Foxborough, Mass. – Following a 35-0 shutout over conference opponent, Southbridge High School, head coach Chris McMahon of the Grafton High School Indians has been named this week's New England Patriots High School Coach of the Week.
Senior captain Ifeatu Melifonwu led the Grafton offense with a three-touchdown performance in the first half of last weekend's victory to help the Indians improve to 4-0 overall and 1-0 in the Southern Worcester County League. Prior to its Friday night victory at Southbridge, Grafton had notched convincing wins over Oakmont Regional, 48-8, West Boylston/Tahanto, 34-6, and Westborough, 27-7, to get off to an undefeated start to the 2016 season.
Patriots and Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker Andre Tippett, now the team's executive director of community affairs, visited the Grafton players and coaching staff Tuesday afternoon to present the Spartans football program with a $1,000 donation on behalf of the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation, in honor of Coach McMahon. The visit and check presentation will be featured on the Patriots weekly television show, "Patriots All Access," which airs on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. on WBZ-TV in Boston and will be available immediately after on Patriots.com.
This is the 21st year in which the Patriots join the National Football League in honoring local schools and coaches in the High School Coach of the Week program, which recognizes outstanding performances and promotes a strong foundation for youth football across New England. The 2016 season marks the sixth year Tippett has taken the award on the road to visit the schools that are honored each week as part of the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation's commitment to youth football initiatives.
"Congratulations to the Grafton High football team on an outstanding offensive performance and league victory last Friday night," Tippett said. "Coach McMahon and the Indians could not be more deserving of this award and we are happy to be able to honor them this week."
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 a $2,000 contribution towards the school's football program.
For the sixth straight year, the Patriots will also be accepting nominations for High School Coach of the Week honors. Those who wish to nominate a high school football coach in New England who leads a team to an exceptional weekly performance or reaches a personal career milestone are encouraged to send submissions right after teams have played their games on Friday or Saturday to **nominatecoach@patriots.com**. Only nominations submitted after each game will be considered.
The New England Patriots Charitable 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.
