STAMFORD, Conn. Just three weeks into the football season, all four Stamford high schools have contests that could go a long way toward defining their seasons. In a rarity, all four games take place on Saturday this week. Among the most intriguing is Stamford's home matchup at Boyle Stadium against Ridgefield (6 p.m). In the others, Westhill travels to Norwalk (3 p.m.), Trinity Catholic visits Harding (2:30 p.m.) and King visits Hopkins in New Haven (3:30 p.m.). Stamford (1-1) will try to bounce back after losing to Norwalk, 25-12, last Saturday. It gets a good test against Ridgefield (1-1), which lost to Greenwich in the first week of the season before rebounding to defeat Fairfield Ludlowe. The Black Knights, who came into the season hoping to contend for league and state playoff berths, need a victory to keep those hopes alive. Westhill (0-2) will have its hands full with an undefeated Norwalk team that stunned Stamford last weekend. The Vikings opened with a loss to Trinity Catholic, then fell to Trumbull last weekend. Trinity Catholic (1-1) lost to New Canaan last week, and running back Shaquan Howsie suffered a knee injury that could keep him out of action. Howsie has been brilliant for the Crusaders, rushing for 334 yards in two games. He ranks 11th in the state for total yards this season, according to statistics on MaxPreps.com. Howsie has also rushed for two touchdowns and is averaging 7.17 yards per rush. King (1-1) has been one of the highest-scoring teams in the state, with 81 points in two games. However, the Vikings have surrendered 88 points, including 48 in last week's 48-34 loss to Hamden Hall. Quarterback Kevin Peabody has thrown for 408 yards and five touchdowns in the first two games, while Joey Santaro has 10 catches and an average per catch of 27 yards. Running backs Zach Mulhern (8.93 yards per carry) and Brian Alebiosu (113 yards, three touchdowns) have anchored the running attack. King needs to solve its defensive shortcomings, however. Nick Della Jacono (13 tackles), Caleb Jones (14), Alex Haendler (12) and Mulhern (11) were among the bright spots defensively last week for the Vikings.
Contact Tom Renner at [email protected].
Click here to follow Daily Voice and receive free news updates.
