Ned Griffen: The Lonesome Polecat: Northwest United making it work

Nov. 1—Howdy,

They come from Bethlehem, Litchfield, Torrington, Washington and all points in between to meet at Nonnewaug High School in Woodbury and play football for the Northwest United co-op.

"(It's) probably 35, 40 minutes (by bus)," said a smiling Jacob Bourgoin, a senior at Wolcott Tech, "but I drive."

The Workhorses may not all go to school together or see each other every day, but they've banded together to become one of the best stories in state high school football this season. They're 6-0 and have are ranked second in the CIAC's Class MM division.

"It's just showed us that no matter where you're from or what you do, you can always get together and become a family and united," Bourgoin said. "And that's what we are."

Northwest is comprised of Litchfield, Nonnewaug, Shepaug Valley (Washington), Wamogo (Litchfield) and Wolcott Tech (Torrington). It's been an unlikely success story given how some of the participants struggled in the past.

Wamogo and Wolcott Tech were previously part of the MCW United co-op for four seasons along with Housatonic Regional of Falls Village, the host school.

MCW went 0-40.

Nonnewaug had all sorts of issues of its own trying to operate its own program. It lost its 2009 season opener and then forfeited its remaining nine games due to low numbers. It went 16-55 over its next seven seasons and never fared better than 5-5 in 2015.

Nonnewaug was forced to play as a junior varsity team in 2018 and 2019 due to low numbers. It was going to form a co-op with Waterbury's Kaynor Tech and Sacred Heart for the 2021 season when Sacred Heart closed, putting the co-op at risk.

Housatonic broke away from MCW prior to the 2021 season to join Gilbert, its longtime Thanksgiving Day rival. Gilbert was already part of a co-op with fellow Winstad school Northwestern Regional.

Wamogo and Wolcott Tech and Nonnewaug were looking for new partners and came together (Nonnewaug is the host school). They finished 7-3 together last season.

Asked if he thought the program would succeed so fast, senior Ben Roden said, "Honestly, I didn't think so. I mean, Nonnewaug, before the co-op, they didn't have much success as a program and neither did (MCW). So combining two teams with not much success you would think would lead to not much success. But I think the coaches have all just helped us."

Bourgoin said, "We didn't really know what we were getting into but all we knew is that this (was) a new team and no matter if we dislike or like each other, we're going to have to make it work. And that's what we did. And we got it done."

Litchfield and Shepaug Valley of Washington joined the program this season.

"You always want to have goals and expectations for your kids," said head coach Jennifer Garzone, who also held that position for MCW during its last season (2019). "The biggest thing is that this group has bonded together. They put in work in the off-season and they want to be here. They're committed. Most of our kids are coming from 45 minutes away.

"I know a lot of people say its cliché but it is — it's another family."

Garzone began to chuckle and added, "And it's the family from August until however long we can go (this year)."

Bourgoin and Roden said the team has found ways to stay connected despite being apart via phone calls, Snapchat and video games.

"It's been my experience working in the technical high school system is that kids are coming from all over and from different walks of life and backgrounds, and, at the end of the day, we're all human," said Garzone, who works at Goodwin Tech in New Britain, "And we all have a love for football and we understand that it's the ultimate team sport. You can't go forward unless the guy next to you is going forward with you.

"There's absolutely a lot more things that go on behind the scenes that you have to go through (with a co-op) but it's also probably one of the most rewarding opportunities I've had to coach."

The Workhorses had a strong crowd for last Thursday's Homecoming game with many wearing pink as part of a "Pink Out" to support the fight against breast cancer.

Northwest trailed Bullard-Havens of Bridgeport by 12 points midway through the second quarter but rallied for a 36-25 win.

Roden ran 16 times for 189 yards and three touchdowns and completed 7 of 12 passes for 98 yards and a score. Reed Woerner also caught a 30-yard touchdown pass and Bourgoin scored on a 1-yard run.

"We just all love football and we want to win," Roden said. "That's something we all have in common. And we just all love each other and trust each other."

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A few games of note in Week 8:

No. 6 St. Joseph 27, No. 2 New Canaan 14

New Canaan had made its bones with defense through its first six games of the season, allowing just 21 points with four shutouts.

The Cadets went to New Canaan's house last Friday and beat the Rams at their own game. They allowed the New Canaan just 162 yards, one offensive touchdown and forced four turnovers for their biggest win of the season.

Connor Fahey had two interceptions and three tackles, Sam Rosa had an interception and Jermaine Hatchett had a team-high 5.5 tackles for St. Joseph (6-1).

The Cadets offense literally played keep away from the Rams, too, as they finished with an edge in offensive plays (63-42). And while time of possession isn't what it used to be because teams can both play fast and score quickly via the pass, it was in this game as St. Joseph had a ridiculous advantage of 37 minutes, 15 seconds to 15:22.

Riley Jordan ran 29 times for 161 yards and three touchdowns for the Cadets and Logan Spoelstra kicked field goals of 28 and 27 yards as well as three extra points.

SIDEBAR — every team St. Joseph has played this season has a winning record (i.e. 4-3 at worst), including three with 6-1 records (Greenwich, New Canaan and Staples). That's nutty.

Hunter Telasco ran 13 times for 87 yards and a score for New Canaan while Matt Salmini scored on a 32-yard interception return.

No. 3 Greenwich 28, Darien 20

Greenwich held off the feisty Blue Wave for its first win over Darien since 2007.

(Can a wave be feisty?)

Jack Wilson completed 16 of 28 passes for 264 yards and two touchdowns and scored on runs of 1 and 2 yards for the Cardinals (6-1). James Wailgum added 10 catches for 142 yards and Charlie Dixon had four catches for 79 yards and a score.

Simeon Doll threw for 338 yards and a touchdown and ran for 50 yards and a score for the Blue Wave (4-3).

One of the key sequences came late in the first half with Greenwich leading, 21-7. The Blue Wave had first-and-goal at the 1-yard line with 19 seconds left but couldn't score on first or second down before time ran out.

No. 8 North Haven 10, Cheshire 0

It's great in this era of obscene scores to have an old-school defensive struggle once-in-a-while.

The Nighthawks held the Rams to 150 yards offense for their fourth shutout of the season

Camren Thompson ran for a 30-yard touchdown and Declan Finkle kicked a 20-yard field goal for North Haven (6-1). Adam Pandolfi and Nicholas Harkins also had 10 tackles teach.

Newtown 30, No. 10 Barlow 20

Another team called the Nighthawks (yes, we have back-to-back Nighthawks write-ups) gave Barlow its first loss of the season just after it cracked the top 10 in The Day coaches' poll.

Andrew Swierbut scored on a 67-yard punt return and kicked a 22-yard field goal and three extra points for Newtown (6-1). Caleb Smith added 15 carries for 146 yards and a touchdown and Dylan MAGAZU ran 13 times for 87 yards and a score.

Danny Shaban ran 28 times for 189 yards and two touchdowns and completed 2 of 5 passes for 58 yards for the Falcons (6-1).

Fairfield Prep 16, Shelton 15

The Jesuits have pulled themselves out of an early-season hole and continue to play like the best team in the always cut-throat world known as Tier 1 of the Southern Connecticut Conference.

Malachi Mercer-Robinson ran for a 2-yard touchdown with under three minutes left and Robert Murphy's extra point put Prep ahead to stay.

WALLY WUCHISKI ran 28 times for 131 yards and a touchdown for the Jesuits (4-3), who have won their last three games. Their losses were to No. 6 New Canaan (14-7, Sept. 23), No. 8 Hamden (42-27, Sept. 30) and Belen Jesuit of Miami (15-14, Sept. 9). ... and they're 4-0 in the SCC Tier 1.

Michael Kinik completed 16 of 31 passes for 108 yards and a touchdown for the Gaels (4-3), who were ranked No. 1 before losing three of their last four.

Cromwell/Portland 28, Valley Regional/Old Lyme 27

The Panthers rallied from a 21-7 deficit for the win and take sole control of first place in the Pequot League Sassacus Division.

Crom/Port's Johnny Beltre made one of the biggest plays of the game as he deflected a WARRIORCATS pass attempt for the two-point conversoin after they scored with 1:08 left in the game.

Cole Brisson completed 11 of 18 passes for 105 yards and two touchdowns for the Panthers (7-0), last season's Class S champs (they've ascended to SS this year).

Di'Angelo Jean-Pierre scored on a 61-yard punt return and threw a 33-yard touchdown pass to Jacob Rand for VR/OL (5-1).

New Britain 48, Enfield 47 (OT)

Remember a few paragraphs ago when we mentioned the proliferation of high-scoring, defenseless games?

HERE YOU GO.

This was the weekend's wildest battle as the Hurricanes rallied back from a 20-point deficit for the win.

The Eagles led 27-7 with three minutes left in the third quarter.

New Britain responded with 28 straight points.

Donavan Campbell threw a go-ahead 4-yard touchdown pass to Dontay Bishop in overtime for the Hurricanes. Enfield scored on its possession but a bad snap foiled its extra point attempt to give New Britain the win.

Cam Bond ran 29 times for 318 yards and four touchdowns for the Hurricanes while Campbell completed 10 of 17 passes for 222 yards and two touchdowns.

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Frankie Guerrera had one of the best game's in Rocky Hill history last Friday and earned himself a place in the Connecticut High School Football Record Book — he accounted for all of his team's points as the Terriers thrashed Lewis Mills, 42-7.

Guerrera ran 15 times for 169 yards and five touchdowns, had five catches for 94 yards and a score and was 6-for-6 on extra points.

Guerrera's performance puts in him an 18-way tie for the 23rd most points scored in a game according to the Record Book.

Some the dudes Guerrera is tied with — Harold Cooper, Arkeel Newsome, Alex Thomas and Earl "NERVY" Gillespie (yes, "Nervy"), who made his mark during a 1913 game against Paterson, New Jersey.

Old-timey nicknames are the best. Like Raymond "Ducky" Pond, who scored 59 points for Torrington against Simsbury in 1917.

Or Noodles Hahn, a left-handed pitcher for both the Cincinnati Reds and New York Highlanders between 1899-1906.

Or Dick "Night Train" Lane.

Or Elroy "Crazylegs" Hirsch.

Or "Slingin" Sammy Baugh, the greatest quarterback in the history of quarterbacks.

Yes, this note took a sudden and odd turn.

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BEHOLD, The Day of New London Top 10 state coaches' poll: 1. Southington (7-0, eight first-place votes); 2. Greenwich; 3. Maloney (7-0, three first-place votes); 4. West Haven (7-0, two first-place votes); 5. St. Joseph; 6. New Canaan; 7. North Haven; 8. Hamden (7-0); 9. Ansonia (7-0); 10. Newtown.

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The New Haven Register/GameTimeCT.com Monolith Top 10 media poll: 1. Southington (23 first-place votes); 2. Maloney; 3. Greenwich; 4. West Haven (one first-place vote); 5. St. Joseph; 6. New Canaan; 7. Hamden; 8. Ansonia; 9. North Haven; 10. Staples (6-1).

Staples was No. 13 in the coaches' poll.

Newtown was No. 15 in the media poll.

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Ned Freeman's cold, calculating computer rankings for CalPreps and MaxPreps: 1. St. Joseph; 2. Southington; 3. West Haven; 4. Greenwich; 5. North Haven; 6. New Canaan; 7. North Haven; 8. Newtown; 9. Notre Dame-West Haven (5-2); 9. Staples; 10. Maloney.

St. Joseph is ranked ahead of the team that beat it (Greenwich, 36-26). So computers can be as daffy as humans.

Hamden was No. 11.

Notre Dame is No. 20 in the coaches' poll and No. 23 in the media poll.

Speaking of St. Joseph, the computer ranked its schedule the state's toughest for all the reasons we covered earlier.

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Dig the ballot Polecat HQ filed for the New Haven Register/GameTimeCT media poll:

1. West Haven: Switched over from Southington on a hunch. Well, that and talking to some pretty smart football-y folks.

2. Southington

3. Greenwich

4. St. Joseph

5. Maloney

6. Hamden

7. Fairfield Prep: It rewarded our faith in it with its comeback win over Shelton as it continues to run the SCC Tier 1 gauntlet. It finishes with home games against Notre Dame-West Haven, North Haven and West Haven. YOUR team's schedule is weak and puny in comparison.

8. North Haven

9. New Canaan

10. Staples

11. Shelton: More on it in a moment.

12. Newtown

13. Cheshire: See Shelton.

14. Notre Dame (West Haven variant): Alright, about what we were teasing earlier — odds are that two of the three, Cheshire, ND and Shelton, won't be long for this ballot.

Shelton hosts Cheshire this week and plays at ND on Nov. 11.

Compounding matters for Cheshire and ND is that both play two of the state's best teams on Thanksgiving. Cheshire hosts Southington while the Green Knights play at Hamden in the annual Green Bowl.

15. Trumbull

Disclaimer: Yes, we're FCIAC/SCC (and large-school) snobs because of recent (and past) history.

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HATS OFF~!

Hunter Agosti, Lucas Antonio and Rowan Johnston, Trumbull: Johnston ran 26 times for 185 yards and two touchdowns and caught five passes for 39 yards in last Friday's 39-14 win over Fairfield Ludlowe. Agosti completed 22 of 34 passes for 310 yards and three touchdowns and Antonio caught six passes for 102 yards and two scores.

A bunch of Ansonia-ns: Dave Cassetti ran seven times for 149 yards and a touchdown and also caught a 37-yard touchdown as the Chargers thumped Oxford last Friday, 56-20. Chris Kaminski completed 3 of 5 passes with three touchdowns for Ansonia while Machi Ingram ran twice for 64 yards and two touchdowns and had two catches for 72 yards and a score. Shawn Richards added four carries for 82 yards and two TDs.

Riley Albanese-Harrison, Anthony Bell and Josh Dunne, Wolcott: Bell threw touchdown passes for 10 and 11 yards to Albanese-Harrison as Wolcott topped Kennedy last Friday, 35-13. Dunne scored on a 75-yard kickoff return to open the game.

Zy'kie Askew and David DeLeon, Middletown: Askew ran 16 times for 162 yards and three touchdowns and caught two passes for 26 yards as the Blue Dragons beat Bristol Central last Friday, 34-20. DeLeon added three carries for 69 yards and two scores for Middletown (5-2).

Aiden Avenia, Freddie Camp and Greyson Ursone, Gilbert/Northwestern Regional/Housatonic: Ursone ran twice. ... for 96 yards and two touchdowns as the Yellowjackets downed Torrington last Friday, 42-22. Camp ran a team-high six times for 55 yards and two touchdowns and Avenia had four carries for 34 yards and two touchdowns for GNH (5-2), which led by as much as 42-0.

Tyree Barnes, Christian Irizarry and Kyle Parkes, New London: Irizarry threw touchdown passes of 16 and 89 yards to Barnes during last Saturday's 28-27 loss to East Lyme. Parkes had two sacks.

Tre Blair, Bristol Central: Ran 26 times for 124 yards and two scores in last Friday's 34-20 loss to Middletown.

Jordan Brice and Bode Smith, Hall: Smith completed 16 of 23 passes for 219 yards and three touchdowns in last Friday's 31-3 win over Simsbury. Brice scored on a 12-yard run and a 28-yard pass.

Josh Boganski and Kyle Valentine, Maloney: Boganski ran for three touchdowns and Valentine threw for two as the Spartans blanked Conard last Friday, 32-0.

Joe Booska, Kyle Ray and Gavin Spencer, Stratford: Booska completed 18 of 38 passes for 345 yards and two touchdowns in last Friday's 55-26 loss to Law. Gavin Spencer had five tackles, including three sacks, for the Red Devils and Kyle Ray had 11 tackles.

Paddy Brown and Josiah Ross, Newington: Brown needed to complete just 9 of 16 passes for 219 yards and four touchdowns to help the Nor'easters get past East Hartford last Friday, 35-27, for their first win of the season. Ross had four catches for 98 yards and two scores.

Tate Callender, ORION Inkel and Joe Slane, Haddam-Killingworth: ORION ran 18 times for 212 yards and four touchdowns as the Cougars trucked Coginchaug/Hale-Ray/East Hampton last Friday, 56-6. Callender had six catches for 124 yards and a touchdown, scored on a 1-yard run and ran for a conversion, scored on both a run and a pass and Slane scored on a 24-yard interception return. FYI — H-K ran for six touchdowns overall which is how REAL MEN score their points. Okay, safeties are dope, too.

Drew Caouette and Tom Ligi, Holy Cross: Caouette tossed touchdown passes of 10, 60 and 20 yards as the Crusaders smote Crosby last Saturday, 35-8. Ligi scored on runs of 20 and 92 yards for Holy Cross (6-1).

Lincoln Cardillo and CJ DiBenedetto, Southington: DiBenedetto completed 17 of 22 passes for 266 yards and two touchdowns in the Blue Knights' 27-6 win over Glastonbury last Friday. Cardillo added 20 carries for 110 yards rushing and two scores.

Tyler Casey, Gavin Janowski, Cristian Roman-Koenig and Ethan Saez, Lyman Hall: Casey completed 13 of 20 passes for 162 yards and four touchdowns, including three to Saez, in last Friday's 39-22 win over Harding. Saez had seven catches for 83 yards as well as a safety, Roman-Koenig ran 26 times for 167 yards and a touchdown with six tackles and Janowski had two interceptions.

Darnell Bronson and Alfredo Nevarez, New Milford: Bronson completed 12 of 19 passes for 201 yards and two touchdowns and ran 14 times for 44 yards and three touchdowns as the Green Wave swamped Norwich Free Academy last Saturday, 46-13. Nevarez added four catches for 126 yards and two scores.

Josh Clement, Berlin: Ran for an even 100 yards and four touchdowns on 15 carries as the Redcoats stormed Avon last Friday, 35-8.

Nick Conlan, Avian Evans and Trevor Tompkins, West Haven: Conlan threw two touchdowns as the Westies downed Sheehan last Friday, 52-0. Conlan tied the school record for most touchdown passes in a season (14) for the Westies (7-0), which shows how much they used to throw in the past. See, they used to be known for their wing-T offense and dangerous running game. Now they're lining up in shotgun with an empty backfield. Is there NOTHING I can count on anymore? Oh, yeah — Tompkins caught one of Conlan's touchdown passes and scored on a 7-yard run while Evans scored on an interception return for the second straight week (35 yards).

Alex Cushing, Paul Calandrelli, John Hayden, Hand: Calandrelli completed 9 of 17 passes for 141 yards and ran 12 times for 73 yards and a touchdown to pace the Tigers past Xavier last Friday, 21-7. Hayden had 10 tackles, including a sack, with an interception and Cushing had 14 tackles.

Jack Cushman, Foran: 'twas an efficient 5 of 6 passing for 173 yards and two touchdowns as the Lions downed Bassick last Friday, 44-6.

Seth Cunningham, Ryan Outlow and Jack Philistin, Thames River: Outlow ran 12 times for 179 yards and three touchdowns as the stomped yet another overmatched opponent last Friday, Wilcox Tech/Kaynor Tech, 55-7. Cunningham had 12 carries for 216 yards and two scores for Thames (6-0) and Philistin completed 12 of 15 passes for 180 yards and two touchdowns. The Crusaders lead the state in points per game (50.7) and points allowed (13).

Tyshaun Davender, Camren Kemp and Shawn Mills, Hamden: Kemp (13 carries, 150 yards) and Mills (seven carries, 153 yards) both scored two touchdowns as the Green Dragons shut down Branford last Friday, 27-0. Davender added 15 tackles.

Luke Dawson, Michael Ricketts and Michael Trovarelli, Bunnell: Trovarelli ground out 196 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries along with nine tackles as the Bulldogs downed Notre Dame of Fairfield last Friday, 18-0. Ricketts had four tackles and scored on a 96-yard interception return for Bunnell (6-1) and Dawson had 12 tackles.

Justyn DeFonce, Aiden McGrath and Noah Miller, Abbott Tech/Immaculate: McGrath completed 12 of 19 passes for 216 yards and four touchdowns as THE UNITED downed VG Techs last Friday, 47-20. DeFonce had six catches for 100 yards and two touchdowns along with two interceptions for A/TI (5-1) and Miller had three catches for 73 yards and a score and recovered a fumble.

Zach Donovan and Connor Marchi, Stafford/East Windsor/Somers: Donovan threw for 189 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 110 yards and a score in the Bulldogs' 43-21 loss to the Sports & Medical Sciences co-op last Friday. Marchi had 10 catches for 189 yards and a TD.

Michael Dowd, Justin Keller and Kruz Meier, Ridgefield: Keller threw touchdown passes of 31, 222 and 77 yards in last Friday's 31-7 triumph over Wilton. Dowd caught the first two of those touchdowns. Meier also returned a blocked field goal for a 75-yard touchdown.

Thomas Dreibholz and Soren Rief, Killingly: Rief ran 27 times for 295 yards and five touchdowns in last Friday's 52-19 win over Fitch. Dreibholz completed 6 of 10 passes for 166 yards for YOU defending Class M champs (6-1).

Caden Drezek, Michael Rossetti and Christian Sheehan, Seymour: Drezek threw five touchdown passes, including two for 15 yards to Rossetti, as the Wildcats stormed Derby, 49-13, last Friday. Sheehan scored on a 39-yard fumble return for Seymour (5-2).

Darrien Foster, Davien Kerr, Davion Paul and Ryan Phillips, Bloomfield: Foster strafed RHAM for 332 yards and four touchdowns on 17 of 22 passing in last Saturday's 47-7 win over RHAM. Davien Kerr had five catches for 166 yards and two touchdowns, five tackles, including a sack, and an interception for the WARHAWKS (6-1) and Paul and Phillips both had nine tackles.

Thomas Fremont, Charlie Gulbin and William Imschweiler, Fairfield Warde: Gulbin completed 13 of 16 passes for 210 yards with touchdowns to three different receivers to lead the Mustangs past Danbury last Saturday, 35-22. Fremont and Imschweiler each had 11 tackles.

Brady Gambee and Tobias Koval, Watertown: Gambee scored on runs of 33 and 22 yards, threw a touchdown pass to Koval and scored on an interception return in last Friday's 42-8 rout over Wilby.

Tamir Gamble and Daniel Hernandez, Sports & Medical Sciences co-op: Hernandez just keeps racking up TDs. He ran for three (all in the fourth quarter) and threw two more as the TIGERHAWKS beat Stafford/East Windsor/Somers last Friday, 43-21. Gamble had two interceptions, forced a fumble and recovered another.

James Green, Jacob Lenz and Jackson Poulton, Ledyard: Green needed just 11 carries to get 124 yards and four touchdowns in last Friday's 52-14 win over Montville last Friday. Poulton ran three times for. ... 151 yards?

What.

(Checks notes.)

Okay, Poulton ran three times for 151 yards and a touchdown and completed both his passes for 69 yards and a score for the Colonels (6-1) and Lenz had two catches for 69 yards and a touchdown, two interceptions, one which he returned for a TD, and seven tackles.

Guilford GRIZZLIES: Mike O'Brien ran 24 times for 237 yards and three touchdowns in last Saturday's 46-29 win over Woodstock Academy. Tyler Hilgert completed 13 of 20 passes for 148 yards and a touchdown and ran five times for 31 yards and a score, Alejandro Colberg-Martinez had eight tackles and a sack, Logan Murphy had two sacks and fumble recovery and Rocco Barbera added two sacks for Guilford (5-2).

Matt Hagerty and John Neider, Law: Neider threw four touchdown passes and scored on runs of 29 and 52 yards in the Lawmen's 55-26 win over Stratford last Friday. Hagerty caught touchdown passes of 41, 14 and 16 yards for Law (6-1).

Tammy Hansen, Mason Provencher and Tyler Serenson, North Branford: Provencher completed 10 of 16 passes for 109 yards and a touchdown and ran eight times for 83 yards and a score as the Thunderbirds rallied past the Capital Prep/Achievement First co-op last Saturday, 28-22. Hansen had 15 carries for 87 yards and two touchdowns and Serenson added 13 tackles for North Branford, which outscored the Trailblazers in the fourth quarter, 14-0.

Malachi Mapp and Nathan Palmer, Rockville: Mapp ran for three touchdowns in the Rams' 44-6 jaunt over Coventry/Windham Tech/Bolton/Lyman Memorial/And All Points Inbetween last Friday. And now that I've typed in "Mapp", I have the Yeah Yeah Yeahs on the brain.

John Manning, AJ Robinson and CHILLI White, Windsor: Robinson had 21 of the team's 32 carries for 128 yards and three touchdowns to help the Warriors defeat Manchester last Friday, 38-20. Robinson completed 10 of 15 passes for 188 yards and three touchdowns for Windsor (4-3) and White had three carries for 93 yards and a touchdown and ran four times for 67 yards.

Cayden Martin and Blake Stone, Naugatuck: Stone threw touchdown passes or 25 and 73 yards (the latter to Martin) and scored on a 1-yard run as the Greyhounds trucked Waterbury Career Academy, 42-13, last Friday. Martin also scored on a 7-yard run.

Justin McCormack and Douglas Traynor, New Fairfield: McCormack ran 11 times for 151 yards and three touchdowns and completed 14 of 21 passes for 174 yards as the Rebels doubled-up Brookfield, 28-14, last Friday. Traynor had 16 tackles for New Fairfield (6-1). We're also delighted to hear that Brookfield has brought back the WISHBONE. Yes, kids, it's legal to put the quarterback under center, line up three backs behind him AND use just ONE receiver.

To learn more about the wishbone, go to your local library or read THIS. Or THIS. Or THIS.

Will Migliaccio and Connor Richardson, Granby/Canton: Migliaccio completed 13 of 23 passes for 132 yards and three touchdowns to pace the Bears (5-2) past Ellington last Friday, 21-7. Richardson scored on a 50-yard punt return.

Kaeden O'Connell, Ethan Rainha and Thomas Stanley, East Catholic: O'Connell completed 9 of 13 passes for 184 yards and three touchdowns, all to Rainha, as the Eagles blanked Plainfield last Friday, 35-0. Stanley ran for 81 yards and two scores for East Catholic (5-2).

Aidan Patterson, East Lyme: He ran for 204 yards and three touchdowns and scored on a 45-yard punt return as the Vikings edged New London last Saturday, 19-14.

Ejai Presley, Stamford: He completed 6 of 9 passes for 122 yards and two touchdowns and ran twice for 56 yards and a score as Stamford downed McMahon last Saturday, 27-13.

Avery and Amari Robinson, Platt: AMARI ran 15 times for 142 yards and three touchdowns as the Panthers ground up Farmington last Friday, 42-7. AVERY completed 12 of 19 passes for 187 yards and three touchdowns to three different dudes.

Staples: Caleb Smith continues to light up the night sky for the WRECKERS. He completed 18 of 23 passes for 274 yards with four touchdowns and ran nine times for 71 yards and three touchdowns in last Friday's 56-7 destruction of McMahon. James Hillhouse had seven catches for 106 yards and two touchdowns, Michael Nealon had nine tackles, including half a sack, and Will Holleman had two interceptions.

Jacob Staton, Notre Dame-West Haven: Needed just 13 carries to rack up 170 yards and four touchdowns as the Green Knights rolled Wilbur Cross last Friday, 47-0.

Brady Sutman, Waterford: Ran seven times for 92 yards and two touchdowns and turned a screen pass from Nate Hynes into a 22-yard touchdown in last Friday's 63-18 loss to Windham.

ZAVEYN Tate, Bristol Eastern: Scored on a 36-yard interception return and recovered a fumble in the Lancers plunked Plainfield last Friday, 35-6.

Wethersfield-ians: Cam Righi completed 7 of 10 passes for 120 yards and two touchdowns and ran seven times for 55 yards and a score as the Eagles flattened South Windsor last Friday, 41-7. Jova'n Hill ran for two touchdowns in the first quarter, Christian Morales had 12 tackles and Noah Pasquaretta had 10 tackles and recovered a fumble for Wethersfield (5-1).

MIGHTY Windham (a registered trademark of Chuck "Puddles" Banning): Scored on every possession during its 63-18 rout of Waterford last Friday. Zack Robinson-Smey threw touchdown passes of 9 and 41 yards and scored on a 5-yard run, Victor Mejia had six carries for 54 yards and two touchdowns (all in the first quarter) and Asael Garcia-Rodriguez ran seven times for 152 yards and two touchdowns (all in the second half) for the Whippets. Yael Garcia Rodriguez also nailed all nine of his extra points attempts.

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Thanks for reading. More soon. Listen to BRUTUS.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN....