On this week’s trek around “The Big Central in Two Minutes,” Mike Pavlichko looks at how strong the Big Central is in Group 5, with the potential for three of the top four seeds coming from the league. How many teams are in? On the bubble? Mike takes a quick look at it all and previews Friday night’s old GMC rivalry on the Big Central Game of the Week.
Click below to listen to the Week Six edition of “The Big Central in 2 Minutes”:
With every team in the Week 5 Central Jersey Sports Radio Top Ten winning this past weekend, the Week 6 rankings saw very little change.
In fact, the top six teams – led by Phillipsburg – remained unchanged, with the Stateliners followed by North Brunswick, Hillsborough, North Hunterdon, St. Thomas Aquinas, and Sayreville.
Westfield moved from seventh to eighth while Hillside – which was tied for 6th, fell to 8th. Ridge – tied with Watchung Hills for 9th – held, while the Warriors dropped to tenth.
Edison, which was in the preseason poll and got votes last week, rejoins the poll, tied for No. 10 with Watchung Hills. The Eagles, who started 2-0 but lost their next two, have now won three straight, beating St. Joseph-Metuchen 42-23 Friday night on the road.
Below are the complete Week 6 Central Jersey Sports Radio rankings.
There are just three weeks to go before the state playoff cutoff for public schools in New Jersey, so we at Central Jersey Sports Radio will continue to dig deeper into the numbers to look at each team’s prospects:
NORTH 3 (Click here for official standings)
West Morris (6-0) – the defending North 3 regional champ – and Old Tappan (5-0) are the top two teams in this supersection, with UPRs of 1 and 2 respectively. It’s a jumble behind them, with Cranford next up at 3-2, with a 4 UPR. Not far behind them is Hillside (4-1, 4.2 UPR) in fourth place and Sparta (3-2, 4.6 UPR) in fifth. The Comets are down a spot after suffering their first loss of the season, a defeat last Friday night at the hands of St. Thomas Aquinas, and the Cougars – defending North 2, Group 3 champs – improved to 3-2 with a 35-0 win over Rahway, leaping Hillside in the process, coming all the way up from 7th place into third.
It might be difficult for Cranford or Hillside to gain a top seed here, because the teams above them are so far ahead in both power point average and OSI. With UPRs of 1 and 2, that means West Morris is first in both categories, and Old Tappan in second. and it’s not that close. In power point average, it’s West Morris 17, Old Tappan 15.4, Hillside 14 and Cranford 12. In OSI, it’s West Morris 65.77, Old Tappan 63.02, Sparta at 56.28, Cranford at 54.2 and Hillside at 53.02. Two factors are in play here: First, there are not many places to climb in either ranking to make up the difference in UPR. Second, the gap to jump a space or two is fairly wide.
But a good consolation prize is to finish in the top four, at least earning a home field advantage guarantee through the sectional semifinals, wherever they land. Both have a good shot at that if they can keep Sparta at bay.
After that, scroll all the way down to 13th place to find Summit, which has now won two straight to get to 2-3 on the season, with a 12.6 UPR. They’re not solidly in yet, but if they can continue their resurgence, there’s a good shot they’re in the playoffs. The schedule is difficult, but it’s been that way all season. We’ve seen them in person, and the Hilltoppers are better after Week Five than the team that lost at Woodbridge by a touchdown on September 2.
We think they’ll make it; the schedule the rest of the way features a road game at Linden this Friday night, then home games against Colonia and St. Joseph-Metuchen.
SOUTH 3 (Click here for official standings)
Delsea is the top team here, with a 1 UPR, meaning they are tops in both power point average and OSI, and without the benefit of a multiplier – yet. They play St. Joe’s-Hammonton on Cutoff Weekend at Rowan. So, they’re a lock for No. 1. (Should it really be this way, thanks to multipliers? Ah, another argument for another time.) Camden is second, followed by Seneca and Hopewell Valley.
The first Big Central team here appears at No. 9, where South Plainfield (5-0) is at No. 9, with a UPR of 10. They are on the bubble for the top eight, which guarantees a first-round home playoff game. There are six undefeated teams in this section, in addition to the top four already mentioned and Ocean Township at No. 6. The Tigers have the weaker schedule, to be sure, and probably deserving of where they are.
It’s too close to call on where they end up considering the teams bunched around them. Just 0.2 points ahead of them in eighth is Highland regional, and Burlington Township is 1.2 UPR ahead in seventh. Nottingham is right behind at 10.2, and Matawan is 11.8. Bottom line is they should be a top eight team if they win out, with a road game at Voorhees this Friday, followed by Perth Amboy at home next Friday, and at Monroe on Friday night of Cutoff Wekeend.
Carteret (5-1, 15 UPR) is in 15th, with a similar schedule to the Tigers, but one loss – to South Plainfield. There are four teams behind them in striking distance: Allentown (15.6 UPR), Triton (16.6) and Camden Eastside (formerly Woodrow Wilson, 16.8). The Ramblers have a super tough schedule the final three weeks of the regular season: Governor Livingston this Friday night at The Pit, then at Rahway and at Hillside.
This might be tough.
Somerville (2-4) is another story. Note that Gridiron has them 3-3, but our numbers match up, after that season-opening forfeit against Mastery Charter for using an ineligible player. They are 3.4 UPR points out of the playoffs, which is a lot of ground to make up. And it’s a good news/bad news situation. They have Westfield and Hillsborough at Brooks Field this week and next week, then are at South Brunswick on the Friday night of Cutoff Weekend.
So, the schedule is conducive to picking up a lot of ground; the trick is they have to WIN those games. They’re 2-3 minus the forfeit, but those two wins are not nearly against the caliber of opponent they’ll face the next three weeks.
On this week’s trek around “The Big Central in Two Minutes,” Mike Pavlichko comes away impressed with North Hunterdon’s ground game, and talks about North Brunswick’s season-long stingy defense. That and a whole lot more on this week’s edition!
Click below to listen to the Week Four edition of “The Big Central in 2 Minutes”:
In a week where half the Big Central Conference’s undefeated teams fell for the first time, there were big shifts throughout the Week 5 Media Poll, except at the top, where Phillipsburg again took four of the first place votes to hold at No. 1, with North Brunswick picking up one vote and staying at No. 2.
Beyond that, all bets were off after Week 5 of play.
St. Thomas Aquinas took the third spot in the rankings away from Hillside with a 17-10 home win in North Edison Friday night. North Hunterdon jumped six places to No. 4 after knocking off 8th-ranked Colonia at home 33-7, bouncing the Patriots from the rankings, though they did get votes this week.
Hillsborough held in fifth, while Hillside dropped three places to No. 6, and Sayreville moved up to No. 7.
After a weeks’ absence, Ridge is back in at No. 8, while Westfield and Watchung Hills debut for the season, tied at No. 9. The Blue Devils handed then-No. 7 St. Joseph-Metuchen its first loss of the season Saturday, a 14-0 decision at Kehler Stadium in Westfield, knocking the Falcons from the polls. Watchung Hills won at then-No. 6 Montgomery, blanking the Cougars 33-0 in Skillman Friday night, bouncing them from the rankings as well.
After the media poll had narrowed to only see 14 teams getting votes in Week 4, down from 19 in the preseason, 16 teams got votes this week.
Below are the full rankings for the Week 5 Big Central Media Poll:
With four of the Big Central Conference’s undefeated teams losing in Week 5, and a sprinkle of other games factored in, the Central Jersey Sports Radio Top Ten saw a big shuffle among all the teams but two, as Phillipsburg – which got both first-place votes – and North Brunswick remain No. 1 and No. 2.
While the Stateliners (5-0) and North Brunswick (5-0) continued to win, ranked teams like Hillside, Montgomery and Colonia suffered their first losses of the season, while St. Joseph-Metuchen suffered its second loss in a row.
What it all meant was an opportunity for several teams to move up.
Hillsborough – after a shutout at P’burg two weeks ago – got back on the winning track, edging out Union at home to improve to 4-1, and move up two spots in the poll to fifth. North Hunterdon took a huge leap with a win over previously unbeaten and then No. 6 Colonia – which dropped out – 33-7 in Annandale; the Lions climbed from tenth to fourth.
St. Thomas Aquinas knocked off previously-undefeated Hillside, and the win got the Trojans to fifth, up three spots. Sayreville moved up two spots to sixth, tied with the Comets.
Three new teams fill out the last three spots in the rankings.
Westfield (4-1) joins the group at No. 8 this week after beating previous-No. 7 St. Joseph-Metuchen at home Saturday afternoon, 14-0, the Falcons second loss, which also dropped them from the rankings.
In ninth is Watchung Hills, which is 4-2 after knocking a 33-0 win at No. 3 and previously-unbeaten Mongtomery, bouncing the Cougars from the rankings. The Warriors’ only league loss is to North Hunterdon; their other defeat is to Morris Knolls.
Tied with Watchung Hills is Ridge, debuting at 3-2. The Red Devils’ only losses are to Phillipsburg and Hillsborough.
Montgomery and Edison also received votes.
Following are the full Week 5 Central Jersey Sports Radio rankings:
The Big Central Conference had eight teams boasting unblemished records heading into Week 5 of the high school football regular season.
Half those teams went down Friday night – Colonia, Hillside, Johnson and Montgomery – with one more still to play Saturday afternoon, when South Plainfield (4-0) visits Governor Livingston (3-2), winners of their last three games.
First, the good news: top-ranked Phillipsburg and No. 2 North Brunswick picked up convincing wins Friday night, while Brearley won as well.
Though they only led 7-0 at the half, Phillipsburg scored twice to take a 21-0 lead on Hunterdon Central, eventually winning 21-7 in Flemington. Xavier Moore opened the scoring and Jett Genovese threw a pair of touchdown passes to Matthew Scerbo, Jr. Now 5-0, the Stateliners host Bridgewater-Raritan at Maloney Stadium next Friday night.
North Brunswick allowed just its third and fourth touchdowns of the season in a 34-14 road win at Franklin. A fourth-quarter touchdown came when the game was out of hand. The Raiders are 5-0 as well, and take the short trip down Livingston Avenue to New Brunswick next Friday night.
Phillipsburg and North Brunswick both led their respective Group 5 playoff supersections – North and South 5 – heading into the weekend, but they won’t meet in the regular season. They could only play if they both reached the first-ever Group 5 state final this December at Rutgers.
As for Brearley, the Bears blanked South Hunterdon 14-0, their third shutout in five games this season. QB Matt Sims rushed for a three-yard touchdown in the second quarter, while Brendan Fitzsimmons scored on a nine-yard TD pass from Sims in the fourth quarter. The Bears are 5-0.
Now, to the downside, and the four teams that went down for the first time all season.
If it wasn’t the least surprising result, it might have been on paper, at least according to the Central Jersey Sports Radio Top Ten rankings. In a battle of ranked teams, 8th-ranked St. Thomas Aquinas edged out Hillside in North Edison, 17-7. The Comets fall to 4-1, while the Trojans are now 5-1, undefeated in Big Central play, with their only loss coming to Timber Creek of the West Jersey Football League in Week Zero. The highlight for Aquinas was a 100-yard pick six by Najee Lovejoy late in the first quarter.
Montgomery’s 5-0 season came to a crashing halt with a 33-0 home loss to Watchung Hills. The Cougars didn’t help their cause losing two fumbles. Click here for a recap and postgame reaction from Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Chris Tsakonas.
In the Big Central Game of the Week on Central Jersey Sports Radio, No. 6 Colonia got dominated as well, as runningbacks Kente Edwards and Alex Urinyak combined for nearly 300 yards and three touchdowns in a 33-7 home win for No. 10 North Hunterdon over the Patriots in Annandale. Click here for a recap and postgame reaction from Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko.
And Johnson, off a 4-0 start – its best start since a 5-0 mark to begin 2017 – suffered its first loss of the season, with a 27-14 loss at New Providence, which has won two straight to improve to 3-3 as they figure out life post-Charlie Barth. Ben Gullo led the way for the Pioneers with three touchdowns and 124 rushing yards. The Crusaders fall to 4-1.
On this week’s trip through “The Big Central in Two Minutes,” Mike Pavlichko weighs in on Phillipsburg’s claim to the No. 1 ranking in the league, who had the biggest upset wins of Week Four, and whether Somerville should be in a division with Group 5 schools/
Click below to listen to the Week Four edition of “The Big Central in Two Minutes”:
Another week, another vote for first in the Big Central Media Poll for Phillipsburg.
The Stateliners picked up a season-high 48 points and got four of the five first-place votes in Week Four, ahead of North Brunswick, which got the other first-place vote.
The teams don’t play each other this regular season, and could only meet if they both make the inaugural Group 5 final at Rutgers’ SHI Stadium the first week of December.
Hillside climbed a spot to third, while St. Thomas Aquinas jumped three spots from seventh to fourth.
The poll saw a bit of a shakeup this week, with previously-third ranked Hillsborough dropping two spots to fifth after a 34-0 loss at P’burg Friday night. Previously-No. 7-ranked St. Joseph-Metuchen dropped two spots after losing to unranked Elizabeth Saturday, 23-21. And Sayreville dropped from No. 6 to No. 9 after a 22-0 loss to No. 2 North Brunswick.
Montgomery – 5-0 for the first time ever- continued its ascent, up two spots to fifth. Colonia (5-0) dropped a spot simply by other teams making gains, and North hunterdon – which got votes last week – entered the poll in tenth.
Ridge (2-2) dropped out as well.
The full Week 4 Big Central Media Poll is below:
Thanks to a 34-0 home win over then-undefeated and third-ranked Hillsborough Friday night, Phillipsburg took both first place votes in the Central Jersey Sports Radio Week Four high school football rankings.
The Stateliners are still followed by North Brunswick, close behind, which has the same record through the first four weeks as P’burg: 4-0.
For the first time this season, no teams dropped out of the rankings, and there were no “Also Received Votes.” All ten teams that got votes are in the rankings, just in a different order.
Click below for the full Week Four Top Ten:
