Staples coach Marce Petroccio holds the Jerry McDougall FCIAC championship trophy aloft after his Wreckers defeated Greenwich 31-27 to win the FCIAC title and end Greenwich's state playoff dreams.
We’ll get to the entire Thanksgiving Day recap in a little while (have some turkey to gobble).
And what a day it was. Staples wins the FCIAC championship. Notre Dame-West Haven and North Haven win and get into the playoffs. Ridgefield reaches Class LL playoffs for the first time since 2005. Bethel returns to the state playoffs for the second time in three years. New Canaan routed Darien (again) and clinched a Class L spot. Weston falls one upset short of the school’s first playoff berth.
And Pomperaug — oh, Pomperaug. Thanks to Greenwich’s loss to Staples, the Panthers appeared to have clinched the final spot in Class LL when Platt upset Maloney in Meriden. But South Windsor won its first game of the year, 39-6, over 1-9 Rockville.
That gave Glastonbury the one bonus it needed to tie Pomperaug at 1,000 points. Tiebreak points were also even and, without any common opponents, it came down to the tiniest of margins: a draw by lot.
The CIAC Super Computers had predetermined winners by lot. Sayeth the computer: “Glastonbury prevails 919581-716083″
Their reward? A trip to Palmer Field in Middletown to face No. 1-ranked Xavier in the first round.
Eh. Might be the best draw Pomperaug ever could have lost.
Here are the 2011 State Playoff Pairings and our story on pomperaug
Find all the Thanksgiving Day stories and news on the high school football page.
State quarterfinals, Tuesday, Nov. 29 at higher seed, 6:30 p.m.
tough break for weston
The Masuk Panthers are going to lay a beatdown on a bunch of SCC teams this year.
Masuk is going to open up a can against North Haven.
Wreckers … Wow, just Wow. We love our seniors – the Gibson brothers, Bonenfant, Wolf, Heil, Washington, Kaplan, Mitchell, Lazar, Trdevaj and all. We couldn’t have a senior day for you, but you gave us the FCIAC trophy instead. Congratulations and on to States!
No. 8 Glastonbury (8-2) at No. 1 Xavier- Xavier here no doubt
No. 7 Ridgefield (8-2) vs. No. 2 Staples (9-0)-Staples
No. 6 Newtown (8-2) at No. 3 Hall (9-1)-Newtown with the upset
No. 5 Norwalk (8-1) at No. 4 Conard (9-1)-Norwalk
No. 8 Notre Dame-WH (7-2) at No. 1 Windsor (10-0)-I am going with NDHW
No. 7 Coventry/Windham Tech (9-1) at No. 2 Hand-CWT gets HANDled
No. 6 North Haven (9-1) vs. No. 3 Masuk-Masuk
No. 5 New Canaan (9-1) at No. 4 New London-New London beats another FCIAC
No. 8 Bethel (7-3) at No. 1 Ansonia (11-0)-Good jog Bethel getting in, now go home. Ansonia.
No. 7 Wolcott (7-3) at Ellington/Somers (10-0)-Wolcott
No. 6 Waterford (8-2) at No. 3 Ledyard (9-1)-Waterford
No. 5 Cheney Tech (9-1) at No. 4 Berlin (9-1)Cheney Tech
No. 8 Cromwell (8-2) at No. 1. Capital Prep/Classical Magnet (10-0)-CP/CM reperentiong the Tech League
No. 7 Haddam-Killingworth (8-2) at No. 2 Holy Cross (9-2)-GO CROSS!!
No. 6 Rocky Hill (8-2) at No. 3 Valley Regional/Old Lyme (9-1)-Rocky Hill keeps it rolling.
No. 5 Northwest Catholic (8-2) at No. 4 North Branford (9-1)-Northwest Catholic
if North Haven played a D1 schedule they wouldnt be in playoffs.They beat 6 D2 schools, Cross 1-9,Hamden 1-9,and a mediocre Amity team.They didnt play X,WH,Hand,Shelton,or,Cheshire.Why are they in D2? They have Class L enrollment.SCC needs to address this.There are several Class L teams that have 2 losses because they play better schedule.NH played 1 good D1 team and they lost handily
Ridgefield seems extra confident these days,good for them but they beat a danbury team that packed it in after the greenwich game,staples in a convincing W.
Bethel kids already rallying around that no one gave them a chance in 2009 against New London and pulled the upset
The computers should’nt be predetermining anything, after common opponents you can tie break by victories over playoff teams – Pomp-2 / Gbury-0…Pomp also beat a 7 win team and an 8 win team… Gbury didn’t beat anyone with more than 6 wins. There has to be a better way to tie break than a computer coin flip. It’s a shame for a whole season’s body of work to come down to a computer’s predetermined decision. Obviously nothing against Gbury because they have no conrol over it and I’m sure this very situation has happened several times before, but the CIAC should look into it in case it happens again. It also screams at the SWC to resolve their division/scheduling problem. Playing S schools like ND-Fairfield and Immaculate kill teams like Pomp, Newtown, Bunnell, Masuk. New Milford is a LL school and Pomp didn’t even play them this year! lol. Pomp beat better teams than Gbury but Gbury beat more 3 and 4 win teams than Pomp which allowed them to get in, it doesn’t make any sense. Of course when it’s all said and done we’re talking about a date with Xavier, but any program and it’s kids shouldn’t have to wait until Thanksgiving afternoon to learn that they got denied a post-season spot by a computer coin flip!!
North Haven is not too bad of a team.Although a D2 SCC team they should give Masuk it toughest game of the year.North Haven should be able to limit the number of Masuk’s possessions.
Kudos to both GHS and Staples for a well played game today. I thought both teams played extremely well and in the end it came down to Staples excuting in the last 11 minutes and GHS not. GHS gave up 2 TD drives and had a horrible 3 and out after Staples cut it to 27-24.
I did think there were a few BS flags on GHS it was not going to change the outcome. Give staples credit, they made plays when they had to. As a cards fan I’m disappointed we didn’t qualify because in looking at the LL field and having seen all the teams, I do think Greenwich and Shelton would stand the chance to beat 7 of the 8 teams in the field. A Staples/GHS rematch would have been unreal. No doubt in my mind that GHS and Shelton would make the field better compared to Gbury and Ridgefield. I think they are better than norwalk,Hall, Conard and Newtown as well. The SOS killed both of them especically GHS.
I will be shocked if Xavier and Staples don’t meet in the final. Finally, At the newtown/masuk game I had the privledge of talking to the Staples coaching staff. What good guys. Very easy to talk too. They even got me a hot chocolate and free FCIAC ticket. Thank you guys! (and they knew I was rooting for GHS!)LOL
I will get into all the predictions over the weekend but my early crystal ball says Friday 12/9 Xavier vs Staples and Sat 12/10 6pm
Masuk vs NC part 2 (NC for the 2nd year in a row had the stars
Last part of the sentence should have read had the stars align in class L. They will beat NL and Hand …Watch
first off love bethel’s gusto… and they have the ability to beat anyone if they can play their game… but against ansonia their offense is gonna have to be their best defense
pomperaug doesn’t wanna hear that “might be the best draw (they) ever could have lost.” i mean, i get the mentality there, but every kid in the state wanted to dance… ask weston (side note here, what a job by coach lato and company on a great season, remember when they were in a rebuilding year? even without a state bid, lato needs to be in the discussion for coach of the year)…
newtown could be sneaky good, i was at the masuk game and, though it got away from them at the end of the game, they were a few plays in the first half away from completely changing the way that game plays out… masuk seemed to lack a little composure when it was tight early… if they clean it up there’s potential for a few surprises in states
masuk… oh masuk… originally i thought they were the best team in the state (granted i haven’t seen xavier play, i live in danbury) but not necessarily after the newtown game… im starting to buy into the soft schedule idea, i mean they only played three winning teams (pomperaug, weston, and newtown) and there were def holes that a good team could exploit against newtown… which newtown barely missed a few times… however, most impressive to me, and it caught me off guard, was the way they stuffed the run, i expected newtown to pound the ball alot better, but masuk’s front six were everywhere and relentless… so all that said, id watch them close and wouldn’t rule out them losing outside of the opening round, but id still expect them to win their class, just a little closer then originally
I WOULD LOVE TO SEE XAVIER-MASUK… pull some strings or something SPB, you gotta know someone somewhere who could make it happen, just kidding HAHA
I expect that Masuk should win, but I anticipate that they’ll be challenged more by North Haven than they have by any team this year. North Haven has a bigger and more aggressive OL than the SWC fare that Masuk has handled this year. But still, Masuk should outpace them in terms of scoring. The better SCC teams like Hand or NDWH won’t be as easy to figure out.
#10 @ bfls – NORTH HAVEN WILL NOT BE THE TOUGHEST GAME MASUK HAS PLAYED THIS YEAR…IT WILL EQUATE TO MASUK VS POMPERAUG…YOU KNOW HOW THAT WENT!
Here are my Class L predictions for the playoffs;
No. 8 Notre Dame-WH (7-2) at No. 1 Windsor (10-0)-NDWH
No. 7 Coventry/Windham Tech (9-1) at No. 2 Hand-Hand
No. 6 North Haven (9-1) vs. No. 3 Masuk-Masuk
No. 5 New Canaan (9-1) at No. 4 New London-New Canaan
NDWH @ HAND
NEW CANAAN @ MASUK
HAND VS MASUK
MASUK
I didn’t think Shelton deserved to get into the playoffs after today’s game vs. Derby. Kreiger lit them up but could not convert on 4th and 8 from the Shelton 20 late in the game. Tough break for Derby. That would have been the upset of the day.
Congratulations to Ansonia’s Arkeel Newsome for breaking the single-season TD record (Alex Thomas) and single-season scoring record (Tim Washington).
Can’t wait to see what Bethel has to offer. Should be good.
Go Wolcott. Go Holy Cross.
North Haven vs. Masuk. Can’t wait to see the end result of that one. New Canaan at New London should be another awesome game.
@ #10 – You think North Haven is better than Newtown?
@ Bryan
Beating NL in 2009 is one thing. Beating Ansonia at Jarvis is a whole different animal. Unless Ansonia completely tanks it, get use to seeing the back of #2′s jersey. Bethel, by the way, got hammered (46-6) by Berlin in the finals that year. I can tell you this, it isn’t 2009 and they aren’t playing New London. Bethel is young and this should be a great experience for those kids, but Jarvis is where most teams go to die. It is extremely difficult to win there.
@Brian – They told me that story. And I sympathize with Greenwich. They are as good if not better than most of the field. Alas, three winless teams on the sked did them no favors
I do think North Haven is better than Newtown. I have seen both teams play. just my opinion. Newtown is lost on Offensive as they don’t know what kind of identity they want to be. Throw 40 times to #7 or run #44 40 times. I do think Newtown will beat Hall and I hope they do. Staples will then beat Newtown.
I agree SPB. Bottom line they had a 10 point lead and didn’t finish. It’s unfortunate as I think they could give Xavier as good a game as Staples will. I honestly beleive that if anyone can beat xavier it would have been GHS or will be Staples. If Staples gets knocked out the LL final won’t even be worth watching. Coach P, u owe me !! LOL u knocked out my team. Get to xavier and give them hell!!
@Kris1
Oh I in no way believe Bethel has a chance I had to tell a few parents that this isn’t New London and the Whalers didn’t have a kid like Newsome and to temper expectations…just saying the kids believe
Then again Weston believed in themselves vs. Masuk
I think the 1-8 winner plays the 4-5 winner. Hence hand plays masuk in the semi
Wheather you root for them or not you must give Staples its due. The past four years no team has been able to overcome deficits in the
fourth quarter like the Wreckers. You can never count them out. Staples should handle Ridgefield but will have trouble with Newtown. If they get past Newtown they get XAVIER in the finals. They will need a miracle to beat that team but hope they do the FCIAC proud with a great effort.
Two great games are on tap in the first round of the state tournament.
Notre Dame of West Haven vs. Windsor and New Canaan vs. New London.
Every other game you can predict the winner easily.
@ Class L…Correct me if I am wrong but I thought the 1/8 winner plays the 4/5 winner and the 2/7 winner plays the 3/6 winner…Therefore your prediction would be NDWH v. New Canaan and Masuk v. Hand in semi’s…North Haven will eat up the clock in the first round with that offense they run. Not easy to prepare for in a short period of time.
Looking forward to seeing how masuk does against one of the scc top dogs
Rain is forecasted for Tuesday so I assume Masuk will move this one also. Bunnell or Trumbull I take it? Masuk would be terrfied of NH on Mud !! LOL
@SPB
Aw, come on. There are no cupcakes in the FCIAC. Greenwich played three winless teams that’s a misprint. Right? Those three teams would win 8 games in the NVL ;) Just kidding of course. Keep up the good work, SPB. Maybe we’ll see you at Jarvis on Tues.
Just read a quote from Darien coach they would have beat NC if they didn’t have Milano….ahhh coach your offense didn’t score except when the JV came in and NC ran all over your D it was 42-7 in 3rd Darien was beaten all over the field o and d…NC is the best worst 9-1 TEAM in the history of CT
Ridgefield was bad mouthed after the first week loss to Greenwich: remember the comments on “what we learned after week 1″ blog post? I think the comment said “yeah, and Ridgefield is over-rated” ….and now they are #7 in the LL’s…..Go Tigers!
love to see nvl–swc matchup.sat near a few bethel scouts,when they left game they looked pale white.SHELTON called themselves one of the better teams in the dreaded scc and they got lit up by a weak DERBY team.can anyone say “jump ball”?
Masuk will beat NH by 40…put it in the books
Masuk will destroy NH
Dbagger is spot on. I didn’t realize one player could win a game by himself. I find it interesting how one player gets all the recognition, and accepts it, without thanking the linemen and backs that give him the time to throw the ball. It’s amazing how the linemen and backs are never recognized by the coaching staff or m
Milano. By the way coach, you had seven points on the board when NC took out their starting D in the third quarter. SEVEN. In addition, there were three other key starters out in the stamford game, not just Milano.
north haven really isn’t a legit SCC team and shouldn’t be too much of a problem for masuk. second round against hand should be a great game though, can’t wait.
and of course xavier is gonna roll through anybody they play, they’re legitimately one of the best high school teams i have EVER seen. if you don’t count all the late TD’s their 2nd and 3rd string have given up or defensive touchdowns, they’ve probably only allowed 2-3 real scores the ENTIRE season.
Greenwich and Staples both put on an outstanding well played game today. Too bad Greenwich couldn’t get in.
LL Xavier over Staples
L Masuk over New London (may not happen, but definitely the potential final I want to see happen most)
M Ansonia over Ledyard.
S Cromwell over Holy Cross.
I would like Bethel’s chances against anyone in the field. Except Ansonia. Ansonia is basically the same team as Bethel. Only better.
Alex, your comments about North Haven show how ignorant you are. They never played 1-9 Cross. Dope.
@Brian – instead of admitting that your team got beat by a better coached team – scoring 2 TDs in the 4th quarter – you start off with how the BS flags cost you. GHS caught Ridgefield early – ask the Danbury coaches how GHS compared to the Tigers. You are home because you didn’t win when you had it all wrapped up – winning by 10 in the 4th. As for how Shelton would do – did you see how they nearly lost to Derby – I can only surmise that this is just some resentment coming through. Ridgefield may not beat Staples but they will play hard – and most importantly – they will play. The Cardinals are more than welcome to come cheer on Staples from the stands. THere is always next year… BTW the FCIAC for a down year is well represented in the state playoffs – good luck to all!
Chris Berman – you are clueless.
Congrats to Staples. At 28-1 for their varsity FCIAC careers, their seniors sure know how to win– in the toughest league in the state no less. Xavier may have the X, but Staples has the X-factor. I have a new found respect for Greenwich who for sure are better than a bunch of teams that made the LL playoffs. They’d have beat New London with the team they fielded today.
NC looks to be in good shape in Class L. By being a #5 seed instead of a #2 seed (had they been undefeated), they avoid Masuk until the finals. Masuk likely will have to face Hand which should help reveal their weaknesses prior to the finals where anything can happen.
Masuk v North Haven has already been scheduled at Trumbull High….
Here are my Class L predictions for the playoffs (sorry for the mix up)
No. 8 Notre Dame-WH (7-2) at No. 1 Windsor (10-0)-NDWH
No. 7 Coventry/Windham Tech (9-1) at No. 2 Hand-Hand
No. 6 North Haven (9-1) vs. No. 3 Masuk-Masuk
No. 5 New Canaan (9-1) at No. 4 New London-New Canaan
NDWH @ New Canaan
Masuk @ Hand
New Canaan VS Masuk (2010 Rematch)
MASUK
@Honus FCIAC is the toughest league in the state, be serious? SCC is far and away the state’s best league. Xavier, ND, Hand, and North Haven all in the playoffs this year, and all ranked in the top ten in the state. Not to mention perennial powers like West Haven, Shelton and Cheshire give the league incredible depth. (full disclosure, I am a ND graduate)
Full Thanksgiving wrap with links and thanks and such and (hopefully) recap vids of the two league title games later today.
Meantime, keep those SCC v FCIAC v SWC etc arguments coming. (What about the CCC??? The Pequot? The ECC? etc). Who will be the big winners in the CIAC state playoffs. And, more importantly, will we get severe weather?
Dave ….cheshire..really ….west haven…in ashoot out with prep and we know they aren’t good……child please
@the ruler…you mustve been dropped on your head growing up
New Canaan vs. Masuk in the final. New Canaan has got the power back in its run game with Kilbane, McDonagh and Distler all back from injury which gives them the balance to go along with Milano and the passing game.
Masuk is as talented as last year but not as good up front on offense (they started slow against Newtown with 4 consecutive 3-and outs). Their swarming D has great speed and is still the unsung hero of the team.
Still give the edge to Masuk in the final, but it will be closer than last year. Masuk 35 New Canaan 21.
Remmy,yes I think North Haven will move the ball much better vs Masuk than did Newtown.North Haven would be my my choice in a close game vs Newtown.
LL
Xavier over Glastonbury
Staples over Ridgefield
Newtown over Hall
Norwalk over Conard
Xavier over Norwalk
Staples over Newtown
Xavier over Staples (in a tight contest…… never count Staples out of any game)
L
ND WH over Windsor(Windsor not a number one…… possibly the toughest draw for a number one in this years playoffs)
Hand over Coventry(Hand starters will be out by halftime)
Masuk over North Haven
New London over New Canaan(not sold on the New Canaan D)
ND WH over New London
Masuk over Hand (in a perfect world, this one should be the championship game)
Masuk over ND WH
Class M – Ansonia, look out for Berlin in the semi’s. Should be smooth sailing if they can outpace Berlin.
Class S – I don’t even know where to start. Not familiar with anyone who is participating so I will refrain.
Now, which games are locks in the quarterfinals:
Xavier, Staples, Hand, Masuk, Ansonia should have a relatively easy time.
CCC goes 0-4 in LL and L.
Good luck to all.
JB, come over to the dark side and root for Masuk!
I really don’t see New Canaan beating New London and NDWH in successive games.
@Dave:
Xavier – Staples
ND – Norwalk
Hand – NC
North Haven – Greenwich
Shelton – Ridgefield
Chesire – Darien
West Haven (or anyone else) – Stamford
At least 4 of these would go to the FCIAC – maybe 5. Don’t kid yourself, the only “issue” the FCIAC has is that their Division II is lumped in with the I.
Xavier wins all 3LL games by 40 case closed! Maybe 3 shut outs! Chris Berman spot on! Wish we played pomp and newtown to shut up all you SWC fans!
Wait till next year,
Get a clue. I plainly said the flags would not have changed the outcome and give staples credit. Not sure what else u want me to say guy. Staples executed late and GHS did not. Good luck Staples and NC respresent the FCIAC !
I do not see Staples making a deep run in the LL field. New Canaan will have a tough time with New London although it is a game they can and should win. Norwalk and Ridgefield are really non-factors. My suprise pick is going to be in the second round of the L playoffs Hand over Masuk. i think hand is that good. I think we see a rematch of the 2007? state championship NCeast vs. NCwest
Honestly guys I can’t wait until New Canaan v. London. NC just stomped out an 8-1 Darien team in the Turkey Bowl, with the score being 42-7 before they put the sophomores in. New London is an incredibly strong team, I hope everyone remembers them dropping 55 on a good Greenwich team. I’m looking at a shootout between New London and NC, but with the Rams at full strength, I have them winning by 2 touchdowns.
Congratulations to all T-day winners and good luck to those in States! Should be some great games.
Let’s skip the preliminaries and let the two best teams in the stat play….xavier vs masuk…….its a shame after two seasons that we still won’t know who is better based on the game…not just all these opinions
I’m tired about all the talk about the offensive line of New Canaan. They Suck! All they do is stand there and give Matt Milano time to run around, Tex his girl friend, Read the first 3 Chapters of War and Peace, (I think he actually went home one time and took a shower) only to come back to complete a 39 Yard pass. They can open up a hole in the Defensive line big enough to drive a truck through but there are no trucks on the field so why do it. Come on line Do something. We all know this team is all about Matt, OK every once and awhile you’ll Hear another name. I watch the game on thanksgiving and saw Matt run in for a touchdown behind a Guard that had pulled from the left side. I believed his number was 79. Not only did he get the outside line backer coming up but left that block to get the Cornerback coming across. “Touchdown Matt Milano This Kid can do it all “ So my question is why are the Rams taking up a bus to New London? Do all of those kids really have to go?
To all the Xavier non beleivers down state. Talked to a well respected 30 year veteran high school ref. who has had Xavier numerous times over the years including 3 games this year and 2 each last year and in 2005. Has no problem saying that this year is the best team of the 3 and one of the best that he has seen in his career. Big, physical and unlike the 2 other teams very fast. He said that they just manhandle opponents and run to the ball as well as any defense that he has seen in a long time. Defense is so good that an offense that almost scores at will is overshadowed. Only weakness that he can see. Penalties!! Good luck to my old team ( Glastonbury ). Don’t think luck will be enough
@hotshot
What are you babbling on about. Are you an nc fan or a hater. I’m confused. Matt Milano makes their team. The oline is ok. But you need to understand that without milano’s poise the team is not as successful. We get it you like kalin killinger. He is allstate. New Canaan better start worrying about new London and not who should be getting the praise. Win your next three and you can talk about who gets the praise.
Two things I learned about watching the Newtown vs Masuk game.
1. Masuks defensive front is as good as anybody in the state. North Haven will not be able to run the ball against them. Masuks corners are a bit soft.
2. As great a player as Casey Cocheran is Masuk can win the CLASS L without him. They are that good.
Having seen both Masuk and Xavier play I would have to give the nod this year to Xavier. Last year Masuk was better than Xavier. Xavier has an offense this year.
Masuk will manhandle The tough Class L field and Xavier will crush the LL field. Sorry Staples, I’d love to see you beat Xavier but they have studs all over the place.
As for Bethel vs Ansonia Good Luck. Remember you are not playing Bunnell so it might be a bit harder to score.
RMAC-New Canaan vs Darien had more fans than Staples vs Greenwich. I was at the Darien game and I saw the Staples game on t.v.
Windsor is made up of mostly Hartford kids who have falsified their addresses. Fleeting is a slime ball and can’t coach without the Hartford kids.#1 seed? Shouldn’t even be in the playoffs based on schedule.
Ok Chuck let me break it down for you. I’m neither a Rams fan nor a hater but I watch a lot of football and can see who is doing their job and who is not. Matt is good NOT great he dose NOT ” make the team”. Your Right in saying the O-line is ok, they got a lot of problems up front but they get the job done if they didn’t then matt would not in your words “makes the team” The Defense has been almost on point the entire season giving up few points. Yards on the other hand are another thing but when in the red zone the Defense can hold up pretty well. I forgot dose Matt has anything to do with Defense? In the Stamford game the offence put up 21 points with out WHOM. OK the defense fell apart that game but Shouda, Coulda, Woulda . Don’t get me wrong Matt is one of the best in CT .As you stated” But you need to understand that without milano’s poise the team is not as successful” so let me ask you dose he get that “poise” from running around benign chased by defenders or by sitting in a pocket well guarded by his line knowing that one of his receivers is going to get open (forgive me for not naming them all but pick one there all good). Does the “poise” know that when you need 3 yards you can dump the ball to Distler and he going to get the job done? I hate to use the old cliché “ There’s no I in Team” but that dose not hold up in this league. I.e.. When you speak of Masuk whom dose everyone talk about….? When I watch football on TV or read the paper (Pro or Collage) every player that contributes to an important play gets recognize. Even in golf it’s not only the man that’s hits the ball it’s the man that tells him what club and how far he is away. Maybe we should look beyond the stars to see to universe as a hole
Let see what happens if New Canaan loses and who gets the blame. O-line was weak, Defense could not handle it, Backs could not run well, D-backs cant cover well. Good luck to all teams
I felt the need to apologize that my Staples vs. Greenwich prediction was wrong. I had said 31-21 so I will eat crow since I was off by 6 pts. No bad ‘eh? Bottom line Staples can hurt you in so many ways with that creative spread offense where a team like Greenwich (who was VERY impressive) uses SO much energy pounding yard by yard that they can’t go the distance. It’s all about what’s in the tank towards the end of the game and Staples gets better not worse as the game goes on. They did have to dig deep and try and few new things like the shovel pass which worked to the T so kudos to this amazing coaching staff for another halftime filled with making the right adjustments. Not making any bold predictions just yet as it relates to the LL States but you can guess where I’m going.
Game of the playoffs is going to be Hand vs Masuk. Hand is going to roll coventry in the first round. Masuk will beat north haven decicivly but not without being worn out and physically pounded by them. I do not think Hand is a better team then Masuk but i think they will be able to pull this one out.
@hotshot
I agree with you, at times the NC o-line gets no praise. I’ve watched them a lot and they are a very good line. Killinger is a beast, their tackles are pretty good, the center is decent, but from what I’ve seen, the right guard position has been a rotating door. I think, as a unit, their o line is roughly equal to last year’s line. Despite their good work (for the most part), they really don’t deserve the type of praise Milano or even Kevin McDonough deserve as individuals.
And Chuck Norris, you’re spot on. New Canaan better prepare for New London (I think their offense will be fine, it’s NC’s defense vs. New London I’m worried about.) Also, let’s not kid ourselves, that line will need to give Milano time if they want to score, and they need to put up a lot of points on the board if they want to beat New London. So maybe after this game those kids up front will get the credit they deserve. We’ll see.
Entry #37 bothers me. If Ridgefield plays as well as Greenwich did I’ll eat my hat. Greenwich beats Ridgefield 9 out of 10 times. Greenwich only slight weakness seemed to be their secondary. Staples Massie was great at the end.
Respect Greenwich. As a Staples fan, I do.
By the way nobody beats Masuk. Seen them twice.
Newtown over Hall is very bold pick. If you look at the strength of schedule Hall is much better.They have beaten two teams in class LL playoffs. Newtown is 1-2 against solid teams. Masuk is the only true good team they played, and Masuk didn’t play well against them, and spanked them. Hall> Newtown, #rns, #getatme
@IS THAT ANY DIFFERENT THAN COCHRAN AND THOSE OLD BLOOMFIELD TEAMS?
SORRY SHOULD HAVE ADDRESSED POPPA DOC
@59, JEB…nice insightful post. Thanks, W
Brien McMahon had too good of a team to finish with a 3 and 7 record. They had Staples and New Canaan beaten but let them both off the hook.
Can someone please tell me what HOTSHOT is whinning about. New Canaan has a terrific offense but its the defense that worries most New Canaan followers.
Look for Newtown to beat Hall and then give Staples all they can handle but I still like the Wreckers to advance.
The only team that has played a worse schedule than Masuk is Ansonia. They should both win the Class L and Class M titles.
The only way to beat Masuk is to control the clock. If you punt one time against them you have no clue. Whats the difference if you give Masuk the ball on their one yard line or the fifty. They will score anyway.
Does Windsor have a chance against NDWH?
Congrats to Norwalk High School-one problem if you beat Conard you play Xavier. General Custer had a better chance.
Class LL
Xavier destroys Glastonbury
Staples spoils Ridgefield’s dreams, again
Hall neuters Newtown in a squeaker
Norwalk conquers Conard
Class L
Windsor makes ND-WH the best three loss team in the state
Hand routs Coventry/Windham Tech
Masuk scores 50 against N. Haven before the half
NC runs wild against New London
Class M
Ansonia wins easy over Bethel
None of the other games matter
Class S
No clue
I’m picking 12-1 10-time state champion Detroit Catholic Central to deny 10-3 Detroit Cass Tech and their four D-1 recruits their very first state title. Sorry CTFBers.
Ultimately, McMahon couldn’t recover from a string of injuries and 3 soul-crushing defeats. But, at the beginning of the season, the Senators were a Top 5 team in the FCIAC. Could easily be them in Norwalk’s place (obviously, unbalanced scheduling was a factor).
And I don’t think Hotshot is whining about the O – more like, the apportionment of glory. But on the topic, NC starting D has been absolutely lights-out the past two games, holding Trumbull and Darien to a combined ~200 yards and 7 points. In fact, only two teams (McMahon and Stamford) really troubled them this year…buuuut, those two “troubled” the Rams in a big way. Common denominator was athleticism. Be interesting to see if New London – which, if nothing else, is a VERY athletic team – can pile up the points in similar fashion.
Masuk-NH COULD be interesting. I’d imagine that the Indians have the scheme to do it, but probably not the horses. The Indians can milk clock and keep Cochran & Co. off the field, but they’ll need about 10 “AIN’T NO WAY, YO!”s to make Murph sweat.
BTW, when I said NC would run over New London, I meant literally, as in NC will run more than you think.
@mooncake8 – my my point in #37 was more about how Brian was complaining about the flags and then somehow takes shots at Ridgefield and others. The point was that Greenwich had the game won and let it slip away. I also stated that the Tigers may not win but they can play with Staples and it should be a game. RHS is still a very young team and is probably a year away from really being able to play with some of the powerhouses – most of their starters are Jrs and Sophs. The won when they had to and are in the playoffs which is a major step for any program – my point was intended to take away from a very strong GHS team but to say that RHS belongs where they are and will represent the FCIAC well – not sure I agree that GHS beats RHS 9 out of 10 but hopefully we will all get a chance to see how it turns out if they play the next few years.
I live in West Haven and would love to see Masuk and Hand at Ken Strong Saturday.The place would be packed.
I watched Metal Ned’s playoff preview on wfsb.com (Joe Zone segment). Great job as always. He has Masuk beating NDWh in the L final.
#80, u need to read what is written and take it as such. First off, as I said before, I did think the some of the flags were BS and I also said it would not have changed the outcome. Give Staples credit, they executed and GHS did not. I said this 800 times aleady dude so move on. Get over the flag comment.
As far as taking shots I disagree. I feel strongly that the LL field would be stronger if GHS and Shelton were in it over many of the teams that are. I don’t think that is taking shots. In addition, not for nothing we did beat the tigers on the field and held them without a TD so yeah I do believe GHS is better than Ridgefield and I didn’t say ghs would win 9 out of 10 times. However, looking at the history of the tigers in big games mooncake is probably right.
The unfortunate part here as an FCIAC fan, I hate when teams from the same conference have to open vs each other. It would be nice to have each conference play different ones to showcase their teams. If Ridgefield drew Hall or Conard I think they could have won, they are not beating Staples no matter how they play and that stinks from a conference standpoint.
LL Final=Xmen vs Staples. My heart is with Staples. Head with X.
L Masuk vs NC. Heart is with NC. Head with Masuk.
M= would like to see Bethel win it. Ansonia will.
S=Rooting for Valley Regional in this one but I think Cromwell or HC will win it.
@There is always next year – I watched that game and Greenwich didn’t let the T-day game just “slip away”. Staples used a shut-down defense and an O-line that took control on two impressive series in the last 11 minutes. Staples made some key plays in that last drive against one of the best defensive teams in the state. But Staples has done that all season and it was no fluke. Just great conditioning and teamwork – by both players and coaches.
Agree with mooncake8, you have to respect Greenwich. That team should be in the state playoffs. When they played New London (and RHS), they didn’t have a quarterback. Against New London they tried two different QBs who threw 5 INTs (two were pick-6s). With O’Neil back and healthy he really makes a difference for their offense – flawless, no turnover execution on T-day. And that Shane Nastahowski was all over the field. Has to be one of the best football players in the state. Staples is very proud of having prevailed over a great Cardinal team that gave an all-out effort on T-day.
Staples knows there is another battle on Tuesday against a great RHS program. Ridgefield may have had one of the toughest schedules in the state and their 8-2 record is very impressive. I agree with you that Ridgefield earned its spot in the playoffs, no doubt. And Staples is not looking past Ridgefield, let me assure you.
Here’s video of Ned setting himself up for ND-WH being the best 3-loss team in the history of CT: http://www.wfsb.com/category/211206/friday-night-football
A big shout out to underdogs Cass Tech for defying the odds and winning their first ever state championship, giving hope to all the underdogs here in CT. And kudos to the Cass Tech faithful for teaching our CT sportswriters how Tweeting can actually be entertaining. :)
Dear Hot Shot, Who cares who gets the Credit. Name one offensive lineman on Masuk or Xavier. Get real
I thought Ned Griffin was right on with his picks. NDWH should beat #1 Windsor and then beat the winner of New CAnaan vs New London. They will then get destroyed by Masuk. Hand will give Masuk a game for five minutes before getting blown out. Rooting for Hand though.
What can you say about Ridgefield. They played three teams all year and lost to two of them . Staples is better than Norwalk and Greenwich and should handily beat the Tigers.
Sorry LL fans no matter how you sugar coat it the Class L has better teams
A lot of pressure on Ansonia this tuesday. If they win by two scores or less the SWC crowd will say I told you so and if they should ever lose to Bethel the SWC faithful will have a field day.
Games i really wanted to see this year:
Masuk vs. Xavier Two great offenses and defenses
Staples vs. NDWH Two tough teams
Hand vs Ansonia Toss up
New Canaan vs Bunnell. 60 to 60 at the end of regulation. No defense on either team
New London vs West Haven Track meet
@75 Ansonia has not played a schedule worse then Masuk’s.
Masuk Opponent’s record: 40-60
Ansonia Opponent’s record: 53-47
The last time Ridgefield played Greenwich (prior to this year) they beat them and they also beat staples that same year as well and were 9-1 the year after that.. So lets not go crazy saying they cant win a big game! It should be a great matchup!!
Ksoldra..logic..the nvl is way more watered down than the swc logic logic
Class L: Hand will play a physically beat up Masuk. Hand will be fresh and beat Masuk 34-27. New London’s speed will be too much for NC 34-24, and Hand will be more disciplined and beat NL for the Class L title 31-21. Take it to the bank.
@Frank Russo Masuk may be physically beaten up by the point of this game and I agree this matchup will be the best post-season matchup possibly this season. However, I don’t see Hand keeping up with Masuk. They can score from anywhere on the field whether the offense is doing it or the defense.
42-28 Masuk defeats Hand.
Class L:
North Haven vs. Masuk–Masuk
Windsor vs. NDWH–NDWH pulls off the upset in a squeaker.
Coventry vs. Hand–Hand
New Canaan vs. New London–New London, New Canaan defense will not be able to keep up with speed of New London.
NDWH vs. New London–New London
Hand vs. Masuk–Masuk (very close, and physical game.)
Masuk vs. New London
Class L Champion: Masuk
@shooter..
“Who cares who gets the Credit”…..The front five of every football team!
“Name one Offensive lineman on masuk or Xavier”…..My point exactly
As far as keeping it real….Do these kids play their hearts out? Are they a part of the game? And if so how important is there part?
Look..It dose not effect me in any way if these kids don’t get credit. I have no kids playing on a team. I use to play football down south and EVERONE got credit.
Sorry I’m wrong for caring about the unsung heroes
You see down south were all equal
Now I live in a town that’s 22 miles of fantasy sounded by reality
Look at staples roster that team is led by junior playmakers and a sophomore qb. They’ll be unstoppable next year and should make a run this year.
HOTSHOT-The point is never or rarely do offensive linmen get their name in the paper. The QB and Running backs always give credit to their offensive line. That’s the way it is and will always be. LIVE with it.
You guys act like ND-WH is so great and they’ll roll over Windsor, I saw then scrimmage Ansonia and they are highly uninpressive, must be SCC fans ranting and raving. Watch out for Windsor. Who cares if they get kids from anywhere, you’re a private school you get kids from anywhere you want and you still aren’t even that good
and how dominant was Ansonia vs West Haven in that scrimmage ?
What was your leading rushers stats that day ?
Both teams Offenses scores were close,without West Havens best running back,and Ansonia scored on a pick 6.Why has Ansonia become so dominant after 3 scrimmages vs the SCC.ALL were MUCH/MUCH closer than any games you played in the NVL and all opponents you scrimmaged had at least 2 losses in regular season play.
You may have more players from Waterbury than Holy Cross
The Fciac gets shut out this year for state championship banners. Xavier and Masuk are just too good. Would love to see both Staples and New Canaan get to the finals though. The Wreckers have a much easier road to the final than NC. Norwalk gets beat by the 50 point rule against Xavier and the XAVIER COACH WILL BE SUSPENDED.
Weather for tomorrow night is looking pretty nasty. Night of upsets?
@BigFish- You’re absolutely right. Ansonia is the only public school where this happens. It has never happened in Monroe or Bloomfield or New Britain or New London or Hoover, Alabama. I guess talented kids would just rather play at schools that contend and will get them noticed. This is not something that has been happening here forever, though. I played there for 4 years and went to grammar school with everybody on the team.
By the way, what is your affiliation Big Fish? From what I have read you seem to bash Ansonia a lot, but I haven’t paid enough attention to you to notice who you support.
To those who believe an NDWH victory over Windsor would be an “upset”, here are facts:
Since 2007, eight CCC teams have qualified for the L playoffs. Their combined record: 1-8 (the win came when two CCC teams played each other).
Windsor didn’t play a single playoff qualifier this season. No Hall, Conard or Glastonbury.
In 2009, Conard (then in Class L), played a similar schedule, went 10-0, were ranked in the Top 10, and hosted NDWH at home in a first round game. Otherwise knowledgable pundits picked Conard to win. ND beat them 42-14.
But, maybe this time will be different.
HC will likely not be challenged in S. Weston would have been some real competition. CIAC’s failure to take into account SoS in any meaningful way makes Class S playoffs an obvious joke. The same problem exists in other sports but the much higher number of qualifying teams makes it more likely that the best S team becomes champion. See lax as a good example where Weston and St Joes dominate the playoffs despite their often low seeding and the gaudy but meaningless records of the northern teams. In football it is very difficult for SWC and even worse FCIAC S teams to qualify. So this years Class S champion will be just the champion of those S teams with weak schedules. The biggest joke is that the “tech” league gets their teams in. BH left the SWC to stop being pounded by everyone. Their solution, just play other weak programs. CIAC rewards this. Go CIAC.
west havens always missing theyre best player.the fact is ansonia kicks their ass every year and the brainwashed scc fans cant stand it.
see you in playoffs.maybe ansonia will get a game on westies field.
Roto,
Very informative comment about the CCC teams since 2007. Did not know they had such a poor record and that Windsor did not play any of the top teams. It looks like NDWH should roll.
Please CIAC put one of the Class L semi-final games as its stand alone game on Saturday night. You would have two great matchups to choose from. NDWH-Windsor winner vs. NC-New London or Masuk vs Hand. If that can’t be done then how about a Staples vs. Newtown. All the other games have no juice.
That scrimmage was lopsided both of them were! You’re lucky we didn’t score on two wide open passes! Those teams were scrubs! Too bad holy cross has players from all over! Masks QB is really from Monroe too huh!? Hes lived in New London New Britain and Hartford! ND West Haven got kids from everywhere so does Xavier! What’s your point idiot! Don’t be mad your catholic school ain’t that great HaHa dumb arguments!
Masuk may be able to score anywhere on the field against teams like Immaculate, New Fairfield, Weston, etc. Now they will play one of the toughest defenses in the State. Hand over Masuk.
@FRANK RUSSO – Your written word will come back to haunt you my friend….Hand has not seen an offense like Masuk…unstoppable!
Have you seen Masuk play??
I equate this years Hand team to last years New Canaan team…great team…just not Masuk.
It will be a great game….the best of Class L playoff…but in the end Masuk will prevail
@107…
Hogwash.
Masuk’s averaged 55 points a game against LL teams this year, while allowing 5. Last year, with essentially the same offense, they creamed FCIAC’s best by an average of 45-10 (and this year’s average pts per game is slightly better, the offense being a bit more mature).
No one has been able to stop them for two years. Not saying Hand can’t, but based on the priors they probably won’t. Hand is a fine team and will likely be the best opponent Masuk face all year, irrespective of whether Masuk make it to the final.
Cheers.
Its post season time and the Ansonia boys are still talking about their preseason scrimmage victorys. Spare us. We all agree Ansonia has the greatest preseason record of all time.
@Frank Russo The same thing was said about last year’s Masuk team. I’m sure Hand is a great team this year, but they will not keep up with the pace of Masuk. You have to play mistake-free football and keep the offense off the field which is very tough to do considering their defense is also very strong and greatly improved since the beginning of the year.
Masuk 42 Hand 28
Cause you all got something to say until you face the facts we bury you in scrimmages but that garnishes no merit! Scrubs!
Weather could play a huge factor Tuesday night. I don’t see a lot of upsets except NDWH over Windsor and NC over NL. I think both games will be very close.
LL:
Staples over Ridgefield 28-14.
Xavier 48 Gbury 7 (Be thankful for the coin flip pomperaug)
Norwalk 21 Conard 7
Newtown 27-Hall 13
Semis: Xavier 41 Norwalk 6
Staples 34-Newtown 21
L: NDWH 21 Windsor 13
NC 35 NL 33
Masuk 34 North Haven 13
Hand 42 Coventry 12
Semis: NC 34 NDWH 27
Masuk 34-Hand 20
back with M and S later. (Those are some ugly classes)
Hand is battle tested, Masuk is not. Hand is one of the most storied program in the State. 9 Titles, and 17 appearance. Masuk not so much. The game will be essentially the Class L title game. I respect Masuk as a team, they are good, and well coaches. Curious to see how they will be in coming years without the help of New London roster.
since im a recent bethel grad and was on the state finals team, im picking bethel in an ugly rain game. even though i have no idea how Newsome will be stopped. Xavier wins class LL, Masuk wins L, sorry #114, but they are the 2nd best team in the state.
@dave k- Aren’t you done on here for the year?? 10th place in LL is nothing to be ashamed of. To quote Meet the Fockers “I didn’t know they made 9th place ribbons.” “Oh yeah, Jack, they have them all the way up to tenth!” Take pride in taping that 10th place ribbon up on your gym walls during a basketball loss this winter. You go Gaels!
We have to refer back to preseason scrimmages at this point because nobody will be giving us any credit for going undefeated in the regular season or for beating the clowns in M.
@Frank Russo Hand might have more of a stronger program than Masuk in the past decade, doesn’t mean they can stop this year’s team. If you keep the offense out on the field too long, they will tear you apart; keep the defense on the field and they’ll hurt you (see Newtown, Pomperaug).
Master Legend,
I think we all give Ansonia credit for being the top dog in a weak conference year in and year out. We also realize it’s not their fault on who they play or what conference they are in. With that said, when the 11 game season comes in a few years please go play someone besides a crossover with kennedy or Wilby even if it has to be outside CT. let’s not use the excuse the NVL won’t let us.
The SWC is a farrrrr weaker conference than the NVL. Look at the head to head records NVL vs. SWC. Only loss came from Brookfield over HC and then Woodland beat them…
@masters
Your comments are totally out of line. The truth is that Shelton actually did play top ten teams during the season albeit they lost but. It is what it is. They are not playing Tuesday night because they only got 110 points for wins over Derby and Wilbur Cross. Ansonia will be the #3 team in the state when all is said and done with out playing one ranked team. But hey you won those scrimmages.
@Master Legend…If you want to bring up Shelton and the Preseason…The 10th place team in the LL beat Ansonia 28-27 (starters vs starters) in the final scrimmage game of the season. I wonder if Ansonia got ribbons for that…
@Frank Russo…We all heard this last year with Darien and New Canaan…the storied programs…playing in the “much stronger” FCIAC. How Masuk was going to find out what it was like to play “real teams” for a change. I even had a Shelton coach tell me that New Canaan was going to beat Masuk by 3 TD’s…”this is Lou Marinelli and New Canaan…real football teams…they are going to kill Masuk” Yeah…The Darien game (if you could call it a game) was over in the first quarter. The Shelton Coach was only off by 7 touchdowns as Masuk won by more than 4 TD’s.
This is Football…Great teams are great teams…regardless of where and who they play. Masuk is a great team the past few years. They will beat anyone they play by 2 or 3 TD’s. They have a great defense and an amazing offense. Hand will be just like New Canaan last year. The best team that Masuk plays all year…and they will still lose…just like New Canaan last year…by at least 2 or 3 touchdowns.
@Frank Russo (and everyone else) – Not to belittle your points, because they’re all fine. But anyone in Madison should take care on how vehemently they crow about the Masuk-New London pipeline. …All I’ll say is that plenty of people out there, if they’re able, like to move with football-playing sons into certain school districts with good football programs. If it’s legal, there’s nothing anyone can do. It’s their decision. They’re looking out for their kid’s interests. You don’t have to like it, but it happens everywhere.
@FRANK RUSSO…You didnt answer the question…..have you seen Masuk play this year in person??
What teams did Hand play to make them battle tested?
Lets break it down….
Coventry 9/1
NDWH 8/2
West Haven 7/3
Fairfield Prep 5/5
Cheshire 5/5
Lyman Hall 4/6
Amity 4/6
Guilford 4/6
East Haven 2/8
Hamden 1/9
Wilbur Cross 1/9
If you think this schedule makes Hand battle tested….their heads will be spinning come Saturday!
See you at the show!
Fair enough, Sean…but you’ll admit that there’s a difference between moving with YOUR son (ie Cochran, Baty, Newsome, Reed etc.) and bringing SOMEONE ELSE’s son to live with you on weekdays so he can round out YOUR son’s wide receiver corps., no?
(And those harping on Masuk’s schedule…please. All of these arguments were made last year – pretty much verbatim, given the similarity between the two programs – about New Canaan. Sure enough, battle-tested New Canaan gave Masuk a scare – the “scare” that was supposed to cause the Panthers to fold like a cheap suit. They didn’t. They turned a 23-20 game into a 50-20 rout. I’m not sure why this year would be any different.)
@James – Sure there’s a difference except the main one: It was done legally.
Like I said, you don’t have to like it.
@ #118 Brian:
What do you mean by “please go play someone besides a crossover with Kennedy or Wilby?”
First of all, Wilby is in the same division :) Just busting balls.
On a more serious note, WHO WANTS TO PLAY ANSONIA? Don’t give me the “they’re a Class S/M school,” because that’s not the right answer. If a L/LL program beats Ansonia, it’s still guaranteed plenty of bonus points. So, that argument about not wanting to play Ansonia because of points doesn’t make any sense.
The truth is, many teams don’t want to risk losing to Ansonia.
Take every team in the top-10 for example, and give me your honest final-score prediction for each. Xavier/Masuk/Hand would all be tough games. Ansonia would give Hand more of a game than if it played Xavier/Masuk, in my opinion.
You don’t think Ansonia (right now) would beat Staples, Darien, New Canaan, Windsor, NDWH, and North Haven? Even reporters from the CT Post and other local media sources, who have seen many more teams than I have this season, have mentioned that Ansonia can beat those teams.
There’s always the “conference” argument, which I think is garbage. Masuk and Ansonia play in weak conferences but that doesn’t mean these teams aren’t the real deal.
With that said, I’m glad Masuk has to go through two SCC teams this year.
Masuk is nasty
The conference argument is used as a crutch to not give them the #1 spot in the state
But any other argument about regular season league schedule helping for head to head state matchup against Masuk is dumb. None of the teams in L are as good as Masuk. There just not.
New Canaan and Hand are storied programs to be sure. But this years versions are not talented enough to hang with Masuk. For NC, i’d put that 2008 team up against this Masuk team as well as one of Hands mid Y2K teams
Remmy, Don’t take it personal. I am saying Ansonia can and needs to play better comp. in 2013 when they have an 11 game season play someone worthy and don’t let the conference tell u ‘No”. I agree many L and LL teams could use 70 points plus another 90-100 bonuses that year. I do know SCC and FCIAC teams play each other those years so u will not get any of those teams. Maybe Masuk or NL or out of state.
Using the term “amazing” to describe a football team or player is lame. Please keep those terms to the quilting board or the Mary Poppins fan club.
@103….what are you talking about? Weston plays in SWC Patriot in which only 1 of seven teams even had a winning record. The combined record of the teams in Weston’s SWC Division other than Weston was 12-48 this year. Weston only beat one team with a winning record, and that team is about to be obliterated by Ansonia tomorrow night. The SWC has been a joke of a football conference forever until Cochran came along and lifted up Masuk. Just because Weston didn’t make playoffs doesn’t mean CIAC playoff system is unfair. In fact, the above facts suggest it worked just fine. Just because you are unfamiliar with teams in other parts of the State does not mean they are unworthy.
Have any of you guys heard the expression…”if my aunt had balls she would be my uncle”…simply put it means “it is what it is”. All these teams have earned the right to be in their respective divisions State Tournaments so rock on! It is lame seeing comparisons based on past years, weak / strong schedules, conference size, weather and on and on. These kids & coaches earned the right to be playing tomorrow plain and simple. I have to give out a shout out to Staples…spread offense with so much speed along with a quick, large and powerful O-line gets it done! It appears that Staples now rotates about 7 guys on D to keep things fresh so they will again have the horses to get this done. Staples 37-14
2010- Ansonia scheduled Hillhouse for its opening game. It was supposed to be a down year for the Chargers, yet they took on one of the best the SCC has to offer. Name an elite program that took on a challenge greater than that since then.
Shelton fans- Sorry to offend, but when we’re hanging our state championship banner this year, you’ll be picking up your precious 1995 Housatonic Conference Champs t-shirt up from the dry cleaners. Let it go…we’re a better program.
The first half of Gibby’s comment is right on. Congrats and good luck to all those who are in. Let the games commence! Arguments to resume in about 28 hours! SPB, thanks for providing the forum.
To set the record straight,Ansonia defeated West Haven by 1 score maybe 2.The action was relatively equal.The difference was a Pick 6 by Ansonia.Now that was against a 3 loss Westies team without Phillips.Titletown would you like to explain how in 2010 ND defeated Ansonia by about 6-7 scores and lost 3 games in the SCC while Ansonia cruised through the NVL at 9-1
Big Fish, you think Ansonia would defeat West Haven by 1 score in a real game?
More like 3 scores.
To northern ct fan. Bunnel, Brookfield, and pomperaug are all recent state champs from the SWC along with Masuk. Last year Ansonia blitzed thru the NVl only to be crushed in the finals by three loss st joes from the FCIAC. Facts are such a bother. Let the games begin.
Bigfish story, get a clue. Your opinion is based on hate or blindness. Can you say 17!
@137 Truth hurts.17 is too high a rank for any of Ansonias opponents in this years M playoffs.
@Remmy No.Just clarifying a post by another person on the dominance of Ansonia against West Haven in the scrimmage.The Chargers are too good a program for someone to falsify results to bolster resume.
@Northern Ct Fan–The year before Cochran came to Masuk they crushed 2 Northern Ct teams…Windsor and Newington…to win the State Championship. If I am not mistaken the games were 48-0 and 42-7 at halftime. It shocks me that CCC fan would be taking jabs at other conferences…Seriously….
@Master Legend–There is no question that Ansonia has a much better Program than Shelton…I think that is clear to everyone here…but to bring up Preseason at this point is pointless. But if you are going to do that, you have to acknowledge that Shelton did beat Ansonia (starters vs. starters) in the last Preseason game…You can’t just bring up the Preseason points that help your argument and ignore the ones that hurt it…
Big Fish glad you can name the one time ND beat us what does 2010 have to do with now?
Ansonia is a little over rated. They are a little too one dimensional for my tastes. What i have always liked about Masuk was the balance they were able to show. I see about 5 or 6 teams that “can” beat Ansonia. I just dont know if Ansonia has the ability to rally back in time if they are down by 2 or 3 scores in the fourth.
Please stop discussing scrimmages. It is making you sound uneducated. Scrimmages dont count and are rarely even a good barometer for how the season will go. If one were to go by scrimmages then Trumbull would have been great this season.
Also to all the teams in the state playoffs….congratulations. It is not an easy task to get in. The fact is that i dont count anyone out come this time of year. I would not be surprised to see Hand beat Masuk or for Ridgefield to beat Staples. I personally and hoping for Norwalk to win and then beat Xavier. That would make my decade.
In conclusion i will be at the Staples/Ridgefield game this evening. i will be the guy sitting alone in the corner with 2 tins, binoculars, a bandana, full camo outfit, a blonde mullet, the sickest mustache you have ever seen, practicing round house kicks on the aluminum light posts.
Overrated? Have you seen them in person? or are you just making assumptions in between reps on the total gym? Doesn’t matter anyway as number 17 is just three wins away. They can only play the teams that show up.
I have to say that, I love reading some of these posts. I am a Hand Fan. I’ve been to every game this year, Home or Away. Not alot of people are giving them any credit or even talking about this team. Love it. This team has been ranked 4th or 5th in the state all year long. Not one person knows the potential of this team, because the starters have barely even played more than a half of a game, every game. NDWH would have been blanked by Hand if not for a negative yardage punt and a really bad call on an unnecessary roughness call, both of which were at there own 30 yard line. looking forward to seeing what these Hand Tigers have in 48 minutes of playoff football.
@132 masters
Actually those t-shirts from 1995 happen to say Class LL state champs. Look it up.
Dear Chuck NORRIS,
Please be surprised if Ridgefield beats Staples and Hand beats Masuk. Aint going to happen in this lifetime. Have you seen Masuk? Back in 1908 before they even had leather helmets , Ridgefield won a big game. They beat Abbott Tech 2-0. The Tech runner ran into the wrong endzone otherwise it would have ended 0-0. Of course Ridgefield was 0-8 at the time.
Hand is really good.Not sure if they are masuk good but I’m sure on Saturday we will find out if their 48 minutes is good enough.
conard wins. hall does not. windsor does not either. ccc still stinks. xavier wins another LL crown. just as convincingly as last year. which was not convincing at all. hand masuk draws 6 thousand. if hand beats masuk they are number one. does x have a quality win on their schedule that would be better than masuk?
Mr. Shooter,
i have actually seen Masuk play live this year 3 times. I think that Hand can beat them. I’m not saying its going to happen but i would not be surprised to see it happen. I have not seen anyone get to Casey this year. they team that is able to do that is the team that has a chance. Hand will be able to get there. Ridgefield is a better football team then staples. Not a better program, but a better team.
@CLASS L —-you listed all of Hands opponents and their records. please note that ONE, they played 4 LL teams and it’s not there fault what hands opponents records are. and TWO, the starters haven’t even played a half a game, every game, all season. the STARTING defense for Hand has only let up 30 points all year. all other points have been given up by 2nd string(JV) and 3rd string (JV&Freshman). No One know what Hand is capable of. NO ONE. I am a Hand fan, YES. I am looking forward to seeing what Hand can do if there STARTERS play all 48 minutes.
@Glass House….I agree…..the numbers at Hand v Masuk game will be HUGE….I said it before….this is the game of games in the playoffs. Winner of this game is Class L champion and #1 in the state! Sorry X but either of these two teams would trounce you.
@eddysuds00–Please note that Masuk’s starting O is in the same boat. With the exception of maybe two or three games in the past two years, the Masuk offense has been off the field by the 3rd quarter…and many times in the 2nd quarter. I would venture to say that their starting D has given up less than 30 points. JV and Freshman are regularly in the game for the second half. They have to be to stay inside of the 50 point rule. Should be a great game…If both teams make it.
@Glass House
“does x have a quality win on their schedule that would be better than masuk?”
well let’s see, hmmm, the only team that would possibly count as a better quality win than masuk in the entire state is xavier themselves…so “no” seems like the pretty obvious answer. regardless, comparing the single best quality win of two undefeated teams has never settled which one is better, that’s why they play a full season. hand and xavier had similar regular season schedules. hand had close games, xavier blew everyone they played out. even if hand wins “L”, xavier is the better team at the end of the day
@CLASS L
“Sorry X but either of these two teams would trounce you.”
really? i would love to hear how you came to this conclusion
My father once said, son … “It’s a poor dog that wags its own tail”. Anyone who has to hype their record this much (i.e Masuk crowd) must be feeling inferior. Reality check … only 4 wins against LL/L competition since September – say WHAT?. Let’s analyze that dominating performance against North Haven next? … please.
love to see the hall players talk now…
not a single win on x’s schedule would even come close to masuks win over hand or hands win over masuk. Also not a single win on x’s schedule is going to compare to hand or masuk beating the winner of windsor/new canaan. class l contains number 1.