Tag: Dallas Whitaker

by Mike Pavlichko

Gameday with Marcus Borden: Immaculata’s football hire

It may be January, with the high school football season two months in the rearview mirror already, but there was plenty to talk about this week, and we dive into it on a special “offseason” edition of Gameday with Marcus Borden.

On Thursday, February 5, Immaculata announced it was parting ways with head football coach Mike Columbo, and announced the hiring of alum Dallas Whitaker (IHS ’11), along with Jeff Vanderbeek as football program director. Vanderbeek resurrected the Somerville football program in the mid-2010s and handed the keys to Whitaker a few years later.

Whitaker stepped down in 2021 to spend more time starting a family and on his burgeoning real estate career, but says he “got the itch” again pretty quickly, and now, he’s leading his alma mater as the only the fifth coach in school history.

Mike and Marcus take a look at the hire from multiple angles, including what it’ll mean on the football field and off.

Click below to listen to the “off-season” edition of “Gameday with Marcus Borden”:

by Mike Pavlichko

Whitaker, Vanderbeek and Immaculata AD Gambino talk Spartans’ splash with new football leadership

By the time the Q&A session cleared out, there they were: in their best suits, ready to take Immaculata football by storm.

Dallas Whitaker, a 2011 graduate and two-time state champion playing for Peirce Frauenheim had already talked to the kids. “I chose you,” he told them.

While that’s very likely the case, it’s also a little for him. It’s always been his dream job.

Whitaker caught the coaching bug at Rutgers, where he was a walk-on for Kyle Flood, but self-admittedly was “one of the least talented players on the team.” Sometimes that’s how coaches get into the profession, that moment of realization.

(Sometimes, that’s also how broadcasters get into their profession.)

Jeff Vanderbeek, who hired Whitaker as his offensive coordinator, then handed the reins to him a few years later, was there, too. In a package deal, he was hired along with Whitaker as the Football Program Coordinator Thursday, an organizational role well-suited to his talents.

As for Whitaker? He may not have the college stats, but he has plenty of coaching success.

After serving under Vanderbeek as offensive coordinator, Vanderbeek handed Whitaker the keys and the team went 36-6 under his leadership, finishing with a No. 4 ranking in the state (7-0) in the COVID-shortened 2020 season with one of the highest-octane no-huddle offenses you’ll ever see at the high school level.

Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko got a chance to sit down one-on-one with Whitaker, Vanderbeek and Immaculata Athletic Director Tom Gambino after a meet-and-greet Q&A at the school Thursday afternoon. Click below to listen.

Immaculata Head Coach Dallas Whitaker and Football Program Director Jeff Vanderbeek
Immaculata Athletic Director Tom Gambino

by Mike Pavlichko

Immaculata names alum Dallas Whitaker as Spartans’ new football coach, with former mentor Jeff Vanderbeek in tow

Dallas Whitaker will be coaching football in Somerville again this fall, but this time, he won’t be wearing orange and black.

It’ll be with the team wearing blue and white just a few blocks away, at his alma mater, Immaculata.

And his former mentor, Jeff Vanderbeek, will be with him.

The school announced the move in a press release Thursday morning, then held a meet-and-greet with the two later in the afternoon.

MORE COVERAGE: Whitaker, Vanderbeek and Immaculata AD Gambino talk Spartans’ splash with new football leadership

Whitaker will be the head coach and an “athletics associate,” while Vanderbeek will serve as program director for football. Further details are expected later Thursday.

Whitaker replaces Mike Columbo, who was 43-35 over eight seasons, but had only one sub-.500 campaign following an 0-7 year in the challenging COVID-shortened season. His best seasons were the last two, when the Spartans went 8-2 in 2024 and 9-3 this past season.

Immaculata played in the Mid-State 38 his first two seasons, and had planned to join the Big Central Conference in the merger between the GMC and Skyland Conference, but departed before ever playing a game following a disagreement with the league over scheduling.

Since then, they have been in the Super Football Conference, playing in the National White Division with the likes of Jersey City schools Snyder and Lincoln, and Newark opponents West Side, Shabazz and Weequahic.

Whitaker left Somerville after the 2021 season, his fourth, leading the Pioneers to a 36-6 record in that span and two sectional title games – against Rumson in 2018 and Woodrow Wilson (now Camden Eastside) in 2019. They went 7-0 in the COVID-shortened season, a team that very well would have competed for a sectional title, if the NJSIAA would have had playoffs that year.

At the time, Whitaker was about to get married, and received a promotion at his full-time job, becoming a partner at his real estate firm, and he told Central Jersey Sports Radio at the time that he couldn’t devote the time to coaching that he needed to.

Whitaker originally was brought on by Jeff Vanderbeek, the former New Jersey Devils owner who resurrected the program in 2016, after splitting time as co-head coach with Chris Cassamento in 2015. Somerville had lost 26 straight games – the second longest active streak in the state at the time – before snapping the skid with a win against North Plainfield, and finished the season 2-8.

The next year, Vanderbeek took the reins solo. And with Whitaker as Offensive Coordinator, they went 10-1, falling to Rumson-Fair Haven in the sectional semifinals in 2016, before beating the Bulldogs in 2017 to win the Central Jersey Group 3 title.

Between the two of them, The ‘Ville went 57-7, winning a Central Jersey Group 3 title in 2017 over Rumson-Fair Haven at Rutgers. Then, with Whitaker at the helm, finished the state ranked NO. 4 in the 2020 COVID year.

MORE COVERAGE: Whitaker, Vanderbeek and Immaculata AD Gambino talk Spartans’ splash with new football leadership

The move certainly could shake things up in the Somerset County portion of Big Central football, if a higher profile leads to more success in bringing new ninth graders into the program for Somerville and neighboring towns.

Whitaker was a walk-on at Rutgers under Kyle Flood, and later a student assistant coach, after playing for the late Pierce Frauenheim at Immaculata, a 2011 graduate.

He was a big-time pass rusher for the Spartans at defensive end, and also played tight end. In his junior season of 2009, Whitaker recorded eight sacks, eight QB hurries, and 62 tackles, and was a second-team All-Area pick, as well as second-team Non-Public All-State. He only played seven games his senior season after suffering a broken leg. All in all, he played 31 consecutive varisty games, served as team captain, and won sectional titles in 2008 and 2009 as a sophomore and junior.

by Mike Pavlichko

“All in or all out”: With personal and professional life on the rise, Whitaker bids Somerville adieu

He’s getting married soon, and being made a partner at his real estate firm.

Coaching a high school football team just didn’t fit in the equation any more. At least, not the way the job should be done.

“It’s a sad moment for me,” Dallas Whitaker told Central Jersey Sports Radio Wednesday night, just days after stepping down from the helm of the program he led to a 36-6 record over four seasons, with just five on-field losses (one this year was a COVID-related forfeit). Two of those losses came in sectional finals: to Rumson in 2018 and Woodrow Wilson in 2019.

Whitaker was brought on by Jeff Vanderbeek, the former New Jersey Devils owner who resurrected the program in 2016, after splitting time as co-head coach with Chris Cassamento in 2015. Somerville had lost 26 straight games – the second longest active streak in the state at the time – before snapping the skid with a win against North Plainfield, and finished the season 2-8.

The next year, Vanderbeek took the reins solo. And with Whitaker as Offensive Coordinator, they went 10-1, falling to Rumson-Fair Haven in the sectional semifinals in 2016, before beating the Bulldogs in 2017 to win the Central Jersey Group 3 title.

Somerville players celebrate their 2017 Central Jersey Group 3 championship – the school’s first since 1994 – at midfield at Rutgers’ High Point Solutions Stadium.

Just this Monday, the 29-year-old Whitaker had been named one of the American Football Coaches’ Association’s “35 Under 35,” which is “a prestigious program aimed at identifying and developing premier, future leaders in the football coaching profession.”

Whitaker announced his resignation via the @VilleFootball twitter account on Tuesday.

Click below to hear Dallas Whitaker talk with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko:

by Mike Pavlichko

MacNair to return for Somerville as Pioneers face unbeaten Cedar Creek in sectional semis

If Somerville is going to win its second state title of the Vanderbeek/Whitaker era – and head coach Dallas Whitaker’s first – it will have to get through one of the top teams in the state, then beat a team that will have an unplanned week off.

More on that second point in a moment; first things first for the Pioneers.

First comes this week’s South Jersey Group 3 semifinal game for The ‘Ville (8-2, one loss by forfeit) against top-seed Cedar Creek (10-0).

The Pirates are the 13th-ranked team in the state, and the fourth-highest ranked public school behind Millville, Northern Highlands and Rumson-Fair Haven. They average nearly 35 points per game scoring, and have only allowed one team – Winslow – to score double-figures against them. They won their first four games by shutout.

So, it will be a tall order for Somerville, but they good news is, Ethan MacNair – who was injured in the regular season finale against Summit, then sat out last week against Rahway – will be back in the lineup.

It will be the first ever meeting between Somerville and Cedar Creek, which is led by first-year head coach James Melody.

Should the Pioneers beat the Pirates, they would play at third-seed Delsea next week for the South Jersey Group 3 title, most likely Friday night at 7 pm.

Delsea gets a bye this week, advancing automatically to the title game after second-seed Wall pulled out of the state tournament, in response to a hazing scandal being investigated by the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office. The cancellation of the game was reported by multiple media outlets

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko talk with Somerville head coach Dallas Whitaker about the Pioneers’ sectional semifinal game against Cedar Creek:

by Mike Pavlichko

Top-ranked Somerville battles through driving rain, MacNair injury, to win slugfest against Summit

We don’t know yet who Somerville will face in the playoffs, and head coach Dallas Whitaker doesn’t really care until the NJSIAA comes out with its official brackets sometime Sunday.

But he was certainly happy with how his team came through at a very wet and windy Brooks Field Friday night, as the No. 1 Pioneers improved to 7-2beat Summit 45-22 in the Big Central Game of the Week, driven by Mark Montenero and his team, at the world-famous Autoland, heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio.

Ethan MacNair came out of the game late in the first quarter with an apparent ankle injury after rushing for 49 yards and a touchdown on five carries, but Hashym Hobbs stepped up big-time. He scored on Somerville’s next two offensive plays, on touchdown runs of 63 and 72 yards, staking the Pioneers to a 19-3 that would turn into a 19-9 advantage going into the locker room.

Somerville head coach Dallas Whitaker didn’t have an update on MacNair after the game, pending a further medical evaluation.

Hobbs’ performance came at a critical point of the game, with Summit – after a trio of three-and-outs – starting to find its groove a bit on offense. The timing of his big plays earned him Autoland Player of the Game honors.

The loss for Summit (5-4) leaves its playoff hopes in question; they’re likely in the bottom four of the North 3 standings, but may need some help to stay there.

Click below for postgame reaction from Somerville’s 45-22 win over Summit Friday night:

Junior quarterback Mike Miller

Head coach Dallas Whitaker
by Mike Pavlichko

No. 1 Somerville in for a fight when Summit comes to town

In a series once dominated by Summit, the arrival of the Jeff Vanderbeek/Dallas Whitaker era in Somerville has brought more intense matchups, albeit mostly won by the Pioneers.

But Somerville head coach Dallas Whitaker admits the Hilltoppers have given his team fits over the years, and he expects tonight to be no different when the two teams square off at Brooks Field for the first time since 2016.

No. 1 Somerville (6-2) and Summit (5-3) will play in the final game of the regular season tonight at 7 pm, in the Big Central Game of the Week driven by Mark Montenero and his team at the world-famous Autoland. Mike Pavlichko and Justin Sontupe will call all the action, beginning with the pregame show at 6:45.

Click here to listen live to all the play-by-play on cjsportsradio.com.

Summit leads the all-time series 7-4, but Somerville was won four of the last five, including a 55-42 decision last season, the most combined points (97) scored in the all-time series between the schools.

MORE CUTOFF WEEKEND COVERAGE: A team-by-team breakdown of every Big Central team’s postseason standing and chances heading into Week 9

Summit also is one of just three teams to beat Somerville in the regular season in the Jeff Vanderbeek/Dallas Whitaker era. The others are Rahway, and Northern Highlands.

While Somerville is likely to be a top eight team in the South 3 supersection – meaning at least a first-round home game – there’s much at stake for he Hilltoppers. A loss could bounce them from the North Group 3 playoffs if things don’t break right with the teams below them. But if they win, they’re in.

Click below to hear both coaches talk about tonight’s matchup:

Somerville head coach Dallas Whitaker

Summit head coach Kevin Kostibos

by Mike Pavlichko

No. 1 Somerville keeps on rolling, wins 5th straight, 43-13 over Warren Hills, to clinch share of Big Central’s Division 3

The top-ranked Pioneers got another big effort from tight end-turned-runningback Ethan MacNair, who rushed 22 times for 248 yards and three touchdowns, pacing Somerville to a 43-13 win over Warren Hills Friday night in Washington Township.

Quarterback Matt Miller did not play for the Pioneers (5-1), but Dylan Knapp ran the offense efficiently. He completed his only pass attempt, for 42 yards, and carried 12 times for 65 yards, scoring two touchdowns.

Hashym Hobbs carried four times for 28 yards and had a touchdown.

Somerville can clinch the division title outright with a home win at Brooks Field next Friday night against Summit. That game is the Big Central Game of the Week driven by Mark Montenero and his team at the world-famous Autoland, and can be heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio at 7 pm, with the pregame show at 6:45.

Click below to hear postgame reaction from the field with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Justin Sontupe:

Somerville runningback Ethan MacNair

Somerville head coach Dallas Whitaker
by Mike Pavlichko

No. 1 Somerville and St. Joseph to meet for the first time Saturday afternoon in Metuchen

St. Joseph head coach Rich Hilliard his team isn’t afraid to play anyone. They don’t shy away from a challenge.

That’s a good mindset for his Falcons to have when they entertain top-ranked Somerville Saturday afternoon at Brenner Family Field in the Saturday “Big Central Game of the Week” driven by Mark Montenero and his team at the world-famous Autoland.

The Pioneers come in with a 4-1 record, but have been dominant. Three of their four wins have been by shutout, and they have only allowed more than seven points once this season, that in a 32-20 loss to state-ranked Northern Highlands.

St. Joseph, meanwhile, is 2-3, but they’ve won two straight since losing three in a row to start the season, winning 31-7 at Piscataway, then beating New Brunswick at home last week 38-14.

Somerville is fast, and not just on foot. They run a tempo offense that puts teams back on its heels, and preparation on defense will be the key for St. Joe’s if they intend to win the game.

In fact, their best defense may be a slow, methodical offense, one that puts up some points.

Mike Pavlichko and Dom Savino will call all the action this afternoon, with the game kicking off at 2 pm. Pregame is at 1:45. You can listen live by clicking here.

Click below to hear both head coaches preview the game:

Somerville head coach Dallas Whitaker

St. Joseph coach Rich Hilliard
by Mike Pavlichko

No. 1 Somerville makes it three straight heading into big road game at Phillipsburg

The top-ranked Pioneers kept on being the Pioneers Friday night, blanking South Plainfield 43-0 at Brooks Field in Somerville, giving them a 4-1 mark heading into a big road matchup in Week Six.

Ethan MacNair had two touchdown runs, while Jaimen Bryant had a touchdown catch and a punt return for a score, while Tristan Garcia and Dylan Knapp also reached the end zone.

And then there was the defense, blanking its third opponent this season. In their four wins this season, the Pioneers have only allowed one touchdown – to Rahway – and have outscored their opponents 160-7.

Their line hiccup was a non-conference loss in the Rumble on the Raritan to Northern Highlands, 32-20. The Highlanders are ranked 11th in the state by nj.com and are their third highest-ranked public school in the state, behind Rumson-Fair Haven (No. 7) and Millville (No. 8).

Click below to hear Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko talk with Somerville head coach Dallas Whitaker about the Pioneers’ win over South Plainfield, the season so far, and next Friday night’s trip to Phillipsburg: