Updates: Sacred Heart-Naugy Transfers, Russo Staying

We've got two hot rumors (I hesitate to call them stories until they become fact-based) this summer that everybody wants to discuss. Let's.

Trio of Sacred Heart Transfers Likely Headed to Naugatuck
It appears as though David Coggins, Javon Martin and Xavier Woods are all transferring to Naugatuck, as the longstanding rumor has suggested.

David Coggins
Naugatuck athletic director Tom Pompei confirmed that Coggins' and Martin's families touched base with the school toward the end of the school year about beginning the transfer process. All signs point to Coggins' and Martin's families making permanent moves to Naugatuck this summer and the (now-former) Hearts suiting up for the Greyhounds in the fall.

Pompei said there's still some "red tape" that Coggins and Martin are working through with Sacred Heart but that they all expect the issues to be resolved shortly. He said he talked with the necessary officials to ensure their move to the borough and to the school abides by CIAC rules.

Woods and his family have not been in touch with the high school, though, as far as Pompei knows. Woods attended an offseason camp with Coggins and Martin, but none of the three attended as part of the Greyhounds. Woods' situation is currently unknown, although signs also point to him transferring.

None of the additions have officially been made but it seems to only be a matter of time. Now it seems fitting to discuss how their presence will affect the Greyhounds this fall.

Russo Staying At Wilby
Last week, the latest rumor surfaced that Wilby head coach Patrick Russo was either resigning or being forced out of his position with the Wildcats.
Patrick Russo, shown during his tenure at Wolcott, will
return to Wilby. Credit: Jim Shannon/Rep-Am

That is false.

The Wilby coaching staff responded to an email sent this weekend, confirming that the rumor is not true and that Russo will enter his second season as the Wildcats' head coach in just a few weeks.

Russo was 4-6 in his first year with the Wilby after resigning from the same post at Wolcott.

We're just a few weeks away from the first practices of the season, so hang in there. Very soon, we'll start a very comprehensive preview of what's to come this fall. But that won't come until after the Olympics, so enjoy the Games and go Team USA!

Seymour Football Golf Tournament

The Seymour Kickoff Club is holding its 20th annual golf tournament on Monday,Aug. 6 at the TheHarry B. Brownson Country Club in Huntington. The details are below, and click here for the registration form or here for sponsorship opportunities. The program thanks you for your support.

2012 State Playoff Classes Released

It looks like Class S will go back to its former state as the Naugatuck Valley League Invitational in 2012.

Ansonia, the defending Class M state champion, is back down to the lowest class after its one-year stint away from its usual home in Class S (the Chargers were bumped up last year with its male enrollment exactly on the lower cutoff). They'll join defending Class S state champion Holy Cross and five other NVL teams in the smallest division.

The only other changes affecting NVL teams came in a three-team jump from Class L to Class LL. Kennedy, Naugatuck, and Wilby are all in the largest division in 2012, leaving Torrington as the lone NVL representative in Class L (last year's most competitive class). Wilby made the Class LL cut by a single male student while Naugy slipped in by six.

To see the composite schedules for each class, click the respective header below. NVL enrollments are listed in parentheses (if you want to see the enrollments for non-NVL schools, refer to pages 9-10 of the 2012-13 CIAC Football tournament packet). 2011 playoff teams are denoted with asterisks (single asterisk for same class, double asterisks for class change).

Class LL (682 and over; 37 teams)
NVL Teams: Crosby (723), Kennedy (745), Naugatuck (688), Wilby (682)
Others: Amity, Bridgeport Central, Brien McMahon, Bristol Central, Conard*, Danbury, East Hartford, Fairfield Ludlowe, Fairfield Prep, Glastonbury*, Greenwich, Hall*, Hamden, Hartford Public, Manchester, New Britain, New Milford, Newington, Newtown*, Norwalk*, Norwich Free Academy, Ridgefield*, Shelton, Simsbury, South Windsor, Southington, Stamford, Staples*, Trumbull, West Haven, Westhill, Xavier*

Class L (526-681; 35 teams)
NVL Teams: Torrington (587)
Others: Avon, Bassick, Branford, Bristol Eastern, Bulkeley, Bunnell, Cheshire, Daniel Hand*, Darien, East Lyme, EO Smith, Fairfield Warde, Farmington, Fermi, Fitch, Guilford, Harding, Maloney, Masuk*, Middletown, New Canaan, North Haven*, Notre Dame-West Haven*, Platt, Platt Tech, Pomperaug, RHAM, Rockville, Stratford, Wethersfield, Wilbur Cross, Wilton, Windsor*, Windsor Locks/Suffield/East Granby, Woodstock Academy

Class M (391-525; 36 teams)
NVL Teams: Watertown (481), Wolcott* (426)
Others: Abbott Tech, Bacon Academy, Berlin*, Bethel*, Bullard Havens Tech, Brookfield, Cheney Tech*, Coventry/Windham Tech/Bolton**, East Hampton/Vinal Tech, East Haven, Ellington/Somers*, Enfield, Foran, Gilbert/Northwestern, Hillhouse, Joel Barlow, Jonathan Law, Ledyard*, Lewis Mills, Lyman Hall, Montville, New Fairfield, New London**, O'Brien Tech, Putnam/Tourtellotte/Ellis Tech, Sheehan, St. Bernard/Norwich Tech, St. Joseph, Tolland, Waterford*, Weston, Wilcox Tech, Windham, Wolcott Tech

Class S (390 and under; 37 teams)
NVL Teams: Ansonia** (359), Derby (195), Holy Cross* (375), Sacred Heart (184), Seymour (300), St. Paul (172), Woodland (369)
Others: Bloomfield, Canton, Capital Prep/Classical Magnet*, Coginchaug, Cromwell*, East Catholic, Granby Memorial, Griswold, Haddam-Killingworth*, Housatonic/Wamogo, Hyde Leadership, Immaculate, Killingly, Morgan, Nonnewaug, North Branford*, Northwest Catholic*, Notre Dame-Fairfield, Old Saybrook/Westbrook, Oxford, Plainfield, Plainville, Prince Tech, Rocky Hill*, SMSA/University, Stafford/East Windsor, Stamford Academy, Stonington, Trinity Catholic, Valley Regional/Old Lyme*, Weaver
Arkeel Newsome (center) and Ansonia are headed back to Class S. How will that affect
Mike Nicol (left) and Wolcott in Class M, and Isaiah Wright (right) and Holy Cross in Class S?
Ansonia's move certainly frees up some room in Class M for Wolcott, which could very well make some noise in the postseason again this fall with most of its team returning. But it obviously pits a pair of defending state champions against each other in Class S (could we see an Ansonia-Holy Cross state title game?).

Here's perhaps the best question to come out of all this: Is Ansonia's drop back down to Class S good or bad for the NVL?

Derby Golf Tourney 2012

Derby football is holding its annual golf tournament at Whitney Farms Golf Course in Monroe. Please see the document below for further details. The program thanks you for your support.
Derby Golf Tourney 2012

11 NVL Players on New Haven County All-Stars

Eleven Naugatuck Valley League players have been named to the New Haven County All-Stars in advance of the 16th Hall of Fame Classic against Fairfield County.

The following NVL players are on the roster:

Tim Adanti, WR/TE, Derby
DeVante Bonvillian, DB, Wolcott
Dave DiGiorgi, RB, Holy Cross
Eric Ford, DB, Watertown
Mike Giugno, DL, Naugatuck
Jake LaRovera, TE, Ansonia
Jay'Len Mahan, UT, Wilby
Joe Parent, LB, Holy Cross
Dylan Sadick, LB, Seymour
Dylan Vano, OL, Ansonia
Matt Zaccagnini, LB, Woodland

Ansonia lineman Hakeem Martin was also selected but cannot play due to a prior commitment. To see the rest of the New Haven County and Fairfield County All-Stars, check out our pal SPB's blog. The Register's Mike Pucci also has an updated roster with numbers as of July 10.

Former Cheshire coach Mark Ecke will be the head coach for New Haven, while Stratford coach John Svatik will lead Fairfield.

The game is set for Saturday, July 14, at 5 p.m. at West Haven's Ken Strong Stadium. Tickets will be $7 at the door, but they can be purchased in advance for $5 at (203) 231-3992. New Haven leads the all-time series, 10-5, but Fairfield won, 34-14, last year.

Go ahead and post your opening lines.