HEBRON — It’s a given that high school football linemen dwell in complete obscurity.

It goes with the job.

Yet, while most eyes were on the star quarterback, the guys whose task it is to keep them upright, or to plant them on the turf, usually stay out of the spotlight.

Unless of course, something goes wrong.

However, somebody must have been watching, last year, watching closely.

Because when it came time to make selections known for this year’s Shrine Lobster Bowl, those in charge wisely included a few local trench warriors on this year’s West squad.

Among them are Sanford offensive lineman Gage Lebeuf and Kennebunk’s Will Foley, who will man the West’s defensive line.

Both were unsung heroes on teams that struggled to find playoff success during their tenures.

Unsung, perhaps, but worthy of their Lobster Bowls selections, never the less.

“It’s been tough, but fun,” said Lebeuf, of his training camp experience so far. “Playing with people who are top notch in the state. It’s a lot different. It’s definitely nice to be here.”

Said Foley, “It’s been a lot of fun. It’s good to be with all these guys one more time. It’s been an honor to get selected. I really do appreciate playing in this game, a lot.”

Football has been a big part of both players lives since they were young. But each has made their marks in other sports.

Lebeuf, for instance, competed for Sanford’s track and field team in both the shot put and javelin, and has also wrestled.

Still, football was his first love.

“Wrestling was good to keep in shape for football,” he said. “But my main concern was football.”

Lebeuf and his Redskins mates endured some tough years, capped by a winless season in his junior year.

That made it all the more satisfying last year, when Sanford surprised many by going 6-2 and making the playoffs.

“The kids we were playing with had been playing together since youth football,” said Lebeuf, who will head to UMO, possibly to study engineering. “We were a tight knit group. We all believed in each other. We had a feeling we could turn it around.”

Foley, who wrestled and co-captained Kennebunk’s top seeded lacrosse team, this year, was a fullback for Joe Rafferty’s Rams as a freshman.

However, as he grew, so did Kennebunk’s need for linemen, and he volunteered to move up front.

 “I made the change, willingly,” he said, “because I wanted to help the team. We were weak in that spot. I just got used to it after a little bit.”

Foley plans to enroll at UNH this fall, and hopes to study international business.

He also hopes to dent the Wildcats’ defensive line corps as a walk on, and says that he doesn’t want to make the Lobster Bowl his football finale, as many other Maine athletes have done in the past 20 years.

“This might not be my last football game,” he said. “But I’m going to play like it is.”

— Contact Dan Hickling at dhickling@journaltribune.com.