Howdy,

Montville head coach Tanner Grove would prefer to run, run, and run some more when they have the ball. His team has successfully used a run-heavy spread system since he took over the program in 2006, a system that was influenced by the one used by current Arizona head coach Rich Rodriguez.

The Indians were forced to divert from their horizontal game and go vertical Friday night when Stonington stuffed their rushing attack. They were able to hit some big gains through the air and edged the Bears, 22-21.

“They kind of forced our hand a little bit,” Grove said. “They play a really good defense in the box; an excellent job in the box. They kind of say, ‘Hey, throw it if you can.’ We do that to teams, too, when we know they have a traditionally strong running game. You try to force their hand a little bit. I think our kids responded.”

Montville (4-1) managed just 60 yards on 28 carries.

Senior quarterback and co-captain Tyler Quidgeon came through for the Indians, however. He completed 10 of 18 passes for 209 yards and two touchdowns. His experience has made Grove comfortable throwing it.

“A little bit more so than maybe in years past because we have a veteran quarterback now,” Grove said, “and we have a bunch of guys who are playmakers on the edge. You don’t have that one guy that you want to try to force the ball to all the time. And I think tonight a kid like (junior) Tyler Price made big-play after big-play in the passing game because they were kind of cheating towards (junior) Jon McCray, rightfully so, as he’s been putting up great numbers all year.”

Price did all his work on his team’s final drive in the first half after the Bears had taken a 15-14 lead. Montville began its drive at its own 19-yard line with 3 minutes, 2 seconds left in the half.

Quidgeon hit Price on the Indians’ sideline for a 31-yard gain on second-and-8. Two plays later, the duo hooked up for a 34-yard gain to the Stonington 15.

Price caught a screen two plays later for an 11-yard gain to the Stonington 4. Quidgeon ran for a touchdown on the next play.

Senior Sean Peterson had two catches for 80 yards and a touchdown for the Indians and junior Jake Callaghan had a 21-yard touchdown catch. McCray added three catches for 22 yards and had an interception at the Montville 2-yard line to end the first half.

“Jon is a young kid who’s kind of learning that when you become a centerpiece of something, they’re going to scheme and plan for you,” Grove said. “So we told him to make your impact on the defensive side of the ball, and I think he did a nice job of that tonight.”

• • • •

Norwich Free Academy made things too difficult for itself during Friday’s 27-24 loss to Griswold.

The Wildcats went three-and-out on three of its four possessions in the first half. They totaled 76 yards of first-half offense, 66 of those coming on back-to-back plays toward the end of the half.

NFA had first-and-10 at Griswold’s 17-yard line with less than two minutes to play in the half but came away with no points.

“We gave up some big plays in the first half, and I think we have some young kids that don’t know how to respond,” Wildcats’ head coach Jemal Davis said. “You just keep playing. That’s how you respond.”

NFA was flagged for six personal fouls, one of which negated a touchdown.

Careless penalties hurt the Wildcats after it scored to cut its deficit to 14-12 with four minutes left in the third quarter. They lined up for a two-point conversion and, after Griswold was called for being offsides, NFA was flagged for two false starts. The penalties pushed it back to the 12-yard line, and they failed to convert the play.

“We have to fix mental things at practice,” Wildcats quarterback Jawaun Johnson said. “There’s too much playing around. We have the best running back in the state (Khaleed Exum-Strong). We have good wide receivers. We have a big offensive line. We just have to work.”

• • • •

The accepted strategy for a team leading late in a game is to run time off the clock.

Griswold opted to be aggressive leading 27-24 late in Friday’s game. It had run on first and second down, and NFA was out of timeouts.

The Wolverines opted to throw it on third-and-6 from their own 31. The Wildcats’ Ramel Pires intercepted Cole Mileski at the Griswold 40-yard line with a minute left and gave his team a chance to win.

“I really wanted the first down,” Mileski said. “Then we could run the clock out and it would be easy. But it became the total opposite. I think I got a little cocky throwing that ball.”

Thanks to Steve Nalbandian for providing the notes from the Griswold-NFA game.

• • • •

None of the teams in The Day Top 10 state coaches’ poll lost this weekend, but Wolcott provided a surprise when it stunned Naugatuck on Friday night, 45-38, in a matchup of two unbeaten Naugatuck Valley League teams.

Naugatuck was the favorite as it had mashed its first three opponents, including Holy Cross (42-7), which was expected to be one of the NVL’s top teams. Senior quarterback Jason Bradley had been on a tear, too, as he had thrown for 16 touchdowns and no interceptions.

The Eagles’ dogged Bradley and held him to 7 of 19 passing for 140 yards with three interceptions and no touchdowns.

“We really got after him with our defensive line,” Wolcott head coach Jason Pace told Kyle Brennan of the Waterbury Republican-American. “Take nothing away from our secondary, because if guys were open, (Bradley would) hit them. We just wanted to get after them up front to slow them down, and it worked.”

Naugatuck’s Antoine Sistrunk benefitted from all the attention paid to Bradley as he ran 26 times for 156 yards and four touchdowns.

“They played everybody off (the line of scrimmage), with press underneath and somebody over the top,” Greyhounds coach Craig Bruno told Brennan about Wolcott’s defense. “We were able to run the ball pretty well, but it just didn’t work out.”

Mike Audibert ran 22 times for 144 yards and three touchdowns for Wolcott (4-0). Vincent Gambino completed 18 of 30 passes for 229 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.

• • • •

Granby's Connor Field is running wild.

Field became the fourth player in state history to rush for 300 yards in three straight games during Saturday's 62-33 win over Coventry/Windham Tech/Windham Tech. Field ran 26 times for 314 yards and five touchdowns. He joins former Ansonia stars Arkeel Newsome and Montrell Dobbs and Brenden Lytton of Torrington, according to the Connecticut High School Football Record Book. 

• • • •

Here’s how those in The Day of New London Top 10 state coaches’ poll fared this weekend:

• Alex LaPolice ran five times for 69 yards and two touchdowns and added four catches for 72 yards and a score as top-ranked New Canaan downed Danbury last Friday, 42-14. Richard Gregory of Hearst Inc. reporting.

• Jasen Rose went plumb loco as he completed 30 of 36 passes for 360 yards and six touchdowns and ran for another as No. 2 Southington overwhelmed New Britain last Friday, 54-20. Dave Borges of the GameTimeCT Monolith, Ken Lipshez of the Meriden Record-Journal, and Cameron McDonough of the New Britain Herald reporting.

• Tyler Bailey ran 12 times for 158 yards and three touchdowns and scored on a 62-yard punt return as No. 3 Ansonia trounced St. Paul last Friday, 61-35, for its 48th straight win. It would tie Cheshire’s state-record for most consecutive wins with a victory at No. 7 Newtown in the biggest regular-season game in, like, a while and stuff. Roger Cleaveland of the Waterbury Anarchist-American, and Kevin D. Roberts of the Bristol Press reporting.

• Will Hamernick caught a 38-yard touchdown and caught a 16-yard touchdown from Timmy Graham as No. 4 Darien downed Fairfield Warde on Saturday, 42-14. Scott Ericson of Hearst Inc. reporting.

• Michael Scherer scored on a 12-yard run and threw a 14-yard touchdown as No. 5 Xavier beat Amity of Friday, 28-10. The Hartford Courant has a blurb HERE.

• Andrew Yamin ran wild (24 carries, 297 yards, one touchdown) as No. 6 Cheshire edged Hand on Friday, 17-13. Dave Phillips of the GameTimeCT Monolith, and Reid L. Walmark of the Meriden Record-Journal reporting.

• Jacob Buren completed 19 of 36 passes for 313 yards with three touchdowns and an interception as No. 7 Newtown beat Bethel on Friday, 27-7. Jon Chik of Hearst Inc. reporting.

• JoJo Shumaker ran 13 times for 210 yards and three touchdowns and scored on a 63-yard catch as No. 8 Ledyard thrashed Waterford on Friday, 55-13. Brett Poirier of the Norwich Bulletin, and Vickie Fulkerson of TEAM DAY reporting.

• Mufasha Abdul-Basir ran 16 times for 177 yards and two touchdowns as No. 9 St. Joseph beat Wilton on Friday, 49-20. Steve Geoghegan of the Norwalk Hour reporting.

• Mark Piccirillo was 17 of 24 for 233 yards and a touchdown and ran 25 times for 105 yards and two scores as No. 10 Shelton edged Fairfield Prep on Friday, 38-35. Doug Bonjour of Hearst Inc., and Pooch Diggity Dogg of the GameTimeCT Monolith reporting.

• • • •

Thanks for reading. More soon.

Vaya con dios.