GREENWICH vs. NEW CANAAN
WHERE/WHEN: Boyle Stadium, Stamford, Saturday, 10 a.m.
TICKETS: $10 everyone
ON THE AIR/WEB: NFHS Network (Subscription required) | WGCH 1490-AM
SEEDS/RECORDS: No. 8 New Canaan 10-2, No. 2 Greenwich 12-0
COACHES: New Canaan: Lou Marinelli, 38th season (331-98-6); Greenwich: John Marinelli, 4th year (35-10).
CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY
New Canaan: 17th appearance (12-4)
2016-L def. Windsor 25-20; 2015-L def. North Haven 42-35; 2014-L Small def. Darien 21-20; 2013-L def. Darien 44-12; 2011-L lost to Daniel Hand 3410; 2010-L lost to Masuk 50-20; 2009MM def. East Lyme 28-0; 2008-MM def. Darien 26-7; 2007-MM def. Daniel Hand 34-30; 2006-MM def. Maloney 53-21; 2002-M def. Ledyard 21-0; 2001-M def. Seymour 29-6; 2000-M lost to Bloomfield 55-6; 1996-M lost to Killingly 27-13; 1993-M def. Daniel Hand 35-14; 1982-L def. Naugatuck 2012.
Greenwich: 16th appearance (7-8) 2017-LL lost to Darien 31-22; 2007LL def. Shelton 28-14; 2006-LL def. Southington 38-7; 2004-LL lost to New Britain 39-34; 2002-LL lost to West Haven 30-13; 2001-LL lost to New Britain 26-9; 2000-LL lost to Shelton 22-8; 1999-LL def. Southington 47-27; 1992-LL lost to New Britain 31-15; 1991-LL def. Bulkeley 14-0; 1990LL def. Danbury 21-6; 1988-LL lost to Fairfield Prep 7-0; 1983-LL def. Notre Dame-West Haven 14-8; 1982-LL lost to Fairfield Prep 18-6; 1981-LL def. Trumbull 14-0.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
New Canaan: Jr. QB Drew Pyne; Sr. OL/DL Jack Stewart; Sr. OL/DL Jack Conley; Sr. LB/DL Garrett Braden; Sr. WR Quintin O’Connell; Sr. WR Wyatt Wilson; Jr. DB Drew Guida; Sr. RB J.R. Moore.
Greenwich: Sr. QB Gavin Muir; Sr. RB Tysen Comizio; Sr. LB Jack Feda; Sr. DE Mozi Bici; Jr. DT Eddy Iuteri; Sr. DT Joe Kraninger; Sr. DE Emilio Camou; Sr. WR Lance Large; Sr. CB Ryan Raybuck.
STORYLINES
Both highly touted before the season, old FCIAC rivals clash for the second time this season in a bookend mega state championship matchup.
New Canaan was the preseason No. 1, but lost its first game vs. St. Joseph 28-0, the first time a New Canaan team had been shut out in 12 years. Four weeks later, the Rams played host to the then-No. 2 Cardinals. QB Gavin Muir threw for 261 yards and three touchdowns and ran for two more as Greenwich smoked New Canaan 42-14.
The game is a showdown between father and son coaches. New Canaan’s Lou Marinelli is Connecticut’s alltime winningest coach with a record 331 victories against 98 losses and 6 ties in 38 seasons at New Canaan. He also owns the most state championships as a coach with 12, including four straight twice: from 2006-09 and then 2013-16.
On the other side is Marinelli’s son, John, who was an all-state defensive back and quarterback for his father from 2000-03 and played at Fordham and Trinity. As a defensive coordinator at New Canaan, he helped coach his father’s teams to consecutive state championships in 2013 and ’14. John Marinelli became Greenwich’s head coach in 2015 and quickly built Greenwich into a consistent winner. He is 35-10 as head coach and narrowly lost his first state championship appearance 31-22 in the 2017 Class LL championship vs. Darien.
This is the fifth meeting between the Marinellis. Lou won the first two, 24-14 in 2015 and 40-16 in 2016 on the way to winning the last of four consecutive state titles. John’s teams have turned the tide the last two seasons, winning 36-21 in 2017 and, this year, 42-14 on Oct. 5.
THE GREENWICH CARDINALS
The Cardinals are on the cusp of completing, statistically, the best season in school history. They’re led offensively by senior two-year starter Gavin Muir, who has thrown for 2,215 yards and 28 touchdowns against six interceptions, while rushing for 238 yards and 7 TDs.
Senior back Tysen Comizio is one of Greenwich’s top weapons with 890 yards of total offense and a teamleading 15 TDs. Receivers Lance Large, Stephen Bennett and A.J. Barber, the son of New York Giants great Tiki Barber, have each caught 7 TD passes.
Defensively, Greenwich has allowed 54 points, including five shutouts. Senior defensive end Mozi Bici is one of the state’s leaders with 16 1⁄2 sacks, eight of which came in a 33-3 victory over Ridgefield. He’s the cornerstone of a dominant defensive line alongside Eddy Luteri (8 sacks), Joe Kraninger and Emilio Camou (7 1⁄2 sacks each). Jack Feda leads the linebacking corps, averaging 9.9 tackles per game.
THE NEW CANAAN RAMS
New Canaan’s offense averages 350 yards per game. QB Drew Pyne, a Notre Dame commit, has thrown for 2,486 yards and 30 touchdowns against just 4 interceptions. His top target is Quintin O’Connell, who has caught 84 passes for 1,117 yards and 14 touchdowns, becoming the school’s all-time leading receiver.
New Canaan has also found a run game, absent in the first meeting. J.R. Moore has run for 364 yards and two touchdowns the last three games. New Canaan is also noted for having two NCAA FBS commits at tackle in Jack Conley (6-foot-8, 290, Boston College) and Jack Stewart (6-5, 275, Michigan).
Defensively, Garrett Braden, a 6-2, 230-pound LB/DE committed to play at Rice, is a team leader in tackles (55) and sacks (6 1⁄2) alongside Stewart (49 tackles) and senior Kiran Buck (52 tackles). Senior Ben Schneider leads the linebacking corps with 61 tackles. Junior Dan Guida leads the secondary with six interceptions. lost to Middletown 36-8; 2007-M lost to Ledyard 21-14; 2009-M def. Bethel 46-6; 2012-M lost to Hillhouse 34-12; 2014-M Small lost to Brookfield 14-0.
St. Joseph (13-3): 1978-S lost to Stamford Catholic 20-9; 1979-S lost to North Branford 25-22; 1980-S def. Immaculate 43-7; 1981-SS def. Montville 37-30; 1982-SS def. Wilson 37-9; 1983-SS def. New Fairfield 20-0; 1984SS def. New London 14-7; 1988-M def. Bethel 25-21; 1989-M def. Maloney 14-7; 1990-M def. Middletown 26-0; 2009-SS def. Montville 14-3; 2010-S def. Ansonia 49-28; 2013-M def. Brookfield 54-16; 2014-M Large def. Ledyard 37-7; 2016-M lost to Hillhouse 42-21; 2017-S def. Ansonia 42-36.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Berlin: Sr. QB/DB Kevin Dunn, Jr. RB/DE Zach Hrubeic, Sr. RB/LB Alex Halkias, Jr. RB/DB Larry St. Pierre, Soph. RB/LB Marco Scarano.
St. Joseph: Sr. QB David Summers, Jr. RB Jaden Shirden, Jr. WR Will Diamantis, Jr. LB Cole daSilva, Sr. LB Jesse Lawson, Jr. DL Mike Morrissey, Jr. LB Alex Pagliarini.
STORYLINES
Many around the state have thought that the one team that has a shot to knock off St. Joseph is Berlin. After two wins in the playoffs the Redcoats finally get their chance.
Led by their four-strong running back corps and an underrated QB in Kevin Dunn, the Redcoats have returned to the state championship for the first time since 2014, and first time since the program was crippled by recruiting sanctions in 2015.
The Redcoats boast, perhaps, the deepest and most talented backfield, with players who excel not just at running the ball, but catching passes.
Berlin’s backfield is led by senior Alex Halkias, who has amassed 937 yards and 14 touchdowns, in addition to his 23 catches for 481 yards and 5 scores. Junior Zach Hrubiec, a monster at 6-foot-2, 245 pounds, has 622 yards of total offense. Junior Larry St. Pierre has 1,300 all-purpose yards (including more than 400 yards of return yardage). Finally, emerging sophomore Marco Scarano has 653 all-purpose yards.
Dunn, who seemed to fly under the radar the whole season, won’t be able to any longer. The senior QB totaled five touchdowns in the semifinal win over Sheehan, throwing for four and rushing for another. He has thrown for 2,053 yards and 27 TDs against just two interceptions this season.
Meanwhile, this is where St. Joseph expected to be: playing for the school’s 14th state championship.
Despite being moved up a class due to the CIAC’s new success-modifier, the Hogs, last year’s Class S champion, have made easy work of the opponents they have faced during the playoffs.
On the legs of Jaden Shirden, who has amassed 238 rushing yards and six touchdowns through the first two rounds, the Hogs have averaged 50.5 points and allowed just seven points in each game.
Shirden is joined by 2017 New Haven Register All-State first team QB David Summers, who has thrown for 33 TDs this season and hasn’t throw an interception in close to a month. His favorite target is Will Diamantis, a junior who has caught 13 TDs and averages 22.3 yards per catch. That’s been huge especially with the loss of 2017 All-State receiver Phil Pasmeg for much of the season due to a broken collarbone.