Antron Pairs Football Players With Manufacturing Jobs

The men, many with bulging muscles, wore black T-shirts during the day shift on Thursday. A mere coincidence. Some of them wear the same color on the gridiron a mile away.

Two Bellingham High football captains–one from a generation ago; one current –bookend the pipe line of Blackhawks who work at Antron Engineering and Machine on Route140.

Senior Colin Tran is a2026captain. Mike Milani, the facility’s contract manufacturing manager, captained the 2000 team that won the program’s second of three Super Bowls from 1998-2001.

They are among seven current and former Black-hawks working at Antron, which produces “high-precision parts for the industrial, aerospace, medical, defense, consumer, and motorsport industries,” according to its website. The facility employs 90 people cross three shifts.

Tran, a center/defensive end, was quick to find a connection between foot-ball and Antron.

“Teamwork is everything,” he said. “Being able to bond with people you’re with every single day really helps out.”

Markus Whittaker-Sprah, who graduated in June, also noted the correlation.

“There’s standards,” he said. “You have to be professional and work hard and do what you’re supposed to be doing to the best of your ability.”

Darren Cormier, Antron’s general manager, graduated from Bellingham High in 2002, a year after Milani. The pair played youth football together when current BHS coach Dan Haddad ran that program.

The Blackhawks won three Super Bowls under coach Dale Caparasso during Cormier’s high school days, the final one in 2001 behind sophomore standout quarterback Ricky Santos.

Cormier has been with Antron for 23 years and has witnessed the many changes the industry has endured. He said the US fell behind China and Cen-tral America due to a gap in domestic workers.

“The industry needs young talent,” Cormier said. “Manufacturing is certainly coming back to the United States. We have to overcome that last 20-year talent gap that the rest of the world had on us. Selfishly, I’m happy to see some of these kids come into the industry as well.”

The plant also employs recent Bellingham football graduates Zach Berke-ley (2025) and Matt Marino (2026) as well as rising senior Chase Goodwin. The idea of giving the youngsters the option of learning a trade is appealing to Milani.

“We need to get kids into the industry,” he said. “Even giving them a simple task to do things correctly – it all trans-lates into having success further in life, because if you can do the simple things right, you can build on that. Some of these guys have really excelled to be trusted to do more on their own.”

Milani also gave credit to Haddad, who doesn’t work at Antron, but ser-vices the company’s copiers through Bellingham’s Perfecta Business Service Inc., where he is vice president. Haddad has coached the Blackhawks since 2015.

“He’s involved in the community; he teaches kids respect and hard work,” Milani said. “Everything that an employer is going to want to see, especially a younger person coming out of high school working their first job. These kids are disciplined – they take direction well – they’re doing all the right things.” Tran, who will captain the Black-hawks along with Jaxen Elder, William Lahousse, and Jacoby McCarthy, says he is “absolutely” considering a manufacturing career.

“I’m a hands-on type of person,” said Tran, who was hired last year. “It makes me feel very comfortable that I have Darren here to help me and guide me through. He’s mentioned getting me classes and how to read blueprints and how to work a machine. I’m really into this.”

Cormier is not only providing a chance to take up a trade, but to excel as well.  “I try to explain to the kids: you have an opportunity here that, if you’re willing to learn and pay attention and you want to apply yourself – no different than sports – you can really make this career whatever you want,” he said.

Whether sweating it out at Geroge Anderson Field or working on the cli-mate-controlled floor at Antron, the pairing shares common traits. “Not just the work ethic, but the leadership styles that we’re taught in foot-ball also, it’s brought here,” Tran said. “You have to put in the work.”

Written by Tim Dumas.A multimedia journal-ist for the Daily News. He can be reached at [email protected].