Marquese Avery once scored 31 points in a single game in the Lynn Elementary School Basketball Tournament.
The now 6-foot-1-inch, 180-pound sophomore’s performance on Thanksgiving for the Lynn Classical High School football team topped that magnificent effort.
Avery had 146 yards and two touchdowns on offense and 11 tackles on defense, four behind the line of scrimmage, and two sacks.
“Marquese had a monster game,” summarized Lynn Classical head football coach Brian Vaughan. “He played lights out. Kyle kicked the winning field goal, but we’re not even in that game if not for Marquese on both sides of the ball.”
Having attended many Classical-English games in the past and competed in the basketball version as a freshman (the 2020 Thanksgiving game was played in May, 2021) Marquese knew the stakes were sky high on Thanksgiving.
“It’s awesome to win the Thanksgiving game,” said Avery. “We came into the game, and everyone was doubting us, but we just proved everyone wrong – that’s what I’m happy about. There was a big crowd and this is my city, and we wanted to show everyone that we were a good team.”
Marquese received some extra inspiration after chatting with Coach Brian Vaughan, who had played in the English-Classical himself.
I remember Coach Vaughan saying to me during pre-game warmups, “Let’s have a big game today, and I told him I got you and I’ll do what I have to do.’’
He said he has learned a lot about running the football from Coach Vaughan.
“He tells me to follow my blocks, make sure I protect the football, read the lanes, make good cuts – all that stuff,” said Marquese, who credited offensive linemen Nick Tinkham, Jayven Soto, and Derek Omoregie, Angel Concepcion for their blocking in the game.
Marquese was standing on the sidelines when head coach Brian Vaughan made the decision to go for the game-winning field goal.
“When Kyle kicked that field goal, I just gave him a big hug,” said Marquese. “I told him, I’m just so happy for you. He came into the game having not played quarterback once, and he did what he had to do. He did the job and won us the game.”
Marquese said Coach Vaughan’s son, Brian, was a big reason for the team’s success on offense this season. “He’s a really good runner and he threw a lot of excellent passes to me,” said Marquese. “I love playing football with Brian.”
Marquese returns as a starting guard this winter for the basketball Rams, who are led by his father, the legendary coach, Marvin Avery. “We have a good team this season,” said Marquese. “My dad is a great coach. He’s a very competitive person and I love that.”
With sophomore quarterback Brian Vaughan and running back Marquese Avery back next season, the Rams’ offense should be electrifying in 2022 and a return to the playoffs is the goal.
“Those are two guys we’re going to be counting on heavily in the future,” said Coacg Vaughan. “And RJ Faessler, a sophomore who started on offense at receiver and defense at safety for us – let’s just say we’re high on our sophomore class.”