Purple Knights reign over Housatonic, 24-0

FALLS VILLAGE — Although the wind-driven rain that poured down throughout the game on Oct. 27 wasn’t the color purple, everything else that hit the Mountaineers most certainly was, as the Ellington Purple Knights shut down Housy 24-0.

This game was almost a complete reversal of the one played last year, when the visiting Mountaineers stumped Ellington 6-0 in very windy but relatively dry conditions.

But on this soggy Saturday it was the stinging Ellington defense, with a little help from Mother Nature, that successfully stopped the Mountaineer offense, allowing them just 133 yards on the ground and nothing through the air.

In addition, starting center Connor Johnson wasn’t able to suit up, and this proved to be a problem for Housy. "CoJo," as he is known to his teammates, has done a great job this year, snapping the ball to the array of different players in the backfield.

Because the Mountaineers play the single-wing formation, no one quarterback lines up behind center; instead, several players, in a crouched position, are roughly 5 feet behind the line, so the snap must be long and low. When all goes well, it creates confusion for the defense as they try to figure out who has the ball.

Unfortunately, all did not go well as close to a dozen snaps went awry, causing hesitation, fumbling and broken plays.

Defensively, Housy did a great job in the first half, holding the high-powered Ellington offense, which has averaged 40 points per game, to just one touchdown. In fact the Mountaineers stopped the Purple Knights at the 6-yard line and the 15-yard line on two different possesions, forcing them to turn the ball over on downs.

The Mountaineers mounted their own drive when, after a series of long gains by Jameson Martin on the ground, Tom Kennedy lofted a pass to Martin, who had outpaced his defender, and had a clear shot to the endzone. But a last-second deflection kept the ball out of Martin’s hands, and kept Housy off the scoreboard.

Although the Ellington score midway through the first quarter was all that was needed to win the game, the Purple Knights did add two more touchdowns in the second half, one in each quarter.

"This loss is my responsibility," said Coach Deron Bayer after the game. "I needed to make better adjustments to what they were doing on defense. We worked on it in practice but until they see it in a game, it’s difficult to prepare the boys for it."

As for the players, "They played their hearts out today," he said.

With the Housatonic/Wamogo Mountaineers now at the .500 mark (3-3) it doesn’t get any easier, as they host Avon at 1:30 p.m. on Satuday, Nov. 3. They are a team Coach Bayer called "one of the best in our conference."

 Gian Lodevole, who can’t play tight end due to a chronic shoulder injury, did an amazing job punting the ball in terrible conditions, with one punt traveling 50 yards.

•Jameson Martin had an interception in addition to 33 yards on seven carries.

• C.J. Trotta, co-captain of the 2005 squad, was on the sidelines despite the stormy weather. He is currently attending college in upstate New York.