NewCanaanite.com (http://nctest.proxy02.mageenet.net/new-canaan-rams-football-routs-ridgefield-in-season-opener-31498)
New Canaan's Jack Kircher. Credit: Terry Dinan
Scenes from New Canaan's 45-17 win over Ridgefield, September 18, 2015. Credit: Terry Dinan
New Canaan's Michael Collins and Lucas Niang. Credit: Terry Dinan
New Canaan's Michael Collins. Credit: Terry Dinan
Scenes from New Canaan's 45-17 win over Ridgefield, September 18, 2015. Credit: Terry Dinan
Scenes from New Canaan's 45-17 win over Ridgefield, September 18, 2015. Credit: Terry Dinan
Peter Swindell with a TD grab. Credit: Terry Dinan
Scenes from New Canaan's 45-17 win over Ridgefield, September 18, 2015. Credit: Terry Dinan
New Canaan's Kyle Smith. Credit: Terry Dinan
New Canaan head coach Lou Marinelli. Credit: Terry Dinan
Scenes from New Canaan's 45-17 win over Ridgefield, September 18, 2015. Credit: Terry Dinan
Scenes from New Canaan's 45-17 win over Ridgefield, September 18, 2015. Credit: Terry Dinan
New Canaan's Matthew Hall pressures Ridgefield QB Andrew Fowler. Credit: Terry Dinan
For a team with so many question marks heading into its 2015 season opener, the New Canaan Rams sure did have a lot of answers Friday night at Ridgefield High School’s Tiger Hollow Stadium.
The reloaded Rams (1-0) scored on their first offensive possession and never looked back en route to a 45-17 rout of the Tigers in a game which showed the Rams haven’t skipped a beat from last season’s state championship run, despite significant personnel changes on the field and on the sidelines.
“Going into this, I was scared to death,” New Canaan head coach Lou Marinelli told NewCanaanite.com. “We hadn’t practiced well. I don’t know if they were tired of just practicing without a game, but we looked sloppy and I couldn’t sleep last night.”
Marinelli should be able to catch up on his Z’s after the opening-night win, especially considering the performance of senior co-captain Michael Collins.
The Penn-bound quarterback more than justified his lofty preseason hype by throwing six touchdown passes, including two to senior wide receiver Peter Swindell. Collins finished the night by completing 18 of 30 passes for 457 yards—311 in the first half—before being lifted for a substitute midway through the third quarter when the game was well in hand for the Rams.
“He’s worked very hard to get where he is,” Marinelli said. “The thing about him is that he’s a student of the game. He’s one of our field generals, and it was a great way to start the season for him.”
New Canaan jumped out to a quick lead after the Rams defense forced Ridgefield to punt on its opening possession. Collins hit Swindell on a sideline route with 8 minutes left in the first quarter for a 7-0 lead. Swindell would later add to New Canaan’s lead by booting a 45-yard field goal with 3:34 to go in the quarter.
The Rams would score again on the first offensive play from scrimmage in the second quarter. Pinned deep in his own territory, Collins found senior wideout Kyle Smith across the middle for an electrifying 92-yard touchdown catch and run and a 17-0 lead with 11:28 to go in the half.
Less than six minutes later, the Rams would strike again as Ridgefield muffed a New Canaan punt, setting the Rams up deep in Tigers territory. Three plays later, Collins found Swindell in the corner of the end zone for a 17-yard touchdown, extending the Rams lead to 24-0 with 5:40 left in the second quarter.
New Canaan’s defense—the subject of the majority of the scrutiny facing the Rams this pre-season—would hold Ridgefield to a punt in every Tiger offensive possession in the first half. And with just over 3 minutes left in the half, another Tigers punt gave the Rams one final opportunity to score before the half.
And score they did.
A Collins pass hit senior wideout Andrew DeFranco in stride for a devastating 73-yard touchdown and a 31-0 New Canaan lead at the intermission.
The Rams wasted little time adding to their lead in the second half as a muffed New Canaan punt actually proved advantageous, leading to a Rams first down. The ensuing possession ended with another 17-yard touchdown pass from Collins to DeFranco. With 8:56 left in the third quarter, New Canaan had a 38-0 lead.
Ridgefield would finally break into the scoring column on its next offensive series as QB Andrew Fowler hit Colin Lowe for a touchdown pass to cut the Rams’ lead to 38-7. New Canaan, however, would answer right back, as Collins connected with junior Jack Hoelzer on a quick slant that turned into a 52-yard touchdown, giving the Rams a 45-7 lead.
Ridgefield ended the game with a 10-0 scoring run to close to within 45-17, but that was as close as the Tigers (0-1) got.
“To see them come out and do what they did was really good,” Marinelli said. “We had a few mistakes that we’ll have to clean up, but I think it’s a great start to the year.”
| Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Canaan | 10 | 21 | 14 | 0 | 45 |
| Ridgefield | 0 | 0 | 10 | 7 | 17 |
