Archive for the ‘NVL’ Category

Newsome only CT U.S. Army All-American Bowl nominee

Friday, May 10, 2013 by:Sean Patrick Bowley
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Arkeel Newsome runs for a touchdown in the 2012 Class S title game (SPB)

Arkeel Newsome runs for a touchdown in the 2012 Class S title game (SPB)

Ansonia all-stater Arkeel Newsome has been nominated to participate in the U.S. Army’s All-American Bowl which will be held Jan. 4, 2014 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.

Newsome (5-foot-8, 180) is the only Connecticut player to receive one of the bowl’s 400 nominations. The bowl’s roster will be whittled down to 90 by a traveling selection tour, which will announced its picks from September through December.

Newsome is a two-time Connecticut rushing champion. With 3,763 yards and 58 touchdowns, Newsome was one of the nation’s top rushers as a sophomore in 2011. As a junior, he ran for 2,245 yards and 38 touchdowns. Overall, he’s run for over 6,800 yards, an average of 11.2 yards per carry, and scored 108 touchdowns in his three-year career.

Behind Newsome, Ansonia has gone 28-0 and won two consecutive state championships.

Here’s the complete roster of nominees.

We’re engaged! Naugatuck Valley League, Oxford to tie knot

Friday, February 22, 2013 by:Sean Patrick Bowley
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***


The courtship is over.

Let the wedding plans begin!

After three and a half months of wooing, the NVL has accepted Oxford’s marriage proposal, the Waterbury Rep-Am reported today.

All that’s left are the official vows and the ‘I Dos.”

But hang on, lovebirds.

The young school, which has apparently just teased the SWC into an uncommitted relationship since its founding in 2008, will have to wait to unite with its secret love.

With schedules practically set for the coming school year, Oxford won’t be able to join the NVL until 2014-15.

But that’s not stopping the love letters from flowing:

“It seems like this was something that was meant to be,” Naugatuck athletic director and NVL president Tom Pompei told the Rep-Am. “Someone made a reference to the sign that you see on Route 8, about the All-American Valley, with Ansonia, Derby, Seymour, Naugatuck, and Oxford.”

How sweet.

But now, the logistics:

Oxford’s addition will bump the NVL’s membership to an uneven 15 schools. The NVL announced it would accommodate the imbalance by dividing itself into three divisions.

According to the Republican-American, the divisions will be thus:

  • Division A: Ansonia, Derby, Oxford, St. Paul, Seymour.
  • Division B: Crosby, Holy Cross, Kennedy, Sacred Heart, Wilby.
  • Division C: Naugatuck, Torrington, Watertown, Wolcott, Woodland.

Pompei said the NVL hasn’t figured on how this structure would work out. “That’s for another meeting,” he told the paper.

The courtship began in November, when the Oxford board of education, led by former Oxford football assistant and board member Gerard Carbonaro, made their first public push to join the NVL. Oxford made a formal presentation earlier this month.

Proponents believed the NVL is a better fit for Oxford because of its proximity to natural town rivals Seymour, Ansonia and Derby, and because it would cut down on travel time between games.  Most of the NVL is located in and around Waterbury, whereas the SWC is spread further across Fairfield County.

The board also believed the NVL’s schools are closer in size to Oxford, a Class S school, and would create more competitive games.

Yet, Oxford’s move to the NVL will be a marriage of inconvenience for several of its teams The school has boys volleyball, lacrosse and wrestling teams, none of which are sponsored by the NVL.

Correction: Oxford doesn’t have lacrosse. So the “inconvenience,” as it were, is lessened considerably.

Last year, the SWC, Oxford’s home since 2008, attempted to assuage the school’s concerns by reorganizing its football divisions in to large, medium and small. Under this format, Oxford won a school-record 8 games and just missed a Class S playoff berth.

With the impending move, however, the once-again jilted SWC would drop back to 13 teams.

Connecticut coaching carousel 2013: Here’s where we stand in mid-January [Updated]

Friday, January 18, 2013 by:Sean Patrick Bowley
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***

A small sampling of coaches who will no longer be at their 2012 posts in 2013. Clockwise from top left: Dave Cadelina, John Murphy, Bryan Hocter, Peter Stokes, Chuck Lynch, Craig Bruno

It’s been a crazy, topsy-turvy offseason for high school football programs and coaches. And we’re barely halfway through January.

Big names, small names, big programs, little programs… no one, it seems, is immune from the bug that has plagued our regional coaches’ psyches.

The reasons have varied: Many “want to spend more time with their families,” or just have too much responsibility to keep up with the rigorous demands it takes to be successful. Some were fired, or about to be fired, or thought they might be fired. Others just felt, “it was time.”

Whatever the reason, there are immense vacuums to be filled across our fair state. And they just keep coming.

So with the latest bombshell news of Craig Bruno jumping Bunnell for Naugatuck, we here at football central felt it was time to take stock of what we know and don’t know about the many vacancies across Connecticut.

Let’s recap all of the movement madness, shall we?

Update: We’ve added Wilby, Bacon Academy, East Lyme, Ellington/Somers, Old Saybrook/Westbrook and Woodstock Academy. Whew. Anyone else?

May 21: Cheshire

The first casualty was actually last offseason when longtime Cheshire coach Mark Ecke resigned, apparently under pressure, following an incident at a Glastonbury High School lacrosse game.

The interim coach, Don Drust, got the job full-time on November 30 after coaching the Rams to a 6-4 record.

August 3: Wilby (added)

Just before fall practices began, Pat Russo resigned at Wilby unexpectedly after coaching one season. Russo told the Republican-American that he decided to leave to coach is two sons in youth football.

Gino Capuano, a business teacher at the school, took over as interim coach, saying he hoped “I am the head coach until the day I retire as a teacher.” He guided the Wildcats went 5-5 in the NVL this season.

As of January, Capuano remains the interim coach.

August 24: Naugatuck

Naugatuck lost its head coach Rob Plasky in August stemming from a scheme to get Sacred Heart receiver and then-Boston College commit David Coggins and a few of his teammates to Naugatuck. Assistant Shawn Kuczenski took over as head coach and took the team to a 6-4 record.

The job was posted shortly after the season concluded. (More on this later).

October 3: St. Bernard/Norwich Tech

Just a few weeks into the 2012 season, Scott Cook was told to resign or be fired as head coach at St. Bernard/Norwich Tech, over what Cook said was an incident on a bus the previous year, according to The Day of New London. His players briefly considered walking out of the season in protest, but eventually decided to carry on under interim coach Bob Burnside while Cook’s status upgraded to ‘paid administrative leave.’

Athletic director Brendan Case told the Norwich Bulletin he hoped to have a new coach hired within weeks after the season ended. But that was pending a resolution on Cook’s personnel issue, which as of January 18 doesn’t seem to be resolved.

Former Bloomfield/New Britain/New London coach Jack Cochran seemed like he was interested in the job. But earlier this month Cochran told us “right now” he had no plans on coaching in 2013 because he felt it would impede in following his son’s career at UConn.

October 26: Ludlowe

News that Ludlowe coach Matt McCloskey would resign at the end of the season hit the press and is confirmed by athletic director Dave Schulz. The Falcons were 1-5 at the time, having lost 25 of the team’s previous 27 games.

Yet, the Falcons rallied by winning all four of their remaining games to finish 5-5, giving McCloskey a memorable send-off.

Last week Schulz said interviews would being toward the second half of January. No word on who might be the candidates.

November 28: New Milford & Bridgeport Central

This was the first of a few interesting days, regionally.

Two coaches resigned because they felt “It’s time.”

First, Chuck Lynch resigned at New Milford after 10 seasons, saying he was “ready for a new chapter in my life.”

Then came the first first true shock of the 2012-13 offseason, a move that signaled that we were entering new territory: Central coach Dave Cadelina resigned after 16 years.

Cadelina, who took the once-downtrodden program to a pair of FCIAC championship games and two state playoffs during his tenure, said he simply believed he needed to take a break.

“I feel it’s time,” he said. “Throw Excalibur back into the lake, if you will, and let somebody new come on in.”

The Bridgeport board of education had yet to post the position as of last week. Citywide athletic director Neil Kavey said he hoped to get that squared away soon and begin vetting candidates.

As for New Milford, athletic director Lance Pliego said Monday his school has whittled a list of “about 10 worthy candidates,” down to three. But he said he couldn’t offer the job until New Milford’s school budget is hammered out. That could come before the end of January, Pliego said.

Former Masuk coach John Murphy is supposedly one of the school’s prime targets.

December 2: Avon

Avon’s Brett Quinion resigned unexpectedly on December 2, simply saying, “It’s time.”

Quinion had spent 10 years with the program.

Two of his last four years yielded a pair of 10-0 records and a pair state playoff appearances.

December 5: Bacon Academy (added)

Just a month after naming him interim coach when Duane Miranda resigned to take the head coach job at New London, Bacon Academy officially hired Brian Enrique on August 4.

But shortly after the 2012 season ended  a few weeks after the end of the season, the school decided it would re-open the job and asked Enrique to apply again.

Superintendent on Jeff Mathieu told the Norwich Bulletin every coach in the district had to reapply. The difference in this case is that they were advertising the job. “The reason why they are re-opening it is because they hadn’t had a chance to advertise last time and they want to see what the available talent pool is,” he said.

Enrique told The Bulletin he hoped to reclaim the job. “I can only say right now that I absolutely want to coach that group of young men in the offseason and on the football field next fall,” he said.

December 7: Maloney

Bob Zito, who had spent nine seasons as head coach and took the Spartans to the state playoffs in 2007, wasn’t rehired by the Meriden board of education. Zito, who went 46-46-1 overall during his stint there wasn’t exactly pleased with the board’s decision.

“I’m just disappointed with the way the whole thing played out,” Zito told the Record-Journal. “I was there for the kids and I thought I did everything I could for the kids.”

Zito won two state championships while coaching Joe Lato and Steve George at Newtown in the early 1990s and also helped kick-start John Murphy‘s coaching career. Moved on to Stratford (for one season) and Weston before taking over at Maloney in 2004.

December 11: Trinity Catholic & Masuk

Within minutes of each other, two more regional coaches called it quits.

Peter Stokes resigned at Trinity Catholic after guiding the team to its first state playoff berth in 19 years. His vacancy was quickly filled by assistant Don Panapada on January 14.

Minutes after Stokes confirmed he was leaving Trinity, the region was hit with an much larger bombshell (Sorry, Pete):

John Murphy quit at Masuk after 15 seasons, 159 victories and three state championships. “This is what’s best for me and my family,” he said. “I feel like I’ve accomplished everything I can do here.”

Murphy hinted his reasoning as a dissatisfaction with his school’s support of the football program.

The school has yet to conduct interviews, though interested parties include Ridgefield defensive coordinator David Brennen, a Masuk teacher, former Ludlowe coach Mike Forget (now an assistant at Darien), Monroe Lions coach Steve Christy and (maybe) Weston coach Joe Lato.

December 17: Fitch & Rockville

Fitch coach Mike Emery‘s second stint at the school he built into a powerhouse in the late 1990s ended at the team’s postseason banquet.

Emery said his resignation had to do with his duties as an assistant principal.

Up in Vernon, coach and Rockville alumnus Rob Scholtz resigned after just one year.

We actually have no idea exactly when this happened or how or why because Vernon apparently exists in some anti-Internet shield which is impenetrable to anything except short Vernon Patch articles that seem to have stopped covering the team in November.

Go ahead and Google it.

(Aside: What, exactly, do you people read for football news in the CCC?)

Whatever. It’s significantly of our domain and far beyond of the Oort Cloud of our interest. (Google *that!*)

This we do know: The job opened December 17 and closed January 2. Anybody apply?

December 18: Stamford

We were again hit regionally when Bryan Hocter resigned as head coach at Stamford after three seasons. Hocter’s decision came just 30 minutes before a scheduled meeting with athletic director Jim Moriarty.

There had been rumors that Hocter would have been fired at the meeting. Though Moriarty did little to dispel that notion when asked by our own Dave Ruden (“He had 11 years on the staff and three years as head coach and because of inconsistencies in the program he decided to resign,” Moriarty said.), Hocter said he had made his decision to leave a few weeks earlier.

“I didn’t think I was going to get fired,” he said. “They brought up some concerns they had. Halfway through the season I thought it was time to explore other options.”

While Hocter says he hopes to hook on somewhere else, a source has said Darien defensive coordinator Idris Price is applying for the job. We’re not sure when interviews will commence yet.

December 21: East Lyme (added)

We missed this one earlier: Just before Christmas, East Lyme’s Paul Tenaglia resigned because the school wanted to hire a coach within the school system, partially to help boost dwindling numbers. He was offered to stay on as an assistant but decided to leave.

The school reportedly had their sights set on Old Saybrook/Westbrook coach Rudy Bagos, a physical education teacher at East Lyme. Sure enough, East Lyme bagged him on January 10.

January 4: Torrington & Branford

Saying he was burdened by the 45-minute commute and expecting a second child, Dan Dunaj unexpectedly resigned after five relatively successful seasons. He will remain a physical education teacher.

“After 17 years of coaching, taking a break would probably be OK,” he told the Republican-American. “I don’t think I am done altogether, but right now everything is put on hold.”

Also revealed by the Republican-American was a hazing incident involving Torrington’s football players that apparently took place in September. Not much is known of it or how much it could have contributed to Dunaj’s resignation, if at all.

Later that day it was revealed that Mike Tracy had stepped down at Branford after four seasons.

Tracy’s reason, according to the New Haven Register, was to spend more time with his kids.

But we weren’t done quite yet…

January 5: Ellington/Somers (added)

At the team banquet, Ellington/Somers’ successful coach Keith Tautkus resigned after 13 seasons.

Tautkus took the co-op program to its second-consecutive state playoff berth last season, where it was defeated by Weston 29-22 in the Class M quarterfinals.

He leaves with a career record of 84-41.

January 10: Old Saybrook/Westbrook (added)

When Rudy Bagos decided to take the job at East Lyme, Old Saybrook/Westbrook suddenly found itself without a coach.

Old Saybrook/Westbrook was 10-10 under Bagos in two seasons.

January 14: Abbott Tech

Chris Mascolo, who started the Tech school program in 2008, called it quits on Tuesday after five years. Mascolo wanted to focus on continuing his education.

“Abbott Tech gave me an opportunity to be a head coach when nobody else would,” Mascolo said. “…I loved the challenge of coaching at a technical school. For a lot of the kids, it was their first year playing, so it was a challenge for us to get them to love football.”

He certainly did that. After an expected 0-9 start when program’s began its first varsity season in 2010, Mascolo’s team went 6-4 last year.

Athletic director Jon Nadeau said the job is posted and a search will begin immediately.

And, finally…

January 17: Bunnell & Woodstock Academy

Shortly after the New Year, two-time state championship Craig Bruno‘s name came up often with sources while we were attempting to pin down candidates for the Naugatuck coaching job.

Naugatuck’s search, which began in December, quickly narrowed to four candidates: the current interim coach Shawn Kuczenski, Post University offensive coordinator Steve Croce, Woodland offensive coordinator Tim Phipps and  Bruno.

Initial reports said this week Phipps’ appointment was a mere formality. But a day after the announcement was put on hold due to a snow storm, Bruno usurped Phipps and got the job.

Bruno’s move north surprised some. Why leave a good thing at Bunnell, where Bruno had won two state championships and coached at least two NFL caliber players?

“I felt that I’ve accomplished all my goals in a place that I built,” said Bruno, who said living “10 minutes” away in Oxford factored into his decision. “I’m leaving this situation on good terms. I have a lot of great feelings and memories there, but I felt at this point in my life I had to make a change.”

The Bruno news usurped news from way upstate when Woodstock Academy coach Jesse Pimental resigned after one season.

Pimental intended to continue with his second season, but recently he decided coaching put too much strain on his family. “…That was more than I was willing to sacrifice,” he told the Norwich Bulletin.

Woodstock Academy, a Class L school, went 0-10 last year and is 6-34 over the last four seasons while shuffling through three different coaches and petitioning the ECC to play in its small division.

Update: Lewis Mills

Lewis Mills’ school district posted a vacancy for head coach, though it was uncertain when and why.

Present Day

So that’s 17 19 20 23 24 jobs open overall and four filled by mid-January: one by hiring the interim coach, another by promoting in-house, and two by pilfering another school’s coach.

So that’s 19 20 jobs technically open.

Round and round this Merry-Go-Round we go.

When will it stop? No one knows.

Rep-Am: Dunaj resigns from Torrington (and other, minor coaching carousel news)

Friday, January 4, 2013 by:Sean Patrick Bowley
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Dan Dunaj

Dan Dunaj has resigned as coach of Torrington after five seasons, the Republican-American reported today.

Dunaj, the former Seymour defensive coordinator who brought the Raiders to respectability in the NVL by 30-21, told Mark Jaffee he resigned for family reasons, namely the impending birth of his second child. He already has a 9-year old. He will remain a physical education teacher.

From the Rep-Am:

“This is the second time around. The first time I was living and coaching in Seymour, but now I drive 45 minutes each way. (The commute is) more of a burden, and after 17 years of coaching, taking a break would probably be OK. … “I don’t think I am done altogether, but right now everything is put on hold.”

Also revealed in the story is an ongoing investigation of a hazing incident involving four football players in September. School Superintendent Cheryl F. Kloczko didn’t give Jaff much information on that other than to confirm that two, unnamed outside investigators were looking into the incident.

Elsewhere…

So now we’re at — what? — 14 head coaching vacancies in Connecticut?

There’s been little movement elsewhere. But rumors are rampant about several jobs, including Naugatuck (which Jaffee says will interview four candidates this week).

According to our sources, candidates for this job include Woodland associated head coach Tim Phipps, former Pomperaug and Holy Cross offensive coordinator Steve Croce (who’s now at Post University) and Bunnell coach Craig Bruno.

New Milford apparently has its sights on luring former Masuk coach John Murphy up to Litchfield County.

Masuk‘s vacancy remains a total mystery at the moment, though we understand former defensive coordinator Chris Guelli is one applicant.

Central‘s vacancy hasn’t been officially posted. Assistant Brian Gordon, who would likely be a frontrunner for the job, is running the program’s offseason weight training.

“We’re expecting to post it very shortly and we’ve heard that there is a lot of interest in the job,” citywide athletic director Neil Kavey said.

Trinity Catholic is interviewing candidates for its vacancy next week. Assistant Donny Panapada, a Trinity Graduate who coached former Greenwich standout and Minnesota Vikings offensive lineman John Sullivan, is likely the top candidate for that gig.

Nothing to report on Ludlowe and Stamford, yet.

When we know more, you’ll know…

NVL votes ‘no’ on adding Bridgeport schools (updated)

Wednesday, December 12, 2012 by:Sean Patrick Bowley
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The Naugatuck Valley League won’t be bringing Bridgeport’s public school athletic teams into its midst any time soon.

The league’s athletic directors voted down a proposal to invite Central, Harding and Bassick, according to Bridgeport Citywide athletic director Neil Kavey.

Kavey didn’t remember the exact date, but was told “sometime last week.” A call placed to NVL president Tom Pompei of Naugatuck was not yet been returned.

“We thought we had a nice block of support, and we did,” Kavey said. “But there wasn’t too much of a block, I guess.

“We’re disappointed. But we’re anxious to move forward. The FCIAC guys are really going out of their way to helping us beef up our programs and help us work things out.”

Kavey said the NVL gave Bridgeport “a list of a couple of things we have to do if we every think about talking to them again, like adding or shoring up some sub-varsity programs and so on.”

“That was pretty much it, they didn’t go into anything else,” Kavey said. “Tom Pompei was very nice and very candid. We’re hoping to improve our programs.”

Bridgeport has been a member of the FCIAC since 1993. But other than boys basketball, its sports programs have had little success in the Fairfield County league.

Before the NVL, Bridgeport also reached out to the SCC, but was also rebuffed, according to a source from that league. But Kavey denied that the Bridgeport ever talked with the SCC.

2012 All-NVL teams

Wednesday, December 12, 2012 by:Sean Patrick Bowley
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♦♦♦

The NVL Football Blog, your place for all things NVL of course, published the 2012 All-NVL teams, including the photos of each individual squad.

Here are the teams. Visit their site for all the extras.

All-NVL Offense

QB — Mike Nicol (Wolcott)
RB — Arkeel Newsome (Ansonia), Mick Pernell (Naugatuck)
WR — Andrew Matos (Ansonia), Anthony Scirpo (Woodland)
TE — Raeshaun Finney (Ansonia), Brandon Kuczenski (Naugatuck)
OL — Jeremy Clark (Woodland), Zach McNutt (Torrington), Jim Nelson (Wolcott), George Smith (Holy Cross), Jh’mel Trammell (Ansonia)
UT — Tanner Kingsley (Woodland), Jai’Quan McKnight (Ansonia)

All-NVL Defense

DL — Dan Bonney (Seymour), Phil Bresson (Torrington), Andrew Kalach (Watertown), Gerron Pendarvis (Holy Cross)
LB — Bryan Burnette (Holy Cross), Hezekiah Duncan (Ansonia), Levi Fancher (Woodland), Matt Nicolari (Derby)
DB — Mike Conlan (Seymour), Dillon McMahon (Derby), Ryan O’Connor (Ansonia), Jaquan Overbey (Sacred Heart)
K — Arthur Kwaskiewicz (Ansonia)

All-NVL Brass Offense

QB — Mike Kreiger (Derby)
RB — Tyrae Small (Derby), Jacob Thomas (Wilby)
WR — Matt Cyr (Wolcott), Jon Mitchell (Watertown), Christian Thurmond (Seymour)
OL — Dave Ahearn (Derby), De’Cuan Digsby (Crosby), Mike Lombardi (Watertown), Blair Mitchell (Derby), Matt Simon (Ansonia)
UT — Roshawn Gainey (Crosby), Joe Lynch (Wolcott)

All-NVL Brass Defense

DL — Brian Ballenilla (Wilby), Nygel Gladney (Crosby), Tom Longo (Wolcott), Antone Mack (Ansonia)
LB — Jack Briggs (Seymour), Ephraim Collins (Ansonia), Saiheed Sanders (Ansonia), Zach Sirowich (Seymour), Paulo Villanueva (Watertown)
DB — Anthony Chacho (Watertown), Chris Petillo (Wolcott), Brandon Sierra (Wilby)
K — Joe Keeley (Wolcott)

All-NVL Copper Offense

QB — Logan Marchi (St. Paul)
RB — Adrian Brown (Holy Cross), Jerome Love (Naugatuck)
WR — Desmond Langs (Torrington), Kevin Kalosky (Holy Cross), Rahmi Rountree (Woodland)
TE — Brian Zaccagnini (Woodland)
OL — Kevin Brennan (Woodland), Mike Gugliotti (Holy Cross), Jordan Perna (Kennedy), Ernie Tracy (Torrington), Devon Watkins (Naugatuck)
UT — David Coggins (Sacred Heart)

All-NVL Copper Defense

DL — Matt Carda (Naugatuck), Eric Collodel (Woodland), Rourke Phalon (Holy Cross)
LB — Nick Brown (Woodland), Guen Park (St. Paul), Dan Schebell (Torrington), Xavier Woods (Sacred Heart)
DB — Nate Franklin (Naugatuck), Edgar Gonzalez (Torrington), Adam Grantmeyer (Torrington), Davon Humbles (Kennedy), Shyquan Thompson (Sacred Heart)

All-Waterbury Offense

QB — Javon Martin (Sacred Heart)
RB — Adrian Brown (Holy Cross), Roshawn Gainey (Crosby), Jacob Thomas (Wilby)
WR — David Coggins (Sacred Heart), Edward Ellis (Crosby), Kevin Kalosky (Holy Cross)
TE — Tom Rinaldi (Holy Cross)
OL — De’Cuan Digsby (Crosby), Mike Gugliotti (Holy Cross), Alex Guzman (Wilby), Jordan Perna (Kennedy), George Smith (Holy Cross)
UT — Dashaun Abdul-Lateef (Kennedy)

All-Waterbury Defense

DL — Damon Atkinson (Wilby), Brian Ballenilla (Wilby), Nygel Gladney (Crosby), Tim Lamadeleine (Kennedy), Gerron Pendarvis (Holy Cross), Rourke Phalon (Holy Cross)
LB — Bryan Burnette (Holy Cross), Parris Wolfe (Sacred Heart), Xavier Woods (Sacred Heart)
DB — Davon Humbles (Kennedy), Jaquan Overbey (Sacred Heart), Brandon Sierra (Wilby), Shyquan Thompson (Sacred Heart)

Special Awards

Jimmy Lee Top Senior — Mike Nicol, Wolcott
Top City Offensive Player — Davon Humbles, Kennedy
Top City Lineman — George Smith, Holy Cross

Semifinal Sunday: NFA wrecks Staples’ mojo, Fairfield County silenced

Sunday, December 2, 2012 by:Sean Patrick Bowley
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CLASS LL – NFA 30, STAPLES 28 | XAVIER 30, GLASTONBURY 13
CLASS L — HAND 42, MASUK 23 | WINDSOR 27, NEW CANAAN 21
CLASS M – BERLIN 21, WESTON 7 | HILLHOUSE 48, MONTVILLE 26
CLASS S – ANSONIA 41, HYDE 13 | NORTH BRANFORD 62, WOODLAND 27

Jared Levi and the Wreckers walk solemnly off the Ken Strong Stadium field following their stunning 30-28 loss to NFA in the Class LL semifinals

With big smiles, massive hugs, and emitting a cacophony of whoops and hollers that echoed across the state, the entire football team gathered in the southern end zone of Ken Strong Stadium for a photo. It could have been West Haven in August, gathering for its annual team photo.

But this was December. These were the state playoffs. And the photographers weren’t contracted shutterbugs from the local studio, they were equally happy and proud parents and inquisitive newspaper reporters. This wasn’t West Haven.

This was Norwich Free Academy.

Jubilant. Victorious. Posing below the scoreboard, emblazoned on it, their birthday gift to coach Jemal Davis.

NFA 30, Staples 28.

By all accounts, it was a stunning result.

This was supposed to be one of, if not the best Staples teams in the Marce Petroccio era. It was supposed to be invincible. It was going to take care of these upstarts from way out east and get a championship rematch with mighty Xavier.

Instead, junior back Marcus Outlow, quarterback Matt Paparelli and a massive and determined NFA front held the FCIAC’s best team in check, took command in the second half while Staples wilted with several critical second-half errors.

There was an errant punt that resulted in a safety (and gave NFA the lead for good), an option pitch at the goal line that was batted away and recovered by NFA with 7 minutes remaining and then, just when it looked as if the Wreckers would make a valiant comeback, the punt that fatefully bounced upfield and off a Staples player and recovered by NFA.

Staples’ offense, which didn’t score less than 42 points throughout the entire season yet uncharacteristically committed three turnovers and had just over 100 yards in the second half, never saw the ball again.

Their dreams were crushed.

“It’s awful,” stunned coach Marce Petroccio said. I’m going to try and pick up some of the greatest seniors we’ve ever had at Staples High School. But today was not our day.

“We just found a way to lose.”

NFA’s dreams lives on.

In retrospect, everything we heard about NFA ever since it hammered Stamford 51-0 back in October, and everything we saw from the Newtown game turned out to be spot-on. They were big, they were talented, they were determined.

“We know we can play with anybody,” Davis said.

NFA's Marcus Outlow falls through the Staples defense in a 30-28 upset victory over the Wreckers in the Class LL semifinals (Photo: Mike Ross)

And, my oh my, junior Marcus Outlow is legit.

Outlow has been a key player for NFA since getting significant time on the 2010 semifinal team that lost to Trumbull. This is confirmed: He has “full-ride” offers from Alabama, Oregon, Ohio State… you name it, since impressing a ton of scouts at an NUC combine over the summer. At 5-foot-11, 200 pounds, “he definitely passes the eye test,” said MSG Varsity’s Mike Quick.

But it was quarterback Joey Paparelli, who carried the Wildcats in the second half. He scrambled for first downs. He found receivers, particularly Khaleed Exum-Strong, for third-down conversions. Staples’ strong defense eventually found a way to contain him, giving the offense a chance to rally. But that wasn’t until the Wildcats

had 9-point lead. His long run set up the eventual clinching touchdown late in the third quarter.

“To knock off the No. 1 team, we knew we had it in us,” Paparelli said. “We just went out and got the job done.”

Staples was just as good as NFA, but on this afternoon, in the state playoffs, it had to be perfect. It wasn’t.

Junior Airec Ricks made the biggest play of the game when he batted away an option pitch from Jack Massie at the goal line and recovered by NFA. Later, with Staples in full rally mode, he recovered the punt that bounded up the turf and hit Staples captain Kevin Kearney in the leg.

“You can’t win in a game like this playing the way we played,” stunned Staples coach Marce Petroccio said. “I’m just upset that we waited until today to play the way we did.”

So there will be no rematch. NFA ran out the clock to set up a date with No. 3-seeded Xavier at Rentschler Field. Staples, which has seen more than its share of crushing, state playoff losses of the last six years, goes home empty handed.

“Like I said earlier in the week, we were underestimated because we play in the Eastern Connecticut Conference,” Outlow said. “But people look at it and say, oh your conference is weak, blah, blah, blah. But we just come out here and we try to pursue what our coaches meant for us to do, we came out and we executed as well as we can, and it showed on the scoreboard.”

Their talent and their efforts are now preserved forever, in record books and — more importantly for these players — in photographs. A moment frozen in time.

Fairfield County: Denied.

Michael DiCosmo picks up a fumble that he raced 76 yards for a touchdown with less than a minute remaining vs. Windsor. It turned out to be New Canaan's last gasp in a 27-21 loss.

Super Sunday was not a good day for Fairfield County football teams.

First Staples went down in a gutwrenching finale. Then New Canaan lost its first state semifinal game since 2005.

Those losses erased the last FCIAC teams from state championship contention — something that’s never happened in the 36-year history of the CIAC playoffs.

Weston and Masuk lost.

No one from Shangri La will be playing for a state title.

Just like Staples, New Canaan came oh, so close.

For the second straight season, New Canaan found itself down big. But visions of a season ago began dancing in the Rams’ heads in the fourth quarter. Cole Turpin’s long catch set up a Louis Hagopian touchdown run to cut a 27-7 defcit to 28-14.

Trying to run out the clock, Robert Quinn Fleeting fumbled and Michael DiCosmo returned it 79 yards with just under a minute remaining.

Not again? Nope. Not again. Windsor corralled the onside kick and hung on to win 27-21, ending New Canaan’s string of state championship games at six.

“It just goes to show the game’s never over,” Windsor coach Fleeting said. “The difference from last year is we didn’t panic. The kids have grown up.”

“They’re just a gutsy group of kids,” New Canaan coach Lou Marinelli said. “They never gave up. We didn’t play well. We lost to a better team. They’re a team that deserves to go play in a state championship. We did not play well enough.”

Weston's Zach Cannon attempts to bat the ball away from Berlin's Tyler Bouchard in the Class M semifinals at Bunnell.

Tyler Hassett and Weston played valiantly, but fell to No. 2-seeded Berlin, 21-7.

Down 14-0 after a half, Hassett pulled the Trojans within a touchdown. Later, with the score 21-7, just as the Redcoats appeared they would put it away, Erik Dammen-Brower picked off a pass and was headed for the end zone.

But he was chased down, fumbled the ball back and the Trojans were eventually eliminated. Berlin advances to face No. 4-seeded Hillhouse, a 48-26 winner over Montville, in the state championship. This is Hillhouse’s sixth state championship game in school history.

Little Weston, meanwhile, finishes 9-3, including a state playoff victory. This was their best season in 23 years.

“Our kids fought hard,” Lato said. “I’m proud of their effort.”

“This isn’t the finish line. We want to get here every year. It’s always toughest the first time you do something and now we’ve done this and got this far. The underclassmen gained experience and got to see what it’s like to play in playoff games. I’m really proud of what this team has done for Weston football.”

As for Masuk, they were never in it vs. top-seeded and top-ranked Hand.

Hand took its time getting onto the field, but took very little time dismantling Masuk 42-23.

And this wasn’t even that close. In a heavy fog, Caleb Ewald took a flat pass from Brendan Bilcheck and raced 74 yards for a touchdown on the game’s first play. “They throw a screen, the kid that was supposed to cover it never saw the ball in the air,” Masuk coach John Murphy said. “But they took it to us on both sides of the ball in the first half.”

Hand rolled to a 35-0 halftime lead, piling up over 400 yards of offense to reach its second straight state championship game.

This was Hand coach Steve Filippone’s 200th career victory. “I didn’t win a game,” Filippone said. “I’ve never won a game. … I really take no great satisfaction in it. I take satisfaction in that this team has won 26 games in a row.”

Only some heroics by outstanding senior back Thomas Milone, who returned a free kick for a touchdown, caught a touchdown pass and also had an interception, kept the score from looking too lopsided.

But his career, which included a state championship in 2010, now shifts to baseball season and Hand will face Windsor in the state final.

“I’m proud of my kids,” Murphy said. “After what we lost last year, nobody said they could get back here. I’m proud of them.”

Newsome, Chargers roll into final

Ansonia was our only regional team to reach a state championship game.

As expected, there was no doubts about this one.

Newsome ran for 215 yards and four touchdowns and, in the process broke former Ansonia standout back Alex Thomas’ career state record of 115, as the Chargers reached their third-straight championship game and 27th overall with a 41-13 victory over Hyde. |  [CPTV VIDEO]

The Chargers, who have won a state-best 27 consecutive games (Hand has won 26 straight), will play North Branford in the Class S championship.

The T-Birds hammered Woodland 62-27 to reach their first state final since 2001.

S-C-C! S-C-C! S-C-C!

Guess which conference will be playing for three state championships this weekend?

Look no further than Al Carbone’s official Southern Connecticut Conference Twitter account. The Commish’s nimble fingers quickly let everyone know that his league is dominating the proceedings thus far.

Xavier (11-1) will play for its third consecutive Class LL title. Hand (12-0) will play for its second consecutive Class L title. And now, joining the fray, is Hillhouse (10-2), which will be playing for its second Class M title in three years.

After spending the last two championship weekends on the sidelines, the CCC has two representatives. Windsor (11-0) plays Hand in Class L; Berlin (11-1) plays Hillhouse.

The ECC went 1-1 in the semifinals, sending NFA (12-0) to take on Xavier in the Class LL final.

The NVL-Pequot challenge ended 1-1 for each league. Ansonia (13-0), the NVL’s final representative, takes on North Branford (12-0), the Pequot’s last representative.

Overall, the NVL is 3-2 in the state playoffs. The Pequot is 3-3.

And of course, the FCIAC (0-2, 2-5 overall) and the SWC (2-3) will send no state championship representatives.

WATCH the full highlight reel from WFSB’s Friday Night Football crew

Bridgeport to NVL? City public schools in preliminary talks to join Valley league

Monday, November 26, 2012 by:Sean Patrick Bowley
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High school conference realignment has suddenly kicked into high gear.

Central, Bassick and Harding are in preliminary talks to jump from the FCIAC to the NVL, officials on both sides of the aisle confirmed to Hearst Connecticut Newspapers today.

The three city public schools, who have been members of the FCIAC since 1993, met with officials from the NVL last week. Talks are still in the very early stages and no formal invitation has been offered.

“There’s been no application, we had a conversation with them,” said NVL president Tom Pompei, who is the athletic director at Naugatuck High School. “They just wanted to have an initial conversation about the league. It was brief and didn’t go very far.”

This is the second time in as many weeks that the NVL has been a player in potntial realignment. Last week, Oxford’s Board of Education voted to ask for admittance into the league and sources have Hearst CT the NVL is interested in adding the school.

Central and Harding were actually charter members of the NVL in 1931, according to Joe Palladino of the Republican-American.

New citywide athletic director Neil Karvey told our own Dave Ruden it was still very early in the process. He added that improving his school’s competitiveness in sports is the driving force behind the move.

“If they think we’re a good fit there, we would be interested in making a proposal. We’re still gauging local interest here.”

Count Bassick football coach Derrick Lewis as a huge proponent of the move.

“At my school, only sport that wins is boys basketball. everything else loses. We are in a perennial losing situation against teams that have more money and better resources,” he said. “We don’t have what the rest of the county has and we’re getting our teeth kicked in. You want to see us compete, not just in football, but possibly compete better in the other sports, the girls sports. I think it’ll bring morale of schools up and keeps kids on teams and off the streets.

“I’m hoping, for the betterment of our city, if the kids our city more interested in athletics I think we should do it. I’m going to support this move.”

Read the whole story from Dave Ruden here.

From my perspective, though initially shocked at the idea. But on a quick second glance this move would be great for Bridgeport and good for the NVL. From a demographic perspective, as Lewis eluded to, the city schools have much more in common in terms of money and resources with Waterbury and the other NVL schools than it does with the Gold Coast towns of New Canaan, Greenwich, Fairfield and Westport.

A Bridgeport-NVL merger would create a mega boys basketball conference. And other sports, including football, would be more competitive against the three Waterbury schools public schools and several other NVL communities.

Finally, it would solve the 7-year unbalanced scheduling problems in FCIAC football. The league would contract to 16 teams, eliminating its rotating bye week and allowing it to revert back to two divisions to compete for an FCIAC title.

That’s a Wrap! Thanksgiving 2012

Saturday, November 24, 2012 by:Sean Patrick Bowley
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A look as who did what on Thanksgiving Week 2012. Compiled by executive sports editor Gary Rogo and the Hearst CT sports staff.

BULLDOZERS

Joey Zelkowitz, Staples: Ran for FCIAC-title game record 317 yards on 20 carries and scored three TDs, as Wreckers won the league championship for second straight year.

John Shannon, Bullard-Havens: Helped the Tigers finish off an 8-2 regular season with 274 yards and five TDs on 23 carries in a 49-24 defeat of Bassick.

Cooper Gold, Newtown: Torched two-time defending league champion Masuk for 222 yards and a pair of touchdowns to propel the Nighthawks to a 21-14 victory in the SWC championship game.

Andrew Louis, Central: Gained 100 yards and scored three TDs on 11 carries as Hilltoppers hung on to beat Harding 30-22.

Arkeel Newsome, Ansonia: Ran for four TDs and caught a 9-yard pass from Jai’Quan McKnight for a fifth score in 48-27 victory over Naugatuck.

Collin Cioffi, New Fairfield: Stepping in for an absent Joe Pacheco, junior finished with 205 yards from scrimmage and a TD in 31-13 pasting of New Milford.

Sam Gravitte, Ridgefield: Ran for 158 yards and three TDs in 42-6 rout of Danbury.

Shaquan Howsie and Shawn Brown, Trinity Catholic: Howsie ran for 155 yards and a pair of scores while Brown added 131 rushing yards with three TDs, including one on a 76-yard pass from Danny O’Leary, as the Crusaders clinched a Class S playoff berth with a 42-32 defeat of Wilton.

Davell Cotterell, Westhill: Workhorse carried 32 times for 195 yards and one TD as the Vikings subdued city rival Stamford 20-6.

Kyle Jordan, McMahon: Broke free after slow start for 130 yards and TD runs of 20 and 61 yards.

GAMEBREAKERS

Connor Cadrin, Foran: Scored five TDs, two on passes from Jake Kasuba, two on runs and one on a 66-yard kickoff return in a 56-29 defeat of Law. For good measure, he intercepted a pair of passes and forced a fumble.

Joe Piatnik, Bethel: Quarterback ran for 249 yards and three TDs on 25 carries and threw scoring passes of 39, 68 and 25 yards in a 48-28 defeat of Brookfield.

Nick Lombardo, Darien: Caught TD passes of 35, 30 and 30 yards from Henry Baldwin as the Blue Wave beat New Canaan for the first time since 2001.

Terrence N’dabian, Bunnell: Insertion of senior as starting QB turned the pass-happy Bulldogs into an option team. Responded with 224 rushing yards and two TDs on 30 carries. He also threw a TD pass and returned an interception 70 yards for a score.

Justin Schaffer, Weston: Ran for a touchdown and caught the winning TD pass in Weston’s state-tournament clinching victory over Barlow.

GUNSLINGERS

Jordan Vazzano, St. Joseph: Sophomore threw for 212 yards and four touchdowns as the Cadets clinched a state playoff berth with a 55-20 victory over Trumbull.

Jake Kasuba, Foran: Sophomore finished with 257 yards passes and four TD tosses, two each to Connor Cadrin and Nick Weissauer.

Tanner Kingsley, Woodland: Set a state record with 615 passing yards while throwing for eight TDs in a 62-26 rout of Seymour.

Tyler Hassett, Weston: Threw for 126 yards and two TDs in 21-14 victory over Barlow, earning the Trojans their first state playoff berth in 23 years.

Jai’Quan McKnight, Ansonia: Soph had TD runs of 65 and 59 yards in win over Naugatuck and added a TD pass to Arkeel Newsome.

Mark Piccirillo, Shelton: Soph threw a 38-yard TD pass to Kyle Drost, capping a four-play, 72-yard game-winning drive in 27-21 victory over Derby. Finished with 126 yards on 8-of-16 passing and 111 yards rushing and two TDs on 14 carries.

Brennen Diaz, Oxford: Completed 10-of-16 passes for 197 yards and two TDs — both to Chris Vankamerik — in 42-22 beating of Pomperaug. Capped effort with a late interception.`

BRICK WALLS

Kyle Dammeyer, Jimmy Gasper and Benjamin Brzoski, Fairfield Ludlowe: Dammeyer recovered fumble and had 1 1/2 sacks in 31-13 victory over Fairfield Warde as the Falcons won their last four games to finish 5-5. Gasper blocked a punt and recovered the ball in the end zone for a touchdown. Brzoski scooped up a Warde fumble and went 92 yards for a TD.

William Kelly, Notre Dame-Fairfield: Blocked a punt and returned it five yards for a score in Lancers’ 26-22 victory over Immaculate.

Justin DeVellis, Newtown: Picked off a pass to seal Newtown’s SWC Championship victory over Masuk.

Jack Hamilton, Weston: Made several late stops, including a batted down pass on 4th down to preserve Weston’s state playoff clinching victory over Barlow.

VALIANT IN DEFEAT

Marc Cesare, Trumbull: 137 yards rushing and two TDs in loss to St. Joseph

D.J. Smith, Harding: Went 74 yards for a TD on the Presidents’ first play and finished with 197 yards on 13 carries, scoring a second time on a 51-yard run in the third quarter.

Thomas Milone, Masuk: 165 yards of total offense and two TDs and an interception in a 21-14 loss to Newtown in the SWC championship game.

Alex McMurray, Greenwich: Scored three TDs on runs of 6, 1 and 4 yards in 48-30 loss to Staples in the FCIAC championship game.

Jack Hunt: Remembering an Ansonia Legend

Friday, November 23, 2012 by:Sean Patrick Bowley
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♦♦♦

Just an hour before Ansonia and Naugatuck kicked off the 113th edition of their Thanksgiving Rivalry, Jack Hunt, one of town’s most beloved figures died just a few miles from Jarvis Stadium.

Hunt, an imposing figure, starred at Ansonia as two-way lineman, played at Wichita State under Bill Parcells and Jimmy Johnson, then returned to coach in his hometown, first as an assistant then as a seven-time state championship coach.

While Hunt’s health had been failing in recent months as he battled through cancer, his death came as a shock to most of us out covering games. It created a pall over Jarvis Stadium as the news spread across the thousands in attendance.

You’ll likely be hearing a lot of great stories about Hunt over the next few days as Ansonia mourns his passing.

Personally, I only covered Jack’s teams for two years. But I’m thankful for getting to know the big man, who — quite frankly — intimidated the hell out of me when I first started at Connecticut Post.

As for stories, well, my only Jack Hunt story came in 2005, his last year as coach. The Chargers were talented, but young and struggling. They were 2-2 heading into a game at Seymour.

To preview the game, I called the coach — to whom I’d barely got to know in my one year — and stuttered and stumbled through an anxious interview. Knowing Ansonia’s proud tradition and knowing losing is never accepted, especially by Hunt, I somehow uttered these words:

“Coach, if you don’t win this game, would the season be over?”

Big Jack was gracious. He gave me a few quotes that worked for my story. They were subtle, but in essence was a firm, “No.”

I thought nothing of it until Ansonia, behind an an awesome performance by a sophomore tailback named Alex Thomas, crushed QB Ryan Osiecki and Seymour 48-13.

Afterwards, he gathered his team together and announced the following:

“Hey! Hey! SOME REPORTER called me the other night and had the GUTS to ask if the season was OVER? CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT??? IS THIS SEASON OVER???”

As I stood nearby, flummoxed and thoroughly put in my place, the Chargers went nuts.

Ansonia went on to win four straight games until losing to eventual Class SS champion Woodland. The Chargers didn’t make the playoffs at 7-3 and Hunt officially retired at the end of the year. He said wanted to hand the keys to a clearly talented group over to one of his young, upcoming assistants, Tom Brockett.

Brockett won the state championship and the No. 1 ranking the following season.

I’d always see Hunt at Ansonia games, holding court by his usual spot in the north end zone at Jarvis with a few of his buddies. I’d always find time strike up a conversation (typically kicking things off by asking how his golf game was going) and got to know the man better just through chit chat. The two of us had a few laughs, talking Valley football and all of its characters.

As imposing and as tough as the man was to generations of Ansoniaians, Coach Hunt was also an affable, gentle giant. He commanded your attention, but  you would find it hard to pull yourself away as Hunt spun yarn after yarn of amazing stories.

I’m grateful for having covered him and his teams. My deepest condolences go out to the Hunt family and Ansonia community. We’ve lost a legend.

Below is a collection of all the Tweets and tributes from fans, former players and us reporters on Thanksgiving Day.

To all you Ansonia guys on here (including you, Carl and Eddie), please share with us your thoughts and memories of the late, great Jack Hunt.


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