By Laura Stabbert
BUZZARDS BAY, MASS. — Jim Erlwein, a 2006 graduate of Sullivan West Central School, has earned the title of Co-Captain for the Massachusetts Maritime Academy NCAA Division III football team.
Erlwein is now a seasoned senior on the team. He started his first game of his freshman year and has been one of the Buccaneers’ first string players ever since
Erlwein played linebacker and was also a talented running back in high school. But for the past three years at Massachusetts Maritime Academy, he has been an outstanding defensive end.
When asked which position he preferred, Erlwein took a long pause to think.
“It doesn’t matter, as long as I’m playing,” he said.
Erlwein was named the Buccaneers’ defensive lineman of the year as a freshman, a sophomore and a junior. Last year, he earned the coveted title of team MVP.
But Erlwein’s success doesn’t come without hard work and discipline.
“Our coach gave us workouts, it’s four days a week in the summer,” said Erlwein, who practices year round. He and his teammates are currently practicing twice daily to prepare for the upcoming season.
“We [the captains] are firing the team up and really trying to keep them positive,” Erlwein said.
With football playing a huge role in his life, Erlwein has still found time to study and will graduate next spring as a facility engineer.
Erlwein has been interning for the past year and a half and while his successful football career may be nearing the end, Erlwein is excited to start his career in the field of facility engineering.