Six Connecticut High School Teams Snap Droughts in Week 3, One Back to 1975

Six Connecticut high school football teams won in Week 3, each ending a losing streak against a single opponent that had lasted from 15 to 51 years.

Heading into the weekend, nothing on the Week 3 schedule of the 2026 Connecticut high school football season stood out as a marquee game. The results of Friday, Sept. 25 said otherwise, as six programs beat opponents who had held the upper hand for a generation or more. The droughts that ended ranged from 15 years to 51.

The matchups took different shapes. Some of these schools have squared off nearly every season, while others had not crossed paths as often in recent years because of scheduling. In every case, the Week 3 result closed out a long-running skid.

Pomperaug handled Newtown 24-7 in Southbury, its first win in the series since 2011. The Panthers had dropped 12 consecutive meetings, and six of those defeats left them without a point. Quarterback Josh Coughlin ran for two touchdowns to key the victory.

Tolland earned a similar breakthrough, beating Bloomfield 37-8 for the first time since 2011. The win stopped an 11-game skid in the series. JC Gonzalez and Jimmy Larocca did most of the damage on the ground, piling up 326 rushing yards between them for the Eagles.

Branford turned back Shelton 28-21, its first win in the matchup since 2005. The 21-year gap covered four consecutive series losses. Chris McKittrick threw two touchdown passes: the first drew the Hornets even, and the second put them ahead to stay.

Guilford posted a 19-0 shutout of Xavier, its first win in the series since 2004. Three straight losses had stretched the gap to 22 years. Shane Connelly carried the load offensively for the Grizzlies, running for 282 yards and reaching the end zone twice.

No result carried more history than Ludlowe's 15-0 win over Darien. The Falcons had never beaten the Blue Wave, a drought of 23 years and 10 straight defeats, making it the program's first victory in the series. Ryan Love connected on two touchdown passes, and the defense preserved the shutout. Head coach Mitch Ross previously worked as an assistant at Darien and was part of a state-title run with that program.

The longest drought of all belonged to Law, which defeated West Haven 14-7 for the first time since 1975, a span of 51 years. Reid Moulton hauled in a 22-yard touchdown pass, and the Law defense generated four takeaways. Even identifying 1975 as the year of Law's previous win in the series required a group research effort to confirm.

Taken together, the six results erased decades of one-sided head-to-head records across Connecticut in a single weekend. Two droughts dated to 2011, others to 2005, 2004 and 23 years for Ludlowe, and the oldest reached back to 1975. Pomperaug, Tolland, Branford, Guilford, Ludlowe and Law each snapped a skid of at least 15 years.