Most high school football teams would be happy with a 7 – 4 record. And with Shelton coming off a 2007 season in which it was the CIAC Class LL runner-up and an inexperienced crew replacing a large number of graduates, Shelton was pleased to finish 7 – 4 in 2008 with an inexperience squad.
So with seven or eight starters back on each side of the ball, Gaels head coach Jeff Roy has set the bar high for the 2009 team.
“We’ve got a lot of experienced players, including most of the kids in the skill positions, who started last season,” Roy said Aug. 30 after a scrimmage with Seymour and Staples of Westport.
Though senior Paul Piccirillo created a lot of highlights when going against Seymour and Staples, the speedy situational player returns to a crowded backfield, with fullback Carl Christiano and running backs Joel Youd and Ryan DeAngelis.
Christiano was primarily a blocker for Youd, who ran for 824 yards and 16 touchdowns as a junior, and DeAngelis, who stepped in as a sophomore and rushed for 379 yards.
Piccirillo was listed as a wide receiver as a junior, he still ran for 527 yards and six touchdowns and had 14 catches for 144 yards. Roy said he’ll be counting on Piccirillo to play receiver and running back in the new spread offense, and also return punts and kicks. Piccirillo will also start as a defensive back.
Senior Ray Pendagast, who split time at quarterback with Mike Brighindi last season, has the position all to himself in 2009. The six-foot-four quarterback had all summer to pick up the new offense and, though he did not carry the ball as a junior, will be asked to also take off and run.
“These guys should be ready,” Roy said. “They played in passing leagues together all summer, and Ray had a great spring game.”
Both Roy and Pendagast say they are fans of the new system, since, as Roy put it, it will allow Shelton to put its athletic returnees out in space in different situations.
“I’m pretty excited because it will allow us to throw the ball a lot more and it will give our skill players room in the open field,” Pendagast said. “We should score a lot of touchdowns this year.”
Senior right guard Robert Gelozin and senior center Greg Bukowski also return to the starting lineup, as does junior wide receiver Michael Georgalis.
Starters returning on defense for Shelton include junior Patrick Gillen and senior B.J. Wood at the defensive tackle spots, Christino at inside linebacker, senior Bobby Castelot at outside linebacker, and Youd and Georgalis at defensive back.
Roy understands there is no such thing as a gimme game on the league it plays in, the Southern Connecticut Conference. And that’s something he’s hoping his players will remember.
With Top-10 teams such as Hamden and Hand on the schedule, Roy’s goal is to keep the team focused on one game at a time.
“There’s no easy game in this league, there’s a bloodbath every week,” Roy said. “All we can do is be prepared for every game.”
Though Derby‑O’Brien Tech has moved out of the SCC and is now a member of the Naugatuck Valley League, Roy said the SCC has allowed it to play out of conference on Thanksgiving so it could keep its annual rivalry intact.
Editor’s Note: Tim Parry publishes the FCIAC Football Blog, the best darn high school football blog around.
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