Newtown High Graduates Get A Second Last Chance To Play On High School Football Field

By Andy Hutchison

NEW CANAAN — Senior high school football players saw their high school careers end this past fall — most of them did anyway. Several of the area’s top players, however, will have one last experience on the high school grid iron. Among those selected to participate in the annual Hall of Fame Classic All-Star Game that pits the top senior players from Fairfield County against the best from New Haven County are Newtown High School’s Jamie Goodwick and Bob Lapple.

The former Nighthawks’ standouts will join players from the likes of New Canaan, Fairfield, Stratford, and Norwalk — just to name a few towns — to compete in Friday night’s 12th annual game. These local All-Stars will line up across from the best players from towns such as Branford, Guilford, and North Haven for a 7:30 kickoff at West Haven High School.

In the weeks leading up to the game these athletes, who were opponents for past seasons and are now teammates for the first time, practiced plays and participated in drills run by a coaching staff led by New Canaan High’s Lou Marinelli.

“It’s a coach’s dream to coach the best kids from every high school,” Marinelli said during a recent practice at New Canaan High School.

“It’s fun. You see these kids on the field, you read about them in the newspaper and now we get to play with them,” Lapple said. “I’m pumped. I just want to have a chance to get on the field and hopefully make some plays.”

At first, it was a tough adjustment for the players to adapt to new teammates, coaches, and styles of coaching. For the Newtown players, the transition was made that much easier by the fact they were teammates and knew each other going in.

Lapple, who only started playing football as a sophomore, earned First Team All South-West Conference honors after catching 25 passes for 600 yards and nine touchdowns this past fall. He plans to continue his career at Western New England College where he will study business.

Although the game is meaningful for those involved and the Fairfield County squad is looking to avenge five straight losses to New Haven County (which leads the series 8-3), the practices were not nearly as grueling as those during the regular high school season.

“It’s a little more laid back. At the end of practice we don’t have to do sprints, which is nice,” Lapple said.

“We’re going to make it a good experience for the kids,” Marinelli added. “For some of them it will be their last football experience so we want to make it fun for them.”

For Goodwick, this will be his last football game.

“I’m going to be going all out. I’ve got nothing to lose — this is my last game,” Goodwick said.

Also a talented member of the Newtown track team, Goodwick plans to compete at Roger Williams University in Bristol, R.I., which is starting a new track and field program. For now, Goodwick has one last football game for which to prepare.

“To be a part of a game with the best guys in Fairfield County is an honor,” Goodwick said.