Jul. 16—Like most people, Rufus MacVane doesn’t answer his phone from unknown callers.
Especially when he’s tuna fishing.
But then MacVane started to glance at the text encoding of the voicemail.
MacVane, a recent Yarmouth High graduate, could tell he was getting a call asking if — on short notice — he could play in the Maine Shrine Lobster Classic all-star football game.
“Then I’m trying to answer the phone before they hang up. I couldn’t call back fast enough,” said MacVane, who was added to the West team a little over a week ago.
The 34th Lobster Bowl will be held at 4 p.m. Saturday at Lewiston High. Proceeds, including fundraising done by each player, benefits Shriners Hospitals for Children. This year, Varsity Maine, the brand name for high school sports coverage by Maine Trust for Local News organizations, including the Portland Press Herald, Sun Journal, Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel, is the media sponsor.
Players and coaches from both teams met with the media Tuesday at Foxcroft Academy, which is hosting training camp.
It was apparent that MacVane, a 6-foot, 220-pound linebacker, has become a favorite of his West teammates.
While doing a brief interview, at least 20 teammates held up their phones to get video, making it hard for both player and reporter to concentrate.
“This is kind of crazy,” MacVane said.
Every year there are late roster additions because of injuries, school or military commitments that come up after the original selections are made in February, or simply a player’s change of mind.
MacVane is replacing his former Yarmouth teammate, running back Michael McGonagle, who was a Fitzpatrick Trophy finalist. According to West Coach Brendan Scully of Deering, McGonagle is recovering from knee surgery.
“I’m playing at UNE and doing training for that, so I was ready to go when I got the call,” MacVane said.
Other West roster changes include the additions of Leavitt offensive lineman Mason Twitchell and York receiver Ben Brown.
East Coach Dan O’Connell said his squad had fewer changes than most years and two were known well in advance, including Tobias Perkins of Windham having to skip the game because he’s already at the Coast Guard Academy. But two days before camp opened Sunday, O’Connell did need a new player. He called Orono lineman Cooper Sawyer.
“He’s been great,” O’Connell said. “It doesn’t hurt that he’s 6-6 and 275 pounds. He’ll be playing offensive tackle. A great kid, very charismatic. He was someone who was waiting in the wings and if we needed a replacement, we knew he would be ready.”
TRIVIA QUESTION: Who scored the longest non-special teams touchdown in a Lobster Bowl?
THE REASON FOR THE GAME: The Lobster Bowl celebrates top high senior football players in the state, but its purpose is to raise money and awareness for the 22 nonprofit Shrine hospitals nationwide. The players and cheerleaders who participate are expected to raise money for the Shrine Hospitals. Since 1990, the Lobster Bowl has generated over $900,000 in donations.
As of Tuesday morning, the top fundraisers on each team were Ashton Duran of Orono for the East and Gabe Jewett of Kennebunk for the West. Duran used a variety of techniques, including hosting a comedy night, to raise about $7,200, he said. Duran said one of his goals is to join the Freemasons with an intention of becoming a Shriner.
Jewett, who lives in Arundel, was motivated by his personal connections to the Masonic order and its charitable work. He’s raised $6,050 through direct appeals to friends and clients of his father, an electrician, as well as Kennebunk-area businesses.
“My brother (Zachary) is handicapped and has been treated at Shriner hospitals. They helped him out,” Jewett said. “My dad (William) is also a mason and was a past headmaster at the York lodge.”
NOAH CARPENTER is the biggest name among this year’s players. A two-time Varsity Maine Player of the Year, two-time Maine Gatorade Player of the Year, and the 2024 Fitzpatrick Trophy winner, Carpenter recently finished a strong high school baseball season. That was after leading Leavitt to an historic 11-0 Class C championship season that included wins against three Class A teams. He’ll soon be reporting to the University of Maine, where he intends to play football and baseball.
Carpenter was asked if he thought about just taking a break from sports before reporting to his first college training camp.
“Just knowing this is going to support a great cause and being part of one of the biggest charity all-star games in the country, I wanted to be part of it,” Carpenter said.
Carpenter is expected to get the vast majority of the snaps for the West. Brooks Fox of Wells, listed as a tight end, is the backup.
The East intends to play two quarterbacks equally, said O’Connell. Wyatt Rayfield of Foxcroft Academy and Jack Schuck of Bangor have shared the reps in practice. Schuck will play football at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Rayfield said “this is it right here,” for his football playing days.
Rayfield and Schuck acknowledged they are far from household names, especially compared to Carpenter.
“I think that’s our whole team,” Schuck said. “The whole East roster is made up of a bunch of ballplayers who just want to go out and win.”
NOTES: Saturday’s game is considered the 34th Lobster Bowl, including one game in 2021 that was played in seven-on-seven style. The West has a 21-11 advantage primarily because it won the first nine games. Since then the advantage is 12-11 (5-5 over the past 10) and the East won last year, 28-23. … The Lobster…
Portland Press Herald, Maine
