final report from Arute

Wow. I'm still getting over this game. The Ledyard players are still gathered at midfield, while the Berlin team is clearing out as quickly as possible. The same goes for the fans.
I guess I'll quickly throw out winners for the other three title games tonight.
Greenwich over Shelton in LL
Bunnell over Masuk in L
Tolland over Seymour in SS
So far the southern half of the state has dominated the playoffs. Tolland is the only hope for this half of the state. That's unfortunate, but I'll be pulling for the Eagles tonight.
I'll see the rest of you in the gymnasium starting this week, as girls basketball will be up and running.

some thoughts

First off, that was one of the best high school games I've seen in any sport. Both teams played well. The fans were into it. There was everything on the line.
Connelly looked a little like Elway, scrambling just enough and making great passes to keep things alive at the end.
In the booth we could not decide who the MVP for Berlin was between Hornberger, who made several great plays, Connelly and Jack Cooper, the heart of the team on both offense and defense.
Jacob Jablonski, who made the crucial interception and threw for the winning touchdown, was an easy choice for Ledyard MVP. Hornberger got the decision for Berlin.
This one won't be easy for the Redcoats to swallow, but they can carry their heads high. They gave everything, and almost made a phenomenal comeback.
That will some day be a happy memory for them, I hope.

stunning

Everybody is standing right now on both sides. It's fourth-and-goal at the one with ten seconds to go and just as Berlin appears about the score, the ball is fumbled just before the goal line and while Berlin recovers, it is a turnover on downs.
Ledyard is going to win.

meanwhile, back at the ranch

The Redcoats have gotten the ball back with just under three minutes to go, but can't get anything going against a blitz on first down. 88 yards to go. This will take an Elway-esque performance.
It's now third-and-10.

common ground

The fans on both sides have found something to cheer about together. The Ansonia score was just announced to a big cheer.
It appears the one universally disliked team in the state is New London.

nothing doing

Berlin chose to punt giving the ball back to Ledyard with 4:00 minutes left.
On the TV screen behind me, Ansonia has just scored again to go up 35-0 on New London. They won't have to worry about hitting the 50-point limit.

make the most of it

All you can ask for is a chance, and the Berlin defense has given the offense that with a stop on downs. But a huge punt by Fredrick Hewett has left them backed up at the 14 with only 6:04 remaining. Fail to score here and it should be over.

clock ticking

Berlin punt, Ledyard ball, but still plenty of time. 8:08 to be exact.

the tide turning

It appears momentum did swing on that interception as Ledyard marched slowly downfield, or rather in short big bursts. A 55-yard rushing play and a 22-yard halfback option throw to, of all receivers, quarterback Marc Mignault for the touchdown. With the kick it's 21-14 Ledyard.
Can Berlin answer? They've looked a little lost at times in this half.

play of the game?

Berlin looked good, but a great interception on first down gives the ball back to Ledyard at its own 11 with just over two minutes to go in the third.

new wrinkles

Berlin has switched into double-wing and wing-T formations. Very interesting move, since the spread seemed to be working through most of the first half. I'm curious how long they'll stay in it.
It looks like they might be mixing things up a lot with an I-form with two receivers on the strong-side now.

ledyard scores

Perhaps I spoke too soon. McNeil scores again for Ledyard and we're tied at 14 after the kick, with 5:10 left in the third.
The Berlin defense looked shaky there, giving up a big gain on third-and-16 to set up the fourth down TD.
This is crunch time. Winners respond right now, before this gets to the fourth quarter.

no scoring yet

Somebody woke the defenses up at the half. Neither team is really moving much so far in the second half.
Of course as I say that Ledyard starts moving again. We'll see what happens.

reversal

Ironically, while the Berlin fans stood most of the first half and used the halftime as a chance to sit, the Ledyard fans stood through the half to stretch their legs an scatterings of them are still on their feet as the Colonels march downfield to start the second half.

halftime report

I just went down to the field, and I can assure you, it's cold down there. In particular, the Ledyard sideline is entirely in the shade, though I can't imagine the sun helping the Berlin players too much. Dropped balls are understandable here, when you can't tell if the ball has hit your hands yet.
The trainer tells me there are no injuries of note to report, which is good for both teams.
I couldn't get any word from the coaching staff, but one person familiar with the Berlin team told me they don't look as sharp today as on Tuesday. But, they added, it would be tough to be as sharp as they were that night against Bristol Eastern. I'll add myself that Connelly seems to be in the zone.
As the players came out of the locker room, coaches yelled 'go get your title'. They might be 24 minutes away.

Berlin 14-7 at the break

It's halftime and I'm going down to the field to scope out the scene.

counter strike

Connelly is passing like Joe Montana these days. Everything is right on the money. Another long pass to Hornberger and good runs by Tatro and Cooper, the latter into the endzone.
Connelly to Hornberger for 2, 14-7 Berlin back on top.

into the game

The Berlin coaches in the booth are shouting "POISON!!" so loud as Ledyard kicks a short punt, that we can hear it through the thick glass separating us.
Poison means get away from the ball, as touching it is only likely to result in a mistake like a turnover.
Great halfback throw by Cooper to Johnson for a big gain, but followed up by a sack of Connelly.

a northern wind

Tough to tell if the wind that is blowing the flags strongly to the south is helping, but it couldn't have hurt Connelly's pass to Andrew Hornberger for 36 yards that pushed the Redcoats into Ledyard territory.
But Cameron Johnson couldn't quite hold on to one in the endzone on fourth down, turning the ball back over.
4:28 remaining in the half.

this might be a good game

Ledyard fans finally have something to cheer about as Tim McNeil is helping them down the field in big chunks.
On third-and-goal at the one, he plunges in, thwarting a good attempt at a stop by the defense.
With the extra point the score is Ledyard 7, Berlin 6 (the Redcoats missed a two-point attempt), with 6:51 left in the half.
Ansonia 14, New London 0 by the way.

two high school games at once

We've just put on the telecast of the Ansonia-New London game being played in West Haven. For those interested, it's being shown live on CPTV, and there will be rebroadcasts of all the games on the station as well.

first strike

Just noticed that the times on this are not updating automatically. I'll set it by hand.
Some notes. On the first play of the second quarter Berlin scores on a great quarterback draw play, sold completely by a fake handoff by Jim Connelly.
Ledyard had negative yards total offense in the first quarter, and is about to get the ball back.

end of the first

After one quarter, it's scoreless, but Berlin's at the six-yard line with third-and-goal to go.
At midfield Nationwide Insurance is giving the CIAC a check for supporting it's campaign to get people to buckle up. Something like that.

the frozen tundra of Arute

If you squint your eyes, it appears that Ledyard's uniforms, with yellow pants and helmets, blue shirts with white letters, are designed to be reminiscent of the Green Bay Packers. But they must not be executing the halfback toss properly, because as Berlin is on the verge of scoring, the Redcoats lead Ledyard in first downs gained six to none.

another stop

Berlin gets a big stop, helped by a tackle in the backfield for Jack Cooper (after watching to see if the player who made the tackle had black shoes, or white shoes). You have to question whether the Redcoats 'D' can keep coming up this big.

divided down the middle

I didn't get to set the scene very much here. For those unfamiliar, Arute, while a gorgeous complex, is one of those that has stands on only one side. Therefore, it is divided down the middle, a makeshift Mason-Dixon line separating the Berlin red on the left from the Ledyard navy blue on the right. The Berlin student section is on their feet. Maybe it's helping them stay warm. It's really cold out here today.
Of note, the Berlin uniforms, as usual, are causing problems for those in the press box. The most common phrase heard is "was that Tatro (16) or Cooper (18)". If anybody can help with this, can we get new uniforms with more distinct numbers? Or can we just give the running backs numbers that don't look so similar?
Looks like the Redcoats will have to hold again. Another fumble, just in front of midfield.

big stop

Berlin gets the ball back on downs, as the defense holds Ledyard. A pass to Hornberger and they're moving upfield.
It's tough to hear what's going on from our warm, glass shell in the press box. I'm not complaining though.

greetings from Arute Field

Here I am, on the campus of CCSU for the Class M state championship football game between Berlin and Ledyard.
As I type, Berlin has just fumbled the ball over on the first possession, giving Ledyard great field position.
I'll be here with live updates of the game on the field, as well as some of what's going on around the stadium.
I would have been here sooner, but the traffic is unbelievable. It's crowded here. For those of you familiar with the campus, I'm parked on the opposite side of the tennis courts in the top level of the garage.
Stay with us.

semifinals

Let me just say that after covering a playoff game in cold weather, just like every year, I'm looking forward to Saturday being over and done with. I'm a summer child and I'm a basketball guy anyways, so my thoughts are on getting indoors for several months.
A couple surprises in the first round of the playoffs, perhaps none bigger than Berlin's upset of unbeaten Bristol Eastern. I don't think too many people thought the Redcoats had it in them, but they got the job done. Incidentally, that is the first playoff win for the Nutmeg League in ten games, and eight years. The last was Farmington in 1999. (Northwest Catholic and Middletown both lost though. I was right. I thought a Nutmeg team would get a win this year. I just picked the wrong one.)
Meanwhile, what a bad day for the CCC, going 0-4, including upset losses for Eastern and Conard and a shutout for Weaver.
Interesting stat posted by Mike, who says that Jack Cochran is 12-1 in semifinal games. That's pretty incredible. Just ask Bill Mella how tough it is to keep getting through that first game, particularly on the road.
For the record, I picked Cromwell, not as a slight to Cochran or New London. Because I knew how good New London was. But I really feel that Cromwell did not get enough credit as "the other" unbeaten team in Class S alongside NL and Ansonia. The Panthers dismantled some good teams this year, and never slipped up. And that game against New London was close into the fourth quarter according to score updates I was hearing. The point is I don't think Cromwell was far behind New London and Ansonia as an elite team.
As for my picks, I went 6-5. It just goes to show how much tougher this gets when teams face unfamiliar opponents and just about everybody is really good.

Thanksgiving in review, and playoff predictions

What a Thanksgiving. I realized when I woke up that I had miscalculated the playoff possibilities and ironically, it was then 5-4 Wethersfield and not 8-1 Newington that still had a chance at the playoffs. But the Eagles lost that game, and would have been eliminated either way, in another ironic twist by an upset loss to another local team, Southington.
Cheshire's win over the Knights gave ten points to the team Wethersfield needed to pass, and that officially eliminated the die-hard Eagles. But still a solid season for Wethersfield.
I was at Rocky Hill, and the Terriers knew by the end of their win over Farmington that they were likewise eliminated from the playoffs. The saddest thing to me is that we barely missed a potential Rocky Hill-Cromwell playoff matchup, and for those unaware, there is still a huge lingering rivalry from when the schools were both in the extinct COC. Maybe next year. Or maybe we will get lucky and Cromwell will move into Farmington's vacated spot in the NWC and Nutmeg.
I went 3-2 on the week, making my regular season record 53-14. When I broke it down by team, here is what my record was picking games for each school.
Berlin, 7-0
Southington, 8-1
Plainville, 6-1
St. Paul, 8-2
Newington, 7-2
Farmington, 6-2
New Britain, 6-2
Rocky Hill, 3-3
Wethersfield, 3-4
State games, 8-3
I was perfect in the nine games I covered between two of our local teams.
Picking Berlin to win each week was usually the easiest thing to do. I guess I never really figured out the Wethersfield Eagles, and as for Rocky Hill, the biggest problem was I had them losing to Northwest Catholic and then winning against Middletown. The opposite happened.

On to my playoff picks for the first round. I'm not even going to explain these. It would take too long. And since I'll be covering the Southington-Shelton game, no pick on that.
HIGHER SEED in all caps
Class LL: GREENWICH over Bridgeport Central
Class L: Staples over BUNNELL
Masuk over CONARD
Class MM: DANIEL HAND over North Haven
Middletown over NEW CANAAN
Class M: BRISTOL EASTERN over Berlin
Weaver over LEDYARD
Class SS: SEYMOUR over Woodland
TOLLAND over Bullard Havens Tech
Class S: ANSONIA over Northwest Catholic
CROMWELL over New London

So that's it. I'll be back with predictions for Friday and Saturday's championship games. Enjoy the games and try your best to stay warm.