Cox leading Kennett to 5-0 start the old-fashioned way

KENNETT SQUARE — It’s three days after Kennett reached 5-0 for the first time in program history and senior running back, Garrett Cox, trudges slowly through a walk-through practice.

The setting emits no excitement from a historic start, and Cox’s appearance reflects it. 

His helmet is beaten, with flecks of black matte paint missing all across the top, while his team-issued mouthpiece dangles from his facemask. 

There is no flash with these Blue Demons, and any trace of ego has yet to take root on a team that has struggled so hard, for so long. 

“You look at the two across the fifties and say, that team’s gonna win… and it ain’t our team,” Kennett coach Lance Frazier said. “It’s just the culture, the mindset, the identity that has permeated through our team and Garrett is not the sole reason why that’s happening, but it’s a work drive that’s infectious. People are seeing the benefits of the work and people are doing more of that…. (Cox) just works harder than anybody that I’ve ever seen at his age.”

Cox has been the catalyst for Kennett, who earned wins over West Chester Rustin and Unionville for the first time ever, in consecutive weeks. 

After running track for the first time last spring, Cox has a career-high 841 yards, and it’s only the midway point. That’s likely furthest on his mind with his team all of a sudden in contention for a Ches-Mont League American Division crown.

“He don’t care what he looks like,” Frazier said of his workhorse. “He don’t care how sweet he looks like in his uniform. He doesn’t care how many people are in the stands. He just plays.”

If it feels like he’s been around forever, it’s because he has. He got his first varsity carries as a freshman in 2016, and entered his senior campaign with 376 touches. 

As the best player on some underwhelming youth football teams, he learned early how to take a beating and get right back up.

“We were younger than everybody and barely had enough kids to make a team and I just remember every game getting lit up,” Cox said. “I feel like that’s what made me tough and helped build this.”

Times have changed, and there’s a squad around Cox. Junior Sam Forte has established himself as a skilled two-way player at quarterback and cornerback, and sophomore Kalen Frazier gives the Blue Demons a threat at receiver.

Up front, Jack Colamarino, Huck Freebury, Javier Bedolla, Shawn Carroll and Matt Okeefe have opened holes for a run game that ranks sixth in the area with 209 yards per game.

Zack Good, who starts at defensive end and mixes in at tight end, moved here from Massachusetts two years ago and immediately liked what he saw.

“I thought, one, I want to win games and two, this is the squad I want to do it with,” Good said. “Every one of these kids are grinders.”

Kennett is currently atop the Class 5A standings in District 1, and as is the case with most of the smaller schools, the best Blue Demons play both sides of the ball. 

Cox doubles as an inside linebacker, and as a defense, Kennett leads the area in points and rush yards allowed, as well as turnovers created. 

Since starting 0-4 last season, Kennett has won nine of 12, and coming off its first-ever playoff appearance, expectations are steadily rising.

“We hoped the momentum from the end of last year would carry over to this year and it definitely did,” Cox said. “At the end of last season, coach had an end of season meeting and we all sat down and set our goals. Our goal coming in was to get a home playoff game and I think that pushed a lot of people to get there. Hopefully it’s going to happen.”

That seems more likely than not at 5-0. But with a huge game against 4-1 West Chester East, with American Division title hopes on the line, October 4, games like Friday’s against West Chester Henderson become more vital.
It’s been awhile, if ever, that Kennett has had to prepare for a true trap game, but Frazier and his staff are making sure the focus stays elevated.

“Don’t drink the Kool-Aid,” Frazier said. “Everybody is in shock in the community. Our community absolutely deserves this. It’s been a long time coming. Everyone’s excited and happy and I’m happy as heck to be a part of it. What we have to do in-house here is, appreciate that, but the paper clippings, the rankings, don’t drink the Kool-Aid. Parents at home telling you how great you are, don’t drink the Kool-Aid, man. We have to focus on staying the course, continuing to do what we do and raising the bar each week.”

Kennett’s quiet leader is the perfect man for the job. You won’t find him racing to twitter (he has 11 tweets in 4 years) after every game to post his highlights or tell who he’s blessed to have an offer from. He just wants to buckle his chinstrap to his busted-up helmet, put in his stock mouthpiece and run as fast as he can into whatever stands in his way.

Good luck stopping him.

“It’s been amazing,” Cox said of this season. “Going from a coach to another coach to finally this coach, it’s nice to have a coach we all can rely on… We’ve all played with each other so I knew we’d have a chance, but I didn’t know how realistic it would’ve ever been.”