Unbeaten Mount Vernon riding high after stunning start

September 12, 2016 Sports
Mount Vernon players celebrating

Mount Vernon players, including quarterback Timothy Heltzel (10), linebacker Andrei Golding (7) and receiver Bobby Dixon (3) celebrate last week’s win over West Springfield. (Courtesy of Lori Heltzel)

It’s not just that they’re 3-0. It’s how they got to 3-0.

Mount Vernon’s football team, winners of just two games in the past two seasons, is turning heads around the county with its best start in recent memory. The Majors are averaging 37 points per game. Each win has been by double digits. Two wins have been over 2015 playoff teams, including last Friday’s 37-25 win at West Springfield — a team that beat Mount Vernon by 34 points last year.

First-year head coach Monty Fritts thought his squad had a good chance to win its first three games, but even he’s surprised at just how explosive the Majors have been.

“I definitely didn’t expect it,” Fritts said. “The kids have just been tremendous.”

Darrien Newton

Darrien Newton (Courtesy of Lori Heltzel)

The dramatic shift in Mount Vernon’s fortunes has created a palpable surge in pride around the school and in the local community. Junior running back and defensive back Darrien Newton, who leads the Majors in rushing and receiving, said the turnaround has completely changed things in the halls and on the practice field.

“It’s a great feeling … it was amazing to have all of your fellow students congratulating you, giving you high fives,” Newton said, adding that enthusiasm has led to more kids coming out for the team. “It’s contagious. People want to join the football team now.”

Fritts says more than 130 kids have now come out for the program. He also said money and other donations have poured in. It can all be a little overwhelming, Fritts said, but it helps validate his decision to take the new job.

“I’m really lucky to be at Mount Vernon because it’s a sleeping giant,” Fritts said. “It’s definitely a place that people have been waiting for something to happen.”

‘That play … changed our season’

A perfectly executed trick play in Mount Vernon’s first game was the turning point in that contest, and the Majors haven’t looked back since.

Leading Washington-Lee 17-14 in the second quarter, Mount Vernon quarterback Timothy Heltzel threw Damien Burke a five-yard hook. Burke quickly lateraled the ball to the streaking Newton, executing a textbook hook-and-lateral. Newton raced around the only W-L defender with a shot and blazed down the sideline for a score.

The Mount Vernon bench and stands went crazy, and what had been a back-and-forth game until that point was largely dominated by the Majors from then on.

“I felt like [the hook and lateral] changed everything,” Fritts said. “We haven’t come back to earth since that play. That play definitely changed our season.”

The Majors’ confidence continued to build with a 23-point win at Stuart the following week. Then came their biggest test to date: A conference opener at West Springfield, a squad that had crushed them in 2015.

The Spartans scored on the game’s second play and jumped to a quick 7-0 lead. In past years, that may have shaken Mount Vernon. Not anymore.

Fritts said the team’s enthusiasm on the sideline never changed.

“We’ve seen this before, we’ve been down before,” Fritts said of the team’s vibe. 

Minutes later, the Majors found themselves backed up to the 1-yard line after a Spartans punt. No problem. Fritts dialed up a long ball and Heltzel hit Bobby Dixon in stride for a 99-yard touchdown pass to even the game.

From there the onslaught began. The Majors scored on their next two offensive plays — 73- and 76-yard Heltzel passes — and went into halftime ahead by 23 points.

The win epitomized the Majors’ growing belief in themselves.

“Going into the game I was very confident,” said Newton, who intercepted two passes and caught one of Heltzel’s TDs. “I knew our team could follow through. Coach Fritts gives us confidence every week. A tremendous amount of confidence. He’s the voice of Mount Vernon.”

Tough road ahead

For all of their success, Mount Vernon is still likely to be underdogs in many of their seven remaining games. After a bye this week, the Majors travel to T.C. Williams next week to take on the physical Titans. Looming down the road are South County and Lake Braddock, two of the top teams in the entire D.C. area, as well as a season-ending showdown with rival West Potomac.

Newton said Mount Vernon needs to stick with the approach that got them to this point.

“The best thing to do is take this season one week at a time,” Newton said. “Our first goal was to go 1-0 … [and] each week our goal is to go 1-0.”

For his part, Fritts says he he wants the team to enjoy it, but said he’s going to do all he can to keep them focused.

“It’s definitely crazy,” Fritts said. “The amount of emails and text messages and high-fives. We have to keep the kids grounded, because the community is ready to explode.”