GROTON – There are perfectionists everywhere you look for Thames River co-op football on the defensive side of the ball.
Teammates chide each other when a lineman jumps offsides. Defensive coordinator Mark Corbett hollers “that’s too much” when the defense squanders a non-descript three-yard gain. When an opposing running back gets outside, shouts of “you’ve got to set the edge” are sure to follow.
“We set high standards for ourselves,” Thames River senior defensive tackle David Klang said. “We take it personally when a team gets a good gain on us, let alone score a touchdown.”
Opponents haven’t personally affronted the Thames River co-op (Norwich Tech, Grasso Tech, St. Bernard) too often during the Crusaders’ 6-0 record to date. Wilcox Tech/Kaynor Tech’s co-op scored just the second touchdown against TRC’s defense this season.
The rare score, which cut a second-quarter TRC lead to a touchdown, rattled the Crusader cage and infuriated them to the point where they ran off 43 unanswered points en route to a 55-7 victory Friday at Grasso Tech.
What it means
Thames remains fourth in the Class MM playoff point ratings, just ahead of Killingly (6-1) in fifth place in what could be a preview of a No. 4 vs No. 5 state quarterfinal game. Killingly, the ECC gold-standard bearer overwhelmed Cheney Tech in a 2021 playoff game, but Thames isn’t playing like a typical tech school program.
Interestingly, Killingly played just no more than 400 yards away from the Crusaders on Friday, whipping up on Fitch at Dorr Field, located right behind Grasso’s new facility.
By the numbers?
Corbett feels Thames’ defense falls under the radar, which may be hard to believe for a team that has squandered only 13 points in six games and posted four shutouts. Much of the publicity surrounding the Crusaders 6-0 start centers around the “two-headed monster” running back tandem of Ryan Outlow and Seth Cunningham. Both stud backs lived up to their billing Friday.
Outlow, selected as one of the state’s top 25 players by GameTimeCT website, gained 124 yards on 10 carries and scored four touchdowns. Cunningham, the Day’s Player of the Year as a junior in 2021, ran for 145 yards on nine attempts, including a TD.
But when a defense nearly blanks its schedule, there’s more to TRC morphing from a 7-3 team a year ago to an undefeated Class MM playoff contender now.
They said it
“We don’t give an inch,” Corbett said. “We’ve only allowed 13 points all season and don’t want to give much many more. We have 11 guys who go to the ball and we play as one. I may break down a player for making a mistake, but the defense builds up each other. I feel we have the type of defense that makes us a state contender.”
Defense underrated?
Thames has never boasted as many athletes playing defense as it does now. Klang, a 6-foot-4, 268-pounder, is a dominant lineman. He made six tackles for losses Friday, including one on 4th-and-1 when the game was still a game in the third quarter.
“I play offense (lineman) to help my team, but I play defense for fun,” Klang said. “You would not know it from the score, but this was actually the toughest game we’ve had. They pushed us around early but we took over the game.”
Corbett loves his set of linebackers. Cunningham sometimes plays on the outside and excels. Inside linebacker Jaiden Kirkwood and outside backer Rocco Cillino, pound-for-pound one of the state’s most productive tacklers, are always around the ball.
A talented secondary features Justin Outlow, Velez, Xavier Jackson, the team’s leading receiver the last two years, and St. Bernard basketball standout and Norwich native Cedric Similien.
The Thames River defense has actually outscored opposing offenses, 4 TDs to 2. Prior to playing Wilcox/Kaynor (3-3), TRC had allowed minus 38 yards in total offense, made over 40 tackles for losses and forced 24 turnovers. Wilcox ran inside early well behind his big line for around 100 yards but allowing seven points is a signature defensive effort for most teams if not Thames.
“We came out a little flat,” Thames River coach Craig Sylvester said. “In the second half we played our game of dominant blocking and tackle. We don’t like to give up inches or yards.”
what’s next
Thames River hosts Cheney Tech on Friday, Nov. 4 at 6 pm Cheney Tech (5-2) is coming off an impressive 34-7 win against Quinebaug Valley on Thursday.
