Newtown got its point across loud and clear this weekend — that it deserved a spot in the Hartford Courant Top 10 state football coaches’ poll.
The unbeaten Nighthawks fell out of the poll two weeks ago for the second time this season. None of the voters said why but the likely reason was Newtown’s schedule.
The Nighthawks, through no fault of their own, didn’t play a team with a winning record up until last Friday against Bunnell. Up until that point, their opponents had a combined nine wins, and three of those teams were winless.
Newtown thrashed Bunnell, 60-29 and moved back into the Top 10 this week.
The Nighthawks (8-0) dislodged Masuk, their South-West Conference rival, from No. 9 and pushed it down to No. 10.
Note that Bunnell (6-2) shut down Masuk, 21-0, on Oct. 4.
Newtown’s ascension back into the Top 10 also pushed Fairfield Prep out of the Top 10, even though it routed Hamden last Friday, 42-9.
Windsor (8-0) and Hand (8-0) remain first and second, respectively. Windsor again received 10 first-place votes while the Tigers earned the other three.
Newington (8-0), Glastonbury (6-2) and the Capital Prep/Achievement First co-op (8-0) are the other Hartford County teams that received votes. Rockville (7-0) also received one 14th-place vote.
Hartford Courant Top 10 State Football Coaches’ Poll
First place points in parentheses, record through Saturday, points tabulated on a 30-28-26-24-22-20-18-16-14-12-11-10-9-8-7 basis, last week’s ranking and CIAC classification:
1. Windsor (10) 8-0 384 1 MM
KNOW THIS: Quarterback AJ Robinson celebrated his mother Jessica’s birthday last Friday night by completing 16-of-23 passes for 299 yards with two touchdowns in the Warriors’ 42-3 win over Platt. Shawn Adams added 20 carries for 191 yards and three TDs for the winners.
NEXT: vs. Berlin (6-2), Friday, 6:30 p.m.
2. Hand (3) 8-0 337 2 M
KNOW THIS: Ken Pompilli intercepted a pass at the Tigers’ goal line and teammates Stoney Leckey and Quinton O’Dea each added a pick to help their team blank Notre Dame of West Haven last Friday, 25-0.
NEXT: vs. Xavier (3-5), Friday, 7 p.m.
3. Darien 7-1 322 3 L
KNOW THIS: The Blue Wave blanked Bridgeport Central on Saturday, 49-0. According to the stats they posted on their game video at Hudl.com, they had a 311-22 edge in total yards. Ye gods.
NEXT: at Fairfield Warde (2-6), Friday, 6 p.m.
4. New Canaan 7-1 308 4 L
KNOW THIS: HATS OFF to Rams’ head coach Lou Marinelli, the state’s all-time winningest coach, for winning No. 400 in last Friday’s 50-19 victory over McMahon. Luke Robinson was a perfect 11-of-11 passing for 188 yards with four touchdowns for New Canaan and Andrew Esposito was his favorite target (seven catches for 153 yards and three TDs).
NEXT: vs. Bridgeport Central (0-8), Friday, 6 p.m.
5. Greenwich 7-1 274 5 LL
KNOW THIS: Hector Lopez scored on runs of 2, 44 and 47 yards as the Cardinals thumped Ridgefield last Friday, 38-0. They finished with a ridiculous 304-72 edge in total yards, too.
NEXT: vs. Westhill (3-5), Saturday, 1 p.m.
6. Staples 7-1 243 6 LL
KNOW THIS: Nick Weil and the Wreckers had a weird, weird day last Saturday. Weil threw three interceptions and lost three fumbles, but his last throw was a 42-yard touchdown pass to Shane Sandrew with 47.4 seconds left that gave Staples a 14-10 win over St. Joseph.
NEXT: at Trumbull (5-3), Friday, 7 p.m.
7. Brookfield 8-0 209 7 M
KNOW THIS: It’s not easy defending Barlow’s triple option, the reason why they averaged 28.1 points through seven games. And then along came the Bobcats — they limited Barlow to 132 total yards in Saturday’s 27-0 win.
NEXT: at Masuk (7-1), Friday, 7 p.m.
8. West Haven 7-1 208 8 LL
KNOW THIS: Nick Conlon completed 9 of 13 passes for 138 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another as West Haven overwhelmed Branford last Friday, 49-0.
NEXT: vs. Cheshire (4-4), Friday, 6 p.m.
9. Newtown 8-0 199 NR L
KNOW THIS: Ryan Schoffstall and Jayden Taylor had a big hand in last Friday’s beatdown of Bunnell. Schoffstall completed 16-of-24 passes for 411 yards with three touchdowns while Taylor had seven catches for 231 yards and two scores.
NEXT: at Barlow (4-4), Friday, 7 p.m.
10. Masuk 7-1 189 9 MM
KNOW THIS: Aaron Champagne completed 11 of 12 passes for 317 yards with six touchdowns and an interception as the Panthers blitzed Weston last Friday, 56-6. Shane Walker added three catches for 122 yards and three scores for Masuk.
NEXT: vs. Brookfield (8-0), Friday, 7 p.m.
Dropped out: Fairfield Prep (10).
Also receiving votes: Fairfield Prep (7-1), 150 points; Tie, Ansonia (8-0) and Killingly (8-0), 120; St. Joseph (5-3), 79; Newington (8-0), 55; Glastonbury (6-2), 41; New Britain (7-1), 22; Sheehan (6-2), 18; Fairfield Ludlowe (6-2), 15; Rockville (7-0), 8; Tie, Bunnell (6-1) and Capital Prep/Achievement First (8-0), 7.
Voters: Erik Becker, Hand; Tom Brockett; Ansonia; Joe Della Vecchia; St. Joseph; Mike Ellis; Fitch; Rob Fleeting; Windsor; Kevin Frederick, Maloney; Tanner Grove; Montville; Andy Guyon; Xavier; Joe Lato; Woodland; Brian Mazzone; Stafford/East Windsor/Somers; Bryan Muller; Brookfield; Marce Petroccio; Trumbull; Nathan Tyler, Stratford.
Ned Griffen has obsessively covered state high school football since the mid-nineties, back when Dan Orlovsky was just a wiry teenager at Shelton High School. He was born in Texas thus he was genetically hardwired to love the sport. He enjoys heavy metal, pro wrestling, Jennifer Walters and being adored by cats and dogs everywhere.
