McMahon football returns after injury postponement to host Stamford, which lost its head coach
· Yahoo Sports
After its last game was postponed due to a limited number of healthy players, the McMahon football team will be back on the field in Week 9 when it hosts Stamford, which has faced its own hurdle with the recent resignation of coach Donny Panapada.
McMahon coach Damien Vega confirmed that the game is on as scheduled for Friday at 7 p.m.
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The Senators' game against Trumbull was moved to Nov. 18 after injuries left McMahon with only 12 of its 24 juniors and seniors available to play. The shift was made out of safety concerns.
"We didn't have enough to put a team out there in a safe manner at all," McMahon athletic director John Cross said last Friday. "Our priority was just to make sure that we'll be able to field a team (in Week 9) for Stamford to keep the season going. We can't get any more injuries."
Stamford enters the game with a 3-4 record and is still in the hunt for a Class LL tournament berth. After McMahon (1-5), the Black Knights will host Darien (4-3) on Nov. 14 and play at Westhill (2-4) in the annual rivalry game for the Frank Robotti Trophy on Thanksgiving.
Should Stamford qualify for the postseason, it would be just its second playoff bid in 31 years.
McMahon has four games remaining. After facing the Black Knights, the Senators will play at Westhill on Nov. 14 and at Trumbull (1-5) on Nov. 18, then take on Norwalk (2-5) in the annual city rivalry game on Thanksgiving at McMahon.
Panapada, who was in his fifth year as the Black Knights' coach, resigned during a 42-14 loss at Warde in Fairfield on Oct. 23, according to an email Stamford principal Matthew Forker sent to parents of players.
According to the email, Panapada met with athletic director Chris Passamano, the coaching staff and several players, but it became clear there was not "a viable path forward for coach Panapada to rescind his resignation and resume his role as head coach."
Panapada released a statement on Sunday apologizing to the Stamford players.
"I recognize that I made a mistake, and I was prepared to own it, learn from it, and work to repair the damage," the statement read in part.
Panapada also said he is "hopeful that I will have the opportunity to lead the Program in the near future."
When contacted this week, Panapada declined to comment further on the statement, and Passamano declined comment.
Forker said Stamford is not naming an interim head coach. Instead, the current staff will coach the team for the remainder of the 2026 season.
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