Tag: Hillside

by Mike Pavlichko

Elizabeth finishes regular season at No. 1, but three upsets juggle the rest in Week 9 Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten

It’s all the same teams – and still Elizabeth as No. 1, the only unbeaten team remaining in the Big Central Conference – but a trio of upsets shuffled much of the rest of the Week Nine Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten, the final one before the end of the season.

From the top, Elizabeth (8-0) held on to the top spot after a 29-14 come-from-behind home win over Somerville Friday night at Williams Field. The Minutemen got the overall top-seed in the North 5 supersection, and will be the No. 1 seed in North Jersey, Section 2, hosting eight-seed Linden Friday night. Elizabeth beat the Tigers 39-18 when they met on October 12th.

At No. 2 is Old Bridge (8-1), which came up with a huge 28-6 win at previous No. 3 Ridge Friday night. The Red Devils fall to four this week as a result, and will start the playoffs on the road as the five-seed in North 1, Group 4, traveling to fourth-seed Middletown South this Friday night. The Knights are the top-seed in Central Jersey Group 1, and will host eight-seed Lenape Friday night at Lombardi Field.

In fourth, it’s Phillipsburg (6-2), which pounded Hunterdon Central, 41-13, Friday night. This week, they’ll be back home at Maloney Stadium as the third-seed in North 2, Group 5, where they will host six-seed Ridgewood Friday evening at 7.

At No. 5 is Sayreville (7-2), which scored 16 unanswered points to erase a 7-0 first-half deficit and beat then-No. 4 Piscataway, 16-7 Friday night in a game heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio. The Bombers got a three seed in Central Jersey Group 5, and will host sixth-seed Vineland Friday night at 7. Piscataway (7-2) drops to seventh, but still got a first-round home game as the three-seed in North 2, Group 5, and will host sixth-seed Bayonne Saturday at noon, in a game you can also hear live on CJSR.

A sign featuring the text 'BELLAMY & SON PAVING' in bold red and yellow letters, highlighting residential and commercial paving services.

In between the Bombers and Chiefs, Bridgewater-Raritan (7-2) checks in at No. 6. The Panthers were 28-7 home winners over Watchung Hills Friday, and the defending North 2, Group 5 champs got a five seed in the section this year. They will visit fourth-seed Passaic Tech Friday night.

Moving up two spots to No. 8 is Hillside (8-1), which spoiled Cranford‘s perfect season (7-1) with a 14-3 road win last week over the then-No. 7 Cougars. The Comets earned a six-seed in North 1, Group 2 and will visit third-seed Rutherford for a 6 pm kickoff Fridya, while Cranford is a two-seed in North 1, Group 3, and will host seven-seed Matawan Friday night at 7:00.

At No. 10, down one spot to make room for Hillside, is Rahway (8-1), which beat Edison 22-7 Friday night at Madden Field. They’ll be back there this Friday as the two-seed in North 2, Group 4, taking on seven-seed Mount Olive at 7 pm.

Below is the complete 2026 Week Nine Bellamy & Son Paving High School Football Top Ten. These are the last rankings before the end of the season.

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

Marcus Borden’s Camp Caravan 2026: Elizabeth, Hillside scrimmage with Toms River North

It’s Week Two of high school football preseason camp in New Jersey, where teams start taking part in scrimmages, and Central Jersey Sports Radio analyst Marcus Borden takes a trip to Elizabeth to watch the Minutemen in action with Hillside and Toms River North.

Watch Borden’s full coverage below of Monday’s three-team scrimmage, featuring interviews with head coaches and key players.

Click below to watch Marcus Borden’s Camp Caravan coverage of Elizabeth with head coach Eugene Kline and seniors Arique Fleming (QB/LB), Qua’Yon Williams (WR/DB/Athl.), Nahjae Smith (WR/DB), and Jaden Mondesir (OT/DT)!

Click below to watch Marcus Borden’s Camp Caravan coverage of Hillside with head coach Isa Abdul-Quddus and seniors Travis Miles (WR/FS), Zahir Granberry (WR/FS), Jabir Parker (TE/LB) and Kamsi Igboanugo (OT/DT)!

by Mike Pavlichko

Early look at Big Central Football 2026: With a new look, new teams, Patriot Gold could be wide open

The Big Central Conference Patriot Gold Division in 2026 is like New Year’s Day: Out with the old, in with the new. Except a little bit will carry over, too.

This is one of those divisions that got a major revamp, moving down the likes of Hillside, New Brunswick and North Plainfield from their divisions, and moving division champ Bernards out for a tougher schedule. Voorhees and Delaware Valley remain, and have some good crossover to help their playoff hopes.

Here are the preliminary schedules for the Patriot Gold Division teams – in order of 2025 finish – compiled from the official league schedule and other online sources to the best of our knowledge as of the date of publication, along with a few notes on each squad. Division games are starred.

Voorhees Vikings (8-2, 2-1, 2nd place Patriot Gold)
Head Coach: Matt Evancho, 1st season

  • Week 0: Warren Hills
  • Week 1: at New Providence
  • Week 2: North Plainfield*
  • Week 3: Hillside*
  • Week 4: at East Brunswick
  • Week 5: Delaware Valley*
  • Week 6: at Bernards
  • Week 7: New Brunswick*
  • Week 8: at North Hunterdon

Giving Voorhees New Providence and Bernards as crossovers should boost the Vikings in their playoff push. But the bigger challenge will be replacing a slew of offensive talent, including Bellamy & Son Paving Player of the Week scholarship winner Matteo Tramutola, whose 1,338 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns were the vast majority of the ground game last year. Not only has he graduated, but so has quarterback Sam Meekings (1,560 yards passing, 19 TDs) and top receiver Rylan Benitez (775 yards, 11 TDs) and No. 2 wideout Logan Direny (408 yards, 4 TDs). The defense should fare a little better in terms of losses. Shawn Turino had 2 1/2 sacks last year as a junior – along with a pair of fumble recoveries – while sophomore Keith Richard added another two sacks.

Delaware Valley Terriers (6-4, 1-2, 3rd place Patriot Gold)
Head Coach: Ben Ibach, 4th season (17-11)

  • Week 0: North Hunterdon
  • Week 1: Johnson
  • Week 2: at Hillside*
  • Week 3: Warren Hills
  • Week 4: Bernards
  • Week 5: at Voorhees*
  • Week 6: at New Brunswick*
  • Week 7: North Plainfield*
  • Week 8: at Belvidere

Again, keeping Bernards is a boost here for the Terriers, who had an up-and-down 6-4 season a year ago. They won their first two of the year, then alternated between wins and losses the rest of the way out. Senior QB Kelton Ibach, the head coach’s son, graduates after a 1,674-yard passing season, where he connected for 20 touchdowns against just three interceptions. But two runningbacks – junior Ben Culberson (331 yards, 8 TDs) and sophomore Gabe Miller (139 yards, 2 TD) – return, along with tight end and top receiver Brayden Picardo-Leask (439 yards, 5 TD). The defense should return a good deal as well, including junior linebackers Evan Strochak (2 sacks, 4 1/2 TFLs), Culberson (3 sacks, 6 TFLs, 1 INT), Marcus Gary (2 sacks, 3 TFLs, team-high 80 tackles) and Miller (1 sack, 2 1/2 TFLs, 2 forced fumbles, 1 recovered). They also return their special teams skill players, including kicker/punter/returner Brayden Costello, and the younger sophomore returner Brooks Brunner.

Hillside (3-6, 2-2, 3rd place in United Gold)
Head Coach: Isa Abdul-Quddus, 3rd season (8-11)

  • Week 0: at Columbia
  • Week 1: Roselle
  • Week 2: Delaware Valley*
  • Week 3: at Voorhees*
  • Week 4: at New Brunswick*
  • Week 5: Bernards
  • Week 6: North Plainfield*
  • Week 7: at Manville
  • Week 9: at Cranford

After a 5-5 debut season for head coach Abdul-Qudddus, the Comets dropped out of the playoff picture in 2026, and the skipper will have some work to do, with rising junior Muwahid Williams at least a candidate to start at QB, after throwing 6-of-15 for 96 yards and a touchdown in limited action last season behind the now-graduated Justin Ashford (889 yards, 7 TDs). No. 1 target Kamari Robinson (559 yards, 6 TD) also is gone, but top runningback Travis Miles (342 yards, 5 TDs) should return for his senior year. And while the defense also graduates a ton, perhaps their most disruptive member should be back; junior Kamsi Igboanugo had five sacks and 15 TFLs last season. Xavier DaSilva (13-16 on PATs, 2-5 on FGs) also should return for his junior season.

North Plainfield (3-6, 1-3, 4th place in United Silver)
Head Coach: Steven Brown, 1st season

  • Week 0: Orange
  • Week 1: South Plainfield
  • Week 2: at Voorhees*
  • Week 3: at New Brunswick*
  • Week 4: at JFK
  • Week 5: Spotswood
  • Week 6: at Hillside*
  • Week 7: at Delaware Valley*
  • Week 8: Brearley

Steven Brown comes in as the new head coach, and one of his first tasks will be to find a quarterback. Four played last year, including the now-graduated senior Jordan Burnett, who threw for 244 yards. Three juniors also saw snaps – including Evan Collazo, Alex Kruszczynski and Iam Lameira, a msulti-sport athlete who was 5.2 with a 2.62 ERA on the Cancuck baseball team this year. Top rusher Jordan Burnett (773 yards, 10 TD) and No. 2 Julius King (394 yards, 4 TD) also have graduated, but three sophomore receivers could make impacts as juniors this year. Defensively, junior DL Jeremiah Dorlus was the most disruptive player in 2025, with three sacks, while sophomore defensive back Anthony Costello had three picks, including one for a touchdown.

New Brunswick Zebras (1-9, 0-4, 5th place in United Silver)
Head Coach: Geoffrey Chrisman

  • Week 0: at Highland Park
  • Week 1: at Metuchen
  • Week 2: at Linden
  • Week 3: North Plainfield*
  • Week 4: Hillside*
  • Week 5: at Perth Amboy
  • Week 6: Delaware Valley*
  • Week 7: at Voorhees
  • Week 8: Scotch Plains-Fanwood

Despite a long losing streak – and few points scored – the Zebras persevered and finally picked up a win in Game 10 of the 2026 season, beating West Windsor-Plainsboro 36-0 in their season finale on October 29th. Like JP Stevens and Highland Park before them, all it takes is one to get the ball rolling, and New Brunswick has to hope that will be the case this year. After all, they don’t just start the season undefeated like everyone else, but there are very few teams who can say they ended their season with a win. Of course, there will be some graduation losses to deal with, but the charismatic Chrisman will just have to keep up his recruitment of the hallways to maintain his efforts to right the ship.

by Mike Pavlichko

Schwark, no-huddle attack puts Hillside on its heels, gives Summit 35-20 win over Comets

The no-huddle offense is tough to defend, and on a mid-September day with temperatures nearing 80, both conspire to make it difficult for a defense to catch it’s breath.

So, when Summit got the ball to start the game after Hillside won the toss and deferred Saturday afternoon at Investors Bank Field at Tatlock Park, the Hilltoppers went right for the jugular.

And halfway through the opening quarter, they had a 14-0 lead.

First, it was a nine-play, 67-yard drive capped by a 16-yard touchdown pass from QB Alex Schwark to Charlie Garvey.  And after a three-and-out stop by the defense, a 32-yard strike to Will Holmes.

Matt McKeeevr added a one-yard run midway through the second, and a 30-yard pass to Connor Gawronski made it 27-0, but Hillside answered on the ensuing kickoff when Kamari Robinson fielded it at the eleven and took it 89 yards to the house.

The Comets made some halftime adjustments and put together some good drives in the second half.  They got a 26-yard touchdown catch from Travis Miles in the third, and another eight-yard catch from him with 4:19 to go, but McKeever’s second TD run, which came with 1:49 to go in the third and helped keep Hillside at bay.

Kamari Robinson finished with 96 yards on 16 carries.  Miles had three catches for 54 yards, two of them going for touchdowns.

Schwark – a converted running back playing QB – ran the offense well.  In Summit’s 3-0 start, he’s rushed for over 100 yards in all three.  Saturday, he unofficially went for 132 on a workman-like 22 carries, and was 7-of-16 passing for 133 yards and three touchdowns.

Click below for postgame reaction from Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen:

Summit QB Alex Schwark and RB Matt McKeever
Summit Head Coach Kevin Kostibos
Logo for Sportsplex at Metuchen featuring various sports icons and promotional text to follow on Instagram.
by Mike Pavlichko

Gameday with Marcus Borden: Week 1

Opening Week is behind us, it’s Week One where everyone gets into the act in high school football, and it’s time to talk about it with Marcus Borden!

Mike and Marcus look back at the week gone by, including a big win for Old Bridge down at the Battle of the Beach over Cedar Creek, Arique Fleming’s masterful performance for Elizabeth in a rivalry game win over Linden, and then peek ahead to this week’s games, including those Coach Borden will see: Somerville at Cranford on Friday night, and Bernards at Hillside on Saturday.

Also on the show, we discuss other key games in the BCC, Montgomery adding longtime founding coach Zoran Milich’s name to Cougar Stadium, and our new feature, the “Speedster of the Week” presented by Higgins Speed Lab, with the Week 0 winner being Summit’s Alex Schwark.

Click below to listen to the Week One edition of “Gameday with Marcus Borden”:

by Mike Pavlichko

2025 Big Central Preview: United Gold Division

Here’s how challenging the Big Central Conference’s United Gold Division was in 2024:

Cranford finished with the best overall record at 7-3. Summit beat them in the regular season and swept four games to win the division, but the Cougars got them back in the opening round of the playoffs.

Meanwhile, Hillside – which went 5-5 – narrowly beat Carteret 7-0, while Cranford edged them by ten.

Scotch Plains-Fanwood should be improved in its second-year under head coach Shawn Johnson, who’s knowledgeable about his players from his years coaching youth football, and the Comets have a new coach, too, in six-year NFL veteran Isa Abdul-Kuddus.

It all should make for an interesting 2025 in the United Gold.

Click below to hear our preview of the United Gold Division from Big Central Conference Media Day:

by Mike Pavlichko

Early look at Big Central Football 2025: Plenty of room to grow in United Gold Division for defending champ Summit and others in one of the best top-to-bottom divisions

The 2024 football season for the Big Central’s United Gold Division was on overall solid good one.

While the league had a few winless or one- or two-win teams, nobody won fewer than three games in the United Gold – with Scotch Plains-Fanwood going 3-7 – while the rest had relatively solid or better campaigns. As a whole, the division was 26-25, for a .510 win percentage, one of just five out of the 12 BCC groupings to win more games than they lost, in total.

While Summit won the United Gold, going 4-0 against the Raiders, Carteret, Hillside and Cranford, they finished 5-4, while the Cougars had he best overall record at 7-3. Hillside went 5-5, and one more win would have gotten the Ramblers to .500 on the year.

And there should be some good parity again in 2025.

Here are the preliminary schedules for the United Gold Division teams – in alphabetical order – compiled from the official league schedule and other online sources to the best of our knowledge. Please note game dates and times may be changed without notice as the season approaches. Division games marked with an asterisk (*).

Carteret Ramblers (4-6, 1-3, 4th place in ’24)
Head Coach: Kevin Freeman (18-13, 4th season)

  • Week 0: bye
  • Week 1: at Perth Amboy (6p)
  • Week 2: Cranford*
  • Week 3: Summit*
  • Week 4: at Scotch Plains-Fanwood*
  • Week 5: New Brunswick
  • Week 6: at Hillside* (Sat, 1p)
  • Week 7: Linden
  • Week 8: at Bernards

True to form at Carteret, the Ramblers were more of a run-first team in 2024, but they will lose talented senior Jakir Thomas and his 1,311 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns from last season. The only likely returnee at quarterback is Al-Naiquan Boseman, a sophomore who threw one pass in 2024. A few receivers should be back, though, including rising senior Jeremiah Arrington, who caught six balls last year for 134 yards. A number of underclassmen contributed on defense last season, with junior Ronelle Nimneh-Gilbert (2 sacks, 9 TFLs, 1 forced fumble/recovery) and Anthony Bilbao (2 sacks, 2 TFLs) making their marks. The Ramblers will look to start things out with a fourth straight win in their rivalry game with Perth Amboy after a Week Zero bye.

Cranford Cougars (7-3, 3-1, 2nd place in ’24)
Head Coach: Erik Rosenmeier (136-68, 21st season)

  • Week 0: Bernards
  • Week 1: at Somerville (6:30p)
  • Week 2: at Carteret*
  • Week 3: South Plainfield
  • Week 4: Summit*
  • Week 5: Rahway
  • Week 6: Scotch Plains-Fanwood*
  • Week 7: at Colonia (6p)
  • Week 8: at Hillside* (Sat, 1p)

The bad news is the Cougars’ starting QB Tyler Veltre (937 pass yards, 4 TD) and top receiver Luciano Firoenza (265 yards, 0 TD) are gone, but Cranford didn’t really throw the ball much either. And while three of their top four runningbacks are gone to graduation, Gabe Worrell – who lead the team with 805 rushing yards and ten touchdowns – is back, and he’s just a junior. But he’s a nice piece to build around, as sophomore Aidan Capizzi is the only returning QB to throw a pass. The defense will see some changes, however, after a senior-heavy unit in 2024. But let’s not forget, Cranford went 7-3 in 2024, and there’s a reason Erik Rosenmeier is the dean of Union County coaches, with only two other Big Central mentors at their current schools longer: Rich Marchesi of South River entering year 29, and Dan Higgins at Piscataway going into his 22nd season.

Hillside Comets (5-5, 2-2, 3rd place in ’24)
Head Coach: Isa-Abdul Quddus (1st season)

  • Week 0: bye
  • Week 1: Bernards (Sat, 1p)
  • Week 2: at Summit* (Sat, 1p)
  • Week 3: Scotch Plains-Fanwood (Sat, 1p)
  • Week 4: at Somerville (6:30p)
  • Week 5: at Roselle (Sat, 2p)
  • Week 6: Carteret* (Sat, 1p)
  • Week 7: at Voorhees (Sat, 1p)
  • Week 8: Cranford* (Sat, 1p)

It’s sort of a coach swap here, as Barris Grant left to take the Union coaching job, while Isa-Abdul Quddus – a former standout for the Farmers who played in the NFL – now takes the reins at Hillside. Senior Justin Ashford – who only threw three passes last year – should get the top crack at the starting QB job after the graduation of thousand-yard passer Zion Risher, who also tossed 12 touchdown passes. Top back Mitchell Jenkins rushed for 938 yards and 11 TDs as a sophomore, and with the Robinsons – Kamari (40 catches, 419 yards, 6 TDs) and Quaron (25 catches, 319 yards, 1 TD) coming off solid junior campaigns, Quddus will have a lot to work with on offense. The defense has expected returnees like DL Uyi Igiehon (1 sack, 1 TFL) and LB Ian Shillingford (1 sack, 9 TFLs) and defensive back Shakeam Gatweeod (2 forced fumbles, 2 INT, 1 blocked kick) back.

Scotch Plains-Fanwood Raiders (3-7, 0-4, 5th place in ’24)
Head Coach: Shawn Johnson (3-7, 2nd season)

  • Week 0: bye
  • Week 1: Rahway
  • Week 2: New Brunswick
  • Week 3: at Hillside* (Sat, 1p)
  • Week 4: Carteret*
  • Week 5: JFK
  • Week 6: at Cranford*
  • Week 7: at Perth Amboy
  • Week 8: at Summit (Sat, 1p)

The Raiders have struggled the last several years, and with three coaches in three years, consistency has been the issue. Austin Holman stepped down in the middle of the 2022 season, replaced by interim Bobby Swerchek, who coached the team for 2023 but left after the season to take over for Phlip McGuane at Middlesex, who left after a cancer diagnosis and just took over for Dave DeNapoli, who retired at Dunellen. Got all that?

Last year’s team never stuck together back-to-back wins, beating New Brunswick, JFK and Perth Amboy, and they haven’t beaten a team that finished with a winning record since 2021, when they upset Woodbridge, 34-33. Last year’s was a senior-laden club, other than returning junior QB Callum Fynes, who was 3-12 for 17 yards and one interception in four games. The defense was somewhat young – few juniors, but a mix of seniors and sophomores – and they should be more experienced this year, even if they went through baptism by fire in ’24.

Summit Hilltoppers (5-4, 4-0, United Gold champs in ’24)
Head Coach: Kevin Kostibos (82-38, 13th season)

  • Week 0: bye
  • Week 1: at Montgomery
  • Week 2: Hillside* (sat, 1p)
  • Week 3: at Carteret*
  • Week 4: at Cranford*
  • Week 5: Somerville (Sat, 1p)
  • Week 6: Bernards (Sat, 1p)
  • Week 7: at Woodbridge
  • Week 8: Scotch Plains-Fanwood* (Sat, 1p)

Oscar Marx is a solid receiver the Hilltoppers will lose to graduation, along with his 23 catches and six touchdowns, but many others are back on offense, including rising senior QB Cole Sabol, who was 43 yards show of a thousand last year, but more impressively, threw ten touchdowns and just one pick last season. Their top two runningbacks are expected to return in junior Gavin Schnall (472 yards, 2 TD), and senior Alex Schqark (434 yards, 7 TD), as are the next two on the list. And a good number of players return on defense, including LB Matt McKeever, who had three sacks and five TFLs last season as a sophomore, while Junior Connor Gawronski had the team’s lone INT last year. This year’s D could be even better.

by Mike Pavlichko

Hillside stays local, taps former Union standout and NFL safety Isa Abdul-Quddus to lead Comets’ football program

The coaching carousel in the Big Central Conference finally seems to have come to a halt, as Hillside has named its new head coach.

It’s Isa Abdul-Quddus, who played his high school ball at Union, college at Fordham, and spent time with three different NFL teams in a six-year career cut short by injury. His hiring was approved earlier this week by the Board of Education.

He replaces Barris Grant, who stepped down in the off season after nine years to take the head coaching job at Abdul-Quddus’ alma mater, Union, in February. Grant was 63-28 with four sectional titles (2017 through 2019) in four finals appearances (also in 2022) and a regional championship in 2019.

Abdul-Quddus played 15 or 16 games in five of his six seasons in the National Football League, spending 2011-2013 with New Orleans, the next two years with Detroit, and his final season with Miami.

He suffered a neck injury in a December 2016 game that left him with no feeling in his arm, and was placed on IR, then released by Miami in March. Just one season into a new contract, his playing days were over, but he eventually got into coaching as a high school assistant down in Florida.

Born in Elizabeth, he played for the Union Farmers, graduating in 2007, then went to Fordham. In high school, he was first-team All-Union County, and second team All-State, recording 115 tackles and two interceptions for touchdowns. He also ran track.

Abdul-Quddus takes over for Jason Scott, who was promoted to head coach after the departure of Lou Grasso, who took the Athletic Director position at Colonia High School when Ben LeSala retired. The Farmers struggled to a 2-8 record in 2024, with wins over South Brunswick and Livingston.

Click below to hear new Hillside coach Isa Abdul-Quddus talk about taking over the Comets’ program with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko:

by Mike Pavlichko

Hillside’s Barris Grant departs Comets to take over storied football program at Union

Barris Grant – who led the Hillside football program for the past nine seasons – has left to become the new head coach at Union, after the Board of Education approved his hire Tuesday night.

Grant – who also will be a physical education teacher at the high school – replaces Jason Scott, who was there just one year after Lou Grasso stepped down to become the athletic director in his hometown of Colonia. The Farmers were 2-8 last season.

Grant had a record of 67-25 with Hillside, leading the Comets to three stellar seasons from 2017 through 2019, winning sectional titles all three seasons, and a regional title in 2019. Overall, Grant’s teams made four sectional title games.

The first of those years, Hillside went 9-3 and got the seven-seed in Central Jersey Group 2, then shocked top-seed Point Pleasant Boro at Rutgers, 20-13, to win the title.

They’d come back the next year to go undefeated in the 2018 regular season. In the playoffs, they were the top-seed in Central Jersey Group 2, and beat second-seed Manasquan for the title, 36-10. They would fall to Haddonfield, 17-7, in the South 2 regional championship at MetLife Stadium.

And then came the topper, the perfect 12-0 season of 2019.

Those Comets could put up points, while locking down teams defensively. They pitched six shutouts that season, only allowing double-figures twice, averaging 35.7 points per game in the regular season. They featured senior quarterback Nahree Biggins (1,083 yards, 12 TDs), while senior runningback James Louis led a 3,000-yard team rushing attack.

Seniors Anu Okungbowa and Akugbe Omokaro led a defense that registered 34 1/2 sacks on the season.

It all led to a third seed in South Jersey Group 2, and a sectional title with a 14-10 upset at top-seed West Deptford. The Comets then went on to with the South 2 regional championship at Rutgers over South 2 sectional champ and second-seed Cedar Creek, 25-3.

The 2022 team also reached a sectional final. As the two-seed in North 1, Group 3, they fell at top-seed Old Tappan in the title game, 28-14.

Union has won 11 sectional titles as a program, the most of any Union County school, and won its most recent title the same year Hillside and Grant won theirs, in 2019.

Grasso’s squad went 12-1 that season, earning the top-seed in North 2, Group 5, winning the section by virtue of a 42-28 victory over third-seed Clifton. They would fall, however, in the North Group 5 regional championship game at MetLife Stadium, 41-37, to Ridgewood, which lost the inaugural North 5 bowl the year before to Piscataway up at the Meadowlands.

Click below to hear Barris Grant talk about taking the head football coaching job at Union, and his impact at Hillside, with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko: