Senior Josh Berube became the first athlete of the year in Londonderry’s football program to sign a commitment to college this past Friday. Berube will be staying local, continuing his hard work in the classroom and on the field at Saint Anselm College in Goffstown, NH.
Being able to go through this process is something Berube has been looking forward to since before he was even in high school.
“A moment like this pretty huge to me,” Berube said. “I remember going to my sister’s NLI signing and seeing all her friends and everyone there, and I thought to myself that I wanted that. To have that come true and actually happen is genuinely a dream come true.”
Although Saint Anselm was almost love at first sight for Berube, there was still some interest in other surrounding New England colleges before finalizing his decision.
“My top three were Saint A’s, Bates College, and Stonehill,” Berube said. “I visited Bates and enjoyed it, but nothing clicked like it had at Saint A’s. As for Stonehill, I had an official visit which I actually cancelled because of how strongly I felt about Saint Anselm.”
For Berube, football was not his only mindset when going through the college search process. Finding the right balance of a school that he can comfortably call home for the next four years while also having a football program that suits him well was his top priority.
“When I stepped on campus for my official visit I immediately felt at home,” Berube said. “I was conscious of making sure I loved the school before making a football decision, so the fact that I felt so strongly right away was a great sign. The education speaks for itself and the people there are awesome.”
Having to make the jump in football from the high school to the collegiate level is a task that requires a lot of hard work and dedication, but for Berube, he feels as if the football program at Londonderry has already given him a head start on his competition.
“[The collegiate level] is like starting back from phase one,” Berube said. “I’m going from being the biggest kid on the field to being surrounded by guys the same size and bigger, never mind the fact that some of them are 22 and 23 years old. There will definitely be some moments where I get brought back to reality by a kid bigger and stronger than me, but I look forward to that. That just means I am going to have to work that much harder.”
Through Berube’s high school journey there have been many key contributors that have shaped the student and athlete he is today.
“The coaching staff here at Londonderry taught me everything I know and I give them all the credit for the player that I am today,” Berube said. “I give Coach Lauzon all the credit in the world for keeping me in the recruiting process. There was a time where I was unsure of my wanting to play college ball, but he made sure I stayed in it in case I decided that I did want to play.”
Now that Berube’s future is inked, he is optimistic about what his future will bring as a proud member of the class of 2023 at Saint Anselm College.
“My future teammates that I met on my visit all have mindsets and goals that I can relate to and buy into,” Berube said. “It’s an environment that sold itself to me.”
