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The eyebrows are no more.

Translation: My little cartoon won’t be appearing in The News-Times anymore…and this blog will be renamed in a few days.

On Thursday, I took a job as the UConn men’s basketball beat writer with The Connecticut Post (you can find the new blog here). I couldn’t be more excited, but at the same time, I’m an extremely sentimental person, so it’s only natural for me to re-live some of my best memories in my two years at The News-Times. Here we go…

The first coach I ever met was Dave Roach, then an assistant for the Pomperaug football team. Met him in the New Milford press box when I watched Andrew Clements and Ben Crick run wild on the Green Wave.

Pomperaug's Ben Crick

After that game, I just thought the Green Wave had a faulty defense. Seriously, Crick looked like Barry Sanders and Clements looked like Cam Newtown. After a few weeks, I realized that Crick and Clements torched everybody. They rank on the short list of high school athletes that made me say ‘Wow.’ The others, if you must know, are Brookfield’s Brian Kelly, Newtown’s Riley Wurtz, Abbott Tech’s Anthony Henry and Danbury’s Teyanna Green.

On June 7, 2010, Teyanna broke the state open record in the girls 100 meter dash. A week before that, she and her twin sister Charisma embarrassed me in front of the entire DHS girls track team. Some people called it my dumbest story idea; others probably think it was my smartest. Either way, it was a lot of fun.

Believe it or not, I also had fun compiling the Top 25 area athlete countdowns for 2010 and 2011.  New Fairfield runner John Raneri won in 2010 and Danbury sprinter/jumper Maya Walton took top honors in 2011.  There was plenty of deliberation both years, but in the end, I think the right athletes were selected No. 1.

Luckily, I didn’t have to make a choice for The News-Times Cup. I simply devised a scoring system, and Pomperaug ran away with the title both years. To this day, the consistency at that school amazes me. The Panthers are good — oftentimes outstanding — at literally every sport. Though I’m not the biggest baseball fan (cat’s out of the bag now),  I had a deep appreciation for Pomperaug’s phenomenal 48-6 two-year run. Those kids knew how to win. So did Brittany Martelle, a former girls basketball player at Brookfield. Martelle treated all of her teammates — right down to the JVs — with equal respect and was the best team captain I came across. As for coaches,  Abbott Tech basketball coach Jon Nadeau and Danbury track coach Melissa Nadeau (no relation, surprisingly) were two of my favorites. Both were good at their job, and both could joke around a little, too. And that’s always good.

Jon Nadeau was present for the best game I saw:  Stratford at Abbott Tech boys basketball on Feb. 22, 2010. Two undefeated teams in the regular season finale, loudest gym, most intense atmosphere, everything you’d want in a basketball game.

And the one I wish I’d covered — a girls basketball game between New Milford and Bethel. The Wildcats outscored the Wave 25-1 to start the game…and lost. New Milford attempted 39 free throws; Bethel got to the line three times. You can’t make that stuff up.

Can’t make this up either: If I never worked at The News-Times, I would have never met my cousins from Bethel. That’s right — Madison Duffy, the reigning SWC Athlete of the Week, is indeed my second cousin. And no, I wasn’t playing favorites when I nominated her for AOW. It was simply impossible to leave her off the ballot when she recorded 61 kills in a two-day span.

Something tells me it’s not the last time Madison will be up for the award; just someone else will be doing the nominations.

Three days after I conducted my final interview at The News-Times, which, ironically, was with Dave Roach, I hand The Duffle Bag over to my good friend and colleague Chris Brodeur. He obviously won’t keep the name (or the lame jokes), but he will do a great job.

Thank you for reading over the past two years and please keep tabs on me in Storrs. While you’re at it, give a warm welcome to The Brodeur Bag.

Actually, just give Brodeur a suggestion for the name. His email is cbrodeur@newstimes.com.

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Congrats to Madison Duffy of Bethel volleyball on being named the SWC Athlete of the Week for Oct. 2-9. Duffy received 223 total votes and doubled-up her Bethel classmates, Autumn Sorice and Brandon Schmidt, who respectively finished second and third in the voting.

Duffy totaled 30 kills (that’s a ridiculous stat, for those of you who don’t follow volleyball) in a win over Weston last Tuesday and followed that up with 31 kills the next day. She led Bethel to a 3-0 record on the week.

The Wildcats theme continued as wide receiver Cal Daniels was voted the SWC football player of the week. Daniels, who caught eight passes for 164 yards and three touchdowns in last Friday’s win over Oxford, edged out New Milford running back Kih Best 88-84.

For what it’s worth: Like the majority of voters, I had Duffy as the Athlete of the Week. I opted for Schmidt over Daniels in the #ctfb voting.

Feel free to nominate  someone for this week by emailing me at  kduffy@newstimes.com. New nominees will be posted Sunday night.

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This week’s ballot contains some familiar names — and three of them attend Bethel High. Cast your vote (aka choose your favorite Wildcat) below. Per usual, the poll will close Tuesday night at 11:59 p.m.

Have at it!

‘Like’ your school’s Facebook FanPage:

Bethel Wildcats

Brookfield Bobcats

Pomperaug Panthers

New Milford Green Wave

Immaculate Mustangs

Ridgefield Tigers

Danbury Hatters

New Fairfield Rebels

Newtown Nighthawks

Joel Barlow Falcons

Abbott Tech Wolverines

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If nothing else, Thursday night was proof that there are no down years for the Pomperaug football program.

The Panthers were thoroughly outplayed by Newtown (in my opinion), but found a way to get the job done. Brett Gaughan got the scoring started with a 65-yard interception return and Garrett DeLotto shut the door on the Nighthawks with a 95-yard pick-six in the late fourth quarter. The Panthers got the job done without their best offensive player, running back Andrew Reel, who suffered an apparent concussion early on.

A few observations after this game:

Newtown's Lou Fenaroli

· Lou Fenaroli is a monster. The Pomp defense is good, trust me. Prior to Newtown, the Panthers’ opponents struggled on the ground. Even Brookfield’s running backs couldn’t find much running room in the season opener. Clearly, Fenaroli doesn’t need running room; he creates it himself.

· If the Panthers get by Bunnell on Friday (biggest game of the year in the conference), they’re in great shape going forward. Even with a loss to Masuk in Week 8, Pomperaug will likely punch itself a ticket to the SWC championship game and,quite possibly, the Class LL playoffs.

· The key to beating Masuk — or at least competing — is keeping Casey Cochran on the sidelines. Lou Fenaroli and Newtown have the best shot at doing that. Give the Panthers a heavy dose of Fenaroli, limit turnovers, create a few and there’s the possibility — albeit a small one — of an upset. We’ll save the rest of this discussion for Thanksgiving, though.

Elsewhere, Brookfield played its most complete game thus far in a convincing 39-14 beating of New Fairfield. The Bobcats defense piled on NINE sacks and running back Leaon Gordon, quietly putting together a phenomenal year, raced for 158 yards and three touchdowns on just 11 carries.

Bethel made it three dramatic, come-from-behind victories in the season’s first month when it pulled away from Oxford late for a 54-41 win. The Wildcats really could be 0-4 right now, but instead they’re sitting at 3-1. That’s a testament to the mental toughness of these kids, particularly quarterback Brandon Schmidt.

Don’t look now, but outside of Casey Cochran, New Milford’s Connor Shanahan has been the league’s most productive quarterback. The junior has thrown for 996 yards and 11 touchdowns (with only three picks) through four games.

WEEKLY HONOR ROLL (a ton of big-time performances this week)

Brandon Schmidt, QB, Bethel –20 carries, 158 yards, 2 TD; 11-for-18 passing, 188 yards, 3 TD in 54-41 win over Oxford

Alex Miller, QB, Oxford — 18-for-26, 308 yards, 2 TD; 15 carries, 150 yards, 3 TD

Nigel Beckford, RB, Notre Dame-Fairfield — 74-yard TD run, 34-yard TD run; 61-yard INT return for TD in loss to Stratford

Kih Best, RB, New Milford — 71 rushing yards, 69 receiving yards, 3 total TD in win over Immaculate

Leaon Gordon, RB, Brookfield — 11 carries, 158 yards, 3 TD

Joey Acquanita, LB, Brookfield — 11 tackles, 1 sack

Dave DePoi, TE/DE, Brookfield — 3 receptions, 71 yards; 7 tackles, 3 sacks

Cal Daniels, WR, Bethel — 8 receptions, 164 yards, 3 TD

Matt Paola, WR/K/DB, Pomperaug — 47-yard field goal; 38-yard reception

Lou Fenaroli, RB, Newtown — 36 carries, 169 yards; 3 receptions, 28 yards; 2 tackles

Connor Shanahan, QB, New Milford — 22-for-30, 266 yards, 3 TD

Donald Graham, RB, Stratford — 2 rushing TD

Jason Kramer, LB, Bunnell — 13 tackles

JJ Bivona, RB/LB, Bunnell — 12 tackles

Austin Delaney, RB/LB, Weston — 11 tackles

Jawad Chisholm, WR/DB, Bunnell — 7 tackles, 52-yard INT return for TD

Daniel Rogers, RB/LB, Weston — 97 yards from scrimmage, TD; 8 tackles

Jared Vasquez, WR, Bunnell –6 receptions, 107 yards, 2 TD; fumble recovery

Casey Cochran, QB, Masuk — 13-for-17, 300 yards, 4 TD; 9-yard TD run

Colin Markus, RB, Masuk — 7 carries, 110 yards, 2 TD

Jason Piontkowski, WR, Masuk — 3 receptions, 116 yards, 2 TD

DUFFY’S TOP FIVE

1. Masuk (4-0)

2. Bunnell (4-0)

3. Pomperaug (4-0)

4. Newtown (3-1)

5. Bethel (3-1)

Just missed: Weston (2-2), Brookfield (2-2)

Game of the Week: Pomperaug at Bunnell, Friday, 7 p.m.

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Here are the five nominees for the week of Sept. 26 – Oct. 2. Voting ends Tuesday at 11:59 and the winner will be announced Wednesday morning.

Have at it!

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A disturbingly dark storm settled over Danbury and made its way through Brookfield, Bethel and Newtown to put a damper on our usual Friday Night football.

Only one SWC game was played Friday: Masuk 56, Stratford 0.

If you’re wondering, yes, it was a violation of the good ol’ 50-point rule, which, under normal circumstances, calls for the guilty head coach to be suspended one game.

Masuk's John Murphy

But I think Masuk coach John Murphy should be O.K. on this one. Murphy pulled his starters in the second quarter and the Panthers’ went to the “rock” formation (same as Pomp’s hammer) for the remainder of the game. In the fourth quarter, a JV player got a little too excited and went all the way to the endzone to push Masuk’s lead past 50.

Hey, it happens. Especially when a JV kid gets some varsity action and sees nothing but green in front of him.

Between Murphy’s letter to the CIAC, his AD’s letter and Stratford coach John Svatik’s letter, I’d imagine Murph avoids the suspension here.

Personally, I think the rule is dumb anyway. Taking a knee on an opponents 5-yard-line, as Masuk did in wins over Bunnell and Newtown last year, is just as insulting — if not more — than simply punching in the touchdown.

UPDATE: On Monday, Murphy said the CIAC has decided not to suspend him for this week’s game vs. Joel Barlow.

Bethel rallies again: The Wildcats outscored New Fairfield 15-0 in the fourth quarter and pulled out a 29-23 win over New Fairfield, their second come-from-behind victory in the young season (Bethel defeated New Milford, 28-25, after trailing 25-7 at the half in Week 1).

And that was only SWC game with any sort of drama this weekend. Lou Fenaroli and Newtown steamrolled Weston 41-7, Brookfield had three running backs (Leaon Gordon, Tyler Puglisi and Austin Samuelson) go for 100+ as it routed Notre Dame-Fairfield, David Camille and Bunnell hung 55 on Oxford, Pomperaug blasted Immaculate 43-6 and New Milford handled Joel Barlow 28-9 on Sunday.

Not much else to say.

WEEKLY HONOR ROLL

David Camille, RB, Bunnell — 17 carries, 210 yards, 5 TD

Brian Birdsell, RB/LB, Bethel — 18 carries, 123 yards, 2 TD; 13 tackles

Thomas Milone, WR, Masuk — 2 TD receptions, 36-yard punt return for TD

Lou Fenaroli, RB/LB, Newtown — 26 carries, 189 yards, 4 TD

Dan Hebert, RB/WR/DB, Newtown — 85-yard punt return for TD; 2 INT; 59 yards from scrimmage on 7 touches

Connor Shanahan, QB, New Milford — 263 yards passing, 3 TD

Casey Cochran, QB, Masuk — 9-for-11, 185 yards, 2 TD (became state’s all-time leader in career passing TDs with 86)

Tyler Puglisi, RB, Brookfield — 127 yards, 4 TD

Dana Gramolini, WR/DB, Pomperaug — 11-yard TD reception; 27-yard INT return for TD

Joey Acquanita, LB, Brookfield — 10 tackles, two forced fumbles, fumble recovery

Austin Samuelson, RB, Brookfield — 4 carries, 113 yards, 2 TD

Leaon Gordon, RB, Brookfield — 147 yards, TD

Colin Markus, RB, Masuk — 73  yards, 2 TD

Jawad Chisholm, WR/DB, Bunnell — 3 receptions, 91 yards; 10 tackles

Nick Guardi, RB, New Fairfield — 2 TD

DUFFY’S TOP FIVE

1. Masuk (3-0)

2. Bunnell (3-0)

3. Pomperaug (3-0)

4. Newtown (3-0)

5. Bethel (2-1)

Just missed: Weston (2-1), Brookfield (1-2)

Game of the week: Newtown at Pomperaug, Thursday, 7 p.m.

See you there, sports fans.