No. 3 Hand snaps No. 1 Xavier's 30-game win streak 

MIDDLETOWN — It’s been quite a while since the Xavier football team has been outplayed and outmuscled. Maybe not since the Falcons’ last loss — way back in 2009.

But Hand, gritty, resilient and physical, snapped Xavier’s lengthy winning streak, and did so, at least in the second half, in convincing fashion.

Led by five touchdowns from UConn-bound senior Matt Walsh, the Tigers knocked off the top-ranked Falcons 40-20 in a Southern Connecticut Conference showdown Friday before 4,500 fans at Palmer Field. Xavier (4-1) had won 30 games in a row since losing to Staples in the Class LL semifinals in 2009.

A 2-yard touchdown run by Walsh tied the score at 20 in the third quarter, and then senior Brendan Bilcheck connected with senior Caleb Ewald on a 31-yard touchdown pass with 1 minute, 31 seconds left in the third quarter to give No. 3 Hand (5-0) the lead for good.

While Walsh capped five of Hand’s drives, Bilcheck, Ewald, senior running back Ian O’Toole, and senior receiver Kyle Anderson were instrumental in leading the offense.

PHOTOS: Hand tops Xavier


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MALAFRONTE: Hand proved it was the No. 1 team

XAVIER: Tigers' defense shuts down Falcons in second half

VOTE FOR THE NEW NO. 1 FOOTBALL TEAM

ROUNDUP/SUMMARIES: Fairfield Prep rolls past Cheshire

Hillhouse prevails over North Haven

Hyde beats Valley Regional, remains undefeated

MADISON — Most eyes will be on Xavier’s Tim Boyle on Friday night.

The 6-foot-4, 210-pound Boston College-bound quarterback is hard to miss.

He’ll be calling the signals for the Falcons’ offense when top-ranked Xavier faces No. 3 Hand at 7 p.m. at Palmer Field in Middletown.

But on the other side of the field, the Tigers feel they have a pretty good QB of their own in senior Brendan Bilcheck.

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MORE ON THE BIG GAME BETWEEN HAND-XAVIER

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Ticket, parking information for Friday's Xavier/Hand tilt

TALE OF THE TAPE: Hand at Xavier

Who will win the Hand-Xavier football game Friday? Cast your vote!

By Chip Malafronte, Register Staff
cmalafronte@nhregister.com / Twitter: @ChipMalafronte

Graham Stewart, a former Register All-State football pick out of Xavier, has transferred to UConn after spending last year at Florida. The 6-foot-1, 227-pound linebacker, who resides in Durham, is currently enrolled in summer school courses at UConn and has three years of eligibility.

Last fall, Stewart, as a true freshman, played in 12 games for the Gators with one tackle. He scored a touchdown in the Gator Bowl against Ohio State after returning a blocked punt 14 yards to the end zone.

At Xavier, Stewart had 111 tackles with five sacks and an interception as a senior. The Falcons defense gave up just 116 points in 13 games, won the Class LL championship and were ranked No. 1 in the final Register Top 10 poll.

Mark Ecke said Tuesday that lack of support from school officials played a role in his decision to resign as Cheshire’s football coach.

Ecke said in an e-mail to media outlets Monday that he is stepping down.

His decision comes almost two weeks after being suspended due to an incident at a junior varsity lacrosse game in Glastonbury involving his son Tucker on May 3 in which police were called to the field.

Ecke, the head coach at Cheshire since the 1995 season, was awaiting a hearing that had yet to be scheduled by Cheshire’s Board of Education.

“It’s not a decision I wanted to make, but a decision that had to be done,” Ecke told the Register on Tuesday. “I was told by (Cheshire superintendent Greg J. Florio) that I would not enjoy the support of the administration if it went to a hearing. I kind of was boxed into a corner.”

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Chip Malafronte weighs in on the Ecke issue. Read it here.