Granby/Canton looks sharp with shutout win over Blue Devils

Granby/Canton running back Michael Brosnan rushed for a team-high 80 yards and a touchdown in Friday night’s 17-0 Pequot Conference win over Coginchaug/Hale-Ray/East Hampton. More game photos

GRANBY, Nov. 19, 2021 – When the Granby/Canton football team hits the field with the ball, they look for something that works and stick with it. Defensively, they swam to the ball.

The Bears won their seventh game of the season Friday night and their third straight contest with a 17-0 shutout of Coginchaug/Hale-Ray/East Hampton.

In the final home game of the season, the Bears solidified their claim on a CIAC Class M playoff berth and go into Thanksgiving Day showdown with Gilbert/Northwestern/Housatonic for the Pequot Uncas championship full of confidence. A win over the Gilbert co-op (6-2, 2-2 Pequot Uncas) would give the Bears their first-ever Pequot Uncas Division championship.

In the race for the state tournament, the Bears are the No. 2 seed with the top eight teams qualifying. Due to the complexity of the point system to determine the playoff seeds, its hard to say who has clinched a berth but the Bears are looking really good at this point to get a bid for the second straight year.

The Bears (7-2, 5-1 Pequot Uncas) limited visiting Coginchaug to 25 yards rushing and 100 yards through the air. Granby/Canton intercepted three passes, including one pass with the Blue Devils on the Bears’ three-yard line threatening to score. It was the second shutout of the season for the Bears.

“We came in here with a really good plan and we executed it. Not to perfection, there were some blips but we did what we needed to do to get the job done,” Granby/Canton coach Erik Shortell said.

Granby/Canton’s Mahlik Brown-Smith (15) closes in on a runner during Friday night’s Pequot Conference game in Granby. The Bears won, 17-0. More game photos

Michael Brosnan, who splits time as a quarterback and running back, led the Bears with 80 yards on the ground and a touchdown on 12 carries. He also had four receptions for 19 yards. Khalil Thomas ranfor 46 yards on five carries while Will Attianese had 29 yards rushing on 10 carries.

“We play the hot hand,” Shortell said. “If passing is looking good, we will keep passing. If running is looking good, we’ll keep running We’re lucky we have talented running backs and guys that can get the ball at any time and the same goes with our quarterbacks (Brosnan and starter Will Migliaccio).”

Granby/Canton took a 3-0 lead on their first drive of the game, marching 76 yards on 17 play to the Coginchaug 6-yard line when George Horst connected on a 24-yard field goal with 2:50 left in the first quarter. The Bears earned first downs twice on third down and one on fourth down to keep the drive alive.

Coginchaug gained just two yards on their next possession and a 15-yard punt gave the Bears great field position on the Blue Devil 34-yard line. On a fourth down and two play, it was Khalil Thomas with a 14-yard run to the Coginchaug 12-yard line to keep the drive alive.

Two plays later, Marquis Thomas scored from the seven-yard line to extend the lead to 10-0.

Late in the second quarter, Coginchaug took advantage of two personal foul penalties against the Bears and had the ball on the three-yard line. Blue Devil QB Braden Linkarge tried to softly loft a pass into the end zone but it was tipped up into the air by Bronson and pulled down by Luke Maher for the interception with 2:17 left in the first half.

Granby/Canton QB Will Migliaccio (10) completed 7-of-13 passes for 50 yards in Friday night’s 17-0 win over Coginchaug co-op. More game photos

Granby/Canton made it 17-0 early in the fourth quarter. Thanks to a pass interference call against the Blue Devils, the Bears had the ball at the Coginchaug 34-yard line. Two plays later, it was Brosnan bursting through the middle of the line and into open space for a 27-yard touchdown run. Horst’s extra point made it 17-0.

Coginchaug promptly began a drive with Linkarge completing three passes to the Granby 38-yard line. But the drive ended when Linkarge threw his third interception of the game. For the second time, it was Marquis Thomas, who got inside position on a receiver to make an interception.

“Our defense is nasty. All I have to say is lock,” Granby linebacker Mahlik Brown-Smith, the team’s leading tackler said. “As we have seen today, we lock people up.”

NOTES: Prospects look good for Granby/Canton to earn a Class M playoff berth for the second straight year. The Bears last berth came in 2019. There was no football in Connecticut in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. … Granby have won a Pequot division title. The Bears were the Pequot West champions in 2015 when the league was split up into three divisions (North, West, South). The Bears were also Pequot Conference champions in 2015 for having the best record in the league (10-0). The other divisional champions that season were Ellington (8-2) and Morgan (9-1).

Granby/Canton 17, Coginchaug/Hale-Ray/East Hampton 0
At Granby
Coginchaug co-op (5-4)            0  0  0  0 – 0
Granby/Canton (7-2)                 3  7  0  7  — 17
First quarter
G: George Horst 24 FG, 2:50
Second quarter
G: Marquis Thomas 7 run (Horst kick), 10:47
Fourth quarter
G: Michael Brosnan 27 run (Horst kick), 11:44
Individual results
RUSHING: Granby/Canton – Will Attianese 10-29, Michael Brosnan 12-80, Marquis Thomas 6-27, Khalil Thomas 5-46, Will Migliaccio 3-minus 5, Beach Sessions 1-minus 3, Luke Maher 1-7; Coginchaug – Clayton Wiseman 1-minus 2, Braden Lankarge 15-17, Jake Manning 8-10
PASSING: Granby/Canton – Will Migliaccio 7-13-0, 50; Coginchaug – Braden Lankarge 11-23-3, 100
RECEIVING: Granby/Canton – Michael Bronson 4-19, Beach Sessions 1-24, Will Attianese 2-7; Coginchaug – Chris Progano 4-36, Jackson Hill 1-7, Ethan Adams 2-9, Jake Manning 2-15, Austin Cutbertson 2-31, Clayton Wiseman 1-5
INTERCEPTIONS: Luke Maher (G), Marquis Thomas (G) 2

Friday, November 19
Granby/Canton 17, Coginchaug/East Hampton/Hale-Ray 0

Wednesday, Nov. 24
Windsor Locks co-op at Stafford co-op, 6 p.m.
Ellington at Rockville, 6:30 p.m.
Thursday, Nov. 25
Granby/Canton at Gilbert/NW Regional/Housatonic, 10:30 a.m.

CIAC Class M rankings
With results through Friday, Nov. 19

GR: games remaining