Inside Week 7 of CIAC football: No. 1 vs. No. 2, unbeatens, and sweet revenge

Now that was interesting.

Week 7 of the CIAC football season was loaded with several marquee matchups, including not only three battles between 5-0 teams, but also a showdown between the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the GametimeCT Top 10 poll.

When the dust had settled - or the rubber pellets, since we're talking about artificial turf - five teams had fallen from the unbeaten ranks, bringing the number of undefeated teams down to 11, and No. 1 New Canaan had asserted itself as the state's top team, although it certainly was not easy.

The Rams defeated No. 2 Greenwich 23-19 after leaning on their huge offensive line and the running game for two touchdowns on two drives and controlling the ball for much of the second half. Senior linebacker Jack Crowell scored a pair of rushing touchdowns and had an interception to set up New Canaan's first score. In a bit of an oddity, the game featured three blocked PATs on six attempts - one by Greenwich and two by New Canaan.

It was the 10th meeting between the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the GametimeCT poll since 2005, and the result evened the record at 5-5. Teams ranked No. 2 had held a 5-4 advantage entering the game.

New Canaan also pushed its state-best winning streak to 29 games.

From 1-versus-2 to Panther-versus-Panther, No. 10 Masuk remained unbeaten with a 42-37 victory over No. 8 Pomperaug. The teams combined for five touchdowns and 35 points in the fourth quarter, when Pomperaug came up short in a comeback bid.

In the final matchup of 5-0s, Lyman Hall overcame Guilford 20-13 in a game that went down to the final minute.

Lyman Hall gets revenge

Lyman Hall finished 7-3 last season, an impressive record that still left the Trojans in ninth place and on the outside looking in at the Class M tournament.

So far this season, Lyman Hall has won close games and routs, senior quarterback Ryan Casey is at the top of his game, and the Trojans are, well ... perfect.

Lyman Hall defeated Guilford 20-13 in a battle of unbeatens Friday night, a game in which the Trojans led by 20 and then had to hold off the Grizzlies in the final minute to secure the win.

Defensive lineman Kolby Ryerson made a fourth-down tackle with Guilford in Lyman Hall territory and 32 seconds remaining to end the game.

Lyman Hall is now 6-0 and sits atop the Class M playoff rankings, while Guilford dropped to 5-1 and is in fourth place in that same division.

Making the win sweeter was the fact that Guilford had defeated Lyman Hall four straight seasons by a combined score of 174-15, including a 48-8 game last fall.

"There's no doubt with how they've dominated us over the last four seasons this is our biggest win in five years here," Lyman Hall coach C.J. Monroe told GametimeCT's Bryant Carpenter. "And the kids aren't satisfied."

Casey rushed for 105 yards and touchdowns of 26 and 6 yards, and also passed for 79 yards.

The senior QB had surpassed 1,000 passing yards in the Trojans' previous game, a 40-0 shutout of Hillhouse, and had passed for 1,113 yards and 11 touchdowns in the first five games. He threw one interception against Guilford, his first of the season, but still got the job done.

"There was not one snap, not one play toward the end of that game where I didn't want the ball in Ryan Casey's hands," Monroe said after the win over Guilford.

Lyman Hall faces East Haven (0-5) in Week 8, and its stretch run will include games against Hand (6-0), Law (4-2) and Sheehan (3-3).

Bullet points

Eight other teams remained unbeaten, with seven now 6-0 after winning this week. St. Joseph, which is 5-0, had a bye.

• Nick Andrews scored three touchdowns in the first quarter to lead No. 5 Southington past Glastonbury 49-14.
• No. 6 Ludlowe continued to roll and defeated Danbury 56-17. The Falcons will get No. 1 New Canaan next week.
• Naugatuck shut out Kennedy 35-0. With six wins, the Greyhounds have two more than they did all of last season.
• New London pounded Killingly 61-6, just about matching the score of 62-6 from last year's loss to the Trailblazers.
• No. 4 Hand got an interception, receiving touchdown and passing touchdown from Tom Pshybyshefski while defeating Shelton 35-12.
• Plainville romped over RHAM 54-0 and has outscored its last four opponents 158-12.
• North Branford dominated its Pequot game against Cromwell/Portland 62-6.

Up next

After a week of major matchups, we're not slowing down, with a Week 8 schedule again filled with interesting games.

No. 1 New Canaan will again face a team ranked in the GametimeCT Top 10 when No. 6 Ludlowe visits Dunning Field on Friday at 7 p.m.

No. 2 Greenwich goes on the road to Tiger Hollow to face Ridgefieldon Friday at 7 p.m.

A couple of big ECC showdowns are on the horizon with Ledyard at New London on Friday at 6 p.m., and Waterford at Woodstock Academy on Saturday at noon.

North Branford will look to remain unbeaten when it plays at Granby/Canton in a Pequot game Friday at 6:30 p.m.

Here are a few more games to watch for Week 8:

Friday, Oct. 30

• Hand at West Haven, 6 p.m.
• Newtown at Bunnell, 6:30 p.m.
• Staples at Wilton, 6:30 p.m.
• Wolcott at Woodland, 6:30 p.m.
• Danbury at Darien, 7 p.m.
• Fairfield Prep at Cheshire, 7 p.m.
• Guilford at North Haven, 7 p.m.
• Notre Dame Prep at Bethel, 7 p.m.
• Law at Shelton, 7 p.m.

This article originally published at Inside Week 7 of CIAC football: No. 1 vs. No. 2, unbeatens, and sweet revenge.