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-> Still, what shouldn’t be lost among the building accolades is that early on Mora was the catalyst for bringing half of the CIAC state football championships back to Rentschler Field on Dec. 10. The other three games will be played at Central Connecticut. “Coach Mora, when he first got here, was making the rounds to all the high school coaches,” said Paul Mounds, Gov. Lamont’s chief of staff. “Doing something the high school coaches were yearning for. “And he kept hearing the same thing: ‘We would like to be able to have our high school championship games played in our college stadiums. It would be good for the kids. He asked me at that point if there was anything he could do. I said absolutely.” <-
-> “The governor had told coach Mora anyway if he can be helpful to him and UConn football, he would be there,” Mound said. “He believes in him. And this was a big way in terms of having all these high school students being able to play at Rentschler Field or Central Connecticut.” It’s not just about attendance figures and a few thousand bucks. The athletes dress in college locker rooms, run out the tunnel, relish the atmosphere. It is something they’ll never forget. <-
-> Mounds, who played in the same defensive backfield as UConn assistant John Marinelli at Trinity, envisions a scenario where Rentschler is an annual centerpiece for the state championships. “And then there is a kind of rotation with Central, Trinity, maybe the Coast Guard, maybe the Yale Bowl for the other games,” he said. “It would be great to open these opportunities to these kids.” <-