New Canaan names home opener for ’97 captain Wilderman
Looking back, Lou Marinelli remembers Brian Wilderman as someone who was “always smiling.”
Wilderman was also, Marinelli said, an ideal leader on the New Canaan football field and wrestling mats in the 1990s.
The Rams will honor their former football and wrestling captain, who died from an undiagnosed heart condition in 2000, by naming their yearly home opener the Brian Wilderman Game. New Canaan will face Brien McMahon at 7 p.m. on Friday at Dunning Field.
“He was a great kid and he was one of those tough kids who was always involved,” Marinelli said of Wilderman, who graduated in 1997. “When he was playing, one way or another, he always found a way to get to the football as a linebacker for us. He was a captain and leader for us.”
Marinelli said long-time announcer Bob VanDerheyden, the “Voice of the Rams,” will read a tribute to Wilderman, and a video of the New Canaan alum will be shown on the scoreboard before the game.
There will also be a reception for Brian’s classmates, coaches, and friends to celebrate his memory at the White Buffalo in New Canaan 4-6:30 p.m, Friday.
New Canaan’s annual spring football game, an intra-squad contest, had carried Brian Wilderman’s name for more than a decade, but when the CIAC ended spring football, the Rams decided to name their first home game in his honor.
“It’s a nice tradition to honor one of our former captains, who was a great wrestler and football player,” Marinelli said.
Wilderman, a linebacker, helped lead the Rams to a state final appearance as a senior, when he also earned All-State honors.
In wrestling, he was a three-time state and twotime FCIAC champion, while also placing twice at the New England championships. He had a career record of 114-14 and was unbeaten in his home gym.
“He was a three-sport athlete, a good student, and a team captain,” Marinelli said. “He’s all the things that you want your players to be.”