Former Syracuse standout Quinton Spotwood in his home office, with memorabilia from his playing days. (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)
Truth be told, Quinton Spotwood and this reporter go way back, more than 25 years, even though we never met in person until this August.
Over the years, both of us have come to appreciate the history around high school sports, the many all-time classic games, and the legends.
In Elizabeth, those names include “Billboard” Ray Graham, Rodney Carter, Khaseem Greene, P.J. Walker, Raheem Orr, Alcides Catanho, and many more. Even Quinton Spotwood himself, who went on to collegiate All-American status at Syracuse in 1997, a year he was named Big East Special Teams Player of the Year.
(That’s where our connection lies, but you’ll have to listen to our interview to find out what it is!)
By day – more like early morning – Spotwood is a marine terminal operator at the Phillips 66 refinery in Linden. By afternoon and Friday night, he’s an assistant football coach at his alma mater. And with the rest of his time, he’s started a wesbite with accompanying magazine, Spotwood Sports.
The first issue launched in the Spring of 2025, as “All Hail, Rodney Carter” proclaims the headline on the cover of the glossy magazine that would make you swear you were looking at a copy of Sports Illustrated, with beautiful photos, and insight into the young men who succeeded and went on to college, often despite long odds.
In his opening Editor’s Notes, Spotwood writes, “The City of Legends concept came out of thin air. However, for many that lived it, it was decades in the making.” That’s the magazine in a nutshell.
And it even highlights the future stars, the ones who haven’t made it yet. There’s a profile of Elizabeth rising sophomore Nahjae Smith, who holds offers from Spotwood’s alma mater, Syracuse, along with Maryland, Boston College, Michigan State and others, but more importantly, has a 4.4 grade-point average.
But the magazine serves a dual purpose. Besides informing and entertaining, sales of the magazine go toward college scholarships for Elizabeth student-athletes. And supporting things like the Joe Grazio NIL Football Club, funded by local businesses and alums, so that families in town can afford college recruiting trips and visits, and even family needs and day-to-day living expenses.
Carter, for one, in the initial issue, talks about his dedication to the sport, and it’s a good thought for the future stars donning a Minutemen jersey at this very moment. “They tell athletes to have a “plan B” just in case the plan A doesn’t pan out. Does a doctor or a dentist have a plan B if their plans don’t pan out? … Figure out what you love to do besides playing sports and work towards that as well. Don’t get blindsided by reality.”
The second issue of Spotwood Sports came out this past summer, and features Pitt Panther runningback “Billboard Ray” Graham, whose father was a standout three-sport athlete for Elizabeth, and whose brother as Khaseem Greene, who attended Rutgers. When he graduated Pitt, Graham trailed only two Panther runningbacks in career yardage: Tony Dorsett and James Conner. Not bad company.
The third issue has just come out for the Fall of 2025. Quinton himself is on the cover, hauling in a pass against Michigan in a 38-28 at the Big House in 1998, a year the Orange finished 8-4, ranked No. 25 by Associated Press, and went to the Orange Bowl.
Not bad for a kid with big dreams from Elizabeth, New Jersey, who dreamed one day of “making a big play in the Carrier Dome.”
Click below to hear Quinton Spotwood talk about growing up and becoming a football star in Elizabeth, his college days at Syracuse, and his new magazine Spotwood Sports!
Discover more from Central Jersey Sports Radio
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.