Einstein Football Starts Strong Under New Coach

When the Albert Einstein High School football team traveled to play Seneca Valley on the first Friday in September, it marked both the start of a new season for the Titans and the varsity head coaching debut for Jermaine Howell.

Howell, who spent the previous three seasons as head coach of Einstein’s junior varsity squad, was chosen to replace Mike Bonavia in May. According to athletic director Patrick Belott, when Bonavia left to take the head coaching job at Sherwood High School, “it was a no-brainer to promote coach Howell to the varsity job.”

The 37-year-old Richmond, Va., native has spent nearly a decade as a junior varsity head coach in Montgomery County, with stops at Wheaton and Paint Branch in addition to two separate stints at Einstein. Howell has coached a number of his current players in previous years, and his familiarity with the Titans’ personnel has made for a smooth transition to the varsity squad.

Although the Titans' lost Howell's debut, they hit their stride with decisive victories at Wheaton and in their home opener against Rockville. It is still early, but the strong rushing of seniors Elijah Thomas and Ryan Ferguson and the steady leadership of junior quarterback Sean Loftus are giving Einstein boosters hope that the Titans can best last year’s 4-6 record. A two-game improvement would net the Titans their first winning season since Ed Ashwell's 2000 team went 7-3.

Thomas and Ferguson, along with fellow seniors Peter Ngoh and Keith Gaye, give Einstein an embarrassment of riches in the backfield. They present problems not only for defenses that have to try to stop them, but for an Einstein coaching staff that has to decide which of the four is going to carry the ball on any given play.

"I tell coach Howell he's going to have grey hairs trying to figure out who to give the ball to," assistant coach Corey Harris said. "It's a good problem to have. It's one we laugh about."

The Titans will need to perform to their best on both offense and defense to give themselves a chance to win Friday’s home game against undefeated Damascus, one of the top teams in the state.

“It’s going to be a great game, a great test for the guys,” Harris said. “We got to leave it all on the field, and the outcome will be what it’s going to be.”

More challenges await later in the season, as Einstein will be hosting both Paint Branch and Northwest in October. The Titans finish the season at home against Blake on Nov. 4.