Football Game Preview: Darien Blue Wave vs. New Canaan Rams

Darien hasn't had much luck against New Canaan recently, but that could start to change on Saturday. The Darien Blue Wave will take on the New Canaan Rams at 3:00 p.m. Keep an eye on the score for this one: both posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.

Darien is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Sunday. They enjoyed a cozy 35-21 win over Notre Dame. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Blue Wave.

Meanwhile, New Canaan waltzed into their match on Sunday with eight straight wins... but they left with nine. They strolled past the Nighthawks with points to spare, taking the game 35-20. The score was all tied up 14-14 at the break, but the Rams were the (much) better team in the second half.

New Canaan's win came from a few key players Darien will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Hudson Kenny, who rushed for 112 yards and one touchdown on only ten carries. The bulk of those rushing yards came from one huge play: a run that gained an incredible 59 yards. Andrew Esposito also helped with two touchdowns in total.

On the defensive side of the ball, a lot of the credit has to go to New Canaan's defense and their five sacks. Leading the way was Simon Tchakarov with three. What's more, he also racked up eight total tackles, the most he's had since back in October of 2023. Michael Smith was another major factor on D, making ten total tackles (2.0 for loss) and defending one pass in addition to snagging two interceptions.

New Canaan's victory was their sixth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 11-1. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 36.7 points per game. As for Darien, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won eight of their last nine games, which provided a nice bump to their 10-2 record this season.

Darien took a serious blow against New Canaan in their previous meeting two weeks ago, falling 34-0. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Esposito, who rushed for 126 yards and four touchdowns on only eight carries. Now that Darien knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.