DeMatha Football Player: 'We Still Expect to Win a Championship'

Just a day after being hired as DeMatha’s new head football coach in early May, Elijah Brooks pulled his team together for a brief meeting in the school’s weight room.

His message was simple.

“I just told them that the show doesn’t stop,” Brooks said. “And I told them that it’s time to move forward so we can accomplish our goals of fielding the most competitive team we can and aim for a championship like we do every year.”

The 27-year old Brooks, who had served as an assistant on the Stags’ staff the previous four years, replaces long-time coach Bill McGregor.

And while he says it isn’t easy to replace someone like McGregor, Brooks got off to a good start. DeMatha beat Loyola Blakfield, 24-20, in its season-opener Sept. 3, although it fell, 18-0, to Calvert Hall Friday.

McGregor resigned in March after 29 seasons as DeMatha’s head coach. During his tenure, McGregor’s team posted a combined record of 278-40-3 and won 17 Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) championships. He is the fourth-winningest coach in Maryland high school football history.

More than 350 of McGregor’s former players have gone on to receive NCAA Division I football scholarships.

Brooks, who graduated from DeMatha in 2002, played three seasons under McGregor as a running back and linebacker. He was also a standout point guard on the Stags’ basketball team. He earned a football scholarship to Kent State University, but transferred to William & Mary. In three seasons with the Tribe, he rushed for 2,551 yards and 19 touchdowns, including for 943 yards and eight scores as a senior in 2006.

He joined McGregor’s staff at DeMatha shortly after graduating from William & Mary in 2007.

Brooks says McGregor has been “very, very supportive” throughout this entire process.

“Coach McGregor’s someone I highly respect,” Brooks said. “He’s just told me to be myself, to lead the program as I see fit and gave me the utmost confidence going forward, which I’m very appreciate of.”

And, even though the Stags return just six starters—three offensive and three defensive—from last year’s team that finished 9-3, Brooks has high expectations for his first season as head coach.

“Our goal every year is to compete for a league championship,” Brooks said. “We understand that we’re young, and inexperienced. But with hard work and preparation, we hope to be in the race at the end of the year once again.”

Defensive ends Michael Moore and Brent Wilkerson, who both also play tight end, are among the returning veterans Brooks expects to be key pieces of this year’s Stags team. He is also looking for large contributions from linebackers Samuel Lebbie and Jason Dillon, offensive tackle Connor Bozick and fullback Troy Bullock.

Running backs Taiwan Deal and Mark Allen as well as defensive backs Cameron Phillips and Jarriell Jordan are just some of the young players Brooks will be counting on to step into big roles

Brooks views his defensive backfield, led by Phillips and Jordan, as the biggest strength of this year’s team.

He does, however, have questions at the quarterback position—where sophomore quarterback Jamal Robinson is in his first season as a starter—but is confident his running backs will help ease the load on his young signal caller.

Moore says, “We’re a young team, but we have a strong defense and have young guys that are hungry and ready to play.”

He added, “The skill level is still there, too. With the more games we play, the better, and more confident, we’ll be. We still expect to win a championship.”