NewCanaanalums Drew Pyne, Garrett Braden impressed by Grip It and Rip It teams
Jul. 13—He has a lot on his plate with the Sun Devils, but while visiting family last week, he learned that New Canaan was about to host the annual Grip It and Rip It 7-on-7 tournament.
His reaction: "No way. Of course I'm going."
Pyne, a 2020 graduate of New Canaan, and Garrett Braden, a 2019 graduate, returned to their high school football home of Dunning Field to take a look at New Canaan and other teams from around the state, as the tournament featured 25 Connecticut schools.
Pyne owns many of the Rams' season and career passing records, including career passing yards (9,411), touchdowns (105), completions (701), and attempts (1,112).
Braden, a linebacker, played for three seasons with Pyne before graduating in 2019 and wrapped up four years with the Rice football team this year. He was part of a New Canaan class which also included Div. I football players Jack Conley (Boston College) and Jack Stewart (Michigan).
At Grip It and Rip It, Pyne had an eye on some of the talent on New Canaan and competing teams.
"At Arizona State, every time I see someone from the Northeast, we always talk about the football up here and I'm just so grateful I had a chance to play here," Pyne said. "I went to Notre Dame, Garrett went to Rice, we had the two Jacks going to Michigan and Boston College, Corey Johnson (of Brunswick) over at Michigan with Andrew Steuber (now with the New England Patriots).
"There are guys who make it big out of Connecticut and I'm so glad to be a part of the Northeast and Connecticut football."
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Pyne said he and Braden worked out on Dunning Field last Thursday and when they set foot on the field "all the memories came back."
"I love being back here on this field and around all these coaches," Braden said. "Coming back and seeing the shape of the team is really encouraging. This is a New Canaan team right now and it seems like a team that can really do some great things."
The 2023 Spring Sports Championships will be held between Thursday, June 8-Monday, June 12, 2023.
2023 CIAC Spring Championship Scoreboard (Final)
Schedule and scoreboard for the 2023 CIAC Spring Championships in baseball, softball, boys and girls lacrosse and boys volleyball. Results and story links will appear here after the games are...
In the summer of 2018 leading into Braden's senior year, the Rams were unbeaten and won the tournament. It was also the weekend that New Canaan alum and assistant coach Jason Cooper, who impacted many of the athletes on the team, died.
"We lost coach Cooper, so this tournament holds a special place for me (with his memory)," Braden said.
Their high school alma mater is coming off a state championship season, having beaten Maloney 16-13 in last year's CIAC Class L final. It was the program's 13th state title, all under head coach Lou Marinelli, who has led the team since 1981.
Pyne referred to Marinelli as "the best head coach ever"
"Lou's still got it going," Braden said. "He's got a great staff underneath him, and from what I've seen here today, the guys look great — a lot of size and a lot of speed.
"It's crazy because sometimes you forget when you go and you're in the rigors of college football. But you come back here and it really is a family. It's truly a community here."
