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NORTH ATTLEBORO - It was flawless football, or a near execution to perfection of the playbook - such that not even fans of the North Attleboro High School Red Rocketeers saw what was coming - or often occurring - at Raymond Beaupre Field on the campus Thanksgiving Day morning.

Least of which were the Bombardiers of Attleboro High, who were blind-sided, baffled and left speechless after North Attleboro played with poise and purposefulness en route to a 45-12 victory Thursday.

Senior quarterback Joe Kummer, the L.G. Balfour Trophy Award winner as the most outstanding offensive player in the 90th renewal of the series, produced 171 yards of offense (33 rushing, 138 passing) and four touchdowns (two rushing, two throwing).

Senior running back-linebacker Brett Mastropoll, the L.G. Balfour Trophy Award winner as the most outstanding player on defense in the 89th holiday meeting between North and Attleboro, produced 124 yards of offense and led a Rocketeer defense which rendered the Bombardiers rudderless.

Aside from Matt Campbell's touchdown runs of 48 yards (in the first quarter, narrowing North's lead to 7-6) and a 67-yard romp with two minutes left in the first half, Attleboro was left gasping - surrendering three turnovers to the Rocketeers, notching just five first-half first downs, yielding field position and being unable to make a stop, North having 16 first-half rushes for five yards or more. "The line dominated, they deserved both Balfour trophies," exclaimed Kummer, who completed four first-half passes for 88 yards, directing the Rocketeers

on scoring drives of 56, 67, 6, 58 and 54 yards during the first half - North taking a 35-12 lead by intermission.

"As long as we moved the ball three or four yards at a time, I thought that we'd have a chance to win," said Mastropoll, who gained 53 running yards, 34 receiving yards and three first-half first downs, while booming a 46-yard punt to the AHS six-yard line which helped set up North's third touchdown, the first of three second-quarter scores.

The list of luminaries was endless for North: Senior kicker Corey Wynn belted six conversion kicks through the uprights, in addition to lacing a 30-yard field goal goal in the fourth quarter; senior defensive end Jeremy Roche latched onto a Bombardier fumble at the AHS six-yard line to help create a 21-6 lead for the Rocketeers in the second quarter; junior defensive back Danny Johnson plucked off a Bombardier pass at midfield at the end of the first half; senior defensive back Steve Sellner came down with another aerial takeaway two plays into the fourth quarter; junior wide receiver Ryan Flannery hauled in a 40-yard scoring strike from Kummer with 70 ticks left on the clock in the second quarter and a two-yarder with 56 ticks on the clock in the third quarter; and North's defensive front of Roche, Josh Mullaney, Will Kummer and Elias Sarkis limited Campbell to 20 yards rushing (aside from his two TD runs), held Ryan Araujo to one yard rushing, while forcing QB Nate Robitaille into seven incomplete, first-half passes and just 16 yards rushing.

"One of our advantages was up front with our quickness," said North coach Donny Johnson, praising both the Big Red offensive and defensive lines. "With all the trapping and counters that we run (on offense), they did an excellent job. To beat them we knew that we would have to get ahead of them."

In truth, immediately after Campbell shed a pair of Rocketeer would-be tacklers within four yards of the line of scrimmage for the first of his two TD runs (aided by a 37-yard Robitaille to Araujo pass), North immediately responded - with a 67-yard, eight-play drive that consumed 3:10 of the clock.

Danny Lang (113 yards of offense) bolted 19 yards on a reverse to the AHS 41 and 11 yards to the AHS five; Kummer completed a 14-yard pass to Johnson (51 yards of offense) to the AHS 27, then the Rocketeer QB followed the blocking of Barrett Holden and Josh Chretien into the end zone from a yard out.

Kummer and Mastropoll combined on passing plays of 16 and 18 yards in North's first offensive series of the game - a 56-yard, seven-play drive that consumed 3:28 of the clock - that set up the Rocketeers' go-ahead touchdown, a six-yard sweep along the right side by Lang.

"The whole key is Kummer, with his quick feet and quick hands," added Johnson of the quarterback's decision-making. "We were afraid to give them the ball back."

The Bombardiers were unable to convert on five of their first six offensive series, other than Campbell's touchdown, never advancing beyond the North 48. And while Campbell's 67-yard touchdown run on the AHS' seventh series (narrowing North's lead to 28-12) put a bit of a scare into the Rocketeers, the Big Red once again immediately responded to the challenge.

Johnson returned the kickoff (after North elected to accept a five-yard AHS offside penalty on the initial kickoff) to the Rocketeer 46 and three plays later, Kummer spotted Flannery alone over the middle, gathering in the ball and eluding two would-be tacklers for a 40-yard scoring play.

"North executed with their speed," said AHS coach Kevin Deschenes. "We couldn't stop their speed. They were faster than us on the line and we were not able to contain them. They just played a lot faster than us."

Not just that, but North was turnover free too, not allowing AHS to begin a drive until the fourth quarter beyond its own 26-yard line.

Mastropoll's 46-yard punt to the AHS six-yard line set the stage for what may have been the Bombardiers' back-breaking series. Two plays into that drive, a botched handoff exchange resulted in Roche pouncing on the pigskin at the six-yard line. And on the very first play of North's series, Johnson scored behind the blocking of guard Brendan Curtis.

By halftime, North had amassed 243 yards of offense, 15 first downs and a 23-point lead.

"I thought that it'd be close, we all did," said Mastropoll.

The Rocketeers drove 73 yards on 10 plays, consuming 3:55 of the clock on their second series of the second half to assume 42-12 command. In that march, Lang grabbed a 20-yard pass from Kummer, advancing the ball to the AHS 40, then raced 25 yards to the AHS 15 on the very next play - the drive culminating with Flannery catching his second TD toss from Kummer out on the left flank.

Then the Rocketeers drove 64 yards on nine plays, consuming 5:15 of the clock, finishing off the rout with Wynn launching his 30-yard field goal. In that sequence, Wynn rushed for 16 yards to the AHS 37 and Mastropoll bulled 14 yards to the AHS 19. The Bombardiers, meanwhile, never advanced beyond the North 45 on any of their three second-half series.

"They (AHS) have a lot of weapons," said Johnson, the first-year NAHS head coach amidst the post-game celebration, the Rocketeers winning their fourth straight game, their eighth game of the season and their 55th overall in the annual rivalry (15 of the last 16 meetings). "We never expected this."