MANCHESTER — Sully Daron’s days under the radar are over.
The senior quarterback accounted for the Londonderry High School football team’s five touchdowns in its 33-12 NHIAA Division I Central victory over Manchester Central.
Daron threw for 311 yards and four touchdowns — connecting with three receivers — and ran in a score in a battle of 2-0 teams on Friday night at Gill Stadium.
“I think Sully has been the most underrated quarterback,” Londonderry coach Jimmy Lauzon said. “Nobody talks about him. He’s a quiet kid so it’s just kind of fitting, but he’s a player.”
Daron connected with classmate Owen Crafts for a 27-yard touchdown with 3:06 left in the first quarter, building a 12-0 Lancers lead.
Crafts finished with six catches for 115 yards for Londonderry (3-0), ranked fourth in this week’s Union Leader Power Poll.
“We’ve played together since we were like 8 (years old),” Daron said of he and Crafts. “He used to be my center. We definitely have a lot of chemistry and I have a lot of trust in him and I know he has a lot of trust in me, too.”
Daron has also built a stronger connection with classmate Devin VanAvery, which paid off against the Little Green (2-1), No. 10 in this week’s Power Poll.
On a fourth-and-17 play from Central’s 34-yard line, Daron and VanAvery salted the game away with their second scoring connection of the night. The TD and Owen Monahan’s ensuing point-after kick gave the Lancers a 26-6 lead with 10:58 remaining.
Lauzon said Daron saw Central’s safety cheat over to the intended receiver on the 34-yard touchdown play, so Daron threw to VanAvery, who had one-on-one coverage.
Daron also hit VanAvery on a go route for a 74-yard touchdown with 1:39 left in the first half, giving Londonderry a 19-0 advantage after Monahan’s PAT.
Senior tight end Davis Magarian was another reliable target for Daron. The 6-foot-4, 260-pound tight end logged 77 yards on four receptions. Daron and Magarian opened the game’s scoring 56 seconds into the first quarter with a 22-yard TD.
Daron, who completed 15 of his 28 passing attempts, connected with six receivers. He also rushed for 55 yards on six carries, including a 13-yard score that came with 1:42 left.
“I tell the quarterbacks, ‘Our job is to be the facilitator of the ball,’ and that’s what he does,” said Lauzon, who played quarterback at Manchester West. “He’s not picking and choosing his favorite guy. He’s just throwing to the guy that’s open and I love that.”
Lauzon said Friday’s matchup featured two of the better quarterbacks in Division I: Daron and Central junior lefty Drake Jaimes.
Often under duress from the Lancers’ defensive line, Jaimes went 14 of 28 passing for 157 yards and two touchdowns.
The Little Green cut Londonderry’s advantage to 19-6 after Jaimes connected with a wide-open Romello Diaz for a 32-yard touchdown on the first drive of the second half. Diaz had four catches for 51 yards.
Jaimes also hit Myles Mara for a 29-yard score with 7:22 left, making it 26-12 Londonderry.
In Central’s 20-7 win at Goffstown in Week 2, Jaimes threw for 244 yards and a touchdown, completing 15 of his 23 passing attempts.
“He is a very skilled quarterback,” Daron said of Jaimes. “He can get out of the pocket. He can make any throw. …He’s a really good quarterback and he’s only a junior, so he’s going to be great next year too.”
The Little Green also showed a commitment to running the ball, accumulating 124 yards on 28 carries. Trevor Gray collected 73 of those yards on a long third-quarter run to the Lancers’ 15-yard line but that Central drive ended with a turnover on downs.
Gray, a junior, rushed for 82 yards on four totes. Central senior Liam Patten ran for 37 yards on 10 carries.
“They’re a better football team than we are right now,” Little Green coach Ryan Ray said, “but our guys didn’t quit and I’m incredibly proud of them.”
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