Mistakes plague Falcons in loss

FAIRFIELD — Norwalk football coach Pat Miller waited a long time for his first win.

Miller was hired after the 2019 season, but had to wait until Friday to finally lead the Bears onto the field.

After a brisk first half, the action slowed in the second half. As Norwalk precariously held onto its lead the minutes seemed like hours to Miller before the clock finally hit 0:00 and Norwalk had a 28-20 win over Ludlowe in the first football game played in the FCIAC since the fall of 2019.

The third quarter ended up being longer than the entire first half as multiple players on both sides re

peatedly went down with cramps.

“The entire second half I kept saying on the headsets over and over ‘This is the longest quarter in the history of football right now.’ It’s great to be back,” Miller said. “We put a lot on our offensive line and we run kind of a complex scheme and we do it a bunch of different ways. That group is the heartbeat of our team.”

That offensive line opened up holes for running back Cam Edwards who broke off runs of 39, 50 and 69 yards in the game. Edwards scored three times on runs of 7, 50 and 1 yard.

“There are things you watch with Cam. How fast he is, the moves he can make, but tonight proved how tough that kid is,” Miller said. “Ludlowe is a fantastic team and they are very well coached. They do things on defense that made our run game difficult. We saw how tough Cam was tonight grinding out tough yards and getting it. So proud of that kid.”

The opening drive was an omen of what was to come for Ludlowe.

The Falcons fumbled the ball on four of the first six plays from scrimmage with Norwalk finally recovering the fourth ball on the ground.

Edwards got Norwalk on the board in the first quarter with his 7-yard touchdown run following the fumble.

Ludlowe finished the night with two fumbles lost and three interceptions.

The most damaging interception was a 99-yard pick-6 with :06 left in the second quarter by Mysonne Pollard as Ludlowe was threatening to take the lead. Instead the Falcons went into the half down 14-7.

“Instead of going up 14-7 we are down 14-7. It was a huge swing,” Ludlowe coach Mitch Ross said. “It is countless turnovers and so many penalties. Holding and block in the back, we really shot ourselves in the foot. Not that it is a shock these mistakes get made after a couple of years off, but it’s still disappointing. Without those mistakes it’s a different game.”

Norwalk would expand its lead to 28-7 on a 50-yard touchdown run by Edwards on the first play of the second half, giving Norwalk two touchdowns in less than 15 seconds of game play.

Later in the quarter, Edwards caught a 40-yard pass down the sideline, landing at the 1-yard line.

Edwards would dive into the end zone on the next play.

To its credit, Ludlowe would not go quietly.

With 1:43 left in the third, Denholm Feldman ran in an 8-yard touchdown.

A minute later, Zack Hathaway ran back an interception 46 yards, getting Ludlowe within 28-20.

The Falcons defense held and Ludlowe got the ball with 3:04 left in the game, driving from the 48 down to the 15-yard line before Edwards intercepted a pass on the 2-yard line with 1:54 left.

The next play, Edwards broke free for a 69-yard run and Norwalk was able to run out the clock from there.

PLAYER OF THE GAME

Cam Edwards, Norwalk. Three touchdowns, a fumble recovery and the gamesealing interception. Not a bad night for the senior.

QUOTABLE

“It feels amazing. We have to continue to work and go up the charts. It was the O-Line. I give all my credit to the O-Line. They were getting down and dirty. It feels amazing (to be back on the field). It feels great to play tackle football again instead of the 7-on-7. It feels fun to hit and tackle and go out and hit somebody. It’s fun.” — Norwalk senior Cam Edwards