Their playing days on the high school gridiron may have been over since November, but four local football stars were honored by the National Football Foundation at the foundation’s State of Maine Chapter’s annual banquet at Bowdoin College in Brunswick on May 22.

Biddeford’s Nick LeBlond, Sanford’s Alex Shain, and Thornton Academy’s Bobby Begin and Connor McCrum were among 17 players from around the state honored as being top senior scholar-athletes.

“To be honored by the National Football Foundation is a very prestigious honor. It is a very select group,” said Sanford head football coach Mike Fallon. “The uniqueness of the award is that not only do you have to show prowess on the football field, you also have to have some horsepower in the classroom.”

Fallon called Shain “the poster child for both.”

Thornton Academy head coach Kevin Kezal echoed those thoughts on his two “well-rounded kids.”

“I think it just shows they were not only great football players in our program, but they’re great student-athletes,” Kezal said of his two honorees. “They’ve done a great job in the classroom. They do a lot of stuff outside of school, volunteering their time.”

LeBlond also excelled in the classroom in addition to being the Tigers’ starting quarterback last season.

Thornton Academy received some other recognition at the banquet, as Kezal was named Coach of the Year, and 2009 graduate and current Colby player John Gilboy was named the state’s top college student-athlete.

Kezal said Gilboy is “just another kid who is the whole package,” noting that he is enrolled in Colby’s pre-med program and plans on attending medical school.

For the four seniors, it’s just one last piece of hardware to acknowledge what were decorated high school careers.

“It’s a great way for them to culminate the year,” said Kezal.

It’s all in the hair

There was a common look atop the heads of the players on the Biddeford baseball team as they removed their hats for the playing of the National Anthem at Tuesday’s game against Gorham. Nearly all of the players ”“ and all of the regular varsity players ”“ were sporting mohawks.

The players all got the special hairdo in preparation for their Class A West prelim against the Rams. Biddeford head coach Keith Leblanc said he wasn’t surprised that the players would do something like that.

“These guys are a pretty loose bunch, they like to play loose,” said Leblanc. “I think it’s just one of those things, those team things.

“They like watching the Bruins together, they wanted to all shave their heads, and just be together as much as they can.”

Leblanc said the idea came from his core of seniors, who wanted to rally together as they close out their careers.

“I’ve got nine seniors, and this is their last hurrah,” said Leblanc. “This is the last thing in high school. They’re graduating on Sunday, and they want to see this thing go as long as possible.”

There was some magic in those mohawks, as the 11th-seeded Tigers upset No. 6 Gorham in the prelims, then took No. 3 Windham to the brink before falling in 13 innings.

Another gem from Adams

Sanford senior pitcher Sam Adams had another stellar outing on Thursday against Bonny Eagle in what has been a season full of solid starts. Adams struck out 12 Scots against just three hits in the Spartans’ Class A West softball prelim win.

Adams over-powered the Bonny Eagle lineup the first time through the batting order, but No. 3 hitter Kelsy Gaddy tried to get Adams out of her rhythm when she dropped down a bunt for a single in the fourth. Gaddy scored in the inning, but it was the lone run for the Scots, and the last inning in which they recorded a hit.

“Her focus is just tremendous. It takes a lot to rattle her,” said Sanford head coach Kristi Cochin.

The Scots began to take pitches in the latter innings, rather than chase Adams’ pitches out of the zone, but she responded by pounding the strike zone and still watching batters miss.

“She’s lights-out when she’s like that. I’ve coached her for four years, and she’s always been just laser-beam focused on her job,” said Cochin.

Adams saved her best for last by striking out the final two batters of the seventh inning after the Scots put two runners on.

— Staff Writer Wil Kramlich can be contacted at 282-1535, Ext. 323. Follow him on Twitter @WilTalkSports.