By Kim J. Harmon

 

If having one DeVellis is good, having two would be even better – right?

Head coach Ken Roberts saw how true that was in the third quarter of a 31-6 win over Darien back on October 28, 2005. That was the day freshman Jake DeVellis stepped into the backfield for the first time, took the handoff from quarterback Tucker Kass, and then promptly threw a 22-yard scoring pass on the halfback option to his older brother, Joey.

“The drive before, the coaches told me what was going to go down,” said Jake, who never figured to play as a freshman, “but I can’t even describe the feeling of going out there for the first time. My legs didn’t even feel like they were there. But coach told me to just throw it up and Joey would go get it.”

Joey went and got it – just like he did maybe a hundred times in the backyard – and the Nighthawks had suddenly opened the door on the kind of dangerous offense Newtown hasn’t seen since the days of Pete Ivey and Joey Saputo.

“The first thing about (Joey and Jake) is,” said head coach Ken Roberts, “when we’re game-planning we realize we can now do so many different things – run, pass, option, trick plays. They are both so athletic and intelligent.”

But they are also a little bit different. Joey – a senior co-captain – is one of those slippery, elusive players who makes a living off making defensive players miss while Jake – bigger, even now, than his older brother – is a more of a head-on runner.

And, now, with Kass running a more “traditional” offense with guys like Chris Potter, Bob Lapple and Joey Bowen, the Joey and Jake DeVellis are the wild cards.

“We have a bunch of different plays,” said Joey, “where it’s him and me in the backfield or him, Tucker and me. When Jake comes in, (the other team) yells, ‘Here comes the option,’ but he could still flip the ball pretty well.”

Jake has thrown just 11 passes, completing six for 104 yards. His longest was a 54-yard laser to Lapple against Stratford. Like opposing teams suspect, the tendency is for the ‘Hawks to run the option when Jake subs in for Kass, which is how Jake has gained most of his 241 rushing yards (second best on the team).

“No matter where you put him,” said Joey, “he can make plays.”

Gosh, Joey can make plenty of plays himself. Through nine games, the senior tailback/defensive back/kick returner/wide receiver has scored four times on the ground, five times through the air (four on the receiving end, one on the throwing end) and once on the punt return while accumulating 798 all-purpose yards. He can be so dangerous in the return game, especially, that teams have elected to turn to the sidelines and punt the ball directly out of bounds rather than risk giving #7 an opportunity to return it for a TD.

It’s that kind of reputation, that kind of production, and that kind of experience that can serve as a model for the younger Jake to follow.

“Joey has really helped me out,” said Jake, who has accumulated 440 all-purpose yards in, essentially, his first season, “because I know he’s there for me. It’s off the field, too, helping me after practice and giving me advice. In the Stratford game I thought I would get that nervous feeling again, but it was okay. Joey was out there and it was like we were in the backyard again.”

The biggest lesson Joey may have for his younger brother is a lesson in how to be a leader and how to win.

“We’re just about staying loose,” said Joey. “Practices are loose. We’re loose in the locker room. But when it’s time to work, we go to work.”

And things have worked out well, for the ‘Hawks, who were 8-1 and in fourth in the CIAC Class LL state rankings heading into the traditional Thanksgiving battle with Masuk. A win would put the locals in the playoffs.

A loss and the season would likely end.

But if that’s how it had to end, it would be okay.

“I definitely formed more relationships with some varsity guys,” said Jake, who also plays with his brother on the hardcourt at Newtown High. “Joey and I have also gotten closer on the field. And we’re 8-1 so, yeah, I’m pretty satisfied.”

But next year Joey will be on his way elsewhere to play football and baseball while Jake – who once scored six touchdowns in a Pop Warner game – will be stepping into the full-time role as quarterback. And you know why opposing teams should get nervous?

“He will probably turn out better than me,” said Joey.