Seymour has lost 13 straight games dating back to the 2009 season. They went 1-9 that year and 0-10 in 2010. The Wildcats have not won since defeating Crosby 41-26 on Oct. 30, 2009.

That's 22 months without winning a football game.

Seymour, though, is out to change its fortunes in 2011. The Wildcats have a fairly strong senior class led by captains Luke Grabowski, a quarterback, and linebacker Dylan Sadick and Josh Tilton.

The Wildcats open this season on the road on Sept. 14 against O'Brien Tech, a first-year varsity program. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at Derby's Ryan Field.

Despite not winning a game last season, Seymour coach Tom Lennon thought his squad was competitive, and he's optimistic as the preseason gets underway this week.

"I don't feel we're that far away (from contending)," Lennon said, "and I never thought we were (last year) despite our record. As bad as our record was, we weren't getting blown out in every game. We were in the mix in every game. We just never got over the hump. I think we just needed to take one more step and I think these guys are going to be the ones to do it."

Lennon says numbers have increased this year. The Wildcats entered the first day of conditioning Wednesday with 28 guys on the varsity squad. Seymour has 30 on the freshman team.

Read more on Seymour in Thursday's print editions of the Register.