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12/17/2016 11:00 PMThe Morgan football team entered the 2016 season with many questions marks, including a big one at one of the most crucial positions on the field. By season’s end, however, the Huskies exceeded expectations by giving their all until the final horn, while growing into young men as a result of their relentlessness. The final result was another winning record for Morgan with its mark of 6-4.
Head Coach Peter Nye and the Huskies came into the campaign uncertain as to who would be their signal caller at the quarterback position. After senior Madden Ward earned that spot, the Huskies faced some stiff competition in the Pequot Conference, but Coach Nye was wholeheartedly impressed with how his athletes never rolled over, despite the score of the game or how much time was left on the clock.
“Our first order of business this year was to find a quarterback. We struggled is passing leagues over the summer, so our job was to find someone who could play. Madden Ward was originally slated to be a receiver, but then we moved him to QB. He really was our most invaluable player, embraced the role, and trusted the kids around him,” said Coach Nye. “The funny thing with our team this year was that there were nights that they didn’t show up, but by the end of the year, they played until the very end in games where we seemed overmatched.”
The Huskies featured a unique system among their senior captains this year. Morgan’s lead captain was center/defensive lineman Matt Capece, who earned that distinction after winning 100 percent of the team votes. Capece was joined at the leadership helm by co-captains George Limosani, a tackle/inside linebacker; and Ivan Villanueva, a guard/defensive end. Coach Nye said that all three athletes bought into what embodies a football program by being fierce competitors on the field, while forming a tight-knit brotherhood outside of the gridiron.
“Matt was a big kid and part of the reason our numbers were so big was his warm leadership. Because of his personality, some kids that don’t like the football mentality, played instead,” said Nye. “George was probably our best player. He was quiet, but he led by example and his play. He had the intensity to be successful with a nice personality. Ivan was a physical leader who worked hard. He has that wrestler’s mentality of hard work. He rose to the occasion in the weight room and in the offseason. He never took a play off.”
The Huskies also featured several seniors who were in their first years with the program. Coach Nye said the fact that those fresh faces bought into what his program is all about played a heavy hand in the Huskies fighting until the end and finishing above the .500 threshold.
“We had 18 seniors and many of them were first-year players, which was great because they filled gaps for us and they helped keep us in many games. A football program is about giving a positive experience to as many kids as possible and we brought in kids who had great personalities and character,” Nye said. “As the year went on, we played at our best in our last two games [a 49-14 win against Lewis Mills and 33-32 overtime loss to Old Saybrook-Westbrook]. If there’s anything you want kids to get out of football, it’s to fight even when you aren’t doing your best. We care about developing young men. Having four losses gave us a chance to teach them more because they faced those adversities.”
For the Huskies’ team awards, Ward was named their Most Valuable Player, while senior wideout/safety Harry White garnered Offensive MVP honors, and senior inside linebacker Zachary McCray was named the Defensive MVP. Sophomore receiver Ryan Caldwell was the Most Improved Player, Limosani was named Best Lineman, and senior outside linebacker Eli Luchuk took home the Unsung Hero Award. Luchuk, White, and Limosani were each All-Pequot Conference Team selections.
The Huskies will have to replace plenty of pieces next fall, but on the flipside, they saw plenty of underclassmen gain big-time minutes under the lights this year. Coach Nye remains optimistic heading into the future and said that he simply needs to see his athletes get in their reps at the gym during this offseason.
“This group of sophomores that will be juniors is a special one. On one level, we’ll be young next year, but these underclassmen got a lot of varsity experience this year. We’ll again have to find a quarterback, but we have the talent,” Nye said. “If we stay in the weight room, we’ll be OK, and they’ve been doing that so far, so they just have to stick to it, and then we’ll hopefully do good things.”
From the Sidelines
Completing the senior class for Morgan this fall were Burton Cladwell, Eli Wexell, Nate Hornyak, John Veneri, Jarrett Talarzyk, William Zadrozny, Matthew Mester, Tyler Dean, Steven Hansen, Parker Haslam, and Dashaun James.
The Huskies’ assistant coaches were Brendan Hylan, AJ Hill, Nick Merullo, Jay Pasqualoni, and Matt Roberts.
Morgan’s wins came against CREC (49-14), Haddam-Killingworth (33-27), North Branford (20-13), Granby Memorial (34-8), Canton (48-14), and Lewis Mills (49-14).