TRUMBULL -- Six days removed from what senior Shane Miller called an emotional loss, St. Joseph rebounded in a big way.

 

Fueled by four touchdowns from Miller, a wide receiver, and three by junior tailback Mufasha Abdul Basir, the Cadets crushed crosstown foe Trumbull 61-26 on Thanksgiving morning at home.

 

Six of those seven scores were registered on the ground as the Cadets stormed out to a 33-6 lead at halftime and a 54-12 cushion after three quarters. They moved to 10-2, locking up a home quarterfinal next week in the Class M state playoffs.

 

"I thought we'd be able to run the ball," coach Joe DellaVecchia said. "We've been running the ball really well lately. ... Our offensive line's very good; they get in people's way."

 

Coming off a 186-yard night on the ground in a 31-20 loss to New Canaan in the FCIAC final last Friday, Abdul Basir gashed Trumbull's defense. The 5-foot-9, 165-pound back gained 241 yards (156 in the first half) on 19 carries. He punctuated the Cadets' opening drive with a 40-yard sprint to the end zone, then added touchdown runs of 9 and 23 yards on back-to-back possessions in the third quarter.

 

Miller made the most of his three rushing attempts, piling up 155 yards and three touchdowns. In the second quarter, he scored on a 52-yard sweep to make it 21-0, then added an 18-yard score 4:12 before halftime to push the lead to 27-6. His third carry, an 85-yard touchdown, upped the lead to 54-12.

 

"Shane Miller's a hell of a player," Abdul Basir said. "He's got great speed, great awareness. He's very shifty. He deserved everything he got today."

 

The Cadets' big day on the ground also spelled the end for Trumbull's season. With the loss, the Eagles (8-3) were eliminated from Class LL state playoff contention.

 

"We had a great season. We just didn't show up today for some reason," coach Bob Maffei said. "I have no idea. (The Cadets) were on fire, too."

 

St. Joseph led 21-0 in the second quarter before Trumbull capped a 15-play, 67-yard drive with Nick Roberts' 14-yard touchdown pass to Quentin Brunetti. But the Eagles' offense didn't do much more. They fumbled the ball away twice and punted five times.

 

Senior Marc Cesare accounted for a bulk of the Eagles' offense, scoring on a kickoff return -- 85 yards to begin the second half -- and on a pair of runs in the fourth quarter.

 

"It just wasn't our day today," Maffei said.

 

Instead, it was the Cadets' day. With the state playoff rankings scheduled to be approved by the CIAC Saturday morning, the Cadets -- unofficially slotted second in Class M -- feel like momentum's on their side.

 

"That was a great game for us," Miller said. "We're going to keep going, keep practicing hard and hopefully continue it into states."

 

For St. Joseph, Jordan Vazzano scored on a 2-yard quarterback keeper in the first quarter, making it 14-0, and tossed touchdowns to Mark Hirschbeck and Miller.

 

dbonjour@ctpost.com;

 

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TRUMBULL 0 6 6 14 -- 26

 

ST. JOSEPH 14 19 21 7 -- 61

 

SJ -- Mufasha Abdul Basir 40 run (Mark Hirschbeck kick)

 

SJ -- Jordan Vazzano 2 run (Hirschbeck kick)

 

SJ -- Shane Miller 52 run (Hirschbeck kick)

 

T -- Quentin Brunetti 14 pass Nick Roberts (Kick failed)

 

SJ -- Miller 18 run (Kick failed)

 

SJ -- Hirschbeck 8 pass Vazzano (Kick failed)

 

T -- Marc Cesare 85 kick return (Kick failed)

 

SJ -- Abdul Basir 9 run (Kevin Bortnick kick)

 

SJ -- Abdul Basir 23 run (Bortnick kick)

 

SJ -- Miller 85 run (Bortnick kick)

 

SJ -- Miller 18 pass Vazzano (Mike Freeman kick)

 

T -- Cesare 3 run (Lance Bragg kick)

 

T -- Cesare 5 run (Bragg kick)

 

Records: Trumbull 8-3; St. Joseph 10-2.