By Cliff White
Staff Writer
Self-described as “undersized” for his sport, last Sunday, Jan. 20, Gorham’s Justin Villacci came one step from winning what many term the equivalent of Maine’s Heisman Trophy.
Villacci, 18, a Gorham High School senior, this fall set the mark as his school’s all-time leading rusher and scorer, finishing his four year career with 5,036 yards and 87 touchdowns, despite being 5-foot 9-inches tall and weighing 170 pounds. Earlier named Maine’s Gatorade Player of the Year, Villacci was named a finalist for the James J. Fitzpatrick Award, given annually to the top senior high school football player in the state.
Gorham Head Coach Dave Kilborn accompanied Villacci to the awards luncheon at the Inn By The Bay in Portland.
“He’s a top-notch kid. He has the potential at any time in the game, doesn’t matter the situation or who’s matched up against him, to score a touchdown,” Kilborn said. “On defense, we often match him  up on the other team’s best player, and he forces them to find other options, because he shuts the player he’s matched up against down.”
The Fitzpatrick trophy is awarded by the Maine chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame. A panel of members from the organization originally chose a pool of 12 semifinalists in November, and a vote of the state’s football coaches and media narrowed down the field to three finalists in December. Villacci was joined by Lawrence quarterback Jack Hersom and Gardiner quarterback Kyle Stilphen at the awards ceremony Sunday. While Hersom took home the award, Villacci said even making it to the banquet as a finalist was an honor.
“I’m not going to lie, it kind of stunk not to win, but it was an honor just being there,” Villacci said. “I know Herson, I played against him in the state championship game [in 2006], I’ve been to football camp with him, and I’m happy for him that he won the award. I hope he has a great future. I did look at is as a competition, but it was like playing against my best friend – you want to win but don’t want him to lose.”
Villacci said his motivation for desiring the award isn’t what some people expect.
“I’ve won enough awards – it wasn’t that I wanted to have that award in my room so I could stare at it and cheer,” Villacci said. “I wanted to win for everyone supporting me. I saw myself as a representative of my high school and my team. If I don’t have an offensive line, I’m not half the running back. If I have no quarterback, I’m not half the receiver. I wish I could have said, ‘Look what this program has produced after only eight years.’”
Gorham has spent the last three years of its eight-year existence competing in Class A. No player from Gorham has ever won the Fitzpatrick Award.
Kilborn said Villacci has been an important part of building the reputation of the Gorham program and making them a perennial powerhouse in Western Class A football.
“Ever since his freshman year, Justin has always been a key ingredient in what we do in Gorham,” Kilborn said. “If there had to be a poster child, it would be him. This year, he played a lot of the season hurt and he did a great job of battling through that. He’s a great teammate, and while I’m disappointed that we didn’t win the state championship or that the Fitzpatrick Award didn’t end up in Justin’s hands, I’m still proud of what we – and Justin – accomplished this season.”
Villacci rushed for 1,297 yards and 19 touchdowns,  and added 457 receiving yards with six passes caught for touchdowns, last season.
Villacci had the opportunity to give a speech at the awards banquet, in which he gave specific thanks to his grandfather, a former player in the Canadian Football League who has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
“He taught me how to run, throw, catch, along with my dad and uncles,” Villacci said. “But there’s something special about our relationship. Even when I was a baby, when I would cry, he would come down and take me out of my crib and lay me down on his lap, and I would go right to sleep. He helped me grow up, and when my parents divorced, he taught me how to be a man. He helped me grow up a lot faster than others in my grade because I needed to, and I said in my speech that, ‘I did this for you.’”
Villacci said his grandfather’s lessons helped him overcome the disadvantage of his relatively small size and taught him not to be intimidated.
“I have never viewed my size as a handicap because it makes me want to work harder to prove to the guys who are supposedly the ‘right’ size that I can play just as well as them,” Villacci said.
Villacci expressed a wish to play football in college next season. He said while no school has yet extended him an offer to play, he has received interest from several schools, including the University of New Hampshire, Hofstra and the University of Maine, where he has plans for an upcoming weekend recruiting visit.
As for his now former team, the Rams, Kilborn said the team was going to have to move on without Villacci, as tough as that will be.
“You can’t replace a Justin Villacci. You can’t replace a player like that,” Kilborn said. “We’re going to have to build on the young, talented team we have, and see who the next great player is who steps up into the hole that Justin is leaving in the program.”