To some, it may just be a number, but to the Mount Carmel football team, it’s so much more. 

Mount Carmel is built on tradition, and not many traditions have been around as long as the number 27 jersey. 

What started as then-MC junior Mr. Bill Nolan wearing the number of his favorite catcher, Carlton Fisk, because a senior took Mr. Nolan’s original number choice turned into something bigger than the number on a jersey. For almost 40 years, the number 27 has been worn by someone who embodies the ideal MC football player: tough, a leader, gritty, and selfless. 

When Mr. Nolan first chose number 27, it wasn’t about legacy; instead, it was because of his favorite baseball player.  

“I was always number 10 my freshman and sophomore year,” says Mr. Nolan, “but when I came up, a senior wanted number 10, so I had to pick a new number, and my hero was Carlton Fisk, and he was number 27 for the Boston Red Sox.”. 

He didn’t know it at first, but his play style would start that tradition of someone who wears number 27. 

From the start of his career, Mr. Nolan was not the best player on the team, but he was a hard worker and was going to go out there and give it his all.  

“I wasn’t the fastest player, I wasn’t the best player, but I was a guy that worked hard,” he says. “I tried to epitomize what an MC football player was all about, not about stars or the glamour, it’s about being a great teammate and working my butt off.” The number 27 was given this season to senior captain Stephen Winkler, who is acknowledged by many as the perfect fit. Yet, in his freshman year, Winkler didn’t know the meaning behind it. 

“I thought at first that it was just a number,” the linebacker says. “But then I realized the tradition. It’s not a number of skill, but it’s got a lot of legacy behind it.”  

Now a captain in his senior year, he has a different way of leading his team. “Normally, people think a captain is a big roo-rah guy, but I think that what I do best is to lead by example, and always do the right thing,” Winkler added. 

Zander Gorman ’25, who wore the number the past two years, knew that Winkler would be a great representation of the number. 

“Steve is one of the grittiest guys I’ve ever met,” Gorman says. “He’s a two-way player, the same way I was. It’s not that you’re doing it because you want to play more, it’s about doing whatever is best for the team.” 

Winkler also decided to play lacrosse his junior year, and Gorman excelled at both of those sports while at MC. 

“He was the same way in lacrosse,” Gorman says. “Just a leave-it-all-out-on-the-field kind of guy, he wants to contribute one way or another. That’s one of the ways he represents it [number 27], and I love the way he’s been representing it so far.” 

For Mr. Nolan, the roots with Winkler run deeper than MC. 

“Steve is a great representation of the number 27, and since we both went to the same grade school, I think that’s even better.” 

Both attended Saint Cajetan Grade School in Beverly. 

“[Steve] exudes toughness, there’s no doubt. Anyone who has watched him play football over the last two years can see that he is a great teammate, that he works his butt off, and that he is extremely tough, mentally and physically.” 

Winkler stands on the shoulders of many great men of Carmel. Alek Thomas, who is a current outfielder for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Anthony Livermore who was a captain of the football team and a starting shortstop for Northwestern University for four years. And Gorman, who plays lacrosse at Bellarmine University after being a three-year varsity player and two-year starter on the football team. 

“These guys were great leaders on the field, and the biggest thing that I take away from them is seeing how they ran a team,” Winkler said. 

Winkler views the number 27 as the start of his legacy at MC. “When I’m gone, I want my last name to be part of the school. Hopefully, my brothers can carry on what I leave,” he says, noting that he is the first in his family to attend MC. “I feel like [attending MC] is the biggest part, that I’m leaving a good thing for the future generations that come.” 

To those not in the know,  the 27 jersey may just blend in with the rest of them. But to MC it is so much more. It’s a signal of respect, a sign of trust, and a representation of leadership. 

But most importantly, it’s a tradition that has been carried on for 40 years, and a tradition that will carry on for many more.