FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – With a commanding, 48-6, victory over the previously unbeaten Reading High School in the Division 2 quarterfinals, Bishop Feehan High School football coach, Bryan Pinabell, has been named this week's New England Patriots High School Coach of the Week. The Shamrocks are now one win away from a trip to Gillette Stadium for their first Super Bowl appearance since 2012. Bishop Feehan has won the Super Bowl eight times in its history, but this would be Coach Pinabell's first appearance.
Coach Pinabell, currently in his fourth year as head coach, led the Shamrocks to their sixth straight victory and second in a row against an undefeated opponent. The Shamrocks began the season 0-3, but have not lost since. They entered the playoffs as the No. 14 seed in Division 2, knocking off Peabody (8-0) last week before defeating Reading (9-0) last Friday. The Shamrocks returned 26 seniors this year, including all five offensive lineman who have paved the way for a strong running game.
Patriots and Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker Andre Tippett, now the team's Executive Director of Community Affairs, met with the Shamrock football team and cheerleading squad Tuesday morning to present the football program with a $1,000 donation on behalf of the Patriots Foundation in honor of Coach Pinabell. The visit and check presentation will be featured on the Patriots weekly television show "Patriots All Access," which airs on Friday night at 7 p.m. on WBZ-TV in Boston and will be available immediately after on Patriots.com.
"Congratulations to Coach Pinabell and the Shamrocks on an impressive win over an undefeated Reading team and advancing to the semifinals," said Tippett. "Coach Pinabell has done a tremendous job building up this program and his players. His work is reflected in the number of seniors who began their high school careers with him and are now excelling in the game. Despite a slow start, Bishop Feehan has battled to give themselves a great shot of making it to the Super Bowl. We wish them the best of luck!"
On Friday, the Shamrocks were led by senior running back Nick Yanchuk who rushed for six touchdowns and 362 yards on 35 carries. Yanchuk was named one of the Boston Herald Stars of the Week for his efforts. The defense also had a standout game as they held Reading quarterback James Murphy, a Brown University commit, to just 122 yards and one rushing touchdown for their only points of the game. On Friday, Bishop Feehan will face the No. 2 seed, King Philip in a semi-finals game at Mansfield High at 6:30 pm with a trip to the Super Bowl at Gillette Stadium up for grabs.
This is the 27th year in which the Patriots have joined the National Football League in conducting the High School Coach of the Week program, which recognizes outstanding high school coaches and promotes youth football throughout New England. The 2022 season marks the 11th year that the Patriots have sent Tippett to present the award to the coach at their school.
At the conclusion of the fall, one of the weekly winners will be named the New England Patriots High School Coach of the Year and will receive an additional $2,000 contribution towards the school's football program.
Fans are encouraged to nominate any New England high school head coach who leads a team to an exceptional win, a record-breaking performance or reaches a personal career milestone by emailing nominatecoach@patriots.com. All nominations must be submitted following a team's Friday night or Saturday afternoon game to be considered for that week's Patriots High School Coach of the Week award.
The Patriots Foundation is the non-profit through which the Patriots support charitable and philanthropic organizations throughout New England. This support comes in the form of direct grants, in-kind donations and player appearances. The foundation assists a variety of charitable organizations and programs throughout New England by supporting their educational, family and health initiatives.
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