Montgomery senior QB Alex Benitez gets ready to throw a pass in preseason camp on Friday, August 27, 2021 at Cougar Stadium.
The last time Northern Highlands played in a playoff game, they beat Woodbridge to win the North 1 Group 4 championship in 2019.
Then came the pandemic, but the Highlanders (9-0) are right back at it: No. 8 in the state, and the second highest ranked public school in the NJ.com Top 20.
That’s the task that awaits the 8th-seeded Montgomery Cougars Friday night in the opening round of the North 1, Group 4 playoffs, although they may be one of the more deceptive 8-seeds in the state at 3-5.
The Cougars lost their first four games of the season, then won three straight after making a change at quarterback, bringing a newcomer into the fold and moving program guy Alex Benitez back to his natural runningback position (though they still have designed passing plays for him).
Click below to hear Montgomery head coach Zoran Millich talk with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko about the Cougars’ season, as heard on CJSR’s special playoff projection show last Saturday night: