go power, we can go spread – it depends on what the defense gives us," Pierce said. "But we aren't afraid to mix it up and we have the personnel to do it. That's always been our key to keeping defenses guessing – keeping it balanced."

An Early Shot at Redemption

Last November, the Falcons left the field at Millbrook High School following their regional quarterfinal loss frustrated by the abrupt ending to their playoff run. Briar Woods expected a better result against a Pioneers team they hammered, 40-14 10 weeks prior.

They won't have to wait much longer for a rematch as the two teams tangle on Aug. 29 in Ashburn.

"It's definitely motivating, just because we want to come back out and prove that we're a better team then we were last year," Davidson said. "We want to prove that we’ve stepped up a notch for 2008."

And while the Falcons have yet to start thinking about the rest of the Dulles District schedule, they can be sure their league opponents have already started thinking about them. With their regional appearance last season, Briar Woods served notice to the rest of the Loudoun that they're no longer the new kid on the block.

"They'll be ready for us this year and they should be," Fratalli said. "But we can't change our approach, we’ve just got to keep working hard and just do what we do – be Briar Woods."

Tagged: Briar Woods High School, football, high school sports

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