Improvement
is in the Cards

By Joe Mason
For the Times

Sean Kidd has been around the Cardinal Dougherty High School football program for the fun times.
He was there when the Cardinals defeated Kennedy Kenrick in the team’s 2005 finale.
He was there last year when Dougherty won three of its first five games of the season.
And he was there most recently on the Saturday before Labor Day, when Dougherty opened the current season by downing Germantown in a non-league game.
Kidd knows how grand it feels to win.
But the senior tight end and linebacker also knows what it feels like to lose. In fact, he has much more experience walking off the field disappointed than he does walking off with a smile.
Kidd, now in his fourth year as a Cardinal, watched his squad lose every game during his freshman year. The next year, the team had just one victory.
Since then, things have been looking up — at least a little.
"It’s a huge difference," he said. "Before, we were trying, but I don’t think the effort was there all year long. We didn’t have the commitment, we didn’t have guys working in the weight room during the offseason. This year and last year have been a world of difference. We feel like we can win now."
On Saturday, Dougherty tried to go 2-0 but fell short. The Cardinals lost to Frankford, 25-0, in their final dress rehearsal before they open the regular season this weekend.
Kidd hustled all day, but like the rest of his team, he enjoyed little success.
"It was a tough game," said Dougherty coach Chris Riley. "We had a great week of practice but we came out flat. There aren’t many positives to take out of this. It was a tough game all around."
Kidd agrees.
Which is why he’s ready to do something about it.
Kidd, who grew up in Olney and now lives in Lawndale, came into his final year with plenty of optimism. Now he’s hoping he can help the team get back on track.
"It’s tough to lose a game like this because we know (Frankford) is really good, but we didn’t do much right today," said Kidd, whose team managed 74 yards of offense and didn’t record a first down until midway through the second quarter. "But we’ll just have to come out this week in practice and get better. That’s the only thing we can do."
While Kidd excelled at linebacker and served mostly as a blocking tight end (he did catch two balls for five yards), he also had success as the punter.
"It’s something we needed, so (Riley) asked everyone if they wanted to try it," Kidd said. "I like doing it. It’s not always perfect, but I just try to get it as far as I can."
Kidd also hopes he can take his team as far as he can.
Since he arrived at Dougherty, the Cardinals have won just one Catholic League Blue Division game — last year’s defeat of Kennedy Kenrick.
This year, one win will not be enough to put Dougherty into the postseason for the first time since 2002. But Kidd would love to have some clout to change that.
"He’s a leader," Riley said. "He’s always there, working hard, and he’s been through the program. He put his time in and the other guys look up to him."
Kidd takes his role as team leader seriously.
"I try to lead by example," said Kidd, who plays for Dougherty’s lacrosse team during the spring. "I’m not the loudest guy on the team, but when I need to be, I can be. I’m not the vocal leader on the team, we have other guys for that, but when I need to yell, I can."
He just has to hope that the Cardinals will be enjoying happy days in November.
"The playoffs would be great," he said. ‘I really think we have a shot at it, but it comes down to work. We put in the work, we’ll be fine." ••
Joe Mason can be reached at joemason70@hotmail.com