Trailing 7-0 at halftime in its game with Staples (Westport) Saturday,
Trumbull coach Bob Maffei switched quarterbacks from
Brian Gallo to
Ian Milne.
Almost immediately, the Trumbull offense took it up a beat.
The Golden Eagles drove to the Staples 7 but were thwarted by a Milne fumble into the end zone recovered by the Wreckers for a touchback.
No matter, the switch would eventually pay off as Trumbull took advantage of good field position with its tough defense and then held off Staples to take a 15-13 victory and earn a spot in the Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference football championship game Friday against
Darien at Trumbull High School at 7 p.m.
"We do that all the time (switching QBs)," said Maffei, in his 30th year at Trumbull, 13th as head coach. "Brian's more of a scrambler and thrower, Ian's more of a runner, so we switch when we feel like we need to switch. (Ian's) style is different. We thought we could run the ball on them, so we put him in."
After the fumble, Trumbull held and following a punt got the ball back at the Staples 24.
Don Cherry took it in from the 9, but after a failed point-after kick Staples still led 7-6. In the fourth quarter, Milne scored from 10 yards on a run and
Anthony Matera kicked a 32-yard field goal to make it 15-7. Shutting down Staples' run was the key.
"We made some adjustments at halftime (on defense) and it worked," Maffei said. "Basically, they scored on the first drive (of the game). I chalk it up to getting used to game speed. Our scout team could not imitate what they do. And it took our linebackers a while to get up to game speed, to how fast they're running it."
Staples would put together one more drive starting with 1:50 left, and used its passing game, which had been shut down all afternoon, to move to the Trumbull 11. A
Jack Massie to
Jason Mawicke touchdown pass as time expired cut it to 15-13.
On the two-point conversion try
Bryan Dewalt stopped Massie on a keeper to preserve the victory.
"He made a great play," Maffei said. "Our defensive line played magnificently."
Trumbull last went to the FCIAC championship game in 2005, when it defeated Staples for the title. The Golden Eagles (8-1), whose only loss was to Stamford 27-19 in Week 6, have gone throughout the season unranked in all of the three state polls. But that doesn't faze Maffei or his team.
"We don't care. We don't read the paper," Maffei said. "We've come out and played ball. It doesn't matter. We don't keep stats. All we care about is wins. Let me put it this way, if we win we'll get recognized. A lot of times, we haven't come up big, hopefully this year is different."
The FCIAC championship is rich in tradition and in some ways can mean more to the conference's teams than the state playoffs.
"We're really enjoying getting ready for this one (FCIAC title game)," Maffei said. "The FCIAC championship game means a lot to me. My father officiated the first FCIAC title game ever (1966). It was Rippowam and Stamford Catholic. You had great players. I used to idolize Bobby Valentine (Rippowam), one of the best football players I ever saw. Boyle Stadium (former annual site of the game) has a lot of memories. The game is well run by the FCIAC. The CIAC tournament is not run as well."
Maffei will be going up against
Darien head coach Rob Trifone, a longtime friend and former high school teammate. Both played linebacker at Fairfield Warde when seniors in 1972.
Darien (9-0) has received a little more respect in the polls, ranking fifth this past week, and both teams are in excellent position for the playoffs with Trumbull third in Class LL and Darien No. 2 in Class L.
"(Darien has) a great running game, they're strong, they're physical, they're well-coached," Maffei said. "We've got our hands full. They're undefeated, so it's not going to be easy."
STORYLINES* No. 1
Xavier (Middletown) football held off No. 10 West Haven 42-28 in a premier SCC matchup. The Falcons gained 542 yards of total offense, led by
Mike Mastrioanna's 206 rushing and three touchdowns.
*
North Haven football improved its chances of securing a Class L playoff berth by defeating Lyman Hall (Wallingford) 24-13 in an SCC battle of 7-1 teams.
Chris Matteis led the Indians with 141 yards rushing.
*
Riley Lefebvre scored on touchdown catches of 56 and 32 yards from
Ryan Belote (12-for-21, 272 yards) and added an 89-yard kickoff return in a 50-21 CCC victory for
Maloney (Meriden) over Tolland to keep the Spartans' playoff hopes alive in Class L.
*
Milton Jackson scored from 1 yard to lift
Windsor to a 27-24 double overtime victory over CCC rival and previously unbeaten Hall (West Hartford). Jackson gained 240 yards rushing and scored four touchdowns.
TOP PERFORMERS* Montrell Dobbs, Ansonia football: Rushed for 325 yards and six touchdowns on 22 carries in a 55-21 NVL victory over Seymour. His longest score was from 62 yards.
* Casey Cochran, Masuk (Monroe) football: Passed for 258 yards and five touchdowns in the Panthers' 54-14 SWC victory over Immaculate (Danbury).
LOOKING AHEADAn abbreviated week in football, prior to the Thanksgiving Day games, features the traditional West Hartford clash between
Hall (8-1) and
Conard (7-2). The South-West Conference title game between 9-0
Masuk (Monroe) and 8-1
Newtown, and the Naugatuck Valley League championship between
Ansonia (9-0) and
Naugatuck (8-1) have become traditional Thanksgiving rivalry and title tilts rolled into one.
Paul Rosano, the former assistant sport editor of The Hartford Courant and sports editor of The New Haven Register, covers Connecticut for MaxPreps.com. He may be reached at pjrosano@cox.net.
