By ALEXANDER RAPP

Concord Monitor

Matt O’Rourke played wide receiver for the Concord Crimson Tide. Now a junior at New England College, he’s playing defensive end and preparing for the new football team’s first NCAA season.

Last season was a trial pre-varsity run for the team, which grew and readied itself to compete against battle-tested programs. On Thursday, 23 days out from kick-off against Plymouth State University, the Pilgrims had their first official practice.

O’Rourke tested playing tight end last season, but as the team reorganized and tried to pull together a comprehensive squad, he noticed that his best opportunity to find playing time would be on defense.

So on day one this year, he put on a blue shirt and took reps with the defensive line.

“I’ve adjusted, I think, as well as I possibly could have. It’s only getting better, so getting bigger, stronger and faster every day, new position, new people, new challenges, it’s been awesome,” he said.

The mood at the team’s first practice in Henniker was intense and giddy. It was a hot day, and the ‘Grims took water breaks constantly while rotating through positional drills.

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For many on the team, the upcoming season is a chance to prove themselves and get a taste of competitive collegiate football that they dreamed of in high school.

Having coach Kevin Kelly in their corner helps, too.

From Marshall University and Georgetown to the XFL, Kelly has experience at all levels of football and was heavily involved with the defensive squads in practice.

Levi Madison, a sophomore defensive back, is another Concord High player turned Pilgrim. In practice, he mainly took reps at safety. He feels like the squad is getting better every day, but its biggest focus is on tackling.

He said Kelly reminds him of some of the coaches he had in high school and that his style has resonated with him.

“Reminds me of Ham Munnell a little bit, but like, I mean, he’s just old school, and that’s kind of what I got coached by, so it’s not that big of a difference,” Madison said.

There’s some homegrown talent on the offensive side of the ball, too, including sophomore running back Dontrell White. The John Stark graduate from Weare leaped to NEC and took reps with running backs as he competed for playing time.

Balancing football and college is a new challenge, but he said that being surrounded by others who are as eager about the project as he is has only motivated him more.

“We’ll see what this team’s really got in this first year. I think we can prove a lot. Everyone really thinks that we’re just going to roll over this year, but I think we’ve got some guys out here that can do something,” White said.

Isaiah Turner, a junior wide receiver from Concord, echoed that same feeling. Some opponents might look down on the ‘Grims because they’re new, but they love the game as much as any other team.

They just have to prove it.

“It’s definitely an adjustment, but it’s great. College ball is college ball, so I’m not going to complain,” he said.

Before opening night on Sept. 6, the Pilgrims will travel down to Dean College for one last test on Aug. 27.

The mix of homegrown talent and new faces should make for an exciting fall at New England College.

Alexander Rapp can be reached at arapp@cmonitor.com