Westwood Press: An extra special extra year for Laham
By Keith Pearson/Staff Writer/View
article on Westwood Press's website
When Chris Laham arrived at Merrimack College five years ago,
setting records was the farthest thing from his mind. But as his
college football career winds down, the Westwood native’s
impact with the program is hard to miss.
He is the runaway leader for most touchdowns in program history
with 38 and his 2,382 receiving yards also place him atop the list.
His 97-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against Southern
Connecticut St. in 2007 is also tops in school history.
Chances are when Merrimack hosts Pace on Saturday it will be the
last time Laham will play for the Warriors, who at 6-3 overall have
a distant shot of being selected for the NCAA Division II playoffs.
Should they win their finale and Bentley loses at Stonehill,
Merrimack will earn a share of the Northeast-10 Conference
title.
Just having the chance to play this year is something Laham is
grateful for. Last season, his time on the field was cut short in
the matter of a moment when he broke his collarbone in the first
quarter of the third game of the year against Assumption. In that
game he had already hauled in a 69-yard touchdown pass to give him
a share of the all-time receiving touchdown mark at 23, tying him
with Elfren Quiles.
In order to play this year, Laham needed to petition the NCAA for a
medical redshirt and has enjoyed his time being able to finish his
run as a student-athlete where it deserves to be completed –
on the field.
“I knew I didn’t want to end my career the way I did
getting hurt like that,” the two-year captain said.
“After the season was over I saw my options, and it was
basically a 50-50 chance I was going to be able to get the
redshirt, and luckily I did. I’m happy I did. I’m happy
I came back for a fifth year and I’m just happy to I was able
to help these younger guys who came in, some of these freshmen and
teach them some stuff.
“Its great breaking the records and everything, I also wanted
to come back and make another run at the playoffs.”
It should come to no surprise that Laham, who is set to graduate
with a business marketing degree in December, would like to
eventually get into coaching. He also harbors hope of a
professional career of some kind, whether it be in Canada or an
arena league.
“He’s learned a lot of football over the last five
years and he’s been able to show those guys what it takes to
get open and how to compete,” said second-year head coach
John Perry, who was a star receiver at New Hampshire and came to
North Andover after serving as the Wildcats associate head coach in
2007. “The biggest thing he’s brought to the corps is
his work ethic. He doesn’t miss practice, he doesn’t
miss reps in practice, he puts in a great effort and he competes
every opportunity he gets.”
He got a taste of the postseason as a sophomore in 2006 when the
Warriors reached the second round. He had a touchdown in the
first-round win over Southern Connecticut St. and a team-high six
receptions in the loss to Shepherd (W.V.).
This year, Laham picked up right where he left off before his
injury as the Warriors top threat in Perry’s spread offense.
Laham had touchdown grabs in each of the first five games, hauling
in three apiece against Stonehill, in which he caught nine passes
for career-best 211 yards, and St. Anselm in back-to-back
weeks.
For the year he has 55 receptions for 891 yards through nine games,
putting him well within striking distance of only the second
1,000-yard season in Warriors history. He has 13 touchdown catches,
matching the total from his junior year when he was a Northeast-10
Conference All-First Team and an All-New England selection by the
New England Football Writers Division II/III. If he can haul in a
TD on Saturday he would equal Quiles’ 2004 record for
touchdown receptions in a season. With three catches, Laham would
match Quiles’ mark of 134 career receptions.
“It’s every receiver’s dream to play in an
offense like this,” Laham said. “You’re throwing
the ball around the field, the quarterback gives the receiver a
chance to make some plays. I was lucky to get in a system like
that, and once I was in a system like that there was no way I was
going to leave.”
One thing that Laham likes about the offense is that it moves him
around, whether it be lining up out wide or in the slot, the style
of routes being run though he says the bulk of his touchdowns have
come from quarterback J.R. Suozzo airing it out downfield and him
getting behind the secondary and running onto the ball.
“With how well he has played this season, it was critical we
got him back,” said Perry. “We were excited when (the
redshirt was granted). Obviously, I’m excited for him that he
had the type of season he had in his fifth year and his decision to
come back was obviously a good one.”
Laham has had a pretty good run at Merrimack, especially when you
consider he was seen during Westwood High’s Super Bowl runs
in 2003 and 2004 when the Warriors were recruiting quarterback Jeff
White only to have the wide receiver also catch their eye.
“When I came in as a freshman, obviously there were a lot of
kids in front of me and I didn’t play much,” said
Laham. “I never thought it would come to this. I’m just
happy I’ve been around some good players and coaching staff
to get me to where I am today.”
(Keith Pearson is Staff Writer for the Westwood Press. He can be
reached at (781) 433-8371 or kpearson@cnc.com.)
