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The way Everett football coach John DiBiaso talks about his team, it makes you wonder if he either holds back information or simply demands excellence all the time.

"We don't really do anything special," DiBiaso said, obviously paying no attention to the complete dominance his Crimson Tide has displayed over the last decade. "We've got running backs to the left and right, a fullback and a quarterback, and they all carry the ball."

1.St. John's Prep (2-0): The season starts in earnest for the Eagles this weekend as the state's top ranked team, Everett, comes to Cronin Stadium. Last week: 1

If the physically-depleted Central Catholic football team had any margin for error offensively, a stingy, ball-hawking group from St. John's Prep stole it away.

The Eagles posted shutout No. 2 in as many games, holding the Raiders to a meager 133 yards of offense in a 12-0 whitewash before about 1,000 fans at Veterans Memorial Stadium.

1.St. John's Prep 1-0 -- Can't get much better than its opening game rout of Peabody

2.Salem (N.H.) 2-0 -- Granite State power is on an early season roll

PEABODY | The beginning of the Dick Woodbury era in Peabody didn't go as planned last night. The crowd was large and enthusiastic for the first Arthur Adamopoulos Football Classic in memory of the late Tanner coach, who was at the helm for 20 years. The Eagles spoiled the party by scoring on seven of their first eight possessions and rolled to a 44-0 win.

The talk surrounding the Peabody High football team throughout the offseason has been unusually positive for a team that suffered one of its most disappointing seasons in program history last fall.

The hiring of Peabody High teacher Dick Woodbury | after the resignation of two-year coach Paul Uva last winter | was met with immediate excitement, mainly because the 62-year-old math teacher had the backing of the players. Woodbury's decision to assemble a coaching staff built entirely with former Peabody coaches and players only solidified the sentiment of joy.

St. John's Prep football star Derek Coppola of North Reading has often babysat his three brothers, Tyler, Jared and Brandon.

Now he's chauffeuring them to conditioning drills at the school in preparation for the official start of preseason practice, Monday, Aug. 20. The youngsters are still yawning when Coppola reaches the Danvers parochial school at 6:20 a.m., 10 minutes before his reporting time for conditioning drills.

DANVERS | In this, the 100th season of football at St. John's Prep, it will be the team's skill players who will be asked to carry the squad while a slew of newcomers get used to life at the varsity level.