I sent out preseason preview forms to state coaches on Tuesday; props to Pomperaug coach Dave Roach for being the first coach to reply.

In the coming days and weeks, as coaches begin to send back forms, I'll post team previews on this blog to get us ready for the start of the 2013 High School Football Season, which kicks off on Sept. 11. 

Since they were the first, we'll start with Pomperaug.

POMPERAUG

Ed Arum Field, Southbury

Coach: Dave Roach (3rd year, 12-8)
Conference: SWC
2012 Record: 4-6
2013 Kickoff: vs. Newtown, Sept. 12, 7 p.m.
Top offensive players: Wade Prajer, 6-0, 190, Sr., QB; Steve Croce, 5-9, 165, Jr., WR; Sam Rubinstein, 6-1, 170, Sr., WR; Seamus Conway, 6-2, 220, Sr., OL; Bob Tzepos, 5-9, 185, Sr., RB.
Top defensive players: Jack Yule, 6-0, 230, Sr., LB; Nico Rosa, 6-4, 230, Sr., DE; Matt Silverman, 5-8, 165, Sr., LB; Jake Parsell, 5-10, 235, Jr., DL.
Key losses: Eric Beatty, K/QB; Jesse Prajer, DE; Carl Gatzendorfer, CB; Corey Bake, OL.
Outlook: The Panthers have size, strength and speed, according to Roach. There was a renewed emphasis on off-season lifting and conditioning, and Roach thinks his squad will be competitive.  Pomperaug will likely run several formations offensively, but the Panthers have to adjust to life without Beatty, who directed the offense last season. Three of Pomeraug's losses last season were to teams that qualified for the playoffs (Masuk, Newtown, Weston) and another (Oxford) that just missed out on a Class S berth. There's a good chance that the Panthers can climb back over .500 this season.

Check out The Scout Team, the Register's weekly football show.

The Scout Team, Mike Wollschlager and Mike Pucci, are back with a Thanksgiving special. They preview the big Thanksgiving rivalry games and look ahead to the upcoming playoffs. The latest installment includes interviews with players and coaches from Xavier, Hand, Notre Dame-West Haven, North Haven and North Branford. Check it out, and Happy Thanksgiving.

Follow the game action on our Football Scoreboard.

Platt Tech runs over rival O'Brien Tech

Matt Paola leads Pomperaug past Oxford

Pomperaug senior Matt Paola kicked a 54-yard field goal that tied a state-record in a 58-20 win over Notre Dame-Fairfield on Friday.

Current Notre Dame-Fairfield coach Rico Brogna, and Fermi’s Tyler Timion, each kicked a field goal from that distance in 1987. Brogna and Paola posed for a photo after the game.

Junior quarterback Bryan Castelot completed 7-of-11 passes for 236 yards and three touchdowns to lead the host Bulldogs to this SWC victory in a game where both teams entered unbeaten.

Senior Jawad Chisholm caught four passes for 177 yards, including TD catches of 80 and 82 yards, for Bunnell (5-0).

J.J. Bivona had a 2-yard TD run and Jared Vasquez caught an 8-yard TD pass for the Bulldogs.

Andrew Reel caught two touchdown passes for the Panthers (4-1).

By Mike Pucci, Register staff
mpucci@nhregister.com
@MikePucciNHR

For the first time since 2007, the Fairfield Prep football team has won three of its first four games.

The Jesuits’ reward? A date with No. 1 Xavier on Friday in Fairfield.

Still, Fairfield Prep’s quick start is a refreshing change from several lean seasons recently.

“We haven’t been (in this position) in a while,” Jesuits coach Tom Shea said. “It’s new to the kids. It’s exciting, but now we got a real tough test coming up (against Xavier).”

In Shea’s first season last year, Fairfield Prep went 3-7.

The year before, the Jesuits didn’t win a game and were 3-7 in 2008.

In 2007, Fairfield Prep won three of its first four contests, finished 8-2, but failed to qualify for the state playoffs.

The last time the Jesuits advanced to the postseason was in 2006 when Fairfield Prep won its first three games. It lost to Greenwich in the state semifinals.

Read the rest of the football notebook here.

WEEK 4 HIGHLIGHTS

OFFENSIVE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

♦ Ansonia So. RB Arkeel Newsome: Rushed for 387 yards and five touchdowns in a 45-13 victory over previously unbeaten Holy Cross. Ansonia is 4-0.

♦ Bethel Sr. QB Brandon Schmidt: Had 346 yards of total offense, including a pair of rushing touchdowns, in a 54-41 win over Oxford.

♦ Foran Sr. RB Andrew Sileo: Had 16 carries for 218 yards and three TDs in a 41-20 win over East Haven.

♦ Hillhouse So. RB Harold Cooper: Finished with 322 rushing yards and four touchdowns and added a 59-yard TD reception to help the Academics beat Lyman Hall 46-7.

DEFENSIVE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

♦ Cheney Tech Sr. DE Mike Majewski: Had 10 tackles, three assists and an interception in a 22-6 win over Platt Tech.

♦ Hand Sr. LB Edward O’Neill: Had an interception and forced a fumble in a 31-14 win over Cheshire.

♦ Notre Dame-West Haven Sr. DB Malik Tinney: Made two interceptions in a 28-15 victory over previously unbeaten West Haven.

♦ Windsor Jr. DE Cole Ormsby: Made five sacks in a 46-0 win over Hartford Public. The total is tied for second in state history for sacks in a game.

SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

♦ Naugatuck So. KR Nate Franklin: Returned a kickoff 72 yards for a touchdown in a 34-29 win over Sacred Heart.

♦ Sheehan So. KR Jeremy Gannon: Returned a kickoff 83 yards in a 41-7 loss to North Haven.

♦ Wilby Sr. KR JayLen Mahan: Returned the game’s opening kickoff 85 yards for a touchdown in a 38-28 victory over Derby. Mahan also ran for two touchdowns, made three two-point conversions and returned an interception 65 yards for another score.

♦ Windsor Sr. PR Aaron Berardino: Returned a punt 79 yards in a 46-0 victory over Hartford Public. He also made seven catches for 126 yards and a touchdown and also ran for a another score.

TEAMS OF THE WEEK

♦ Foran: The Lions defeated East Haven 41-20 to win their first game of the season.

♦ Harding: Torri Voss scored the game’s only touchdown on a 1-yard run in the third quarter as the Presidents won 6-0 to capture their first victory of the season and second in a row over Fairfield Ludlowe.

♦ Notre Dame-West Haven: Knocked off rival, and previously unbeaten, West Haven 28-15.

♦ Stratford: Defeated South-West Conference foe Notre Dame-Fairfield 41-38 for their first win.

ON THE AIR/WEB

♦ Guilford at Shelton, Friday, 7 p.m.: 960-WELI AM.

GET OUT AND GO

♦ Pomperaug (4-0) at No. 10 Bunnell (4-0): Both teams won hard-fought contests in Week 4. Bunnell rallied from a 7-0 halftime deficit by scoring 22 points in the third quarter to remain unbeaten after a 28-7 victory. In another defensive affair, Pomperaug returned two interceptions for touchdowns in a 16-9 win over previously unbeaten Newtown. Both Bunnell and Pomperaug are explosive offensively but were mostly contained last week. Will defense be key again, or will it be a high-scoring South-West Conference affair?

Check out the latest Top 10 Poll here.

The football season kicks off next Wednesday. Below are 10 games you may not want to miss in 2010.

Sept. 17
1. Xavier at Notre Dame-West Haven, 7 p.m.: Xavier handed ND only loss last season.

Sept. 18
2. Avon at Hyde, 1 p.m.: Could be game of the year in Pequot Conference. And it takes place in Week 1.

Sept. 24
3. Masuk at Pomperaug, 7 p.m.: Rematch of last year's SWC championship game won by Pomperaug.

Oct. 2
4. Conard at Glastonbury, 1 p.m.: Has potential to be one of the best games in the Central Connecticut Conference this year.

Oct. 9
5. Ridgefield at Wilbur Cross, 1 p.m.: Ridgefield earned a one-point win last year down in Fairfield County.

Oct. 15
6. Wolcott at Ansonia, 7 p.m.: This marks the 1,000th game in the storied Ansonia program. Wolcott has never defeated the Chargers.

Oct. 23
7. New Canaan at St. Joseph, 2 p.m.: These squads could be, perhaps, the best two teams in the FCIAC this season.

Nov. 12
8. Shelton at Cheshire, 7 p.m.: This meeting has become quite the rivalry in recent years.

Nov. 25
9. Staples at Greenwich, 10 a.m.: Or are Staples and Greenwich the two best out of the FCIAC?

Nov. 25
10. Hillhouse at Wilbur Cross, 10:30 a.m.: Elm City Classic could indeed be that as these rivals meet on Thanksgiving morning.

Class L champion Notre Dame-West Haven finishes as the No. 1 team in the final Register Top 10 Poll. Class LL champ Cheshire was second.

The Top 5

1. Notre Dame (11-1) (19 first-place votes)
2. Cheshire (11-1) (3)
3. Staples (12-1)
4. New Canaan (11-1) (1)
5. Pomperaug (12-1)

See the complete Top 10 Poll in Tuesday's Register, along with final standings and the football notebook.

Staples (11-0) remained No. 1 in the Top 10 Poll.

The rest of the Top 5:

2. Pomperaug (11-0)
3. New London (10-0)
4. Xavier (9-1)
5. Notre Dame-West Haven (9-1)

To see the complete poll, check out Tuesday's Register. Also Tuesday, stories on Notre Dame-West Haven (Class L) and Ansonia (Class S) and capsules on all 12 semifinal games.

Staples (9-0) is the new No. 1 team in the Register Top 10 Poll.

Here is the rest of the Top 5
2. Glastonbury (9-0)
3. Pomperaug (9-0)
4. Masuk (9-0)
5. New London (8-0)

Check out the complete Top 10 in Tuesday's Register.

Pomperaug moved up from No. 5 to No. 4, switching places with fellow South-West Conference member Masuk, in this week's Top 10 Poll.

Here is the Top 5

5. Masuk
4. Pomperaug
3. Glastonbury
2. Staples
1. New Canaan

Check out the complete Top 10 in Tuesday's Register.