Smells like team spirit: Selfless play makes Phillips Andover football squad nearly perfect

November 17, 2005  

By Chris Forsberg, Globe Correspondent

ANDOVER -- ''Non sibi" and ''Finis origine pendet."

These words have graced the school seal at Phillips Academy at Andover for more than two centuries, but never have they meant more to the football program.

Loosely translated, the phrases mean ''Not for self" and ''The end depends on the beginning." Rallying around a selfless attitude, the Big Blue posted an 8-0 mark during the fall's regular season and will look to cap a perfect year when it tangles with New York-based Trinity-Pawling in a New England Prep School Athletic Council championship game Saturday at the Williston Northampton School in Easthampton.

''Non sibi -- it's essentially the definition of a team," said senior quarterback Joe Lokitis, a fourth-year player out of Norton. ''Everyone on this team has the same goal and no one is worried about individual achievements as long as we're playing as a team. We all wanted to win a championship and now we have that chance."

Need proof that individual stats don't matter? Navigate to Phillips Andover's' website. You'll find everything you need to know about the 2005 squad, including a roster, a schedule, and game highlights. But a closer inspection reveals that there's not a single name in those game reports as the team shuns putting the spotlight on individuals.

''It all goes back to the non sibi attitude," said 18th-year coach Leon Modeste. ''You're only as good as your partner. If you're a weak person or if you have weak character, then that will affect our team as a whole."

Modeste admits that no one embodies the altruistic nature of his team more than senior captain Matt Ward, the third in a series of brothers to pass through Phillips Andover.

Ward, a 5-foot-10, 185-pound running back/strong safety out of Boxford, took time in the off-season to call the incoming postgraduate players and instill the team's selfless attitude upon them.

''My brothers played here and they were captains so I always dreamed about being a captain for this team," said Ward. ''Non sibi is sort of a mutual understanding and most years it catches on. I just showed the guys the first step or two and they took it from there."

After laboring through three dismal seasons, Ward is savoring his senior campaign. A thrilling 33-28 victory over New Hampton in the second week lit the fuse on a run in which the Big Blue defeated all the rivals that had beaten them up over the past three years. It culminated in a 24-8 victory over rival Phillips Exeter Academy of Exeter, N.H., this past Saturday. The two teams have met 125 consecutive years as part of the longest schoolboy rivalry in the nation.

Matt Fernandez, a postgrad running back/defensive back out of Bourne High School, was one of the stars in the victory over Exeter. A big part of his decision to attend Andover was the chemistry of this year's team.

''I looked at Andover and knew it would be a good fit for me," said Fernandez, who said he knew all about the team's non sibi attitude coming in. ''I played that way even before I came here. That's how it should be. A team isn't just one person."

Fernandez is one of the reasons that Ward, a former featured running back, now focuses his energy on defense. The senior captain graciously stepped aside on offense when a pair of talented postgrad running backs arrived last fall (and again this year in Fernandez and Charles Houghton).

''As long as we're winning, it's fine by me," said Ward. ''This is what we've been working towards."

While Modeste puts a lot of stock into the non sibi attitude, he realizes that's not the only thing carrying his team this year.

''The kids understand our motto, but they also have talent as well," said Modeste. ''That's the key: Finding that blend of talent and believing in each other. Sometimes the postgrads have the talent, but they don't fit in here. This year they've bought into the band of brothers belief our guys have created. It's interesting to watch as a coach."

Modeste gets a bit more of a hands-on feel than most high school coaches. He lives in on-campus housing and his dorm includes a handful of his veteran players. He doesn't just see his players on the gridiron, he bumps into them in the cafeteria or at chapel service.

And regardless of how his team wraps up the season, Modeste said he will always remember this group and its success.

''We have guys come back all the time and say, 'You probably don't remember me,' and I say, 'Of course, I remember you. I remember your number and your dirty little face running off the field,' " said Modeste, a native of Brooklyn, N.Y. ''You develop something special with these kids and it goes beyond wins and losses. In our convenient memories, we've never lost a game here. We'll always look back on the positive memories."

reprinted with permissio