St. Joseph-Metuchen win over Phillipsburg in battle of unbeatens shuffles nearly entire Bellamy & Son Paving Big Central Top Ten

So much for consistency.

While some teams have moved around a bit, Phillipsburg has spent the entire season at No. 1 in the Bellamy & Son Paving Big Central rankings, but that changed this week.

Saturday, No. 6 St. Joseph of Metuchen blanked the No. 1 Stateliners at home, 21-0, to dethrone the Big Central’s top-ranked team. Phillipsburg had occupied the top spot since last year’s final poll, overtaking Somerville after becoming the first BCC team to reach a state final, where they lost the Group 4 title to Winslow Twp.

And that move caused a seismic reshuffling of the rankings here in Week 6. For some, a move down wasn’t necessarily due to a loss, but other teams moving up.

And so, the No. 1 ranking this week goes to St. Joseph-Metuchen (6-0). It’s the first time the Falcons have ever been No. 1 in the Bellamy & Son Paving/Central Jersey Sports Radio Top Ten, going back to CJSR’s inaugural 2020 season. In fact, it’s the first time in the history of the program they have been ranked No. 1 in rankings put together by Mike Pavlichko, dating back to the WCTC years (2000-2019), with the program’s first varsity season being played in 2013.

But it’s the second time head coach Bill Tracy – who won his 150th career game Saturday – has had a team of his earn a No. 1 ranking. The last time was in 2013, when he was at Ridge. The Red Devils won the North 2, Group 4 title over Union at Rutgers, finishing a perfect 12-0.

St. Joseph will visit No. 3 St. Thomas Aquinas (5-2) this Friday night.

The next two spots were the only ones to remain unchanged.

Woodbridge (7-0) held at No. 2 after a come-from-behind, 41-31 win at then-No. 8 Montgomery. The Barrons are back in action Friday at home against Summit (5-2), which has lost two straight after a 5-0 start.

And St. Thomas Aquinas (5-2) holds steady in third. The Trojans won 41-6 at Edison Friday, and this week host St. Joe’s (6-0) Friday night.

Phillipsburg drops to fourth after the loss to the Falcons. Now, 5-1, the Stateliners host Union (1-6) back at Maloney Stadium this Friday night.

Up two spots to No. 5 is Sayreville (7-0). The Bombers were 37-28 winners at Franklin back on Friday, and this week host No. 10 Montgomery (5-2).

Checking in at No. 6 – down two spots, mainly because other teams moved up – is Bernards (7-0). The Mountaineers gutted out a 17-14 win at Summit Saturday afternoon, and are back home at Olcott Field to take on Governor Livingston (3-4) Friday night.

Somerville (5-1) also goes down two spots to No. 8 despite a 43-14 win at North Hunterdon Friday night. The Pioneers will be featured on the “Big Central Game of the Week” presented by Bellamy & Son Paving Friday night, as they entertain Plainfield (3-4), with kickoff set for 6:30 pm.

Up two spots to No. 8 is Piscataway (5-2), which got past East Brunswick at home 35-0 Friday. The Chiefs travel Friday to Hillsborough (3-4), which has won two straight and put itself back in the playoff picture after a 1-4 start.

No. 9 is Old Bridge (6-1), up one spot. The Knights got a shutout win, 35-0, at Monroe Friday night, and they’re back on the road Friday when they visit Hunterdon Central (4-3).

And checking in at ten this week is Montgomery (5-2), down two spots after the loss to Woodbridge. The Cougars’ other loss is to a solid Summit team that has been in the “also considered” category most of the year, dropping out this week after the Bernards loss. Montgomery will travel to No. 5 Sayreville (7-0) this Friday.

Dropping out this week was No. 9 Bridgewater-Raritan, which lost 30-18 at Hillsbroough back on Friday.

In the Also Considered category are Voorhees (6-1), New Providence (6-0) Ridge (4-2), and – new this week – Manville at 7-0. Small schools are always tough to fit into a league-wide top ten, especially with 59 schools, but we think they deserve some recognition for their best start since 1968, when they finished the season a perfect 9-0.

Manville closes the regular season with Highland Park this week, then at Bound Brook the Friday of Cutoff Weekend in a game that will determine the Freedom Silver Division title.

Here’s the complete 2025 Bellamy & Son Paving Central Jersey Sports Radio Big Central Week Six Top Ten: