On paper, the Morgan-Old Saybrook-Westbrook Co-op football team may not have been glamorous. But in a season with a new leader at the helm, combined with several new faces, the athletes showed perseverance and stamina against touch adversaries and can hang their heads high knowing that they’ve more than set themselves up for a bright future.

The Huskies concluded their season on Nov. 22, when they defeated the SMSA Co-op 18-8. With an overall mark of 2-8, the other victory came on Oct. 25, when the co-op squad beat Weaver 33-6. First-year Head Coach Casey Trasacco acknowledged the tough schedule his team had to face this fall, praising the athletes’ ability to never give up and keep the contests within reach.

“We played some tough teams competitively. There were a few games where we had chances to possibly make some more plays and win the game. It didn’t end up that way,” said Trasacco. “A lot of the teams that we played are going to the playoffs. It was good to play against some good football teams, which was good to see. I believe that we really made progress. There were kids that had a lot of growth throughout the year. It was also a bit of an eye-opener to a lot of us on the team, seeing what we need to do in the offseason to win those games that we were competitive in.”

Leading the charge for the Huskies this season was a very talented core of four senior captains in Wes Percival (wide receiver/safety), Logan Ryan (offensive/defensive line), Hunter Roth (wide receiver/defensive back), and Tyler Farrell (center/linebacker). Their focus remained to be good role models for their younger counterparts, and to keep the team level-headed and locked in during every minute of every game.

“The captains did a good job; they were vocal when they needed to be. They led by example; I mean they all started and played a huge role in contributing to the team. Especially with those tight games, they really kept everyone’s head in the game, on top of the coaches,” said Trasacco. “If you have a good set of captains, they are essentially an extension of the coaching staff. Having those four guys there, being able to lean on them to help steer the ship was a major positive.”

Other senior standouts that gave the Huskies 100% on the field throughout the campaign included Dominic Larabee (senior, running back), Griffin Ranaudo (senior, slot receiver), Brandon Hester (senior, cornerback), and Luke McComiskey (senior, wide receiver).

“Griffin Ranaudo was a good receiver for us. He was huge kicking and punting for us. Luke McComiskey was good as a receiver for us. Luke and Wes Percival were our two top receivers,” Trasacco said. “One day it would be Wes’s game, and the other would be Luke’s. It depended on which team would focus on one or the other, and the other one would step up. We did not run the ball as well as we thought we were going to, but Dominic Larabee played every game. He was a good hard runner and was also one of our best linebackers, as well as very dependable.”

Ethan Lane (senior, middle linebacker) was also a top contributor for the Huskies this season because he did anything that the coaches asked him to do, and Trevor Powell (sophomore, quarterback), and Christian Harris (junior, outside linebacker) helped to propel the underclassman portion of the roster.

“He played offensive line, running back, defensive line, and linebacker for us. Whenever we needed someone to step up, Ethan Lane was right there,” said Trasacco. “Christian Harris, a junior, we moved his position, and he did not play a lot of running back this season. Towards the end of the season when we had a lot of injuries, he stepped up to play defensive line, which he excelled at. Trevor did a good job for us; he had some great games this season. He had his sophomore moments but learned a lot this year and knows what he has to do moving forward to be a better quarterback.”

Powell’s best game of the year was in a loss vs. North Branford on Sept. 27, when he threw for 227 yards and three touchdowns. Powell always gave the team a shot to score some points, no matter how much pressure he was under.

As Trasacco reflected back on the campaign as a whole, he knows the Huskies experienced some bumps in the road. But he also knows that despite the setbacks and obstacles, it was promising to see the squad show constant resilience and keep fighting to keep their opponents on their toes.

“Obviously everyone gets banged up towards the end of the year. We lost some key pieces early on, and it hurt us during the middle of the season,” said Trasacco. “Playing against Valley Regional (23-13), a rough, a big physical team, and having some chances to possibly get a win was good. Being up against Cromwell (42-14) at halftime, it was good to see. We went down early against Coginchaug (36-12) in the opening kickoff and ended up taking the lead in the second quarter 12-8. It was good to see the kids had some fight in them. They did not mentally check out. It was good to see that they kept going throughout the rest of the year.”

Having three schools combine into one team may seem like a challenge to some, but for the Huskies, they received support from all three schools. Going into the season, Trasacco knew the co-op aspect could cause some chemistry issues early on, but the athletes meshed well together and found that their biggest obstacle was the schedule in front of them. Facing tough competition only made them stronger as a group.

“The biggest challenges were the teams that we were playing. There were some good football players on those teams,” Trasacco said. “I said it in the beginning of the season, you want to play those good teams because that is the only way you are going to get better. You do not get any better beating those teams in a different weight class. The biggest challenge was playing that tough schedule that we did, which in turn made us better for the future.”

In May, the Huskies will be graduating eleven seniors, nine of which started for the team this fall. Trasacco looks forward to how the team next season will not only improve record-wise with the valuable experience gained on the gridiron, but also how each of his athletes can take that next step of becoming elite.

“When we went to Yale to watch the game, Coach Rain talked to the team and said you could be bad, you could be average, you could be great, and you can be elite. Our kids are always chasing that elite status. They see what it takes between watching film, being in the weight room, studying the playbook, and being a good student,” said Trasacco. “You can’t be a good football player if you are not a good student and not taking care of what you need to in school. They saw that all of those little factors play a part, which has really helped them mature and grown as young adults.”

Trasacco is assisted by Pat Dougherty (defensive coordinator), Jimmy Lewis (head junior varsity coach, offensive and defensive line coach), John Harkins (assistant offensive and defensive line coach), and Alex Trasacco (defensive assistant and defensive backs coach).

The Huskies starting lineup is comprised of seniors Larabee (Morgan), Percival (Old Saybrook), Ranaudo (Morgan), Ryan (Morgan), Farrell (Morgan), Lane (Old Saybrook), Hester (Old Saybrook), McComiskey (Morgan), and Roth (Morgan), Xzavion Clark (junior, left guard, defensive end, Morgan), and Chayton Katteman (junior, right guard, middle linebacker, Morgan) and Powell (Morgan).