New Canaan Football Blanks Central 49-0

It was at times sloppy, but New Canaan’s 49-0 win over Bridgeport Central was money in the bank for head coach Lou Marinelli—especially considering New Canaan’s recent history against the Hilltoppers at cavernous Kennedy Stadium.

“You never know what you’re going to get when you come up here,” Marinelli told NewCanaanite.com. “This can be the house of horrors for us.”

But those looking for a replay of New Canaan’s shocking 42-7 defeat at the hands of the Hilltoppers in 2009 would be sorely disappointed. New Canaan outgained Central 402 to 149 in total offense—including 246 yards on the ground, despite being without injured senior offensive lineman, co-captain Teddy Hood—and put the game away early with a 35-0 lead at halftime, crushing any notion of another upset.

The Rams were led by senior co-captain Ryan O’Connell, who rushed for 125 yards and two touchdowns. Fellow senior running back Graham Braden picked up 112 yards on the ground with a touchdown, while freshman quarterback Drew Pyne was quietly efficient, completing seven of 11 passes for 178 yards and two touchdowns.

New Canaan (3-0) was able to take advantage of several Central (0-2) miscues as a swarming and opportunistic Rams defense forced six Hilltopper turnovers, leading to two of the Rams’ touchdowns. The takeaways negated New Canaan’s own gaffes, as the Rams were able to overcome three turnovers and seven penalties en route to the win.

“Defensively, when you pitch a shutout—we continue to do well there,” Marinelli said. “I think we’re right where we want to be.”

“We just have a chip on our shoulder,” senior co-captain Tommy Root said. “After week one no one thought we were the same caliber as last year and the years past. That’s getting everyone riled up and we want to prove to the state that we’re the same New Canaan team.”

The Rams came out of the gates looking every bit the part of the three-time defending State champs, as senior co-captain James Freyre recovered a Central fumble on the game’s opening drive to give New Canaan possession at the Hilltoppers’ 45. Four players later O’Connell raced virtually untouched for a 22-yard touchdown and a 7-0 Rams lead with 10:44 left in the first quarter.

Central appeared to answer on their ensuing drive as quarterback Mauricio Woods had a deep pass tipped right into the hands of receiver Austin Navaughn who appeared to be headed for a sure 72-yard touchdown. Navaughn, however, lost control of the ball just before he crossed the goal line, where New Canaan defender Jackson Appelt fell on the fumble for a Rams touchback.

It was as close as Central got the entire game.

Although the Hilltoppers got the ball back almost immediately on a Chard Felix interception, New Canaan’s defense pushed Central backwards to force a punt. Two plays later Pyne found Appelt for a 71-yard catch-and-run touchdown, extending the New Canaan lead to 12-0 with 5:07 left in the first.

The Rams scored again on their first drive of the second quarter, marching 66 yards in seven plays. O’Connell netted his second TD of the night on a 20-yard run, giving New Canaan a 21-0 lead with 9:26 to go in the half.

Another Central turnover led to New Canaan’s next touchdown as Dylan Miles recovered a fumble on the Hilltoppers’ 16-yard line. Two plays later Greg Catalano bulled it in from three yards out to give the Rams a 28-0 lead with 5:36 left before halftime.

New Canaan scored once more before the intermission as three straight Braden runs added up to a three-play, 67-yard drive capped off by the senior’s seven-yard TD run. New Canaan took a 35-0 lead into the break.

The Rams didn’t waste any time to show they weren’t done in the second half as junior Owen Shin’s 75-yard touchdown return of the opening kickoff gave the Rams a 42-0 to start the third quarter.

New Canaan capped off the night’s scoring on their next possession as Pyne floated a perfect pass to sophomore Quintin O’Connell for a 61-yard TD and a 49-0 lead with 6:30 left in the third.

Both teams were held in check in the fourth, with Central getting as close as the New Canaan 24. New Canaan junior Griffin Arnone intercepted a Woods pass near the end zone to end the contest.

“We can’t look past these guys (Central),” Root said. “In 2009 we had a great team and lost 42-7. It just goes to show that these kids have heart and they’ll never give up. You saw at the end of this game that they were still going full speed. You can never let up on them.”

“I see us getting better,” Marinelli said. “As long as we keep chopping the wood and just keep working, the score will take of itself. I’m very pleased with where we are.”

Next up for New Canaan is Westhill (1-1 coming into Saturday’s action against Trumbull), in a game that contains an interesting subplot.

Last season, a Friday night contest was moved to Monday because of inclement weather. Vikings head coach Frank Marcucio claimed the move was in violation of the league’s protocol for postponements and that it was a deliberate attempt by New Canaan to avoid having to play at a perceived disadvantage in the wind and rain.

After the Rams wound up winning that game 55-12, Westhill filed a grievance with the FCIAC.

	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	Total
New Canaan	14	21	14	0	49
Bpt. Central	0	0	0	0	0

Scoring:


*NC - Ryan O'Connell 22-yd. run (Grant Morse kick)
*NC - Jackson Appelt 71-yd. pass from Drew Pyne (Morse kick)
*NC - R. O'Connell 20-yd. run (Morse kick)
*NC - Catalano 3-yd. run (Morse kick)
*NC - Graham Braden 7-yd. run (Morse kick)
*NC - Owen Shin 75-yd. kickoff return (Morse kick)
*NC - Quintin O'Connell 61-yd. pass from Pyne (Morse kick)

Key Stats:

*Ryan O'Connell 8-125, 2 TD's rushing; INT
*Drew Pyne 7-11, 178 yds., 2 TD's, INT passing
*Graham Braden 7-112, TD rushing
*Quintin O'Connell 2-78, TD receiving
*Jackson Appelt 1-71, TD receiving; INT, fumble recovery
*Grant Morse 7-7 PAT's
*Turnovers: NC - 3, C - 6
*Total Offense: NC - 424, C - 149
*Rushing Yards: NC - 246, C - 65
*Yards per Play: - NC - 13.3, C - 3.3