ORONO, Maine — Former Leavitt High School of Turner teammates Jack Boutaugh and Noah Carpenter will be in prominent roles this fall for the University of Maine’s football team.
Redshirt senior Boutaugh, one of the most experienced Black Bears with 31 career games under his belt, is making the transition from guard to center in anchoring a veteran offensive line that is considered a strength of the team by head coach Jordan Stevens.
Redshirt sophomore Carpenter is a linebacker who earned his first playing time a year ago and finished tied for ninth on the team in tackles with 32.
Both turned in solid performances in the 20th annual Jeff Cole Memorial Spring Football game Saturday morning on Morse Field in Alfond Stadium in Orono. The game is named after the former UMaine assistant coach who died of cancer on Oct. 18, 2004.
Greene native Carpenter, a quarterback-safety at Leavitt who was the Maine Gatorade Player of the Year and the winner of the Fitzpatrick Trophy, which goes to the state’s top senior player, has more responsibility this season.
Linebackers Christian Thomas and Latrell Couchman were the team’s first and third-leading tacklers a year ago and have used up their eligibility.
Carpenter said he sees himself in more of a leadership role, making sure everyone buys into the team and is “on the same page.”
He will be making calls on defense like he used to do as a quarterback.
“It’s not much different. Playing quarterback throughout my high school career has helped me transition to the defensive side of the ball,” Carpenter said.
He said the coaching staff has done an exceptional job teaching him the position and he feels more confident.
“I am ready to attack the season,” said Carpenter, who enjoys “everything” about the linebacker position.
“I like the violence and being physical. I always thought I had a good mindset for being physical with my hands and everything and on playing downhill,” said Carpenter, who added that he wants to keep getting better.
He has also bulked up from 205 to 235 pounds since he first came to UMaine.
Stevens called Carpenter a “great athlete and competitor” and said he keeps improving.
Boutaugh was a guard last season and said the move to center has been “smooth.”
In addition to playing guard, he has also been the backup center the past three seasons.
“It requires the same mental performance so it isn’t that much different,” said the 6-foot-4, 300-pound Boutaugh, who was a runnerup for the Frank J. Gaziano Memorial Award, which goes to the top offensive and defensive linemen in high school.
The Turner native is one of four returning starting offensive linemen along with tackles Anthony Iliano and Andrew Kocan and guard Noah Stanley. Iliano was a second team All-Coastal Athletic Association pick.
They also have graduate student Tyler Williams and redshirt freshman Anton Kravchuk as reliable components up front. Kravchuk played at Fryeburg Academy.
“It’s a very solid unit. We have a lot of guys with experience,” said Turner native Boutaugh. “I feel really comfortable with the group. I’m looking to have a great season with them. And we have a lot of depth as well.”
“Boutaugh has looked phenomenal this spring,” said UMaine offensive coordinator Mikahael Waters. “This is the best he has ever looked. We feel great about Boutaugh right now.”
He said offensive line coach and run game coordinator James O’Hagan has done a phenomenal job with the offensive line.
“We brought four of five guys back and those guys have allowed us to be very productive this spring because of the foundation they have laid,” Waters said.
The offensive line allowed only 18 sacks for the 6-6 Black Bears a year ago.
Boutaugh and Carpenter were teammates for two years at powerhouse Leavitt and said they enjoy being teammates again.
“Jack and I have always had a great relationship and we’re building that up through college now,” Carpenter said. “He is one of my closest teammates and it’s special to go out on the field every day with someone you went to high school with.”
“It’s definitely good to go out to practice with someone you have a connection with,” Boutaugh said.
The three quarterbacks battling for the starting job vacated by two-year starter Carter Peevy — redshirt junior Caden Drezek, redshirt sophomore Eddie Buehler and redshirt freshman Mike McMaugh — all threw touchdown passes in the spring game.
“However it pans out, we feel confident in all of them,” Boutaugh said.
One of the newcomers who was impactful in the spring game was Virginia Military Institute transfer Malik McNeely, who caught three TD passes.
McNeely, who was VMI’s third-leading receiver with 24 catches for 331 yards and two TDs this past fall, gives the Black Bears some needed size and length at the wide receiver position as he stands 6-foot-4.
“He has done a great job. He is going to be really good for us,” Waters said. “There was a little bit of a learning curve in terms of the offense but as spring went along, he got more confident and it was awesome to see him make some plays.”
McNeely said he was happy with his showing, especially since he was trying to make sure he was on the same page with the quarterbacks.
He admitted that it took time to get used to the playbook and the quarterbacks “but once [things] started rolling, it’s going to keep going consistently,” McNeely said.
The Huntington, West Virginia, native said he is enjoying his time at UMaine.
“I love the football environment, especially in the weight room. We go at it. It’s a different kind of environment, a different kind of mentality,” McNelly said.
The other 6-foot-4 wide receiver, freshman Corey Rideout, was among the wideouts who had multiple receptions along with returnee Evan Wallace.
On the defensive side of the ball, redshirt junior defensive end Kye Pressley consistently pressured the quarterbacks and had a sack and redshirt sophomore cornerback Brayden Isaiah returned an interception for a touchdown.
