Spotswood entertains South Hunterdon under the lights on October 18, 2024. The Chargers could miss the playoffs even if they win their last game to finish 8-1. (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)
As we head into Cutoff Weekend across New Jersey High School Football, Central Jersey Sports Radio will go supersection by supersection and take a look at where teams in the Big Central Conference stand.
Upwards of 30 of the 59 teams in the league appear to be in contention for a playoff spot. Some are very much assured a spot, others may be significant longshots.
We’re not going to get into matchups yet, as that can change a lot between now and the brackets. Instead, we’re focused on a few things:
- Who’s got a shot at a top seed? The top two finishers in each supersection gets home field through the sectional finals, with the overall No. 1 getting home field for a potential group semifinal.
- Who’s in the top four? Those teams get home field at least through sectional semifinals.
- Who’s in the top eight? The first eight teams in each supersection get at least a first round home game.
- Who’s in and who’s on the bubble? It all depends on how bunched up the teams are. Tenth place in one section could be considered clinched, or it could be just on the right side of the bubble.
Click here for a playoff primer, to answer all your questions about how the playoffs are actually seeded. Please note: the UPR standings in the above story may be off slightly as they were published after out-of-state Strength index numbers were updated Tuesday by Gridiron New Jersey. Those will affect seven public schools that played out-of-state teams in 2024.
On Saturday at 6 pm, Central Jersey Sports Radio will present its annual “Playoff Projection Show,” presented by the Higgins Speed Lab, sponsor of all our 2024 playoff coverage. Higgins Speed Lab is founded and owned by Kyle Higgins, the son of longtime Piscataway football coach Dan Higgins.
Now, on to our analysis!
NORTH GROUP 2
- Top Seeds: Currently, the top two teams are Glen Rock (7-0) and Westdwood (6-1). Just one UPR point behind, though, are Ramsey (5-2) and Bernards (8-0) tied for third. And Hanover Park is just 0.2 points back of them. If all four win this weekend, we think the Mountaineers end up around fourth. It appears the only way Bernards could get a top seed – they won’t be able to catch Glen Rock, even with a loss in the NJIC championship game against Butler (7-0) – is to win at Catreret (3-5), and get losses from Westwood, Ramsey and Hanover. That’s a big ask, so we peg Bernards for the three- or four-seed most likely. Then again, last years, they expected to play in a sectional final on the road after beating Sussex Tech in the sectional semifinals, but Lakeland’s upset of Caldwell left the Mounties hosting the North 2, Group 2 final, which they won. So, you never know!
SOUTH GROUP 2
- Top Seeds: It’s Rumson-Fair Haven (7-0) and Camden (6-2) in the top two spots here. The Bulldogs have Colts Neck (0-7) at home Friday, but the Panthers are idle. So unless Colts Neck pulls off the upset of the year, it should stay this way.
- Johnson (6-1, 7th): Tough break for the Crusaders here picking up Perth Amboy (1-7) here, because even a win drops them. We think they will be a bottom eight team and start the playoffs on the road. A win or loss against the Panthers simply determines how high or low they finish.
- Delaware Valley (6-1, 10th): The Terriers have a solid opponent in New Providence (6-2), and both teams would love to have this game for a lot of reasons. But, for Del Val, it could get them as high as seventh on its own, although they might need some other teams to lose to finish in the top eight. But we think they have a good chance.
- Hillside (5-3, 11th): With a win over Cranford (5-2), Hillside may not be able to crack the top eight on their own. But if they get a loss by Delaware Valley, or anyone else – or two – above them, that could do it. A loss, virtually assures them a bottom eight seed, but they’ll be in.
- Metuchen (6-2, 14th): The Bulldogs should win this Friday night at North Plainfield (1-6), but even that on its own would see them potentially drop a spot to 15, depending what other teams do around them. A loss could drop them out, but depending whether they get any help or not, they could squeeze in the back door.
- Spotswood (7-1, 16th): Here we are again with the Chargers. Two years ago, they missed the playoffs at 6-3. Last year, they made it at 8-1, and lost in the opening round at Point Pleasant Boro. This year, they could be 8-1 and still not make it, which would be a serious indictment on the playoff system in general, and even the schedule they get from the Big Central. But we digress. Clearly, if Spotswood loses at Roselle Park (3-4) they’re out; they would drop to 18, and no amount of help could get them in. But what happens if they win? Well, if Metuchen, Gloucester City, Collingswood and Haddon Heights all win, the first two being the two teams above them and the others being the two right below them, the Chargers are out, finishing in 19th. We could try West Deptford and Middle Township getting losses, and that could get them in, but they might also need Raritan to lose, too. Should the Rockets win, Spotswood would finish 17th. We get that they’ve played only four teams with three wins or more this season, but still, at 8-1, no one should be sweating it out on cutoff weekend. This is the first of a two-year scheduling cycle, and Spotswood has had excellent seasons the last two years; they should be playing better teams. The Big Central is setting up Spotswood for failure. Even losses to better teams would be better for them than wins over the ones they have now. This is a larger problem in the league than just Spotswood, but right now, they’re the poster boy – again. Bottom line: they need a win, and a decent amount of help. And at 8-1, that’s just not right.
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