Category: Football

by Mike Pavlichko

After breaking their long skid, six-win season makes Highland Park CJSR Turnaround Team of the Year for 2024

The build to 2024 was a long one, but the hard work paid off.

Toiling through years of teams with barely two dozen players, the Highland Park football team ended up with more Owls on the varsity roster at the end of the season than they had at the beginning.

Now, that’s saying something.

But first, the Owls made a statement. The did last year, and all the years before, when they refused to quit. Last year, with an 0-9 record, they said “Why not?” to one more game, down at Point Beach.

After 51 straight losses, more than anyone else in the state at the time, they finally got a win, and beat the Garnet Gulls.

This year? They won their first three to give them a four-game winning streak, then finished the year 6-3.

And that has earned them Turnaround Team of the Year honors for 2024 from Central Jersey Sports Radio.

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko talk with Highland Park senior Markos Hantsoulis and head coach Shawn Harrison:

by Mike Pavlichko

Who was most improved in the Big Central Conference in 2024? A look at the numbers

One can easily look at the Big Central Conference football standings and compare this year to last to see who was much improved, and who dropped off, but the Strength Index will give you a little more nuance.

Since the NJSIAA’s SI values – which are used to calculate OSI for playoff calculation – compare how teams do against their opponents based not on wins and losses but on the score compared to each team’s rating, the system is a good way to see how teams fared.

After all, a team that might have won just two games one year and three the next might have made more of a jump overall if they got blown out in games the first year, but lost by a touchdown or less the next season.

The biggest jump this year in the Big Central was made by Somerville, both in wins and losses and Strength Index. The Pioneers were 5-5 last year, but finished 12-1 this season, winning the Central Jersey Group 3 title, their first sectional crown since 2017.

That’s a plus-7 in the win column. They also jumped a whopping 28.59 points in Strength Index from 67.01 in the preseason to 95.60 at the end of the year.

Rounding out the top five, the next four teams were Manville, Old Bridge, Rahway and Belvidere. Let’s look at them in order.

Manville was a plus-4 this year, going from 3-7 in Dave Markowitch’s first season to 7-3 this year, with a playoff berth. They gained 16.85 SI points, going from a preseason mark of 43.30 to 60.15 in Strength Index.

Old Bridge flip-flopped their record as well, going from 4-6 to 6-4, and it showed in the Strength Index as well. They Knights climbed 15.33 points from a 56.43 to a 71.76 rating.

Rahway also jumped, going from a 56.65 to a 71.74 Strength Index value. They also flip-flopped their record, from 3-7 to 7-3 from last season to 2024.

And Belvidere improved greatly as well. Just 3-7 last year under head coach Jordan Schreffler, they finished 8-2 this season, although they missed the playoffs with a relatively weak schedule. Still, they didn’t beat those teams last year, but did this year. And they improved from 46.63 to 61.62 in Strength Index, an increase of 14.99 points from last year.

Five other teams saw double digit jumps in SI value: Hillsborough (14.18), Phillipsburg (12.35), St. Thomas Aquinas (12.23), New Providence (11.62), North Hunterdon (11.39) and Cranford (11.19).

Overall, 30 of the 59 teams in the league went up, the other 29 went down. The three biggest drops were all by more than 20 points, including Brearley (-26.92), Dunellen (-27.11) and Roselle Park (27.51).

Here’s a look at the entire Big Central Conference, plus or minus in Strength Index for 2024, from the preseason to the end of the year:

In a longer term view, St. Thomas Aquinas has seen the biggest increase in its SI value since the Strength Index was first used in 2019. After using power points for so many years, the NJSIAA switched to the UPR system in 2018 (60% Born Power Index, 40% power points). The next year, the state adjusted the numbers and called it the Strength Index, using a similar formula to Born’s, but using OSI – a reverse form of the Born Power Index – for playoff calculation.

The Trojans have jumped 53.34 points, by far and away more than any other team since the 2019 preseason. They were 4-6 in 2018 in the final season under Joe Vigilante, and just 2-8 the year before that. Brian Meeney went 4-6, 4-1, and 8-3 in his first three seasons.

Tarig Holman took over after Meeney died suddenly in the spring of 2022, and the Trojans have gone a combined 27-6 since, winning 31 straight Big Central Conference games, a league record.

The next biggest gainers are Metuchen (+26.31), Highland Park (+25.46), Manville (+25.35), Belvidere (+24.22), Plainfield (+23.27) and New Providence (+21.63).

Overall, 17 teams rose by more than 10 points, and 27 overall out of 59 league schools have increased their SI since the 2019 preseason.

Here’s a look at the entire Big Central Conference, plus or minus in Strength Index, from the 2019 preseason to the end of 2024:

by Mike Pavlichko

PHOTOS: Take a look back at historic Group 4 Championship Game at Rutgers between Phillipsburg and Winslow Twp.

The NJSIAA’s Group 4 Championship Game in high school football certainly was one for the history books.

It was the first time either Phillipsburg or Winslow Twp. had reached the state finals in the first three years of their existence, it obviously was Winslow’s first-ever state title, and the Stateliners were the first team to represent the Big Central Conference in a state final.

Photographer Christian Sanchez captured some of the title game’s moments for Central Jersey Sports Radio, including pre-game warmups and the Eagles’ post-game celebration.

  • Phillipsburg players warm up before the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg players warm up before the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg players warm up before the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg players stand for the National Anthem before the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg team captains head out for the coin toss before the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • The Phillipsburg student section cheers on the Stateliners in the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg’s Felix Matos is congratulated after a catch in the first half of the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg’s Felix Matos tries to escape a tackle in the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg head coach Frank Duffy on the sidlines at the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg’s Matthew Scerbo, Jr., makes a move in the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • The Phillipsburg student section cheers on the Stateliners in the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg’s Jett Genovese throws a pass in the first half of the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg’s Jett Genovese (#3) and Matthew Scerbo, Jr., (#10) greet each opther before a huddle in the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg and Winslow line up for a play in the Group 4 title game at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg’s Jett Genovese looks to pass in the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg’s Felix Matos takes a break to hydrate in the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg’s Jayden Lucas is excited about a big defensive stop in the first half of the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg and Winslow line up for a play in the Group 4 title game at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg’s Felix Matos tries to stay on his feet in the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg’s Jett Genovese watches a replay on the scoreboard during the first half of the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg’s Jett Genovese runs the ball in the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg’s Jaysen Blacknall defends a pass in the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg huddles up before the second half of the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg’s Felix Matos goes for the first down in the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg and Winslow line up for a play in the Group 4 title game at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg’s Jett Genovese runs the ball in the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg’s Matthew Scerbo, Jr., in the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg’sSam Dech looks to make a move in the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Phillipsburg’s Jett Genovese takes in the snow during the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Winslow players meet their fans after winning the Group 4 championship over Phillipsburg at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Winslow celebrates its Group 4 championship over Phillipsburg at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
  • Winslow celebrates its Group 4 championship over Phillipsburg at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)
NJSIAA Group 4 Championship
by Marcus Borden

Phillipsburg and St. Thomas Aquinas take No. 1 spots in Coach Borden’s final Big Central Conference and GMC 2024 Top Tens

It is hard to believe the 2024 football season has come to an end with the finals of Group 2 and Group 4 Championships which were held at Rutgers this past Wednesday.

Phillipsburg was the first Big Central Conference team to advance to an Overall Group Championship game in the league’s short history.

When I began the BCC Camp Caravan Tour on August 12, my goal was to be sure I saw all 59 teams over the last two years, whether it was at a preseason practice, scrimmage or game. Mission accomplished!

This year I was able to see in person 48 of the 59 teams in the aforementioned scenarios and 2 others in a 7 vs 7 Passing Tournament.

I am also grateful to Joe Bellamy of Bellamy & Sons Paving, Carleigh Stillwagon of Elite Custom Apparel and Bob Trivosonno of Metro Team Sports for helping me honor 59 players from the BCC as members of the 2024 Borden’s Ballers Football Team.

A BIG THANK YOU TO MIKE PAVLICHKO & THE CREW AT CJSR!

Happy Holidays to all the Coaches, Players, Team Managers and your families!

by Mike Pavlichko

Final 2024 Big Central, NJ Power Rankings

With the 2024 season in the rearview mirror, it’s time to take a look at the final New Jersey Top 25 and the Big Central Power Rankings.

Simply based on the state’s Strength Index formula – which helps determine a team’s OSI, which is 60% of the UPR playoff formula – the rankings will change each week as games are played. See methodology at the bottom of this page.

The rankings typically use the official NJSIAA Strength Index values calculated by Gridiron New Jersey, which updates them on each team’s page on a weekly basis. However, since those are only updated in the regular season, we do our own unofficial calculations for the entire state.

Here are the Final rankings in the Big Central and statewide:

In the Big Central, Phillipsburg’s loss to Winslow in the State Group 4 Final dropped them to third, behind Somerville – which moved to No. 1 – and St. Thomas Aquinas.

Statewide, Winslow finished off its chokehold on the No. 1 spot with its 35-point win over Phillipsburg, leaving them with a 115.38 SI value.

Among Big Central teams, Phillipsburg dropped one spot to No. 13, while Somerville moved up to 11th, and St. Thomas Aquinas went up to No. 13.

Strength Index Methodology: Team A and Team B are compared to find the difference between their rankings, which provides the Expected Result. The margin of the final score is figured in positive or negative terms compared to the Expected Result. The difference is divided by five, and the teams increase or decrease by the resulting number.

Example #1: Team A has an SI value of 80, while Team B has an SI value of 60. The Expected Result is +20 for Team A. When the game is played, Team A wins by 30. That is 10 points higher than the expected result. Than number is divided by 5, meaning Team A increases by 2 (Team A now has an SI of 82) while Team B decreases by 2 (Team B now has an SI of 58).

Example #2: In the same scenario, Team A defeats Team B by 20. That is the same as the Expected Result, no there is no change. Team A remains with an SI value of 80, while Team B retains its 60 SI value.

Example #2: Team A defeats Team B by 10. That is 10 points fewer than the expected result. Divide by 5 to get 2, but in this case, Team A drops by 2 points to 78 (because Team A “underperformed”) while Team B increases by 2 points to 62.

by Mike Pavlichko

Phillipsburg finishes No. 1 in final Central Jersey Sports Radio Big Central football rankings

The 2024 high school football season has come to a close, and the Phillipsburg Stateliners will close it out as the No. 1 team in the final Central Jersey Sports Radio rankings of the year.

Not only did Phillipsburg win its ninth New Jersey state sectional title in the playoff era, but the Stateliners became the first Big Central Conference team to make the state finals, in the third year of the event.

Phillipsburg finishes the year 11-3, after a loss to Winslow in the Group 4 final at Rutgers Wednesday night.

Somerville (12-1) finished second, the only other league team to win a sectional title this year. The Pioneers beat Delsea to win the Central Jersey Group 3 title, but fell to Mainland in the Group 3 semifinals for their only loss. They also were Liberty Silver Division champions in the Big Central.

Checking in at No. 3 is Woodbridge (10-1), which also had a perfect regular season, and won the Liberty Gold Division in the Big Central. The Barrons went to the sectional semifinals in North 2, Group 4, bowing out to finalist Northern Highlands.

Fourth is St. Thomas Aquinas (8-3), which won the National Silver Division and will head into 2025 with a league-record 31-game Big Central Conference winning streak. The Trojans won their first playoff game since 2001, beating St. Mary-Rutherford, before bowing out to Holy Spirit in the Non-Public B quarterfinals.

Checking in at No. 5 is Bernards (11-1). The third Big Central team to go undefeated this regular season, a trip to the North 1, Group 2 finals might have been a dream in the preseason, after losing key players to graduation following last year’s sectional title win, but they ended up running the table in the regular season and got right back there, falling to eventual Group 2 finalist Shabazz.

Ridge (8-2) clocks in at No. 6, the American Silver Division Champions. They were the only Big Central school to beat Phillipsburg this year, handing them a touchdown loss back on September 20th.

In seventh is Rahway (7-3), which had a big win over Watchung Hills in early October.

The eighth-place team was one that was recognized all year, but never ranked: New Providence. The Pioneers finished 9-3, and were consistent all year, making it all the way to the North 2, Group 1 title game, where they fell to Cedar Grove, which ended up a state finalist, falling to Glassboro in the Group 1 title game.

Checking in at No. 9 is Hillsborough, which finished 7-4, coming on straight to win four straight heading into the playoffs. They bowed out in the second round to Rancocas Valley.

And in tenth is Piscataway, which also finished 7-4, but behind the Raiders because they lost to Hillsborough late in the season.

Also considered in the final rankings were the Freedom Gold and Freedom Silver champions, respectively – Spotswood (8-2) and Belvidere (8-2) – along with Cranford (7-3).

Below is the complete 2024 Final Central Jersey Sports Radio High School Football Top Ten:

by Mike Pavlichko

INSTANT REPLAY – Group 4 Final: Winslow 35, Phillipsburg 0

North 2, Group 4 champion Phillipsburg came up one win short in its quest to claim its first-ever state championship – and the Big Central Conference’s – falling in the Group 4 title game to Winslow Twp., 35-0

Click below to listen to Mike Pavlichko and Dom Savino call all the play-by-play live from Rutgers University’s SHI Stadium in Piscataway on December 4, 2024:

1ts Half
2nd Half

by Mike Pavlichko

Phillipsburg falls in Group 4 final to Winslow, 35-5, as Eagles offense spreads the wealth

Though it was a memorable season in so many respects, Phillipsburg’s first trip to the state finals – and the Big Central Conference’s first team to make it there – didn’t go nearly according to plan.

Two first-half Stateliner interceptions led indirectly to Winslow Twp. touchdowns, as the Eagles built up a 28-0 lead after the first 24 minutes, and topped the Stateliners 35-0 in the NJSIAA Group 4 final at Rutgers Univeristy’s SHI Stadium in Piscataway, as heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio.

Winslow has several players – not all of them seniors, by the way – with offers from major Division 1 college programs. Several have offers to Syracuse, and receiver Marcus Upton signed his Letter of Intent to Boston College earlier in the day.

What was remarkable about it was that none of them truly “went off” Wednesday night; Winslow simply played solid football, exploiting its speed and athleticism.

Phillipsburg QB Jett Genovese throws a pass in the first half of the Group 4 final at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)

They broke tackles, jumped routes, and got in the backfield, registering seven sacks and nine tackles for loss.

And they spread the ball around: seven different players caught passes, but none hauled in more than four or had more than 67 yards through the air. Likewise, four different players rushed the football, and none ran for more than 50 yards, or had more than eleven carries.

Sophomore quarterback Jalen Parker had an outstanding effort, going 17 of 22 for 238 yards and two touchdown passes.

Winslow took the ball first, and both teams punted on their first possessions. But the Eagles got on the board on their second possession, on the second play of the drive with a 26-yard pass from Parker to Cam Miller with 6:26 to go in the first quarter.

Phillipsburg quickly found themselves down 14-0 with 2:01 remaining when QB Jett Genovese threw a pick on the next drive that was returned 67-yards for a score by junior Nyqir Helton.

Winslow would score twice more in the second quarter, when another Helton interception gave them the ball at the Stateliner 44. Five plays later, junior NaKeem Powell ran in a touchdown from two yards out to make it 21-0 with 4:29 to go before the half, and Parker found Miller again from 15 yards out to make it 28-0 at the break.

Things got worse in the second half for Phillipsburg when senior wide receiver Felix Matos went down with what appeared to be a lower leg injury, and soon after, Genovese got banged up too, though he returned.

Winslow outgained Phillipsburg 318 to 66 in the game, with the Stateliners held to just nine rushing yards, both easily their lowest outputs of the season. It was also the first time they’d been shut out since a 7-0 loss to Wayne Valley in the second round of the playoffs in 2019.

Click below for postgame reaction from Marcus Borden on the field with Phillipsburg senior WR Matthew Scerbo, Jr., who will graduate as the top receiver in school history in several statistical categories:

by Mike Pavlichko

RAPID REACTION: Phillipsburg falls in Group 4 final, 35-0, to Winslow at Rutgers

The first Big Central Conference team won reach the NJSIAA’s state finals in football – just three years into playing down to group champions – came up short Wednesday night.

Phillipsburg lost to Winslow Twp. 35-0 at Rutgers University’s SHI Stadium in Piscataway, ending its season at 11-2.

But as Mike Pavlichko and Dom Savino – who called the game on Central Jersey Sports Radio – point out, there’s much to be proud of for the Stateliners, who in the last three years beat arch-rival Easton twice on Thanksgiving, and this year brought home an elusive sectional title, winning a thriller over Northern Highlands to take the North 2, Group 4 championship.

Click below to watch Mike and Dom’s “Rapid Recation” from Piscataway, and check back later for a game recap, postgame reaction from Phillipsburg head coach Frank Duffy, and much more.

by Mike Pavlichko

As high school football players get ready to sign, Hillsborough’s Thomas Amankwaa announces transfer from Rutgers

One of the most decorated players in Hillsborough football history – who came to Rutgers after playing his final high school game there in 2021, a win over Kingsway in the South Group 5 Regional Championship to finish 13-0 – has announced he’s leaving the Scarlet Knights.

Thomas Amankwaa will be entering the transfer portal next Monday, announcing the decision on Twitter Wednesday, just as National Letter of Intent Early Signing Day was getting underway.

Amankwaa was on the most successful Hillsborough football team in program history, helping lead the Raiders as a senior to an undefeated campaign, setting a program and county record with their 13 wins.

The Central Jersey Sports Radio Two-Way Player of the Year in 2021, Amankwaa was sparsely used at Rutgers, but put up big numbers at Hillsborough. He finished with 2,127 career receiving yards, 93 catches and 24 touchdowns. His senior year, he also ran the ball, going for 861 yards and 13 TDs on 73 carries, after rushing just 14 times combined in his sophomore and junior seasons.

Amankwaa will have two years of eligibility remaining.