Marco Piccioni is in the position to do something that no other District 10 high school football player has ever done.
If things go his way next fall, the middle linebacker from the Bishop Macdonell Celtics could become the first two-time winner of the Nick FitzGibbon Award winner as the most outstanding player in the local league.
“I came in and I had no clue,” Piccioni said of winning the top award at the league’s annual awards banquet hosted by the Guelph Gryphons athletic department and varsity football team. “I knew I was an all-star which is already pretty awesome on its own. Winning the Fitz, it's an amazing feeling.”
A Grade 11 student, Piccioni is planning to be back playing for the Celtics next fall.
“It's pretty cool to win it at a young age,” he said. “It's really exciting to win it in Grade 11 knowing my football's not done yet.”
Piccioni, the first player from Bishop Macdonell to win the award in its 13-year history, had a game to remember in late September in the second week of the league’s regular season. Actually, it was a quarter to remember as he scored three touchdowns, all in different ways, in a win over the John F. Ross Royals. He returned an interception for a touchdown then scooped a fumble and took it to the house, too. The third touchdown came when he returned a punt all the way for the score.
He could’ve had a fourth later in the game as he saw a bit of time as a running back in plays near the Ross goal-line.
“I think it was consistency,” he says of his season. “Not to toot my own horn, but just being a big part of the defence, leading the defence and you know I couldn't have done it without my teammates' support. I got to inspire and mentor a lot of my teammates, a lot of the younger teammates on our team. We've got a lot of youth so we're going to be growing in the next couple of years. Just being a big part of the defence, getting to inspire others and make other people better is a strength to me.”
The best part of the season for Piccioni and all other D10 players was just getting to play a normal season for the first time since 2019. All high school sports were cancelled in the 2020-2021 school year and the football season in the fall of 2021 was condensed and played entirely on city fields as the players weren’t allowed on the University of Guelph campus as many were not vaccinated.
“It's a big part of my life, football,” Piccioni said. “I eat, sleep and breathe football so when it comes down to just being on the field and playing against other people, I love the sport and I wouldn't trade anything for it. It's amazing to have a proper season and have all the fans out. It was amazing to me. I love the game.”
Piccioni plays summer football with the Cambridge Lions, but doesn’t rule out a move to the Guelph Junior Gryphons as he said he was keeping all his options open.
“I've definitely thought about it,” he said.
As for the next high school football season, Piccioni has a couple of goals.
“I've got to top this season,” he said. “I'd love to go back to back (as winner of the Fitzy), of course, but a championship would mean more to me than this. I'd love to bring it home to my school, bring the D10 championship home for once.”
The last time the Celtics won the D10 title was 1987 when they repeated as league champions and took top honours for the sixth time in 11 years. They haven’t won since the school relocated from downtown Guelph to the south end and they’ve had many lean years since that move. The downtown location was closed in 1995 while the south- end location opened in 2004.
“It's been a very long time since BM won it and I'd love to bring it back to my team,” Piccioni said. “It would be pretty cool to bring that back to the school."
