The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Lots still on line for Dragons
Thanksgiving eve is not a holiday and never will be, especially for Middletown High’s football team.
For the eighth straight year, Middletown (9-0) and Windsor (7-2) play football on the Wednesday before we stuff ourselves silly. Usually, something is on the line for both, and this year’s game at Rosek-Skubel Stadium is no exception.
There is once again the matter of the CCC’s Division II East title. Both are 3-0 in the division. Middletown won it last year, Windsor in 2016. Small potatoes, right? Right. It is all about the big feast.
Middletown already has clinched a seventh straight Class L playoff berth. By beating Windsor, it would secure a home quarterfinal game on Nov. 27. Even with a loss, it’s unlikely the Blue Dragons would lose out on a home game. If you like the math, gametimect.com and Sean Patrick Bowley should be required reading. He explains the formula and breaks down the CIAC points at stake for teams in each class.
The Dragons are currently the No. 2 seed. They could clinch the top seed with a win over Windsor, a loss by Naugatuck to Ansonia and a loss by defending champion Daniel Hand to Guilford. Fat chance. Hand (9-0) has beaten Guilford every year since 2006.
Naugatuck, the only other 9-0 team in Class L, is a different animal. The Greyhounds were in the playoffs last year. They light up the scoreboard, and their defense has shut out six of nine opponents. And even though Ansonia (9-0 in Class S) hasn’t lost a Naugatuck Valley League game since Thanksgiving 2010 (to Naugatuck, I think Naugatuck wins their Thanksgiving game and locks in as Class L’s top seed.
Back to Middletown vs. Wind-
sor. The Warriors lead the series 5-2. The Dragons beat them last year 24-7, and as a point of pride, a win Wednesday would give them a second straight 10-0 season. Middletown is motivated by the prospect of another unbeaten regular season.
On Windsor’s side, the Warriors are currently Class L’s sixth seed and can clinch a berth (with a slight chance of a home game) if they beat Middletown. If they lose, they will be rooting for Platt to beat Maloney on Thanksgiving. By the way, this is the first regular season since 2013 that Windsor has not won at least nine games.
Also, in case you missed it, Platt re-entered the race when Bristol Central had to forfeit its 21-20 win over the Panthers and a second victory because it used an ineligible player. Platt faces a win-and-in scenario against 8-1 Maloney, and that is a tall order. RHAM is ready to take the final spot with a win over Bacon Academy on Wednesday and a loss by Platt.
How it all shakes out will be better than watching the Bears play the Lions. Middletown was the top seed in last year’s playoffs and went nowhere, losing to New Canaan at home. New Canaan moved up to Class LL, so the Class L race is void of a team from Fairfield County.
This year, the field feels wide open. Hand is untested. We will know more about Naugatuck come Friday. It’s hard to distinguish a favorite until you see one system in play against another. We do know this about Middletown: Coordinator Josh Rosek’s defense is playing at a high level; the lines’ play has been excellent; Xzavier Reyes is rested and ready for a big game out of the backfield; and the Dragons are not compounding whatever mistakes they make.
There are no more gimme games for Middletown. Wednesday, against Windsor, the season really gets going.
CLASS S BERTH UP FOR GRABS
Tuesday night in Deep River, Valley Regional/Old Lyme (7-1) and Haddam Killingworth (8-1) square off in what is a Class S play-in game between the longtime Pequot Conference rivals.
H-K has not beaten Valley since 2011 — the last time the Cougars made the playoffs — but has won five straight. Valley was 9-1 last season, shared the Pequot’s Sassacus Division title with Cromwell/Portland and made the playoffs.
The Cougars’ run-heavy attack, with shades of the single wing, is highly regarded, as is its offensive line. No matter how many times Valley coach Tim King and his staff have scouted H-K and watched its offense on film, King said it’s very difficult to defend against it.
“They want to pound the living snot out of you. They keep coming and coming and coming,” King said. “They are big and physical (with lead back Tobey Callender) and they have some speed with (Dalton) Modehn. Unless you run that offense, it’s hard to simulate it. They run it to perfection. Mike (H-K coach Mike Baklik) does a great job there. We’ve had to watch a lot of film.”
One thing King does not want to see his Warriors do is fall behind in the game.
“Once you get behind, they are going to control the clock, smash it and move the chains,” he said. “You are always trying to battle the clock with them. It’s tough when you do make that mistake, because when you turn it over, you have one less opportunity.
“We haven’t done a great job of that this year. We’ve had some turnovers and a lot of penalties. We definitely have to cut that out come Tuesday.”
FROM THE ARCHIVES
Thanksgiving, 1983. The Orange and Black of Middletown vs. the Maroon and Gray of Woodrow Wilson. The 51st and final meeting between the city rivals on the football field.
Mayor Seb Garafalo told the Press that week, “I think a scoreless tie would be a fitting way to end.” There was a reference point for the mayor’s prediction — the 1981 game between the schools produced a 0-0 score. When was the last time a high school football game ended in a scoreless tie?
When it was over, coach John Skubel and players were puffing on cigars back at Wilson. The Wildcats prevailed in the mud at Palmer Field, 20-6. For history’s sake, the City Series would end with Wilson owning a 28-18-5 edge. The 1978 game was the last won by the Tigers.
On the front page of the Press, Wilson coach John Skubel was all smiles as some happy Wildcats hoisted him onto their shoulders.
“I really didn’t even want to get off the field,” Skubel told the paper. Memories.
IN THE SCHOOLS
** Five words together that are making the rounds: Football, Middletown, Xavier, Thanksgiving, revival.
** The Vinal Tech/Goodwin Tech/Whitney Tech co-op won for the third time this season with a 52-0 win over Platt Tech on Friday. The game was moved to Xavier’s Larry McHugh Field after rain and snow left Palmer Field’s grass unplayable.
A tip of the cap to Xavier and outgoing athletic director Tony Jaskot for allowing the Techs to have the option of keeping the game in Middletown. Xavier also was the host site for the Class M boys semifinal between Plainville and Stonington on Wednesday.
“For Tony and Xavier to allow the use of their turf field, we’re very thankful,” said Bill Russo, the city’s director of public works. Of the Techs’ four home football games to date, two were played at Ed Collins Field at Woodrow Wilson Middle School, one at Palmer and one at Xavier. The Techs (3-6) are scheduled to play their season finale Wednesday night at Palmer against Wilcox Tech.
** Meanwhile, the artificial surface at Middletown High saw regular use during the CIAC state soccer tournaments. MHS hosted the Farmington-Hand girls semifinal in Class L as well as three championship matches on Sunday: Old Saybrook-Morgan boys in Class S, Hand-Maloney boys in Class L and Old Lyme-Immaculate girls in Class S.
Middletown’s facilities as an option for these events is a good thing, and a win for the MHS Booster Club concessions.
** Soccer is a different game on turf than grass — faster, more play in the air, harder on the body. In the Hand-Farmington girls semifinal, a Farmington chip-type shot right to left from about 30 yards was saved by Hand’s keeper, but she turned her body and the ball crossed the line. It was Farmington’s only goal in the match, which the Indians won on penalty kicks. I’m not sure a lofted chip of this distance is possible on grass.
** In H-K’s football game at Old Saybrook/Westbrook two weeks ago, a helmet-to-helmet penalty was called, prompting one fan to yell, “That’s football!” The response to that would be, “Not anymore.” At all levels of the game, strides have been made to eliminate helmet-to-helmet hits. However, in the NFL, too many running backs initiate contact with a lowered head, and they are not flagged.
** Cromwell anticipates that it will play Middletown’s boys lacrosse team in the 2019 regular season. It will be the Blue Dragons’ first year as a varsity team.
THIS AND THAT
** The synthetic skating rink at Harbor Park will open to the public the day after Thanksgiving. On weekends, the rink can be used between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. Demand will dictate additional hours.
** Wesleyan is adding women’s golf, its 30th varsity sport, beginning in the fall of 2019. Jon Wilson, a PGA Class A pro at Lyman Orchards, will coach the Cardinals. Wilson was the girls golf coach at one time at Daniel Hand in Madison and is a long-time instructor with the First Tee of Connecticut.
** Watching the Celtics play is not a pleasant experience. The offense has yet to mesh and 20 percent of the season is already gone. Meanwhile, the Raptors with Kawhi Leonard and the Bucks with the Greek Freak are motoring along, and the 76ers with Jimmy Butler are no joke. That offseason talk of the East title running through Boston? How silly that was.
** Patrick Corbin is the best starting pitcher available in free agency. If the Yankees expect to contend beyond the wild-card round in 2019, he is a must sign. A rotation of Severino, Corbin, Tanaka, free-agent J.A. Happ (give him one year-plus-option), and Sabathia should be good enough. Let others overpay for Nathan Eovaldi.
** My five favorite films from a screenplay by the master, William Goldman, who died at 87 last week: All the President’s Men; Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid; Misery; Marathon Man; and Maverick.