Phillipsburg head coach Frank Duffy – and most coaches – will tell you that even teams who are very familiar with each other are completely different from one year to the next.
That may be moreso for Phillipsburg, which has had similar success to last year but with many new pieces to the puzzle.
Ramapo – the Stateliners’ opponent Friday night at Maloney Stadium in the Group 4 semifinals – is likely more similar to last year’s team.
The schemes haven’t changed for second-year head coach Nick Guttuso, a longtime assistant under – and disciple of – legend Drew Gibbs, who took over after Mike Miello left after the 2000 season to join the staff of 34-year-old rookie Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano. And the players are mainly the same as well.
You can hear all the action live on Central Jersey Sports Radio – our “Big Central Game of the Week,” presented by Bellamy & Son Paving – starting with pregame at 6:45. Mike Pavlichko and Chris Tsakonas have the call with kickoff at 7; click here to listen.
It starts with Casey Grusser, the senior quarterback who has thrown for 2,100 yards on the nose this season, 24 touchdowns, and just four picks. He’s also completing 72 percent of his passes. Favorite targets include Joseph Yessis, Sal Livoti, and Michael Ballan – all of whom have at least 30 catches and have combined for 989 receiving yards and 23 scores.
They are senior heavy on defense, too. Carter Cooney is a stout middle linebacker at 6’1″, 210, who leads the team with 82 tackles, it’s been a team effort to get to the quarterback; the team has 16 sacks, but no single player has more than two on the year.
Both teams are 10-1, with Ramapo’s lone loss coming back on September 19th, 28-24 at Old Tappan. The Knights are undefeated, 11-0, one of the last seven unbeatens left in the state, and playing West Morris in the Group 3 semis Friday night as well.
In eleven games this season, Ramapo has pitched three shutouts and only allowed 20 or more points in four games. Two of those came against Northern Highlands, both wins, including a 28-21 win on October 24th – Cutoff Weekend – in the regular season, and a 28-27 win last week in the North 1, Group 4 final, where they stopped Highlands going for two for the win in overtime to seal the deal.
But despite the attention the aerial attack gets, the Raiders can run it, too. Senior runningback Liam Hayward has carried 130 times for 797 yards and 14 touchdowns, leading the team in all of those categories, while Grusser is the No. 2 rusher, at 503 yards and nine scores on 61 carries.
Last week, Ramapo got off to a hot start, hitting Livoti for a 61-yard TD strike down the middle on the first play from scrimmage. Getting off to a good start will be key against the Stateliners, who have only trailed twice in the first half all season: earlier this year against West Orange – in a game they won – and last week, 8-3, to Montgomery in the North 2, Group 5 title game.
Click below to hear Ramapo head coach Nick Guttuso talk about the Raiders’ season and their matchup with Phillipsburg in the Group 5 semifinals: