BRIDGEPORT, Conn. — With standout players such as Christon Gill and Shabashe McIntosh on the roster, the Bridgeport Central Hilltoppers weren’t overlooked by many of their opponents when the season began. Then again, they weren’t exactly seen as a threat to wrest the FCIAC football title away from the league’s powerful triumvirate of New Canaan, Greenwich and Staples.
File photo by Richard Stieglitz
Matt Kelly, Staples
Nine weeks later and Central is on the brink of its first league championship.
The Hilltoppers crushed the State’s No. 1 team, the New Canaan Rams, in resounding fashion, 42-7, Friday at Kennedy Stadium to earn its first berth in the FCIAC final since 2004. Central lost that year to Greenwich, 43-27.
Bridgeport’s opponent will be the Staples Wreckers, who are a perfect 9-0 after shutting out the Trumbull Golden Eagles, 34-0. The FCIAC championship game will be played at Trumbull High School’s McDougall Field at 7:30 p.m. Friday.
The Hilltoppers, who are 8-1 under head coach Dave Cadelina this season, have a unique opportunity to defeat the conference’s three premier teams. They edged Greenwich, 14-13, in week six before last week’s rout of New Canaan, a game which ended the Rams’ 24-game winning streak dating back to November 2006.
New Canaan’s offense sputtered in the wind and rain at Kennedy, and the Hilltoppers were in control from the opening kickoff, scoring on their first three possessions to take a 21-0 lead with 7:24 remaining in the half. Central’s opening drive covered 72 yards on just three plays, and McIntosh scored on a 47-yard run 1:22 into the game. After a 3-and-out series for New Canaan, the Hilltoppers marched 60 yards on 15 plays and scored on a 1-yard run for a 14-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.
The Rams drove inside the Central 15 on their next possession, but the Hilltoppers held on downs and answered loudly with a sustained drive on offense. They marched 89 yards on 11 plays and scored yet another rushing touchdown when junior Lucas DeSouza ran five yards to the end zone. Junior tight end Keishaun Fernandez caught a 6-yard pass from senior QB Gill for the final touchdown of the half, as Central led 28-0. McIntosh, who had 181 rushing yards, scored two more touchdowns in the second half and had four in the game.
New Canaan averted the shutout when senior quarterback Turner Baty connected with senior receiver Cody Newton for a 4-yard TD late in the third quarter. Central amassed 373 yards on the ground, and both McIntosh and Desouza (16 carries, 115 yards) went over the century mark.
The Toppers also held the Rams’ high-flying spread offense to just 151 total yards. Baty, who threw for at least 320 yards in each of the past four games, was just 13-of-31 for 103 yards, with a TD and an interception. The defense also set up two TDs, as junior linebacker David Rhoden returned an interception to the New Canaan 6-yard line, and senior lineman Ernest Wiggans returned a fumble to the Rams’ 5.
Central has been a roll lately, winning its last five games after a 21-0 loss in Trumbull in Week 4. The Hilltoppers have outscored their opponents 328-141. The combination of Gill and McIntosh is hard to beat, as the pair represent a potent passing and running attack.
The 6-foot, 185-pound Gill wasn’t called upon to do much through the air against New Canaan, but is 43-of-76 for 979 passing yards with 13 touchdowns and five interceptions for the season. He also has 336 rushing yards on 43 carries — a 7.8 average — with four TDs. McIntosh, a 5-6, 150-pound junior, is the team’s leading rusher with 90 carries, 840 yards and 14 TDs. McIntosh has averages of 9.33 yards per carry and 93.3 yards per game. He also leads the team in receptions with 11 for 305 yards and another four touchdowns.
The offense doesn’t end with those two however, as several other players have had solid seasons thus far. Senior back Dominick Luckey (5-9, 185) is the team’s second-leading rusher with 442 yards and six touchdowns on 76 carries. Desouza (5-11, 170), who had his biggest game of the season versus New Canaan, has 341 yards and four TDs on 41 carries. The receiving corps features senior Sean Mansfeild (5-9, 140), who has 10 carries for 167 yards, and tight ends Gregory Jones (6-2, 170) and Fernandez (6-3, 195).
On defense, senior LB Christian Bish (6-1, 210) and senior DB Axel Lee (6-0, 170) lead the team in tackles. Wiggans (6-3, 250) is featured at tackle, while Rhoden (5-7, 185) stars at linebacker and Gill plays at safety. As good as Central has been, the Staples Wreckers come into the game as favorites with a 9-0 record.
Staples has outscored its opponents 338-25 and the defense has allowed just four touchdowns — never more than one in a game. The Wreckers have pitched five shutouts this season, including four in the past five games. The only knock against Staples has been its strength of schedule. Staples has faced just three teams with winning records and two of those, Trumbull and Fairfield-Ludlowe, are 5-4. The Wreckers’ most impressive victory came early, when they handled the Ridgefield Tigers (7-1) by the score of 30-0 in Week 3.
Staples will be seeking the fifth FCIAC football title in school history, with the last coming in 2003. The Wreckers last appeared in the FCIAC final in 2007, when they lost to Greenwich. Staples won back-to-back State Class L titles in 2004 and 2005.
The Wreckers have done a fine job handling the loss of starting senior quarterback Brandon Pacilio, who broke his femur in a Week 6 win over Harding. Senior QB Keith Gelman (5-10, 155) stepped into the starting role and has guided Staples to three straight wins, completing 22-of-25 passes for 387 yards with three TDs and one pick. Gelman has also rushed 39 times for 191 yards and four TDs.
Even before the loss of Pacilio, the Wreckers were primarily a running team, with Matt Kelly and Ryan Burke leading the way. Kelly, a 6-0, 170-pound senior, has a yards-per-carry average of 11.83 and has 757 yards and eight TDs on 64 carries. Burke, a 6-0, 185-pound junior, has a 10.14 yards-per-carry average with 750 yards on 74 rushes. He leads the team in touchdowns with nine.
Senior receiver Brendan Rankowitz (6-1, 175) has a team-high 20 receptions and 467 receiving yards with seven touchdowns, while junior Chris Coyne (6-4, 215) has 11 catches for 149 yards. The Wreckers have another potent weapon in senior kicker Santiago Cuartas, who has 10 field goals this season, just one off the state record of 11 set by Christian Garcia of Norwalk in 2007.
Staples’ defense is loaded with stars and has helped the Wreckers post an incredible plus-28 in turnovers. Staples has 22 interceptions and nine forced fumbles, while the offense has turned the ball over just three times.
Senior linebacker Jake Santora (6-1, 215) leads the team in tackles with 78 and is tied with DB Rankowitz for the team lead in interceptions with five. Seniors Devin Graber (6-2, 225) and Cody Laszlo (6-2, 250) anchor the defensive line. Graber has 61 tackles and eight sacks, while Laszlo has racked up 58 tackles. Other standouts include Coyne, who has a team-best 13 sacks to go along with 45 tackles, junior LB Rob Gau (6-0, 200), who has 54 tackles, senior LB Jack Ambrose (5-9, 165) and junior LB Pat Murray (6-3, 200).
The defense is coming off a big performance against Trumbull, as the Wreckers held the Eagles to minus-10 yards and no first downs in the first half. Staples also had five sacks in the contest.
Dave Stewart, the Sports Editor of the New Canaan (Conn.) Advertiser, is a MaxPreps.com writer and photographer. He may be reached at 203-966-9541 or at sports@ncadvertiser.com.