SPB's High School Sports

Thursday football nights are always hectic. It’s deadline day for the Friday football section and I usually get up early and work late into the evening trying to write stories, compile statistics, organize and write the ‘Games to Watch’ capsules, the ‘Guide to this week’s games’ and, of course, The Elite 8.

That’s the long way of saying: if there are games to see on Thursday night, chances are I’m not going to make it..

This time, I was anxious to catch one of two games: Foran’s SCC Division II game against Sheehan, which essentially was for the small East Division title. Or Amity’s SCC Division I game against 6-1 Xavier in Woodbridge.

But, miracle of miracles, I finished all of my homework by 6:45. Since kickoff was just 15 minutes away and Woodbridge, my hometown, just an exit away on Route 15, the decison was easy: Amity-Xavier.

While I sincerely thought an Amity upset wasn’t completely out of the realm of possibility (hence why I went), I was shocked at the final score. And here it is: Amity 48, Xavier 16.

Yes, the same Xavier which defeated both Shelton (21-14) and Hamden (21-14). But those two wins were up at Palmer Field in idyllic and picturesque Middletown of Middlesex County, where Xavier is 3-0 this season.

Down here in lower New Haven County, however, the Falcons have looked like mere mortals. They lost at Wilbur Cross 28-2 in Week 2, barely beat Branford on the road 27-25, and now this…

(more…)

Cue the Paul Schaffer music:

Polls!
We’ve got your polls!
Delicious Polls!
Won-der-ful Polls!
Here are your Polls!

Ahem. Here are the state polls released intermittently Monday and Tuesday morning.

(more…)

Yeah, I haven’t done as much video as I would have liked this season. It takes too much time and a significantly faster computer to slap together during my hectic daily schedule. So I figured I’d just focus my efforts on the top games, including Masuk-Bunnell, the game everybody on this blog and around Greater Bridgeport had been waiting for since the end of last year.

For those who missed, it: here’s how Masuk’s 42-20 victory went down according to me and my flash recorder on the Masuk sidelines.

Apologies go out to Chris Cosmedy, whose long touchdown runs all but eluded my reach. I did, at least, get the end of the first run, Chris.

Anyway, enjoy. SPB

(more…)

Justin Conte breaks loose for a 50-yard touchdown run on a bubble screen pass for the first of three unanswered touchdowns in Masuk’s 42-20 victory Friday night.

THE STREAK is over.

After a wild second quarter and a slight 21-20 Masuk lead early in the third, the Panthers scored three unanswered touchdowns in the second half for a decisive 42-20 victory at Bulldog Field.

Bunnell WR Mark Harrison caught a pair of touchdown passes, but left the game with an aggravated his shoulder and could only watch while Masuk’s Chris Cosmedy and Co. ran up and down the field in the second half.

It was Masuk’s first victory over Bunnell since 2005 and snapped Bunnell’s 21-game win streak dating back to Thanksgiving 2006.

Plenty of good video later, read the complete game story: now.

(more…)

<img alt=”MASUK.jpg” src=”http://forum.connpost.com/highschoolsports/MASUK.jpg” align=”left” width=”94″ height=”80″ /

MASUK (5-1)

.

BUNNELL (6-0)

.

.
UPDATE: Ok OK! Fine.

NEW CANAAN (6-0)

.

STAPLES (5-1)

.
.

Who’s going to win?

I just want a score from everyone.

Just…a score. No insults, no analysis, no nothing.

…that, is, except a score.

And… GO!

SPB

It was actually poll day yesterday, but I’ve been busy gearing up for this week’s spate of big games. They’re listed below.

ALSO, the Week 6 (Midseason report) version of the High School Football podcast is up on the Connecticut Post high school football webpage.

UPDATE: The podcast is not up, actually. We posted the wrong file. The new one should be up as soon as possible.

UPDATE: The Podcast is FINALLY up. Hooray!

(more…)

Friday night wasn’t a good night for underdogs, especially in the SCC where the Division II crossovers got absolutely buried by their Division I counterparts.

“There’s a big difference between Division I and Division II, in case you haven’t noticed,” said West Haven’s Ed McCarthy.

Indeed, it was a 1-9 night for SCC D2 teams. The only win for Division II was still a blowout: Hillhouse’s 34-6 victory over Fairfield Prep. In other carnage elsewhere, 4-1 Foran was manhandled by 1-3 West Haven, 57-13, and Shelton crushed Law 62-14.

Mismatches weren’t just in the SCC. In the SWC, Brookfield hammered Stratford, and Pomperaug got off the mat to crush Barlow and Newtown rolled New Fairfield. In the NVL, Seymour and Ansonia had no trouble in their games. In the FCIAC, the Bridgeport schools both lost big. Ridgefield shut out Ludlowe and in a battle of league powers, Darien hammered Wilton. Read all about the mayhem here. Game summaries are listed here.

Perhaps one of the games of the night happened at Boyle Stadium in Stamford. Final score: Danbury 50, Stamford 48… a game we wish we had on tape, by the way. Please send it to 410 State Street, Bridgeport, 06604. c/o Sean P. Bowley, sports reporter or compress and email it to hssports@ctpost.com

The rest of the FCIAC gets underway today with a couple of big games: New Canaan is at St. Joseph, Trumbull is at Greenwich.

This was my birthday week, so pardon me for being a bit behind. In case you missed it, here was our 2008 Midseason Report

SPB

(Updated with additional background and quotes at 7:17 p.m.)

Walt Czekaj, the winningest football coach in Stratford history, died Monday night. He was 72.

During his 15-year tenure at Stratford, Czekaj went 117-44 and took the Red Devils to four state championship games. Stratford, led by current coach Duane Shirden at tailback, won the 1988 Class SS championship with a 42-2 victory over Sacred Heart of Waterbury.

A graduate of Stratford and the University of Bridgeport, where he played quarterback and linebacker, Czekaj served as an assistant coach under McMahon’s Jack Casagrande and Trumbull’s Jerry McDougall. He also spent six years at Norwalk from 1977-1982 before returning to his alma mater for one year as an assistant under Vincent Lombardo.

Czekaj was also the first wrestling coach in Trumbull’s history. He later coached Norwalk’s wrestling team to two FCIAC championships and a state runner-up finish.

“He was number one, a premier teacher, a master coach as well, and one of the warmest people I’ve ever met in my life,” said McDougall, one of Czekaj’s closest friends who hired him away from McMahon in 1968. “”He loved what he did all of his life. He was a great peer example to the thousands of kids he touched both in physical education and in coaching.”

Czekaj coached under McDougall for eight years and left for Norwalk after Trumbull’s 29-7 loss to Fitch in the first CIAC Class LL state championship game in 1976.

Czekaj was 16-39-1 at Norwalk. When hired at Stratford on July 17, 1984, the program had gone through two coaches in two years. Czekaj’s goal was, “to get some continuity and stability into the program,” Czekaj told the Connecticut Post. “The kids have gone through two coaches in two years, so hopefully I’ll be there for a while.”

Czekaj, who retired in 1998, after a 15-12 loss to Darien in the Class M semifinals, had recently been admitted to Bridgeport Hospital due to complications from a stroke.

“I had very high respect for Walt,” McDougall said. “Like many of the people that I came across in the teaching and coaching eras, I can say Walt Czekaj was at the top of ladder. Loved him dearly as a friend and a confidant.”

Funeral arrangements were not immediately known Tuesday evening.

SPB

(Note: This entry was updated with quotes from Jerry McDougall at 6:44 p.m. and additional information at 7:17 p.m.)