Phillipsburg runs the ball at Ridge on September 20, 2024. (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)
Getting to a sectional final for a third straight year is on the list of goals for the Phillipsburg football team, but the aspirations out on the state line are higher.
After all, Phillipsburg has made the finals each of the last two years, but they’ve come away empty both times, falling to West Orange in 2022 and Union City last season.
And while they’ve beaten Easton the last two years as well, the lack of hardware has left Phillipsburg players and coaches with a feeling of unfinished business. It was first described by senior quarterback Jett Genovese, a three-year starter who’s experienced the ups of beating Easton twice, and the sting of playoff title game losses twice in his first two years at QB.
And so, the top-seeded Stateliners (8-1) will take on fifth-seed Chatham (7-2) Friday night at 7 at Maloney Stadium for a chance to go to the North 2, Group 4 final.
This is a bit of new territory for P’burg, after being in Group 5 the last few years. The Stateliners often have shuttled back between Group 4 and 5 over the years.
It’s easy to talk about Genovese and his favorite wide receiver target, Matthew Scerbo, Jr., both of whom have been three-year starters, and set all kinds of school career records, but they are not the whole team, and others like receiver Felix Matos, runningback Sam Dech and defensive players like Jah’quil Dooley and defensive linemen Like and Aeden Hywell, who have combined for ten sacks between them.
Chatham, meanwhile, comes in on a three-game win streak, including an opening round “upset” win at fourth-seed Wayne Valley last week, 42-7. This will be the first-ever matchup between the Cougars and Stateliners.
Chatham likes to spread the ball around in the air, with senior quarterback Will Allen throwing for 1,881 yards and 16 touchdowns this season, but they have attempted virtually just as many passes as rushes, with 242 attempts – all but two by Allen – and 244 run plays. Allen has run for 289 yards and five scores, while Alex McWilliams leads the offense with 393 yards on the ground and seven touchdowns.
Defensively, P’burg is led by junior linebacker Hunter Bingham with four sacks, and fellow LB Caden Gabriele – also a junior – with four interceptions.
Click below to hear Phillipsburg head coach Frank Duffy talk about the Stateliners, and their playoff matchup against Chatham:
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