Foxborough, Mass. - With a dominating 37-7 victory over West Springfield in the 2017 MIAA Division 5 Football State Championship, the Dennis-Yarmouth Dolphins capped a perfect 13-0 season under the tutelage of head coach Paul Funk, who has been named the 2017 New England Patriots Coach of the Year.
For the second time in program history - and the second time in Coach Funk's 17-year tenure - the Dolphins were crowned MIAA Super Bowl champions on Dec. 2 at Gillette Stadium. It was Dennis-Yarmouth's third appearance in the title game in the last seven years and marked the squad's second undefeated season, with the first coming in 2011.
In a performance that mirrored the team's execution throughout the season, the Dolphins utilized a well-balanced offense and stringent defense to secure their title, outpacing West Springfield with 312 yards of offense to the Terrier's 165. The emphatic victory highlighted a season in which the Dolphins won by an average margin of 31 points per game, including wins over six playoff teams.
As the New England Patriot High School Coach of the Year, Coach Funk has also been nominated for the NFL Don Shula High School Coach of the Year Award. As part of the selection process, all 32 nominees from around the country will be invited to Orlando for the USA Football National Conference and Pro Bowl week in January 2018.
Patriots and Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker Andre Tippett, now the team's executive director of community affairs, visited the Dolphins players and coaching staff Wednesday afternoon to present Dennis-Yarmouth High School's football program with a $2,000 donation on behalf of the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation, in honor of Coach Funk. 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.
This is the 22nd year in which the Patriots 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 2017 season marks the seventh year that Tippett has taken the award on the road to visit the schools that benefit from the program.
"What Dennis-Yarmouth accomplished this season was truly remarkable," Tippett said. "Every victory was a total-team effort, which speaks to the excellent leadership, coaching and discipline imparted by Coach Funk and his staff. Coach Funk has turned that program around and created a winning tradition. Congratulations to him and the entire team on their special season and Super Bowl championship."
The New England Patriots Charitable Foundation is the nonprofit 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.
Gatorade, a proud partner of the Patriots, is proud to support local high school athletics. Each week this season, Gatorade provided the Patriots Coach of the Week with complimentary product to keep his team hydrated for the remainder of the season.
