Tag: Highland Park

by Mike Pavlichko

One-two punch: Dayton wins BCC Freedom Gold, hands Highland Park first loss, 28-20

In the Highland Park football team’s first seven games of the season, they never trailed. Not for a second.

But that all changed Friday night in Springfield, as Dayton got on the board first just 2:35 into the game, and never trailed the rest of the way securing a 28-20 victory that gave them the Big Central Conference Freedom Gold Division title.

That first touchdown came from the Bulldogs’ top runningback, Tyler Fuscaldo, who – after an incomplete pass on first down – rumbled 33 yards to put Dayton up 7-0 with the extra point.

And Dayton (6-2, 5-0 BCC Freedom Gold) would get the next two touchdowns as well, building a 21-0 lead on a ten-yard run from Adrian Bernknopf with 11:08 to go in the first half, and a 39-yard touchdown catch by top receiver Jackson Babiarz with 25 seconds to go in the half.

That could have left Highland Park (7-1, 4-1) down for the count, knowing the Bulldogs would get the ball to start the second half, but the Owls responded, scoring in two plays after starting their drive on the 50, courtesy of a 14-yard catch by Luca Belbhar, who freed himself in the right corner of the end zone as he saw quarterback Marcus Smith scrambling to avoid a sack as time expired on the first half.

After a scoreless third, Highland Park would get within a score on a four-yard touchdown run by Smith, capping a seven-play, 55-yard drive that ate 6:17 off the clock. But the kick was blocked, and they still trailed by eight, 21-13.

Just over five minutes later, with Tyler Fuscaldo banged up, Dominic Pintado scored on a 21-yard touchdown run to put Dayton up 28-13 with 4:07 left, but Highland Park wasn’t done yet. The Owls put together a 59-yard, seven play drive and got an eight-yard run from Smith that made it 28-20 with the PAT.

Rather than a typical onside kick, after a Dayton time out, they tried a sky kick that Dayton recovered, got a first down loss and allowed a small gain before the Bulldogs eventually got a first down near midfield and were able to kneel out the clock the rest of the way for the win.

Click below for postgame reaction from Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Alec Crouthamel with Dayton head coach Nick Iannacone, and seniors Jackson Babiarz and Adrian Bernknopf:

by Mike Pavlichko

Highland Park, Dayton to square off Friday with each looking for first divisional title in nearly two decades

It’s been a long time, in more ways than one.

There are many similarities between the Highland Park and Dayton football programs.

For starters, they are among the older programs in the league, with Jonathan Dayton playing its first game in 1907, while Highland Park has been playing football since 1937. In fact, the two met that year, and the Owls won 7-6 before the Bulldogs returned the favor in 1938 with a 23-0 victory.

In the present day, they both have a lot of different way to beat you on offense.

And it’s also been 17 years since both teams last won a division title.

For Dayton, that came in 2009 under then-head coach Joe Goerge (now at Woodbridge) as part of the Mid-State 39 Conference (which later became the 38, then the 37), winning the Union Division. And they almost won it again in 2010 in a 10-2 season, had it not been for a season-opening loss to division for New Providence.

For Highland Park, it was the GMC Blue Division in ’09, with Rich McGlynn as head coach. Current coach Shawn Harrison was his successor, rejuvenating the program to the point where the Owls have now won at least six games in two of their last three seasons.

Friday night, they meet in Springfield, both 4-0 in their division, playing for the Freedom Gold Division title.

You can hear that game live on Central Jersey Sports Radio, our Bellamy & Son Paving Big Central Game of the Week, with kickoff set for 7:00, and pregame at 6:45, with Mike Pavlichko and Alec Crouthamel on the call. Click here to listen.

The Owls (7-0, 4-0 BCC Freedom Gold) are led offensively by mobile senior quarterback Marcus Smith, the team’s No. 2 rusher with 457 yards and 11 touchdowns on just 44 carries, averaging more than a first down every time he touches the ball; he’s also thrown for 715 yards and eight touchdowns with just one pick. Senior runningback Jacob Quiros has rushed 108 times for 639 yards and seven TDs.

But most impressive has been their defense, which has allowed just six points all year, on a touchdown and missed extra point by Roselle Park. Bound Brook scored a touchdown against the Owls, too, but that was came on defense, via an interception return for a score. They are averaging nearly five sacks a game, with 32 through their first seven contests, along with 65 tackles for loss.

The Bulldogs (5-2, 4-0) have a big three-headed monster. It starts with senior QB Adrian Bernknopf, who has passed for 1,238 yards and 19 touchdowns, with three picks. His favorite target has been fellow senior Jackson Babiarz, with 22 catches for 550 yards and eight scores, while a third senior, Tyler Fuscaldo – a Springfield kid who played his first two years at Seton Hall Prep, and saw limited action as a sophomore – has rushed 85 times for 594 yards and eight touchdowns.

Defensively, Dominic Pintado and Isaiah Rivas – a defensive back and defensive lineman, respectively – each have 2 1/2 sacks, while as a team, the Bulldogs have recovered nine fumbles, two for touchdowns, have blocked two kicks, and a pick six from Pintado as well.

Click below top hear preview interviews with both head coaches!

Dayton head coach Nick Iannacone with Mike Pavlichko
Highland Park head coach Shawn Harrison with Alec Crouthamel

by Mike Pavlichko

Where do the Big Central Conference division races stand? Some are settled, but we take a closer at the ones that aren’t

We’re down to the last two weeks of the high school football regular season, with this also being the final week of divisional play in the Big Central Conference, and there are still a number of division titles up for grabs.

Some already have been decided, so we decided to take a look at who’s already been crowned, and which ones still are up for grabs.

Divisional Champs…

Eight of the 12 Big Central Divisions already have been decided, with two outright: Belvidere and Hillside. The other six are decided due to tiebreakers between the division leaders and the next team back. Here’s a closer look.

  • American Gold – Elizabeth: The Minutemen are perfect in 2026, 7-0 and No. 1 in the Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten. And they may be the most high-powered offense in the league, averaging 41.1 points per game, only once scoring fewer than 28 points – in a 19-7 win at Union in their third game of the year. They also have topped 50 twice. It’s a small division – just four teams – so there are only three division games, and their last comes this Saturday when they visit Westfield (1-5). They close at home against Somerville on Cutoff Weekend in a game that should see a lot of points scored.
  • Freedom Silver Division – Belvidere: The County Seaters swept through the division this year, going 5-0, just like they did in 2024, making this their second division title in three seasons, and second all-time in the BCC. Belvidere’s high-powered offense averaged 38 points per game against Freedom Silver opponents – never scoring fewer than 34 points in any of the five – while allowing just under ten a game. Their only loss came in their opening game, a 27-8 defeat at Hackettstown, and they have won eight straight games against Big Central foes, dating back to October 10 of last year. Belvidere has a non-conference game at North Warren this Friday night before hosting Delaware Valley on Saturday of Cutoff Weekend.
  • Liberty Gold – Rahway: The Indians aren’t finished with divisional play yet, but they are 3-0, with a trip to Colonia this Friday. But the only team that could tie them in the division is Woodbridge, and Rahway has the tiebreaker, courtesy of a 42-21 road win back on September 11. Their lone loss this year came three weeks ago at home to Cranford, 14-7; the Cougars remain undefeated. Rahway has won two straight since, 38-20 over South Brunswick and 35-6 at Plainfield Friday night. The Indians close divisional play at Colonia this week before a crossover home game against Edison the week after.
  • Liberty Silver – Montgomery: The Cougars are in the same situation as Rahway, 3-0 in the division, with Somerville behind them at 2-1, but Monty beat The ‘Ville for a second year in a row, 38-35, back on September 25. And, eerily similar to Rahway, they also lost to Cranford, 13-12, two weeks ago. Montgomery has won four of its last five games after an 0-2 start, with wins at Watchung Hills and Hunterdon Central, and at home over Colonia and the Pioneers. Monty visits divisional foe North Hunterdon Friday night, then plays a home crossover Friday of Cutoff Weekend against Hillsborough in the “Carty Bowl.”

  • National Gold – Old Bridge: Ditto here for the Knights, who are 3-0, with Piscataway behind them at 2-1, but Old Bridge beat the Chiefs 27-26 three weeks ago, erasing a 26-0 halftime deficit with four unanswered touchdowns – two on the ground, two through the air – by Chase Rizzo. The Knights (6-1) have won six straight since an eight-point loss to Shawnee in the Battle at the Beach down in Ocean City in Week Zero, and have now won eleven straight contests against Big Central competition, the longest active streak in the league. They play their final division game of the season Friday night at Lombardi Field against East Brunswick before heading up to Ridge on Friday night of Cutoff Weekend.
  • National Silver – Sayreville: The Bombers also are 3-0 in the division, with St. Thomas Aquinas behind them at 2-1, and Sayreville owns the tiebreaker via a 37-21 win over the Trojans three weeks ago. Their only two losses have come in crossovers, 2-17 to Ridge and 14-12 at Old Bridge two weeks ago, but they bounced back with a 23-16 win at Somerville back on Friday in their third straight road game. They will close divisional play this Friday with their fourth straight trip, this time to North Brunswick, before finishing up at home against Piscataway, Friday night of Cutoff Weekend, in a game you can hear live on Central Jersey Sports Radio.
  • Patriot Gold – Hillside: The Comets swept the division, going 4-0 with wins over Delaware Valley, North Plainfield, Voorhees and New Brunswick, their most recent coming Saturday against the Canucks, 26-0, at Conant Street Park. In those four, they scored an average of 31.5 points per game and allowed a total of just ten, with two shutouts, also blanking New Brunswick. In fact, in their six wins this season, they’ve allowed just 17 points, but their lone BCC loss was a 20-19 home defeat at the hands of Bernards last week. Hillside closes with two road crossovers this week at next, first at Manville, then at Cranford.
  • United Silver – Bernards: In a small, four-team division, the Mountaineers are 2-0, with wins over the two teams immediately behind them at 1-1, South Plainfield and Governor Livingston. With those tiebreakers in hand, Bernards is an outright division champ for the fifth straight year. They shared the Division 2A title in a three-way tie with Delaware Valley and Hillside in 2021, and did the same in the COVID-shortened 2020 season with Hillside and Governor Livingston.

Still to be decided…

That leaves four divisions whose champions are yet to be determined, and will be decided this week. Here’s a closer look at the potential scenarios, with one potential three-way tie.

  • American Silver: This will be decided Friday night at Maloney Stadium in Phillipsburg, where the likely well-rested Stateliners – coming off a bye – will host Bridgewater-Raritan in a game you can hear live on Central Jersey Sports Radio this Friday night. But it could get complicated. The Panthers are 2-0 in the four-team division, with just three division games, while Phillipsburg is 1-1. Should Bridgewater-Raritan win, they’d be 3-0 and claim the title outright. If the Stateliners win, both would be 2-1, with Phillipsburg claiming the title on a tiebreaker with one exception. If Ridge wins at Hillsborough Friday – and the Red Devils should be a heavy favorite against the Raiders – there would be a three-way tie. Ridge will have split with Bridgewater and Phillipsburg, Bridgewater would have beaten Ridge but lost to P’burg, and the ‘Liners would have beaten Bridgewater, but lost to Ridge; that defeat came on the final play of their October 2 game at Lee Field.
  • Freedom Gold: This one is a lot simpler. With five division games, to play, and four in the books, it comes down to Highland Park (7-0) and Dayton (5-2) this Friday night in Springfield. The Owls have pitched five shutouts this season – blanking New Brunswick, Middlesex, JP Stevens, South River, and Brearley – while allowing 13 points all season, with just six allowed by the defense; the other seven came via an interception return for a touchdown two weeks ago at Bound Brook. Roselle Park is the only offense to score on them. Dayton’s only two losses have come out of the division, at Governor Livingston in Week Zero and at home to New Providence two weeks ago.
  • Patriot Silver: The resurgent Panthers are 6-1, 4-0 in the division, and will be going for their seventh win this Friday when A.L. Johnson comes to Waters Stadium in the Bay City Friday night; a win would give them their most victories in a season since 1967. But more importantly, the division title is on the line. Both are 4-0 in the division, with wins over Roselle, Spotswood, Governor Livingston and Metuchen, so this one is for all the marbles.
  • United Gold: Undefeated Cranford is 2-0 in this small division, with Summit and Carteret both 1-1. But the Cougars already have beaten Summit – shutting out the Hilltoppers 29-0 on September 18 – so Summit can’t lay claim to the division title if the Cougars (6-0) drop their first game of the year this weekend when they visit The Pit to take on the Ramblers. But if they do, Carteret would get the title, as both would be 2-1 in the United Gold, with the Ramblers owning the tiebreaker.
by Mike Pavlichko

Highland Park’s amazing season continues with big shutout of Brearley, 35-0

Coming into Friday night’s penultimate regular season home game of the 2026 season, the Highland Park football team was staring down the barrel of clearly its toughest two-game stretch of the year: a home game against 5-1 Brearley, and a road game at Dayton, which is 4-2 heading into Saturday’s tilt at South River.

As for the first test, the Owls passed with flying colors.

They scored all kinds of ways, and the defense was in the same lock-down mode it’s been all season, as Highland Park came up with a 35-0 victory over the Bears to remain undefeated (7-0), potentially setting up a game for the division title next week in Union County.

That defense has allowed six points all season. The only other seven points they surrendered all year came on offense, on an interception for a touchdown.

Marcus Smith scored twice, on 12- and two-yard touchdown runs, rushing for 62 yards on nine carries while throwing for 59. Jacob Quiros scored on a ten-yard touchdown run and a fumble recovery in the end zone. And A.J. Lee had a 25-yard pick-six in the third quarter.

But perhaps most impressively, against a team that had been scoring 31 points per game – and 41 a game in their last three – the Owls shut them out completely. In fact, their defense outscored the Bears 7-0, thanks to Lee’s interception for a touchdown.

Highland Park is now 4-0 in the Freedom Gold, with Dayton 3-0, but still with South River on the schedule Saturday. Should they Bulldogs win that game, it’ll be down to next week’s matchup in Springfield to determine the Freedom Gold champion.

Brearley falls to 5-2 with the loss, 2-2 in the Freedom Gold, with losses to Highland Park and Dayton.

Click below to hear Highland park head coach Shawn Harrison talk about the Brearley win with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko:

by Mike Pavlichko

When was the last time?  This question has sent us down more than a few rabbit holes for teams like Highland Park, Elizabeth, Perth Amboy

You might be sick of hearing about some of the Big Central Conference teams that have been doing particularly well this year, after years (for some of them) of not doing so well.

But we’re not. 

While it’s always fun to follow the powerhouses like Phillipsburg, Piscataway, or Sayreville – football programs that are more often than not in contention for state titles – it’s always good to see some new blood.

Highland Park hasn’t had a season like this in ages.  Perth Amboy even longer.  Elizabeth has seen success a little more recently, and more consistently, but their story right now is that they are in another stratosphere completely than they have been since their last title.

All this has left us having to dig deeper, deeper and still deeper into not only our records, but also internet archives.

It’s easy to find team results over the last decade and a half; NJ.com has team results back to 2010, though details diminish as you work your way to the earlier years. MaxPreps has team results back to 2004, but some game results occasionally are missing.

And the Dr. Roger Saylor Collection at the Penn State Libraries has results from 2010 going back to the dawn of high school football in New Jersey – yes, even into the 1800s! – but they are chronological by year, and not within a given season.  We can tell, for example, how many .500 seasons a team had in a row, but not if they started the season 5-0, or so play alternated between wins and losses all year.

So, we’ve had to dig deep this year, perhaps more than in any other.

Elizabeth (5-0):

This was the easiest one, as the Minutemen always are competitive, and their last state title came not too long ago. The last time they were 5-0 was in 2014, back when John Quinn – who won two state titles at New Brunswick – was the head coach. Elizabeth beat Watchung Hills, Hunterdon Central, Franklin, Union and Bridgewater-Raritan, but then dropped back-to-back games against Phillipsburg (19-6) and Hillsborough (31-28), both at home. They won their last two regular season games against Plainfield and Linden, then beat Barringer and Piscataway at home in the North 2, Group 5 state tournament, before falling to Linden, 27-20, in the final at Met Life Stadium.

Ironically, they have Linden (2-2) on the road this week, as they look to 6-0. And when was the last time that happened?

It was 2012, and we’re not going to have to go any further back for the “last time” after this. That’s because the Minutemen went 11-0 that season and won the North 2, Group 5 title, as future Temple standout P.J. Walker engineered a last-minute scoring drive to beat Piscataway, 37-33, up at Kean University in Union.

Technically, they were 11-0-1, as that was the year Superstorm Sandy hit New Jersey and wiped out a full weekend of action, which left their game with Plainfield deemed a “tie” for power points purposes. However, most – including us – don’t consider that a tie in the record since it was awarded, rather than played on the field.

Here are the 2012 schedule and results for Elizabeth:

  • Westfield: 45-6 W
  • Union: 42-7 W
  • at Hunterdon Central: 24-17 W
  • Hillsborough: 41-7 W
  • Franklin: 49-13 W
  • at Bridgewater-Raritan: 39-0 W
  • at Linden: 42-0 W
  • Phillipsburg: 54-26 W
  • Plainfield: declared tie for power points purposes
  • N2G5 1st Round – Edison: 41-18 W
  • N2G5 Semifinals – Franklin: 24-7 W
  • N2G5 Finals (at Kean Univ.) – Piscataway: 37-33 W

Highland Park (5-0):

We have a ways to go before we have to check the Owls again, even if they keep winning. That’s because they last time they started a season 5-0, they won their first seven games of 2007. Under Rich McGlynn, Highland Park didn’t lose that season until a late-October non-conference game against Robbinsville, then dropped another one to Brearley on Cutoff Weekend, the week before the playoffs.

While they won their first-round game at Freehold Township, 20-17, they lost at Keansburg in the Central Jersey Group 1 semifinals, 53-30, finishing the season at 8-3.

They actually had a better overall season two years later, in 2009. That year, the Owls went 8-4, but they split their first two games. They wound up reaching the Central Jersey Group 1 title game, where they lost 44-6 to Asbury Park – coached at that time by Don Sofilkanich, who had previously been on John Quinn’s staff for his two titles at New Brunswick – at Kean University in Union.

Here are the 2007 schedule and results for Highland Park:

  • at Dayton: 40-13 W
  • at Cardinal McCarrick: 35-21 W
  • Roselle Park: 27-7 W
  • Metuchen: 27-0 W
  • Dunellen: 21-6 W
  • at Middlesex: 25-14 W
  • at Pennington: 28-7 W
  • Robbinsville: 19-12 L
  • Brearley: 20-0 L
  • CJ1 First Round – at Freehold Twp.: 20-17 W
  • CJ1 Semifinals – at Keansburg: 53-30 W

Perth Amboy (4-1):

The Panthers aren’t undefeated, but they have been having one of their best seasons in ages. Last week, we knew if Amboy went to 4-1, it would have been a while since the last time. Our research got to 2004, and we held off to see how they would do this week.

Turns out they got there, winning their second straight road game, beating Metuchen 40-0. The Panthers have allowed just 13 points in the last three games: six against Roselle, seven against Spotswood, and a whitewash against the Bulldogs.

There haven’t been a lot of winning seasons in Perth Amboy’s recent history, so we had to dig deep, but not every year. In 1998, for example, they were 5-5, but started 2-1 before taking another loss. We found 1995 as the last time they started a season 4-1, but they would lose their next game, win another, then drop their last two and finished 5-4, without a trip to the playoffs, which were only four-team brackets at the time. (The eight-team field didn’t get introduced until 1998, a push championed by none other than CJSR analyst Marcus Borden, who was the coach at East Brunswick at the time.)

There were only four other possible seasons in the playoff era we could look at:

  • 1989: Amboy went 6-3, but was just 2-3 through their first five games, before winning their final four contests.
  • 1987: In another 6-3 season, the Panthers got off to a 3-0 start, but lost their next two games to go 3-2 through their first five.
  • 1985: Going 5-4, the Panthers began the year at 2-1, but lost their next two to go 2-3 through their first five.
  • 1979: In another 5-4 campaign, Amboy started 2-3 through their first five.

So, we dug a little further, and found a four-year stretch where the Panthers had done a lot of winning. That was the Brian Taylor era, where Perth Amboy Amboy went 27-5-4 over four seasons from 1964-1967, including an 8-0-1 campaign in 1965 where they didn’t win a state championship. But did secure their first undefeated season since going 8-0 in 1933. (They weren’t state champs that year either, but won the next year, in 1934, going 6-0-1.)

But we did find that the Panthers started 1967 with a 4-1 record, before bouncing back and not losing another game the rest of the year. So that would be the last time they went 6-1, going 6-1-1 before they beat Carteret at The Pit in their Thanksgiving Day game, played on the Saturday after due to bad weather on Turkey Day.

Here are the 1967 schedule and results for Perth Amboy:

  • Trenton: 37-6 W
  • at Sayreville: 25-13 W
  • Princeton: 21-0 W
  • Woodbridge: 28-13 W
  • at East Brunswick: 18-13 L
  • Madison Twp. (Old Bridge): 28-7 W
  • at New Brunswick: 26-14 W
  • South River: 14-14 T
  • at Carteret: 26-8 W

Meanwhile, Union (4-1) and Hillside (5-0) are having some big turnaround years, but they’ve also had some highly successful campaigns in recent seasons.

The last time the Farmers had a five-win season was in 2023, when they went 5-6, but the last time they started 5-1 was in 2021, a season that ended with tremendous disappointment. Union put together an 8-1 regular season, led by star Davison Igbinosun, and were 9-1 after a first round playoff win, heading into a sectional semifinal matchup with Paterson Eastside. But eight hours before kickoff, due to four positive COVID tests among team members, the district cancelled the game, effectively ending the season. They would officially finish 9-2 on the year.

The Comets, meanwhile, went all the way in 2019, going 12-0 under Barris Grant – ironically, now at Union. Hillside put together an 8-0 regular season, then won the South Jersey Group 2 title over West Deptford, 14-6. (We know, Hillside isn’t in South Jersey – go ask the NJSIAA why.) Then, they won the South Jersey Group 2 Regional Championship, defeating Central Jersey Group 2 champ (We know, we know, it makes no sense!) Cedar Creek, 25-3, at Rutgers.

by Mike Pavlichko

Highland Park shuts out first three opponents; it’s been a while since that’s happened for Owls

The Highland Park football team looks very good in 2026.

After snapping a 51-game losing streak – the longest active in New Jersey at the time – in their 2023 finale with a last-minute add on game at Point Pleasant Beach, the Owls won six games in 2024, just four last year, but this year are 3-0 to start the season for the second time in three years.

And there should be some more wins on the schedule, too, considering the way they are playing: they have shutout their first three opponents, outscoring New Brunswick, Metuchen and JP Stevens by a combined total of 99-0.

So that brings us to the question: When was the last time that happened?

We pored through years of records. It hasn’t happened recently. So we dove back into the 1980s, then the 1970s, and then into the 1960s.

In 1964, Highland Park was led by star quarterback Rich Policastro, the younger brother of Joe Policastro, who was the Big Man On Campus in in the mid- and late 1950s with the Owls. Rich also went on to star at Rutgers, after transferring in from VMI.

In his first season on the banks, Policastro set six passing records. Then, in 1969, Rich Policastro was chosen first team All-East, throwing 14 touchdown passes that year, and delivering the Knights a 29-0 victory over Princeton in the nationally-televised Centennial Game, celebrating the 100th anniversary of football. He also threw a record five touchdown strikes in a game against Colgate that year. (He now is tied for third on that list with Mike McMahon (Villanova, 2000) and two separate games with Gary Nova (Arkansas 2012, Fresno State 2013), while the top two spots are owned by Mike Teel (six against Pittsburgh, and seven against Louisville in 2008).

A year earlier, in his first season after transferring from VMI, Policastro established six passing marks – 15 touchdown passes, 994 yards, four TD passes in a game, 17 completions and 30 pass attempts in a game, and 309 yards in a game. In 1969, the Highland Park native threw a record five TD passes against Colgate.

But back to the three shutouts.

While there were numerous instances of back-to-back shutouts, the first time we found at least three in a row came in 1964, and amazingly they not only had three, nor four, nor five, but seven shutouts that year, all in a row. The run started after a season-opening non-shutout win, 19-14, over South Plainfield.

  • October 3: South River, 13-0
  • October 10: North Hunterdon, 27-0
  • October 17: Piscataway, 40-0
  • October 24: Carteret, 20-0
  • October 30: Sayreville, 27-0
  • November 7: St. Peter’s, 39-0
  • November 14: Clifford Scott, 33-0

The Owls finished 9-0 in 1964, capping the season with an 18-4 win on Thanksgiving over arch-rival Metuchen, and they were Central Jersey Group 2 champions, ten years before New Jersey would usher in the playoff era in 1974.

by Mike Pavlichko

Highland Park routs JP Stevens, 43-0, for Owls second 3-0 start in three seasons

There were two things certain coming into Thursday night’s game in North Edison between Highland Park and JP Stevens.

First, both teams were off to 2-0 starts in the same season for the first time since 2002. Second, one of those teams would remain undefeated at 3-0.

The Owls (3-0) left no doubt it would be them almost right from the get-go, as senior quarterback Marcus Smith rushed for a 48-yard touchdown after a fake handoff for the first score of the game.

And from there, it was all Owls. They would score twice more in the opening quarter – on a 46-yard touchdown run by Ziquan Grier and a ten-yard run by Jacob Quiros to take a 20-0 lead – then add two more scores in the second period, courtesy of a 40-yard pick-six from Grier, and a 23-yard touchdown pass from Smith to A.J. Lee, making it 36-0 at the break.

That kicked off a running clock in the second half, where Bryce Morales scored on a 13-yard touchdown run with 1:26 left in the third to make it 43-6.

JP Stevens fell to 2-1 with the loss, after starting the season 2-0 for the first time since 2003, when Frank Zarro was head coach.

For Highland Park, it’s their second 3-0 start in the last three seasons. The year after snapping a 54-game losing streak, the Owls started 3-0 in 2024 – with a four-game win streak stretching back to the last game of 2023 – and finished 6-3.

They’ll look to extend their current streak to four when they visit Roselle Park next Friday night.

Click below for postgame reaction from Marcus Borden with Highland Park head coach Shawn Harrison and senior QB/LB Marcus Smith, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen!

by Mike Pavlichko

INSTANT REPLAY:  Highland Park 29, New Brunswick 0

Highland Park QB Marcus Smith ran for two touchdowns, while going 8-of-97 passing for 97 yards, and the Owls defense registered its first shutout in 15 years with a 29-0 season-opening win over visiting New Brunswick.

Logo for Bellamy & Son Paving, promoting the Big Central Game of the Week, featuring bold text in red and yellow colors.

Click below to listen to Alec Crouthamel and Chris Tsakonas call all the play-by-play live from Jay Dakelman Field in Highland Park, NJ, on August 28, 2026:

1st Half
2nd Half

by Chris Tsakonas

Highland Park kicks off 2026 with 29-0 win over New Brunswick, first whitewash in 15 years

Highland Park opened the 2026 season in emphatic fashion as the Owls defeated New Brunswick 29-0 at Joseph Policastro Stadium Friday night.

In the process, Highland Park picked up its first shutout win in 15 years, when they won 37-0 at now-shuttered Cardinal McCarrick on Halloween 2011.

Highland Park totaled 240 yards of offense, with 143 of those yards coming on the ground. Jacob Quiros led the way with 11 carries for 94 yards and a touchdown. Quarterback Marcus Smith completed eight of nine passes for 97 yards through the air and had eight carries and 38 yards for two touchdowns on the ground.

Highland Park received the opening kickoff in this game, and the offense wasted no time setting the tone. Led by a rushing attack of Jacob Quiros and quarterback Marcus Smith, the Owls scored first on an eight-play, 65-yard drive that was capped off by a 14-yard touchdown run from Smith with 6:42 to play in the first quarter.

After forcing a three-and-out on the Zebras’ opening drive, Highland Park turned the ensuing punt into a safety. Three tacklers teamed up to make it an 8-0 Owl lead with 4:07 to go in the opening quarter.

Highland Park caught another break when the ensuing kickoff was muffed, and the Owls recovered to immediately go back on offense. Highland Park made it count with a seven-play, 65-yard drive that ended in a seven-yard touchdown run from Ziquan Grier with three seconds left in the first quarter.

New Brunswick finally put a promising drive together, going 60 yards in seven plays to set up a 4th and 12 from the Owls’ 11-yard line. The pass from Jo Jo Morfa was broken up to end the first half.

The Zebras got the ball back to start the second half, and traded a pair of empty possessions before another promising scoring drive ended in an interception.

Highland Park got the ball back on their own 15 with 3:19 to play in the third quarter, and methodically led the ball down the field in an eight-play, 85-yard scoring drive that ended with a 1-yard touchdown run on a quarterback sneak from Marcus Smith.

New Brunswick went three-and-out twice in the fourth quarter, with Highland Park getting the ball back with 1:25 to play. The Owls kneeled the game out to seal the first win of 2026.

Offensively, the Zebras finished with 100 total yards of offense. Quarterback Jo Jo Morfa completed six of 10 for 64 yards, while Arisnel Mota-Sanchez had eight carries for 32 yards on the ground.

Click below to hear postgame reaction with Highland Park seniors Marcus Smith and Jacob Quiros, and junior Du’an Fleming, with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Alec Crouthamel, presented by the Sportsplex at Metuchen:

by Mike Pavlichko

Storms, postponements turn Friday night on CJSR into a rare doubleheader!

We’re nothing at Central Jersey Sports Radio if not outside-the-box thinkers. And looking at the forecast, we had planned all week for the eventuality that finally came once Woodbridge announced it was moving the No. 8 Barrons’ opening game against No. 6 Bridgewater-Raritan to Friday night.

The move meant our originally-planned Thursday night Bellamy & Son Paving Big Central Game of the Week would conflict with our Friday night Game of the Week, New Brunswick at Highland Park.

Wait a minute, why not air them both?

So, that’s what we’re doing!

It’ll be our first simultaneous football broadcast in Big Central history, although the “test run” came in baseball season, although it wasn’t due to weather. We were set to broadcast St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Mary-Rutherford in the Non-Public North B final, but the two agreed to move the game back because the Trojans had graduation planned for the same day. That ran into a conflict with our planned broadcast of the North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 final between Ridge and Watchung Hills.

In the end, we did both.

But that also means one of the games will have a different Listen Live link for tonight’s games.

So, here are the links to Friday’s first-ever high school football double-broadcast on Central Jersey Sports Radio!

No. 8 Bridgewater-Raritan at No. 6 Woodbridge
Pregame 5:45, Kickoff 6 pm at Nicholas A. Priscoe Stadium
Mike Pavlichko and Justin Sontupe
Click here to listen!

New Brunswick at Highland Park
Pregame 6:35, Kickoff 7 pm at Jay Dakelman Field
Alec Crouthamel and Chris Tsakonas
Click here to listen!