Lake Orion Football Not Satisfied with One Championship

’s appearance at Ford Field last season is definitely in the rearview mirror.

The Dragons' first championship in the school's history isn’t something the coaches or players are talking much about this season.

“The defending champion piece, that’s part of our tradition, part of our program,” head coach Chris Bell said. “It’s something we’re very proud of, but that’s last year. Everybody is 0-0, we have to earn everything we get." 

How will Bell’s team earn back-to-back titles when he graduated 18 starters?

With the same core group of players that helped led his team last season. It might be only four guys, but those four are some of the best in the state.

Jon Gall and Andrew Shefkalis are back on defense. Gall is a three-year starter at linebacker who was the Dragons' defensive MVP last season. Shefkalis is a 6-foot-2, 215-pound lineman who led the team in sacks last year. 

His lack of size doesn’t stop him from being a top playmaker in the Oakland Activities Association.

Kevin Cronin is the only offensive lineman returning from last year. He will anchor a young group up front for one of the top quarterbacks in the state.

That quarterback is senior Sean Charette. He earned the starting job halfway through his freshman year and has led the Dragons to the finals twice. Last year, he had to watch his team from the sidelines after fracturing his left ankle in the semifinals.

To say he’s ready to get back on the field would be an understatement. 

“He’s back, 100 percent and better than ever,” Bell said. “He’s the best one we’ve ever had, and we’ve had some great ones here. He’s a special player that only comes around once in a while, he’s going to have a monster year.”

Charette completed more than 60 percent of his passes last season for more than 1,500 yards and 20 touchdowns. If the numbers don’t seem overly impressive, it’s because Lake Orion wasn't involved in a close game until the second-to-last week of the season.

Its average margin of victory during the regular season was 35 points. Charette was either running the clock out or sitting on the bench from the third quarter on.

The Dragons quarterback is drawing interest at the college level from Miami of Florida, North Carolina and Northwestern. During the summer, he went to camps at a half dozen colleges and is ready to finish his senior year in a big way.

“This is the last year for me,” Charette said. “So I’m not going to leave anything behind.”

If the senior is worried about how all the new faces will gel, he sure doesn’t show it. He thinks the group is ready to hit the field.

“Last year, it was a brand-new team, it was brand-new faces,” Charette said. “That’s high school football. There’s always going to be new faces. That’s the fun of it. You’re going to get everybody together and see what kind of team you have.”