Friday Big Central Conference Playoff Scenarios: Many contests have playoff implications; we go through the schedule, game-by-game

With Cutoff Weekend here, many games across the state will have playoff implications, and the Big Central Conference is no exception. There are 22 games in the league tonight – seven of them involving teams in the Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten – and XXXXX will have some kind of impact on the playoff races, even if just for one of the teams.

We’re not getting into Saturday yet, mainly because those implications can change after Friday’s results. But there are some big ones on the schedule.

No. 5 Woodbridge plays at No. 1 St. Joseph-Metuchen Saturday. That’s a game that affects Woodbridge, the Falcons are undefeated with another week before the non-public cutoff, Joe’s is going for its first unbeaten regular season since 2017, and if the Barrons win, they’ll remove the multiplier status, and the bonus for losing that goes along with it for a host of Group 5 and 4 teams.

Here’s a look at Friday’s games, and how they could affect the race for the playoffs in 2025:

• Bridgewater-Raritan (6-2) at No. 2 Phillipsburg (6-1), 7 pm: The Panthers have a very good shot at the top seed in North 2, Group 4, even if they lose. But a win and A West Orange (6-2) loss at Bloomfield (5-3) could give them the overall top seed. The Stateliners – currently third overall in North 4 – need a win and a Mount Olive loss to get the top-seed in North 2, Group 4. Northern Highlands is the overall No. 1 but Phillipsburg can’t catch them. Mount Olive is their only hope.
• No. 3 Montgomery (6-2) at Rahway (5-3), 7 pm: The Cougars could get as high as a third seed overall with a win, giving them the two-seed in North 2, Group 4, if they get some help, like a loss from Phillipsburg. They could finish eight or lower with a loss. Rahway should get in with a win, but a loss would all but eliminate them, unless everything else broke perfectly for them.
• No. 4 Somerville (7-1) at Watchung Hills (3-5), 7 pm: The Pioneers could claim the Central 3 top-seed with a win if Cedar Creek and Holmdel above them both lose. Either way, they’ll get a first round home game. The Warriors begin the weekend in second place, but if they could pull off the mammoth upset at home – and it would be huge – but it could vault them as high as 13 if their cards break right. Note that Rahway has a tiebreaker over them, and if the Indians were to lose Friday to Montgomery and end up 17, with Watchung Hills 16 – certainly a possibility – Rahway gets in on the head-to-head.
• Carteret (3-4) at No. 6 Bernards (8-0), 7 pm: Tough hill to climb for the Ramblers, but a win could get them to 17, which is all they need since Weequahic – well in the top 16 – is ineligible due to several disqualifications in a game earlier this season with Newark West Side, which also got DQd, but isn’t in the playoff picture. A loss and they’re out. Bernards can’t get a top seed, we think, but they could end up the two-seed in North 2, Group 2 if they win, and get losses from Rutherford, Shabazz, and Hanover Park.

• No. 7 St. Thomas Aquinas (5-3) at No. 8 Sayreville (7-1), 7 pm: Unlike St. Joseph, St. Thomas can’t lose its multiplier status even with a loss Friday because they’re a Tier C, and would have to lose twice. They haven’t lost yet to a non-multiplier, so any of their opponents in the league – like Franklin and Elizabeth – don’t need to sweat. For the Bombers, even if they get a multiplier loss here, we don’t see them getting a top-seed. They can’t catch Washington Twp., and Atlantic City won’t drop because they’re idle. A loss wouldn’t kill the Bombers either, but they’d love to avoid back-to-back defeats heading into the playoffs after a 7-0 start and a loss to Montgomery at home last week.
• No. 9 Piscataway (6-2) at Monroe (1-7), 6 pm: The Falcons aren’t in the playoff picture, but the Chiefs are, and they should win this game. We think they’ll be the second-seed overall in North 2, Group 5.
• Colonia (6-2) at No. 10 Old Bridge (7-1), 6 pm: Why does it always seem Colonia puts together some of its best years under the radar? Regardless, they’ve having a fine season, and a win against the Knights could put them around nine overall. A loss might not hurt, as they would slip back in the field of 16 but not North 2, Group 4. Old Bridge may not be able to tick up very much, nor would they slip much with a loss. All of this is because of two solid teams facing each other.
• Manville (8-0) at Bound Brook (5-3), 7 pm: Playoffs? This game is for the Freedom Silver Division title, baby! But we’re here to talk about playoffs, so… the Crusaders sit out of the top 16 now, but if they could pull off one of the biggest upsets of the year in the Big Central, they should be in. There’s also a chance they have a path with a loss due to Manville being undefeated and having one of the top ten SI values in the Big Central. The Mustangs sit in 12th, but we think they could move to around eight win a win, and could drop as low as 12 or more with a loss. We know Manville would love a home game, and they might get it, or they might not, but at least they’re not 8-0 and on the bubble.
• New Providence (7-0) at Delaware Valley (5-3), 7 pm: Don’t let the beauty out in Alexandria lull you, this will be an intense game. It’s a great rivalry, but there’s a lot at stake, and the equalizer here could be the unfortunate leg injury that ended runningback A.J. Whitehead’s season. That didn’t stop New Prov from beating up Bound Brook last week, though. They hold one of the top two seeds, but aren’t guaranteed to keep it; we think they need losses by Hasbrouck Heights and Mountain Lakes to do so, and gain the North 2, Group 1 top seed. A loss, we think the lowest they go is four overall. Del Val doesn’t appear to have a path in, sitting at 5-3, but they would love to play the role of spoiler here.

• Union (1-7) at Elizabeth (4-4), 6 pm: The Farmers are out of the playoff picture, but the Minutemen still could get a two-seed in North 2, Group 4. To do that, they need a win, and losses by West Orange, Bridgewater-Raritan, and Piscataway. Although the Chiefs losing is the least likely in that entire scenario. A loss could stick them on the road in the first round.
• Perth Amboy (1-7) at Johnson (6-1), 7 pm: While the Panthers aren’t in the running, the Crusaders will drop – even with a win – from eighth into a tie for ninth with Gloucester City, but the way things shake out around them, they probably won’t move down in the Central 2 section, unless they lose. Either way, looks like a first round road game for ALJ.
• Plainfield (3-5) at Linden (3-5), 7 pm: The Cardinals get in with a win, but could could back into the playoffs with a loss, especially with some one-win teams ahead of them, namely Montclair and Union. Both should lose this weekend, but the Cards would also need a Columbia (3-5) loss to Union City (4-3), which isn’t an unreasonable ask. The Tigers, meanwhile, sit in 12th, and could range from ninth with a win to 14th with a loss, but they won’t miss the playoffs. They’re in.
• JFK (6-2) at South Plainfield (4-4), 6 pm: The Tigers are out of the running, but the Mustangs might have the slimmest of chances with a win and a lot of things breaking right around them. There always seems to be one quirk that could help a team. Even we’re not sure what it is, but we’ll see what happens Friday night and review again Saturday morning when we’ve got some sleep.
• Roselle Park (5-2) at Spotswood (7-1), 6 pm: Believe it or not, even with a win over the Chargers, we don’t think the Panthers – sitting down at 22 – have a shot. Spotswood has to win to get in, but we think they have a shot. They need a lot to go their way, but nothing too crazy like a winless team knocking off an unbeaten. They also got a little help Thursday night when Willingboro lost at Seneca.
• North Hunterdon (1-7) at Voorhees (7-1): This is the old Milk Can Game, so tensions will be high, but the Vikings should win this one if they fancy themselves a playoff team, which we whole-heartedly believe they are. A win on its own for Voorhees doesn’t move them up, but Willingboro’s loss helped them too. A loss by Overbrook would help, too. A loss, and we don’t think they make it.

Other games Friday without playoff implications:

• South Hunterdon at Dunellen
• South Brunswick at East Brunswick
• Edison at Paterson Eastside
• Roselle at JP Stevens
• Belvidere at Middlesex
• Franklin at North Brunswick