Saturday, 7 p.m. at Rentschler Field
Congratulations to both Ansonia and St. Joseph for outstanding seasons. The two powerhouses will meet for the Class S title in the Saturday primetime game at Rentschler Field in East Hartford.
St. Joe's has lost three games. It did not have its star RB/LB, Tyler Matakevich, in two of those losses--its first two league games of the season.
This is a team that lost to Darien (the FCIAC champions) by a score of 13-10 without Matakevich, a team that lost to Trumbull (who is playing for the Class LL state title this year) without Della Vecchia for part of the second half, and a team that beat New Canaan (who is playing for the Class L state title this year).
Ansonia rolls in to this game with a big semifinal victory over second-ranked Montville. The Chargers' defense allowed a little less than 300 total yards. Dobbs ran for over 360 yards himself. It's obvious that Ansonia needs Dobbs to get going if it has any chance at beating the FCIAC power. The bigger task at hand is limiting Della Vecchia from making big plays with his arm. Della Vecchia can run, too.
Kyle's keys: St. Joseph is the best team I've seen all year by leaps and bounds (I haven't seen teams like Masuk or New Canaan, but you get the picture). With all due respect to the NVL's best offenses in Naugatuck, Sacred Heart, and Ansonia, St. Joseph can outscore just about anyone in a number of ways. In the quarterfinals against Woodland, Joe Della Vecchia threw for 307 yards and five touchdowns while the Cadets ran for only around 100 yards. In the semifinals against Valley Regional, Della Vecchia threw for 193 yards and two scores while St. Joseph ran for over 200 yards and four touchdowns with Tyler Matakevich, LJ Hunt, and the very mobile Della Vecchia.
Ansonia can't fall behind because the Chargers don't play a catchup style of offense (or defense, most of the time) while St. Joseph will pull the trigger on a pass that will put you out of the game. The problem that the Cadets pose for opposing defenses is that if you key in on the run, the pass will kill you, but if you drop into a nickel or dime, they'll run all day. The one weakness I saw in St. Joseph was its run defense, which is a big plus for Ansonia. Jack DeBiase ran for almost 200 yards on the Cadets, mostly on runs up the middle, which is a good sign for Montrell Dobbs and the Chargers.
Remmy's keys: Simply put, the keys to this game will be Ansonia's pass defense and St. Joe's run defense. St. Joe's strength is its passing game out of the spread. The Chargers' defensive line play will be huge in this game. They need to get a rush on Della Vecchia and make him uncomfortable. If the Chargers can run the ball on St. Joe's effectively and take time off of the clock, they will win this game. The less time Della Vecchia has the ball in his hands, the better for Ansonia. Ansonia must limit Della Vecchia from torching its secondary with the pass. The Chargers go as far as Dobbs takes them. There are many other playmakers on this team that are capable of contributing big time. Ansonia needs someone other than Dobbs to step it up and come through in the clutch. I don't know too much about the St. Joe's run defense, but I do know they have seen nothing like Montrell Dobbs all year. The Ansonia O-line needs a big performance here and needs to manhandle the St. Joe's D-line in order to win this game.
Kyle's final thought: You guys can think whatever you want about me on what I've said about Ansonia's chances in the last week and a half but it doesn't take away from the respect I have for the program, which is playing for another state title in what was supposed to be a not-so-great year. The road ends here, though. The Chargers haven't played great defense all year (the Montville game was perhaps their best game, but the Indians lost their best player) and have shown absolutely no ability to defend the pass. That is going to kill them this week. Joe Della Vecchia is incredible and is the best pure passing quarterback I've seen since I saw Michael Croce at Holy Cross. I see no way for Ansonia to stop him, so the Chargers will have to outscore the Cadets. I don't think it's going to happen. Good luck to both teams.
Remmy's final thought: I can't speak for everyone in the Valley, but I do know that the entire city of Ansonia will be rooting for the Chargers to pull this one off. Dobbs is a gamer unlike any I have ever seen. He and his team fear no one and part of that has to do with how great of a leader he is. St. Joe's is obviously a football powerhouse coming from the top conference in the state. The Chargers were a huge underdog last week and come into this game an even bigger underdog. The majority of the state does not think the Chargers have even the slightest chance at a victory this week.
As long as No. 5 is in the backfield, I cannot and will not root against him or this team right now.
Kyle's pick: St. Joseph, 45-33.
Remmy's pick: Ansonia, 36-29.
