One hundred tackles is a high number for a football player in
any season. Linebacker Jon Pires achieved this rare feat each of
his fours years at WPI.
As a freshman in 1996, Pires was second on the team with 110
tackles as he totaled 36 solo stops and 74 assists. His 7.5
tackles-for-loss and four forced fumbles helped the Engineers to a
home shutout win over Westfield State and a Transit Trophy road
victory over RPI.
His sophomore season saw his jersey number decrease from 99 to 9
and his tackles increase to a team-high 113. Pires added three pass
break-ups, notched 8.5 tackles-for-loss (including a sack) and
recovered a fumble as the Engineers doubled their win total from
the year before. He anchored a defense that allowed a combined 9
points in November home victories over Western Connecticut and
Plymouth State.
In 1998 Pires was recognized as one of the top linebackers in
the entire east region. He totaled a career-best 124 tackles,
including an impressive 16.5 stops-for-loss. He also caused three
fumbles, broke up a pair of passes, and was credited with a sack.
At the conclusion of the season, he was honored with first-team
Freedom Football Conference accolades and ECAC New England All-Star
honors.
As a senior, Pires helped the Engineers post their first winning
season in five years. The Pires-led defense did not allow a
touchdown as the Engineers went on the road and defeated highly
touted Union 7-3. Other wins included rivalry victories over
Worcester State, Kings Point, Norwich, and Coast Guard. He ended
the 1999 season with a team-high 118 tackles, including a
career-best seven sacks. For the second year in a row, Pires
totaled 16.5 tackles-for-loss and earned first-team Freedom
Football Conference and ECAC New England all-star awards.
"Jon Pires was the best linebacker that I have ever had the
pleasure of coaching in my fourteen years of college football, said
former defensive coordinator and current head Salve Regina coach
Chris Robertson. "Jon was the most ferocious, strongest, quickest,
instinctive, and intelligent linebacker that ever suited up for the
Engineers."
Pires career totals are simply jaw-dropping. He amassed a total
of 465 tackles, including 49 stops for loss. Pires helped in other
ways as well, by registering 8 career pass breakups and recovering
7 fumbles.
"Jon was everything you would look for in an inside linebacker,"
commented head football coach Ed Zaloom. "He had a great nose for
the football, and he would arrive at the ball in a "nasty" fashion.
At the same time he was extremely athletic, and he could cover a
great deal of ground. He was effective in playing the pass and in
pursuing the run from sideline to sideline. Most important, he
loved the game, he loved the contact, and he relished intense
competition!"
Pires, a native of Stoughton, Mass., graduated in 2000 with a
degree in mechanical engineering. His success at WPI was not
limited to the gridiron as he earned a Thurgood Marshall
Scholarship. Currently a production manager for Cameron Valves and
Measurement, Pires and his wife, Jennifer, live in Middleboro with
their children, Jenna and Jalen.
