Group 4 Semifinal Preview: Phillipsburg Stateliners vs. Ramapo Raiders

North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 Final:
When: Friday, 7 pm
Where: Maloney Stadium, Phillipsburg
Matchup: Ramapo (10-1; North, 1, Group 4 champion) at Phillipsburg (10-1; North 2, Group 5 champion)
Coverage: LIVE on Central Jersey Sports Radio with Mike Pavlichko, Chris Tsakonas (click here to listen)
Weather: 49 degrees, light SW wind, 45% chance of rain by 9 pm

HEAD COACHES:

Phillipsburg: Frank Duffy (10th season, 85-25)
Ramapo: Nick Guttuso (2nd season, 18-5)

HOW THEY GOT HERE:

Phillipsburg:
First Round: def. #8 Newark Central, 55-14
Semifinals: def. #5 Colonia, 35-7
Finals: def. #3 Montgomery, 41-21

Ramapo:
First Round: def. #8 Hackensack, 35-0
Semifinals: def. #4 Wayne Valley, 48-20
Finals: def. #2 Northern Highlands, 28-27

Who’s next? The winner of this game will play the winner of the other Group 4 semifinal. That game features two top-seeds: Central Jersey champion Brick Memorial (10-2) at South Jersey Champion Winslow Twp., seeking its third straight trip to the state final, after winning it all last year, beating Phillipsburg in the title game. Should Phillipsburg advance there again, regardless of who they play, the title game would be at Rutgers on Wednesday, December 3rd, since the Stateliners play Easton on Thanksgiving up at Lafayette College, and could not play on either of the first two dates, Black Friday at Met Life Stadium or two days later, on Sunday, at RU.

Phillipsburg, of course, lost to Winslow, 35-0, in last year’s Group 4 final at Rutgers in their only meeting. As for Brick Memorial, the teams have never played, though the Stateliners are 3-6-1 against their rivals, Brick Twp., having met every year from 1964 through 1973.

SERIES HISTORY:

This will be the second meeting between the schools, the last one coming in this same round last year, the Group 4 semifinals, in which Phillipsburg rolled to a 35-6 win at Maloney Stadium.

PREVIEWS with INTERVIEWS:

FINALS HISTORY:

Phillipsburg:

The winningest program in New Jersey didn’t play in the NJSIAA playoffs for many years, since they played a Pennsylvania schedule. But they couldn’t play in the PIAA playoffs either, being an out-of-state team. They won one title in four finals berths from 1975 through 1979 – only missing the title game in 1976 – then after spending time with a Pennsy schedule, joined the NJSIAA in the mid-90s. It took them until 2001 to reach a final, their second overall, and first in a span of seven titles in 11 appearances over nearly two decades from 2001 to 2018.

The Stateliners were in Group 5 for the 2022-2023 cycle, and made the finals both years, falling to sixth-seed West Orange, 28-7, the first of those years, and to No. 2 seed Union City, 24-17 in 2023. Last year, they moved down to Group 4, and beat Northern Highlands for the North 2 sectional title on a game-winning field goal by Alexie Moreira. This year, they won their second straight sectional title for the first time since 2013 and 2014, beating third-seed Montgomery – in its first title game – 41-21.

Playoff Berths: 30
Playoff Record: 49-20
Previous Sectional Finals Berths: 19
Sectional Titles: 10

North 2, Group 3
1975: #1 Morris Hills def. #2 Phillipsburg, 7-0
1977: #2 Phillipsburg def. #1 Parsippany, 26-0
1978: #4 Rahway def. #3 Phillipsburg, 23-10
1979: #2 Rahway def. #1 Phillipsburg, 14-6
North 2, Group 4
2001: #5 Phillipsburg def. #2 Montclair, 10-7
2004: #1 Piscataway def. #2 Phillipsburg, 27-26 (OT) at Rutgers
2005: #1 Phillipsburg def. #2 Piscataway, 15-6 at Rutgers
2006: #3 Elizabeth def. #1 Phillipsburg, 14-9
North 2, Group 3
2008: #4 Phillipsburg def. #6 Rahway, 20-6
2009: #2 Phillipsburg def. #5 Ridge, 34-7 at Kean
North 2, Group 4
2013: #1 Phillipsburg def. #6 Mendham, 39-0
2014: #2 Phillipsburg def. #1 Colonia, 28-21 (OT) at Rutgers
2015: #1 Middletown South def. #2 Phillipsburg, 35-7
2017: #2 North Hunterdon def. #1 Phillipsburg, 21-20
2018: #1 Phillipsburg def. #3 Irvington, 42-7
North 2, Group 5
2022: #6 West Orange def. #1 Phillipsburg, 28-7
2023: #2 Union City def. #1 Phillipsburg, 24-17
2024: #1 Phillipsburg 13, #3 Northern Highlands 11
beat Ramapo, 35-6, in Group 4 semifinals
lost to Winslow Twp., 35-0, in Group 4 final at Rutgers

Ramapo:

While the Raiders have won 15 sectional title in 20 finals berths – an astounding 15-5 record all-time in those title games – much of their success in the post season has come in the last quarter decade of the playoffs than the first.

From 1974 through 1998 – the first 25 years of playoffs in New Jersey, which started in 1974 – Ramapo had won four titles in five appearances. Their first came in 1974, when they beat Dumont to win a two-team field (as the playoffs were in that first season). They also won North 1, Group 3 titles in 1983, 1993 and 1997, their only loss in that span coming in 1988.

But from 2000 on, they’ve been to the finals 15 times and won eleven trophies, and haven’t missed a sectional final since 2016. They went to the North 1, Group 4 final in 2017 and lost, but won the next two before the COVID year – where there were no playoffs, then made it again in 2021 and 2022, and won sectional titles the last two years, as well as this season.

Playoff Berths: 34
Playoff Record: 55-19
Sectional Finals Berths: 20
Sectional Titles: 15

North 1, Group 3
1974: #1 Ramapo def. #2 Dumont, 46-14 (two teams qualified)
1983: #4 Ramapo def. #3 Wayne Valley, 13-7
1988: #3 Wayne Valley def. Ramapo, 49-10
1993: #1 Ramapo def. #2 Wayne Hills, 23-17
1997: #2 Ramapo def. #1 Hoboken, 21-14
2000: #2 Ramapo def. #1 Wayne Hills, 14-7
2001: #1 Ramapo def. #3 Wayne Hills, 14-10
2002: # 1 Wayne Hills def. #3 Ramapo, 19-0
2003: #2 Ramapo def. #5 Demarest, 31-28
2009: #7 Ramapo def. #1 Wayne Hills, 16-8
2012: #2 Ramapo def. #5 Sparta, 37-34
2015: #2 Ramapo def. #1 River Dell, 45-15
2017: #2 River Dell def. #1 Ramapo, 28-7
2018: #1 Ramapo def. #3 River Dell, 31-7
beat Summit, 42-22, in North 3 Bowl Championship, finished 13-0
2019: #1 Ramapo def. #3 Pascack Valley, 28-23
beat Parsippany Hills, 38-21, in North 3 Regional Championship, finished 13-0
North 1, Group 4
2021: #1 Northern Highlands def. #2 Ramapo, 35-30
2022: #4 Northern Highlands def. #2 Ramapo, 49-42
2023: #1 Ramapo def. #3 Northern Highlands, 14-10
beat Mount Olive, 24-19, in Group 4 semifinals
beat Mainland, 56-0, in Group 4 final at Rutgers
2024: #3 Ramapo def. #1 Morris Knolls, 35-28
lost at Phillipsburg, 35-6, in Group 4 semifinals
2025: #1 Ramapo def. #2 Northern Highlands, 22-28

2025 PHILLIPSBURG COVERAGE:

A college football game showcasing two teams with players shaking hands after the match on the field at night. The home team, dressed in dark uniforms, is seen on the right while the visiting team in light uniforms is on the left. Spectators can be seen in the background. — *Phillipsburg in the handshake line after winning the North 2, Group 4 title, 41-21, over Montgomery at Maloney Stadium in Phillipsburg on November 14, 2025. (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)*

NEWS & NOTES:

Familiar foes…

The last three games of the season for Phillipsburg could all be the same opponents they played last year, in the same order.

Just as they will Friday, Phillipsburg played Ramapo in the Group 4 semifinals last year, picking up a 35-6 win. They then played Easton on Thanksgiving, falling 17-14 in overtime at Lafayette in an epic. Ironically, the previous two years, when Phillipsburg lost sectional title games, they had beaten Easton both years. But after winning the title last year, they lost to the Red Rovers.

They then came back the following Wednesday to play Winslow Twp. at Rutgers in the Group 4 final, falling 35-6. A win Friday night, and they could face Winslow again in the finals, if they can take care of business at home and beat Brick Memorial in the other Group 4 semifinal.

Easton vs. State Championship…

Since the 2023 season ended, Phillipsburg has set its sights on a state championship. Losing in the sectional finals the previous two seasons with loaded teams that earned the No. 1 seed both years didn’t sit well with the Stateliners, even though they beat Easton on Thanksgiving back-to-back years for the first time since 2002 and 2003.

Last year, they got that sectional title, but lost to Easton, making them then 3-6 all-time against the Red Rovers in the nine seasons where they’ve won an NJSIAA championship. In the nine seasons where they lost in the sectional finals, their record is 2-6-1 against Easton, with those two wins coming in 2022 and 2023.

Repping Warren County…

There are only five football-playing public high schools in Warren County, a fairly sparse part of New Jersey, population-wise. Besides Phillipsburg, there’s North Warren, Warren Hills, Hackettstown and Belvidere. Combined, the county has claimed just 13 sectional titles over the years, with ten going to the Stateliners.

Warren Hills is the last Warren County school besides Phillipsburg to win a sectional title; that came 25 years ago, in 2000, in the North 2, Group 3 section. Belvidere won its only title in North 2, Group 1 in 1999. And Hackettstown won the North 2, Group 2 title in 1981. North Warren has never won a title.

Until last year’s win, Phillipsburg had been the last Warren County school to win a championship, coming in 2018. They now have two in a row.

Long, Storied Tradition in West Jersey (And PA)…

The Stateliners are in their 120th season of football, and are 758-343-50 all-time, the winningest program in New Jersey. They’ve had four perfect seasons, nine unbeaten (including ties) and 23 one-loss teams, not including this year’s 10-1 squad. In the last three seasons – including this one – they’ve lost a grand total of six games – twice to Easton – to go along with 31 wins.

For a time, Phillipsburg played in the East Penn League. And while they’ve added two more Pennsylvania teams to their schedule early next year to go along with Easton on Thanskgiving – meaning much less travel, rather than play more Big Central crossovers – they’ve been back to a New Jersey schedule since 1992, and have won nine state titles since, ten overall. In 1995, they joined the Skyland Conference – which eventually became the Mid-State 39 (then 38, and 37) in football before the merger with the GMC to form the Big Central in 2020.

Home Cooking…

Since the start of Big Central play in 2020, the Stateliners are 35-4 at Maloney Stadium, with two of those losses coming in the North 2 Group 5 title games to West Orange (in 2022) and Union City (in 2023).

They’re 15-4 in regular season play at home in that span – not counting a forfeit win in a scheduled home game against Somerville in 2021) and 12-3 in the playoffs. (Remember, “home” or “away,” the Easton game is played at Lafayette College.) And in the last four seasons (2022-2025), Phillipsburg is 27-2 at home overall.