We are just past the mid-point part of the 2024 high school football season here in Connecticut and there’s no shortage of underclassmen performing at a high level. It’s no surprise that sophomores are showing out in Constitution State as that’s been the case in the past many times over. This list of underclassmen features some of the top sophomores football players we’ve seen or have been on the rise in Connecticut. Take a look at our list and vote for who you feel has been the top performing sophomores high school football player in Connecticut. 

SBLive voting polls are intended to be a fun way to create fan engagement and express support for your favorite high school athletes and teams. Unless expressly noted, there are no awards for winning the voting. Our primary focus is to highlight the abilities and accomplishments of all the athletes and teams included in our poll. You can vote as often as you wish and are encouraged to share our polls with others. The use of voting bots and other forms of automated voting are not allowed. Individuals will be removed from the poll if any form of automated voting can be verified. – SBLive Sports

Voting closes on December 8th, 11:59pm

Here are the nominees:

The signal caller has played really well through the season, completing 94-of-138 passes for 1,811 yards and 23 touchdowns.

Another sophomore signal caller that’s played really well this season is Witteman for Law and he’s put up some solid stats. Witteman has completed 127-of-205 passes for 1,586 yards and 14 touchdowns.

Sandish has played just about as well as any sophomore signal caller this season and he’s got the numbers to prove it. The sophomore has thrown for 1,255 yards and 14 touchdowns.

Though Croucher hasn’t seen as much time under center like the others ahead of him, his numbers match up pretty well. Croucher has thrown for 1,108 yards, 11 touchdowns and zero interceptions.

Casdia has been strong out of the backfield for Glastonbury, rushing for 1,248 yards on 215 carries and scoring 14 touchdowns.

The Rockville running back has carried the rock 90 carries for 766 yards and scored 10 touchdowns. Boland is also averaging 8.5 yards per carry.

Graves has been one of the state’s top sophomore receivers this season, hauling in 61 passes for 942 yards and scoring 13 touchdowns.

The middle linebacker has been strong in the heart of the New Britain defense this season, with Mendez making 81 total tackles, four have gone for a loss and one sack.

Rivera has been a strong tackler for Crosby, making 71 total tackles and a sack so far this season.

The Greenwich linebacker has had a solid season in the front seven, totaling 70 tackles, seven going for a loss and 3.5 sacks so far this fall.

Duverce has been a menace for opposing offensive linemen this fall, with the stalwart totaling 31 total tackles, 11 have gone for a loss and seven sacks.

The sophomore defensive back has been among the leaders in the interception department, racking up four so far this season.

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— Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @highschoolonsi

CONNECTICUT — Here is Wednesday’s scoreboard for CIAC swimming divisional finals and state tournament semifinal action in boys and girls soccer and girls volleyball. Click the class headers for complete brackets.

Note: this scoreboard is updated continuously as final scores are confirmed.

GIRLS SWIMMING

Providers and advocates renewed their calls to reject a potential return to Medicaid managed care during multiple meetings hosted by the Department of Social Services last week. 

The stakeholder meetings were intended to collect feedback on the current state of the Medicaid program as part of the “landscape analysis” that Gov. Ned Lamont charged the department to conduct. The study is meant to explore different Medicaid models, including managed care, which 45 states use in some form for at least part of their Medicaid programs. Connecticut is one of five states that do not.

Lamont’s curiosity about managed care has drawn fierce criticism from some Medicaid providers, advocates and enrollees, who pointed to potential downsides of the model, including reduced access, increased cost and lack of transparency. A handful of participants in last week’s meetings reiterated those concerns.

“We should be very concerned about access to care in the long-term care environment, and managed care would not be an answer to any of those significant issues,” said Matthew Barrett, president of the Connecticut Association of Health Care Facilities, during one of the sessions.

David Bednarz, a spokesperson in the governor’s office, said that the study is merely a tool to ensure the state is best serving its Medicaid members, adding that Lamont is not proposing any policy changes as of now. 

“This review will provide the administration and the General Assembly with information on whether there are improvements to achieving this goal that could be implemented, and we shouldn’t be afraid of receiving that data. At this time, Governor Lamont is not proposing any policy changes — whether administratively or legislatively — on this topic,” said Bednarz in an emailed statement. 

The study report is due by the end of this year, stated Christine Stuart, a DSS spokesperson.

Connecticut used managed care until 2010 but then transitioned to a managed fee-for-service model, where the state pays providers directly for services delivered to Medicaid beneficiaries. In a traditional “capitated managed care” model, the state instead pays a set monthly fee per member to insurance companies to manage the Medicaid program, and the insurance companies pay providers. 

States often turn to managed care for increased budget predictability and improvements to quality and access, but according to KFF Health News, its impact on both access and costs is “limited and mixed.”

Other concerns

Some critics of the governor’s plan to study managed care say that the results of last Tuesday’s presidential election make it even more important to defend the Medicaid program.

“We have a ton of work to do to adjust to the changing landscape in Washington and protect the Medicaid program, and certainly as part of that, we have to fulfill our promise to raise rates for providers,” said Sen. Matt Lesser, D-Middletown, in an interview with The Connecticut Mirror. “Throwing additional chaos into the program at a time when the very future of the Medicaid program is potentially on the line is unwise and a major unneeded distraction for the Department of Social Services and the administration.”

During President Donald Trump’s first administration, he approved Section 1115 waivers that allowed states to impose certain work requirements for Medicaid eligibility, though many of the approvals were struck down in the courts.

Project 2025, which Democrats tied to Trump policies and future plans on the campaign trail despite the GOP candidate’s insistence he wasn’t tied to it, also includes a proposal to restructure Medicaid as a block grant program, which would cap the amount of federal funding it receives. Currently, the federal government pays a fixed percentage of states’ Medicaid costs, regardless of the amount. Affordable Care Act subsidies that lower the cost of buying a health plan on state exchanges are also set to expire in 2025, unless they are renewed by Congress. 

Others have concerns that the study is being conducted by an organization with interests in the managed care industry. 

At the beginning of November, over 30 organizations and individuals sent a letter to Lamont criticizing the selection of Manatt, one of the consultants conducting the Medicaid study. According to the advocates, several of Manatt’s clients are Medicaid managed care providers. The firm has also done legal work on behalf of Medicaid Health Plans of America, a trade association of managed care organizations. 

“In sum, it is impossible for Manatt to provide an independent, evidence-based assessment of our current nation-leading, efficient managed fee for service Medicaid program,” stated the advocates.

A spokesperson with Manatt did not respond to a request for comment. DSS spokesperson Stuart and Bednarz, the governor’s spokesperson, did not address specific questions about the concerns regarding Manatt.