Under Gloucester High head coach Paul Ingram's run-oriented Wing-T offense, the common perception is that the quarterback position for the Fishermen is nothing more than a body capable of handing the ball off to a plethora of talented backs.

But Ingram is here to tell you that couldn't be further from the truth.

"It's the hardest position to teach," said Ingram. "There are a lot of steps that people don't realize, even in our offense. You don't just hand the ball off. Sometimes the QB has to change the play, and they have to make the right reads and sell the playaction. We need to put someone there that can handle it. There is a lot of pressure."

Ingram has found his man in the form of senior captain Brett Cahill. The 5-foot-10, 185-pounder brings a unique physical skill set to the position.

A starting linebacker on last year's 11-2 Division 2A Super Bowl runner-up, Cahill is built a bit different from graduate Rick Gallant (6-feet, 175 pounds) — the Fishermen's quarterback of the last two years who went 24-2 as a starter and helped Gloucester win a Super Bowl in 2007.

Ingram says that Cahill has "a linebacker's mentality." Often times in Gloucester's system, linebackers also play guard on the offensive line. In fact, Cahill is so strong that Ingram seriously tossed around the idea of playing him at guard this fall. But the reality is that strength can be used as an advantage at quarterback also.

"Brett has shown confidence at quarterback from Day 1," said Ingram. "And the kids have shown confidence in him. He has great touch and a great throwing arm. I think we may throw it more this year and let Brett take off and run a little bit."

We'll start to see if all that is true beginning on Saturday in the season opener, as Gloucester travels to perennially strong Swampscott (12 p.m.) in a battle of the Northeastern Conference's most dominant teams recently.

In the last two years, Gloucester has only averaged 5.8 pass attempts per game. The Fishermen only completed 75 for a percentage of 49. As Ingram says, "If we complete the passes, we'll throw them."

Cahill has thrown just one varsity pass, but it was a 13-yard completion in last year's Super Bowl. With or without the air attack there is still plenty that he will be responsible for. Mainly that comes down to timing, decision-making and misdirection in Gloucester's complicated scheme.

"I've seen our quarterbacks play for two years, so I know what it takes to play the position," said Cahill, who was the starting catcher on Gloucester's Division 1 North champion baseball team last spring. "I have to be able to read the defense and find guys that are open. I have the footwork down because I've gotten reps at practice for the last three years.

"I think my durability will help too. I can take a hit."

Gloucester played in a passing league this summer and came in second out of 24 teams, displaying Cahill's ability to air it out. He appears to have strong receivers too, with the likes of juniors Chris Unis, Gilbert Brown, Mike Tomaino and Adam Philpott.

"We have so many kids that can catch the ball," said Ingram.

The running game will be strong as always with senior Conor Ressel (631 yards, 16 TDs) leading the way with help from Brown (357 yards, 7 TDs) and junior Jordan Shairs (226 yards, TD). Senior Alessandro D'Angelo will see time at fullback and has proven to be an effective blocker in the preseason.

The moral of the story is that there will be plenty of offensive weapons to help Cahill, and he's glad he is the one taking the snaps.

"I definitely wanted to play quarterback," said Cahill. "I've been waiting three years."

Covering the spread

If Gloucester does indeed throw the ball more this season, it will be following with a recent trend that has been sweeping through the Northeastern Conference.

More and more teams are shifting to the pass-oriented spread offense, such as future Gloucester opponents Swampscott, Andover, Danvers, Salem, Revere and Lynn Classical.

The Fishermen have struggled in the past to stop their opponent's pass attack. In their only losses last year to Swampscott and Duxbury, Gloucester was burnt by the pass, surrendering 240 yards to the Big Blue and 335 yards to the Dragons.

"Sometimes people like to say that Gloucester can't stop the pass," said Ingram. "Now we are playing so many spread teams that we have to go man-to-man."

The secondary is probably the primary concern for Ingram. Ressel is the only returning starter in the secondary, which means the younger, inexperienced guys will have to learn fast, especially with Swampscott looming this weekend.

Most likely to join Ressel as the last line of defense will be Tomaino, Philpott and junior Brandon Cusumano, who played well in stints last year in the secondary.

"We have a lot of smart kids and they all seem to understand the coverages," said Ressel. "Cusumano got a lot of time last year, so he will help a lot."

Cornerback is widely regarded as the most difficult position on the football field. Thus, it will be a learning-on-the-job situation for many in the Fishermen secondary.

"They all just have to get in a game and get some confidence," said Ingram. "They need to make a play that proves to them that they belong out there."

It is undoubtedly difficult for Gloucester to replicate what spread teams can do in practice. But on the flip side, it's difficult for the spread teams to replicate what Gloucester can do.

Changes

It will be interesting to see how Gloucester responds in its first game since the 46-26 loss to Duxbury last December in the Division 2A Super Bowl at Gillette Stadium.

Last year, the Fishermen came into the season riding high after their 2007 Super Bowl championship. However, the loss to Duxbury should prove to be extra motivation for Gloucester to get back to the top, and there are plenty of fresh faces to breathe more energy into the program.

Cahill and his fellow captain Gus Margiotta are returning starters along with Unis and Ressel. Other than that, the lineup is new.

The main focus has been filling the offensive line, where Margiotta is the only returner at center and Unis will play on the end. There are plenty of strong candidates to fill the roles on the O-line such as seniors Jeff Lane and Ryan Fulford, and juniors Andrew Mizzoni and Anthony Latassa

"Overall we're a strong team," said Margiotta. "It's the Gloucester tradition. We just reload year after year. We're just trying to get a good feel of who works well with who. No matter what, I feel good about who is lining up next to me."

The offensive line is the unsung part of Gloucester's offense. Traditionally it is a quick, versatile group that is the key to the Fishermen's unstoppable running game.

Aside from the new faces, there are some other changes. Gloucester has moved up to Division 1A under the new Eastern Mass. football alignment. The competition in the playoffs, if Gloucester gets there, will be stiff. The Dual County Large, Old Colony and Bay State Carey join the Northeastern Conference Large in 1A.

"We look good on paper," said Ingram. "It will come down to how well we work together. I'll know more about that later."