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Early Showdown: Unbeaten Darien And St. Joseph Meet, With A Lot On The Line
Dave Ruden
10.01.2014
Darien football coach Rob Trifone admitted this week that after three games, he is still trying to get a full read on his team.
Greater clarity should come just after sunset Thursday.
In one of the games that was circled on calendars as soon as the schedule was revealed, the Blue Wave host St. Joseph, unbeaten teams that will produce an outcome likely to serve as the first domino in shaping the FCIAC playoff race.
“It’s a tough challenge early on because you are still trying to mold your team,” Trifone said. “Figuring out the pieces of the puzzle and where they fit.”
The Blue Wave (3-0) have been error-prone in two of their three wins, but overcame them with superior talent. The same equation will probably not work against the Cadets (3-0), who have won the teams’ last two meetings.
“They’re an awfully good team,” Trifone said. “We’ve struggled with them the last couple years. As you can tell after our first three games, we’ve made a number of mistakes that a veteran team wouldn’t make.”
Darien has thrived with a balanced attack. It has passed for 609 yards behind first-year starting quarterback Tim Graham, and rushed for 450, with Shelby Grant and Peter Archey doing most of the work.
Trifone said that Griffin Ross, the team’s top receiver who has been sidelined with a hamstring injury, will be active for the game.
The biggest issue thus far has been turnovers.
“You are not going to win an FCIAC or state championship making the mistakes that we’re making,” Trifone said. “As much as people point to us and say we could be one of the teams to beat, we’re still very young. “We really have no starters back on offense at the skill positions. Everywhere you look there are juniors with a few seniors sprinkled in. Where we’re veterans is on the line. But usually the line is not fumbling the ball.”
It is fair to say the Cadets were somewhat of a curiosity once the season began. Coming off a state championship with few players back that contributed to it, the pundits were not exactly sure what to expect.
St. Joseph was considered a likely contender based on both its previous history, and the return of its two biggest offensive weapons, running back Mufasha Abdul-Basir and receiver Lars Pedersen, and part of the offensive line.
The Cadets opened with impressive wins over Notre Dame-West Haven and Fairfield Prep, then rallied last week to stave off an upset at Ridgefield.
“I think we’re a little bit better than I thought we might be,” St. Joseph coach Joe Della Vecchia said. “We don’t have a lot of depth, but the kids have responded.”
Abdul-Basir is fifth in the state with 602 rushing yards and has three touchdowns.
“Those guys are doing a good job,” Della Vecchia said of his offensive line. “We’ve been working hard at it.”
With a greater emphasis on running the ball than a year ago, Pedersen is expanding the ways he contributes. He has nine receptions for 171 yards, and has a touchdown receiving, rushing, on a punt return, kickoff return, and even with his one pass attempt.
While the offense gets most of the attention, Della Vecchia said he has been most impressed with his defense.
“I think they are playing very well,” he said. “Up front they have really held their own. The linebackers have played really well.”
Most expect the outcome to hinge on how well the Darien defense does against the Cadets’ offense. In one of the most impressive statistics in the state, Blue Wave defensive end Mark Evanchick, coming off an outstanding sophomore season, already has seven sacks. Four of them did come against Bassick, a game, surprisingly, that Trifone feels may have righted his team’s early mistakes.
“Ironically, they really started to gel Bassick week,” Trifone said. “Some of it was the result of a nice comeback win against Greenwich on the road. Some of it is finally getting back to our home turf after road games. All things being equal, the winner of this game is in a very good place.”
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