NFA falls to New Milford on Homecoming Day
NORWICH - The ominous signs were there during Saturday’s football matinee between Norwich Free Academy and New Milford: a few unlucky bounces that were just a start to the Wildcats' long afternoon.
On the game's first play, a pass from Green Wave quarterback Darnell Cicero-Bronson was tipped into the air by an NFA defender but the ball fell into the arms of Alfredo Nevarez, Jr. for a five-yard gain. A few plays later Cicero-Bronson scored the first of his three rushing touchdowns.
On the Wildcats' first play from scrimmage, a fumble bounced straight into the hands of Green Wave defender Colby Shears, who raced 40 yards into the end zone to give New Milford a quick and stunning two-touchdown lead.
It was all downhill from there for the Wildcats, who were looking to keep some momentum from last week’s win against Ledyard but fell 46-13 in front of a large Homecoming Day crowd in Norwich.
“We definitely did not start the way that we scripted it up,” NFA coach Erik Larka said. “It was an embarrassing game from our perspective all around. You can’t overcome turnovers and penalties.”
The Wildcats (1-6) committed three costly turnovers in the first half, along with a pair of inopportune facemask penalties. The Green Wave (4-3), whose no-huddle offense gave the Wildcats fits, took advantage while building a 39-0 halftime lead.
NFA’s early deficit forced Larka to eschew part of the playbook.
“We’ve been using that Double Wing package but once you go down 14-0 we had to abandon it,” Larka said. “That’s not one that you can come from behind with. You want to get the lead and then milk the clock with that one. We went back to our spread and we had more turnovers (two interceptions). If you lose the turnover battle you're not going to win the game.”
Nevaraz, Jr. turned a couple of screen passes into backbreaking 35- and 60-yard touchdown scores, weaving and cutting past a slew of Wildcat defenders to stretch the Green Wave’s lead in the second quarter.
The Wildcats played with more urgency in the second half. Senior quarterback Colby Ayuyu hit junior Gage Hinkley for an 11-yard touchdown score on the opening drive of the third quarter.
Wildcats senior Jonathan Mercado, who rushed for 91 yards, added a four-yard TD run late in the fourth quarter.
What it means
NFA, which is the largest school in the ECC, has traditionally played one of the toughest schedules in the state while competing outside the league. With the Wildcats in rebuilding mode, this season’s schedule has proved to be daunting again.
“New Milford is a pretty good team,” Larka said. “They’re better than some of the teams we played. They might be better than Wilton. They might even be better than Glastonbury.”
Key play
The Green Wave made a number of big plays both on offense and defense. But with the Wildcats already reeling from an early 20-0 deficit, NFA’s defense had a chance to make a momentum swinging goal-line stand midway through the second quarter. However, on fourth-and-goal from the 1 the Wildcats smashed into Cicero-Bronson at the line of scrimmage but the young quarterback spun, stayed on his feet, and rolled into the end zone with a terrific second effort.
By the numbers
New Milford outgained NFA, 375-189.
Cicero-Bronson completed 12 of19 passes for 193 yards and two TD’s. He also gained 111 yards rushing on 15 carries.
NFA senior quarterback Colby Ayuyu completed four of six passes for 64 yards.
Unsung hero
NFA’s Jonathan Mercado: The Wildcats senior keyed a better second-half performance and finished with 91 rushing yards on 17 carries with one TD.
They said it
“The message (at halftime) was we’re probably not winning this game but let’s win the second half and get some momentum going into East Lyme,” Larka said. “We showed a lot of heart and resilience in that third quarter. If we played like that the whole game it would have been a little closer and made it more competitive.”
What’s next
NFA travels to East Lyme on Friday (6:30 p.m.). The Wildcats finish with home games against Woodstock Academy (Nov. 11) and New London (Nov. 24).
“We got to the last three, which I think are more favorable for us matchup-wise,” Larka said. “We have to put the work in but I think the goal is that we can get these three if we play the right way.”
This article originally appeared on The Bulletin: Norwich Free Academy falls to New Milford in non-league contest
