Serencsics received 210 votes, beating out teammate Brandon Schmidt, who had 177 votes. Third place went to Pomperaug tailback Andrew Reel, my personal choice for the award. Reel totaled 143 yards for scrimmage, had two touchdowns on shovel passes and even threw a touchdown in a 26-6 win over Brookfield.
Thanks for voting, everyone. Be sure to check back Sunday for next week’s recap and a vote on SWC Athlete of the Week, which will encompass all sports (not just football).
With the new fall season, it’s time for a new feature here on The Duffle Bag. In addition to voting for the SWC Football Player of the Week, I’ll be conducting a weekly poll for the “SWC Athlete of the Week.”
The award will encompass all sports, not just football. I’ll post the nominees every Sunday. Voting will be open until 11:59 p.m. Tuesday night and the winner will be announced each Wednesday morning (or afternoon).
Check back Sunday Sept. 25 for the first batch of nominees.
In the meantime, I’d love for some input on a few things:
1. How’s this for a logo? News-Times sports editor Rich Gregory is merely a placeholder. The weekly winner will have his/her photo inserted where you see Gregory (color scheme may also vary).
2. Feel free to email me (kduffy@newstimes.com) with any suggestions for SWC Athlete of the Week. Right now, the only concrete nominee for this week is Colin Burke of Brookfield, who scored five goals in a 6-0 win over Kolbe Cathedral on Monday.
3. If you haven’t ‘liked’ your school’s Facebook Fanpage, get on it:
It’s a Pomperaug football saying. It’s embroidered on some Pomp T-Shirts. It’s written a few times under the “comments” section of the previous blog post.
Pomperaug's Matt Paola
It means “Old Fashioned Butt Kicking” — and Brookfield found that out Friday.
I don’t want to call it a “shocker” or even a “big surprise” (that’s how I started the Around the SWC posts last year). After all, this is Pomperaug football, the most consistent SWC program this side of Masuk.
But even so, this was a surprise. Had I made a pick for this game, I would have gone Brookfield by two touchdowns.
Not the first time I’ve been wrong. Definitely won’t be the last either.
Pomperaug was more efficient, more disciplined and, quite simply, more dominant at the line of scrimmage. Brookfield didn’t yield many big plays, but it struggled to get the Pomp offense off the field. And when the Bobcats got down, they went to the air, which essentially took running backs Leaon Gordon and Tyler Puglisi out of the game. Gordon couldn’t find much room (his only big rushing play was a 33-yard sprint up the right sidelines on a fake punt) and Puglisi carried just three times.
The line of scrimmage is the foundation for success at any level of football. If the Panthers continue to dominate on both sides, there’s no reason they can’t be unbeaten when they face Masuk on Nov. 4.
No surprise: Masuk. Thomas Milone returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown and the Panthers were all over Oxford, 42-7, by halftime. New wide receiver Jason Piontkowski, a transfer from New London, had seven receptions for 113 yards and a TD in the 49-14 win….Newtown and Bunnell took care of business with blowout wins over Joel Barlow and Immaculate, respectively…New Fairfield also looked strong as it scored 40 points in the first half and rolled over Notre Dame, 47-6. The Rebels travel to Masuk next Friday. Weston turned some heads with a 36-0 romp over Stratford. Sophomore tailback Danny Rogers tallied four touchdowns on just nine carries.
Game of the week: New Milford led Bethel 25-7 at halftime, but ran out of gas after the break. Brian Birdsell’s 50-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter gave Bethel a thrilling 28-25 victory. Wildcats QB Brandon Schmidt carried 32 times for 164 yards, scored two touchdowns on the ground, threw for 63 yards, kicked two extra points and added a two-point conversion.
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Last year, I picked the SWC Player of the Week by myself. Collectively, you all know much more than I do, so we’ll vote to decide POTW this year. Here are your choices for Week 1. Voting closes Tuesday night.
WEEKLY HONOR ROLL
Connor Shanahan, QB, New Milford — 17-for-28, 399 yards, 4 TD in first career varsity start
Casey Cochran, QB, Masuk — 15-for-18, 385 yards, 3 TD
There are a few interesting games on the slate for opening weekend: On Saturday, Masuk — the state’s No. 2 team — visits Oxford, which scored a season-high 28 points on the Panthers when they met in 2010. The Wolverines will need at least that many (and probably more) to have a shot this time. On Friday night, Newtown and Barlow might be closer than you expect and Bethel vs. New Milford could be an entertaining, high-scoring affair.
But the league’s best game, hands down, is Pomperaug at Brookfield (Friday at 7 pm). The winner will start the year off on the right foot; the loser will need to play a near-perfect remainder of the regular season in order to make a state playoff run.
Oczkowski resigned on Tuesday morning, according to several sources. His departure opens the door for a new AD at New Milford. And with fall sports underway, the Wave must act quickly.
Just like last year, Xavier has fended off Masuk, claiming the top spot in the New Haven Register Preseason Poll by a mere two points. The top 10 is below. Bunnell and Brookfield were the only other SWC teams that received votes. Bunnell was 14th overall (134 points) and Brookfield checked in at No. 17 (75 points).
Team Points Last Class
1. Xavier (13-0) (13) 724 1 LL
2. Masuk (13-0) (12) 722 2 L
3. New Canaan (11-2) 592 3 L
4. Hillhouse (10-3) 543 6 M
5. Ansonia (11-2) 503 9 M
6. Staples (9-2) 433 NR LL
7. Hand (10-2) 367 8 L
8. New London (10-3) 311 NR L
9. West Haven (8-3) 299 NR LL
10. Trumbull (11-3) 257 5 LL
Follow the links below to ‘like’ your school’s official News-Times Sports Facebook Fan Page. As we head into the fall sports season, we’ll be posting links, photos, polls and starting conversation about each area high school.
So now, as you surf Facebook and mindlessly scroll through pictures when you should be doing homework, you’ll be able to check out some news/opinion about your HS sports teams. Maybe you’ll even get mentioned in an article. Who knows?
Anyway, we hope you ‘like’ it. We also hope you legitimately like it.
