It didn’t take Andy Vailas long to have an impact for New Hampshire during the Shrine Maple Sugar Bowl.

The former Bishop Guertin standout quarterback broke free for a 55-yard touchdown run on the team’s third play from scrimmage, helping the Granite State team to a 40-6 victory on Saturday, Aug. 1.

Vailas was named a starter on both offense and defense, in addition to being tabbed a captain for the annual contest.

In addition to his touchdown on the ground, the Bedford resident lofted a 42- yard touchdown pass that was hauled in – one-handed – by Concord’s Colin Brown.

Though most of the athletes had never played together previously, Vailas said 11 days of long practices prior to the game allowed the team to click quickly following kickoff.

“It was like we’d been playing together for years,” said Vailas. “It didn’t take long to get the offense down, and then we started touching up rough spots.”

In the week-plus in advance of the contest, the players were put through rigorous workouts, often three practices per day, something that should continue to pay off for Vailas in the weeks following the Shrine Bowl.

With his high school career wrapped up, Vailas attends Phillips Andover Academy in the fall, reporting for football season in September for a year of prep school before attempting to play at the college level.

“This got us into shape,” said Vailas. “It got us ready for what the season will be like coming up. For all of the kids who are playing college football, they’ll be ready now because during practice they went up against the best athletes in the state.”

Vailas said he’s looking forward to the challenge of playing with a new group of athletes this fall, and he believes the Shrine experience helps him off the field as well.

“Being able to adapt to what changes rapidly is key,” said Vailas. “You play with kids for years and then you have to play with a whole new group of people. After this week, it’ll be easier to bond. That’ll prepare me for Andover.”

With all of the top gridiron players on the field, Vailas said the game was a lot faster than he was accustomed to, so he needed to rely on his teammates even more than he did for D-II power BG.

One of those teammates was Jake Tremblay of Hooksett and Manchester Central, who said Vailas wasn’t only leading the way when he was running the offense.

“He was a very good leader on and off the field,” said Tremblay, who started at cornerback. “He was all business and didn’t goof around a lot. He was very focused.”