Adam Landry PG’24, pictured on left, had 308 total passing yards against Suffield Academy on Saturday.
11/5 — Andover: 24, Suffield Academy: 20
Andover Football (2-5) edged out a win against Suffield Academy on Saturday, marking its second victory of the season.
The game was a hard-fought battle, but the team’s unity and the lively atmosphere of Senior Night provided them with the boost they needed to clinch the win. Wide receiver and Co-Captain Joe Cararra ’24 sealed the game with a 75-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter, which was led by quarterback Adam Landry PG’24, who totaled 308 passing yards.
According to defensive lineman Alex Armour ’24, the uplifting atmosphere played a big part in the win over Suffield Academy. Armour explained how strong teamwork combined with a non sibi mindset allowed Andover to succeed against Suffield Academy.
“It had a lot to do with it being Senior Night. Everybody was playing for the man next to him, as opposed to himself. And you could see it in every play. Someone would make a play and everyone would rally around him, hug him, say good job. Even if somebody messed up the play, everyone was like, ‘You alright bruh, you good, we going to get them next time,’ it was that kind of energy,” said Armour.
Offensive lineman Byron Johnson ’25 said the team was determined to outperform its opponents, particularly in front of the home crowd, and this mindset was the driving force behind its performance.
Johnson said, “I really think that everyone [believed] we needed to get that win because of the Seniors having their last home game… You always want to win the game, you always want [to] win whatever competition that you’re in. But I think we, the whole team, knew that we need[ed] to get that win, especially against a winnable team. So just having that mindset really just prepared us to win and that’s ultimately what we did.”
Johnson also added his thoughts on the team and crowd’s spirits.
“Overall, the team’s energy was great. I think also our fans kind of carried us and brought our energy up and the Blue Key Heads [were] doing their job, everybody having good energy… The overall energy of our team and the crowd, which is everybody around us, that just completely brought us to the end of that game,” said Johnson.
Both Armour and Johnson highlighted one crucial play that sealed the deal for Andover: the interception made by safety Nick Jones ’24 at the end of the fourth quarter.
Armour said, “[Jones] had a game-saving pick. Just speaking for myself, I was nowhere near making that play. On the play he got that interception that was such a [great play], he saved the game, and that was a fifty-fifty ball and he ended up with it. Definitely, to me, he was the MVP.”
Ahead of their upcoming game against Phillips Exeter Academy (Exeter), Johnson explained the team’s dedication to going the extra mile in their preparations.
“We’re going to ride the momentum of this win, ride the momentum of the week of practice that we just had and carry that into this week’s practice and carry that into Exeter and making sure that we really know what they’re gonna do, studying film, and then executing against that film in practice… And then also adding in whatever we’re gonna add to, [try to] throw them off guard. We’re going to continue what we’ve been doing in the past weeks,” said Johnson,
Elizandro Pereira ’27 explained how the Freshman players on the team will help Andover’s preparation against Exeter.
Pereira said, “As Freshmen, we have to be able to give the varsity players good looks as a scout team during practice. We have to make sure the Seniors have the best opportunity possible to succeed on Saturday against Exeter.”
Andover Football will play away against Exeter on Saturday.
