A year ago, quarterback Ben Love was leading the Winters Mill junior varsity football team and watching his older brother, Travis, lead the varsity. These days, Travis is a freshman lacrosse goalie at Towson University, and Ben is the big man on varsity.
Coming into this weekend's regular-season finale, Love had thrown for a county-leading 2,183 yards and 20 touchdowns for the Falcons. Football, however, may not even be the junior's best sport.
Last spring, he scored the winning goal in the Class 2A-1A state lacrosse final, giving Winters Mill a 6-5 overtime win against Parkside and its first state title.
You were the starting quarterback on the junior varsity last season. How much did it help you being able to watch your brother start at quarterback for the varsity?
I learned a lot from Travis. I learned how to react in different situations from the way he reacted. But I also learned a lot on JV. I got to know a lot of my receivers, who are my receivers now. Basically it's the same team -- just moved up. We've all been together, and the chemistry is pretty good on the field.
Have you surprised yourself with the passing numbers you've put up this year?
I've been a little surprised, but I knew we had the potential to get those numbers at the beginning of the season. I'm not so much surprised as I am happy. It's pretty fun knowing that you're the second-highest passing [yardage] in Carroll County ever.
You've had mixed success this season as a team. Do you feel like next year will be your break-out year?
You can never tell until Aug. 15 how the team is looking, but you can put together pieces. This year we lose a lot of core linemen, but we have a lot of guys coming up from JV and second-stringers that are pretty productive on scout team. I'm thinking we're going to be a very surprising team next year.
What's the main thing you do well as a quarterback, and what do you need to improve on the most?
Well, I wouldn't say there's one thing that I need to improve on, because I need to improve on a lot. But I get startled in the pocket and tend to break my protection before it needs to happen. So I could buy my line a little more time if I stay in the pocket. The thing I do best is probably just being able to read the defense and putting the balls in the holes.
Would you say you're pretty similar to Travis, stylistically?
I guess you can say we're pretty similar. We both have about the same arm strength and about the same speed. I'm a little better decision-maker than he was. But I'd say the biggest thing is I have a better opportunity to success because of the offense we run now, as opposed to the offense we ran then. The coaches have given me a lot more freedom than they gave Travis to call my own plays and run whatever I feel will exploit the defense.
You come from a pretty big sports family. Do you think that has helped you develop as a player?
Basically, in the Love family you play lacrosse, and if you're a guy you play football. Both of my younger brothers play football. My younger brother, Spenser, is a stud athlete. He's 13, so he'll be at Winters Mill next year. I'm looking forward to having him in the same program, because he's really fun to watch play football.
What position does he play?
He's a running back and middle linebacker.
You scored the winning goal in overtime of the Class 2A-1A state lacrosse final last spring. How much of a thrill was that for you?
It was awesome. Whenever you walk into our gym, we're the only banner that says "State Champions," and I just remember that game and how much fun it was. Also, it contributes a lot to football. Last year was my first year on varsity for any sport [in lacrosse], and now I'm not as nervous. I don't have jitterbugs on varsity for football. I can just go out there and do my thing.
Do you think that winning a state lacrosse title has a positive effect on the football team, with players realizing they're capable of the same kind of success?
Definitely. You see what you accomplished in lacrosse and you know that you went hard every single day of every single practice. You want to carry the same thing into football. You want to be the best you can be, and you want to go as you can every time you step on the field. This year we've had some tough losses, but I think for the most part we've gone pretty hard. It's been kind of a disappointing season with the close losses that we've had.
You write a weekly column for your local newspaper. How have your teammates reacted to that?
My teammates have been fine with it. They always joke around and ask me when I'm going to put them in the article. But the funniest thing is how other teams react to it. They don't really like it. You get sacked, and they tell you, "Put that in your article."
Have you ever used the column to get something off your chest that has really bothered you?
Yeah, a couple weeks ago we had a coach from an opposing team screaming at one of our players, and it was pretty immature. So I wrote that in my article. I called him out on it and said that he needed to grow up a little and respect the kids playing the game.
Did you get any reaction from the piece?
Yes. One of his players told me that he basically laughed at the article and called it a joke.
Coming into this weekend's regular-season finale, Love had thrown for a county-leading 2,183 yards and 20 touchdowns for the Falcons. Football, however, may not even be the junior's best sport.
Last spring, he scored the winning goal in the Class 2A-1A state lacrosse final, giving Winters Mill a 6-5 overtime win against Parkside and its first state title.
You were the starting quarterback on the junior varsity last season. How much did it help you being able to watch your brother start at quarterback for the varsity?
I learned a lot from Travis. I learned how to react in different situations from the way he reacted. But I also learned a lot on JV. I got to know a lot of my receivers, who are my receivers now. Basically it's the same team -- just moved up. We've all been together, and the chemistry is pretty good on the field.
Have you surprised yourself with the passing numbers you've put up this year?
I've been a little surprised, but I knew we had the potential to get those numbers at the beginning of the season. I'm not so much surprised as I am happy. It's pretty fun knowing that you're the second-highest passing [yardage] in Carroll County ever.
You've had mixed success this season as a team. Do you feel like next year will be your break-out year?
You can never tell until Aug. 15 how the team is looking, but you can put together pieces. This year we lose a lot of core linemen, but we have a lot of guys coming up from JV and second-stringers that are pretty productive on scout team. I'm thinking we're going to be a very surprising team next year.
What's the main thing you do well as a quarterback, and what do you need to improve on the most?
Well, I wouldn't say there's one thing that I need to improve on, because I need to improve on a lot. But I get startled in the pocket and tend to break my protection before it needs to happen. So I could buy my line a little more time if I stay in the pocket. The thing I do best is probably just being able to read the defense and putting the balls in the holes.
Would you say you're pretty similar to Travis, stylistically?
I guess you can say we're pretty similar. We both have about the same arm strength and about the same speed. I'm a little better decision-maker than he was. But I'd say the biggest thing is I have a better opportunity to success because of the offense we run now, as opposed to the offense we ran then. The coaches have given me a lot more freedom than they gave Travis to call my own plays and run whatever I feel will exploit the defense.
You come from a pretty big sports family. Do you think that has helped you develop as a player?
Basically, in the Love family you play lacrosse, and if you're a guy you play football. Both of my younger brothers play football. My younger brother, Spenser, is a stud athlete. He's 13, so he'll be at Winters Mill next year. I'm looking forward to having him in the same program, because he's really fun to watch play football.
What position does he play?
He's a running back and middle linebacker.
You scored the winning goal in overtime of the Class 2A-1A state lacrosse final last spring. How much of a thrill was that for you?
It was awesome. Whenever you walk into our gym, we're the only banner that says "State Champions," and I just remember that game and how much fun it was. Also, it contributes a lot to football. Last year was my first year on varsity for any sport [in lacrosse], and now I'm not as nervous. I don't have jitterbugs on varsity for football. I can just go out there and do my thing.
Do you think that winning a state lacrosse title has a positive effect on the football team, with players realizing they're capable of the same kind of success?
Definitely. You see what you accomplished in lacrosse and you know that you went hard every single day of every single practice. You want to carry the same thing into football. You want to be the best you can be, and you want to go as you can every time you step on the field. This year we've had some tough losses, but I think for the most part we've gone pretty hard. It's been kind of a disappointing season with the close losses that we've had.
You write a weekly column for your local newspaper. How have your teammates reacted to that?
My teammates have been fine with it. They always joke around and ask me when I'm going to put them in the article. But the funniest thing is how other teams react to it. They don't really like it. You get sacked, and they tell you, "Put that in your article."
Have you ever used the column to get something off your chest that has really bothered you?
Yeah, a couple weeks ago we had a coach from an opposing team screaming at one of our players, and it was pretty immature. So I wrote that in my article. I called him out on it and said that he needed to grow up a little and respect the kids playing the game.
Did you get any reaction from the piece?
Yes. One of his players told me that he basically laughed at the article and called it a joke.