R.J. Wortman – Central Jersey Sports Radio

Our goal at Central Jersey Sports Radio since our founding in 2020 has always been to bring attention to all the great things done by the many outstanding student-athletes in our area, both on and off the field.

Even with Honorable Mentions in each category, just having one each of Offensive, Defensive Special Teams and Two-Way Player of the Year isn’t quite enough to cover the massive 59-team Big Central Conference.

So, in our quest to honor as many great student-athletes as possible, here are our 2024 Central Jersey Sports Radio Specialty Awards:

“Hard Nosed Runner” Award: Sam Dech, Phillipsburg

Last year, it was Jett Genovese and Matthew Scerbo, Jr., receiving the “Dynamic Duo” award. This season, it’s another Phillipsburg football player with a specialty award.

Sam Dech seems to define Phillipsburg football. They all say they live by D.I.G. – Discipline, Ignore the Noise, Grit – but for Dech it’s however much more that can be possible.

Even in a postgame interview, he’ll tell you “that’s what we wanted to do and we just came out and did it.”

A high school football game scene showing a player in a dark uniform attempting to evade two defenders in light uniforms, with spectators in the background. — *Phillipsburg’s Sam Dech looks to make a move in the Group 4 title game against Winslow Twp. at Rutgers on December 4, 2024. (Photo: Christian Sanchez)*

Well, they don’t get there without Dech, who is a bruising runner who’s nearly impossible to bring down. Okay, not impossible, but be assured that if you hit him at the ten yard line, he’s going to bring you at least another five yards toward the end zone by the time he’s down.

That was invaluable on a 2025 team that lost Genovese and Scerbo – the second of whom was the school’s all-time leading receiver – as well as fellow receiver Felix Matos to graduation.

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko talk with Phillipsburg’s Sam Dech:

The “Great Hands” Award: R.J. Wortman, Colonia

Good Hands was already taken, but Wortman is more than good hands. He’s great hands.

Colonia always seems to be a place where things happen without a lot of fan fare. But one day, you turn around, and Tom Roarty has his team in a sectional semifinal game in one of the hallowed grounds of high school football in New Jersey, Maloney Stadium.

The same could be said for R.J. Wortman, who heading into that North 2, Group 4 semi against Phillipsburg, was nearing 100 receptions on the year, and finished with a cool 101. The next highest wasn’t even that close.

A student-athlete signs a commitment in front of a table adorned with football gear, including jerseys, a football, and helmets, with a coach standing nearby, all set against a backdrop displaying 'Colonia Patriots'. — *Colonia’s R.J. Wortman signed with Rutgers on 2025 December National Letter of Intent Signing Day. (Photo courtesy Tom Roarty)*

They weren’t all long passes from senior QB Dylan Chiera, who threw for over 2,000 yards this season, one of three Middlesex County quarterbacks to do so in 2025. There were a few dinks and dunks in there, but it kept defenses on their toes, that’s for sure, with so many different ways to use him.

Couple that with the fact Wortman is a great teammate. No sooner did he commit to Greg Schiano and Rutgers – where he signed last week and will enroll early in January, skipping his senior season on the basketball court – but he was already active on Twitter, propping up all of his teammates, trying to make sure college coaches take a look at them just like they did with him.

Overall, Wortman finished with 101 catches for 1,307 yards (118.8 per game) with 15 touchdowns for the 7-4 Patriots.

Click below to hear Alec Crouthamel talk with Colonia’s R.J. Wortman:

“Is He A Lineman? Is He a Fullback” Award: Mike Bellamy, Montgomery

Senior Mike Bellamy has football in the family. His father, Joe – owner of Bellamy & Son Paving – played it, and has coached it for years at the youth level in their previous hometown of Piscataway. His brothers Joe and Rocco played for the Chiefs, with Joe on that 2018 team that won the North Jersey Group 5 Bowl Championship, beating Ridgewood at MetLife Stadium to become the first Middlesex County school to go 13-0 in a season, setting a county win record that still holds.

So, it was clear Mike would play football.

A football player wearing a yellow and green helmet with the word 'Cougars' on his jersey, stands on the sidelines, looking thoughtful during a game. — *Mike Bellamy of Montgomery. (Source: @MikeBellamy50 on Twitter)*

He’s an accomplished long-snapper, and has been a solid two-way lineman for a few seasons now. But this year, a new wrinkle was added: he would run the football.

Bellamy’s is not the story of an offensive lineman who fell on a couple of luckily-timed fumbles in the end zone to give his offense a score. No, no. This was all by design.

In fact, Bellamy carried eleven times this season for 38 yards, scoring four touchdowns, one each against Linden and Woodbridge in the regular season, then against Westfield and the Barrons again in the playoffs.

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko talk with Mike Bellamy of Montgomery:

“I’m Back” Award: Devin Thomas, Plainfield

The last time we saw Devin Thomas the football player, he was quarterbacking the junior varsity at St. Thomas Aquinas, where Donald Jones, now Plainfield’s head coach, was an assistant.

Thomas transferred to Plainfield as a sophomore to represent his hometown, then gave up football to focus on basketball as a junior. It seemed a pretty good decision; Thomas scored in double-figures 12 times, helping lead the Cardinals to a Group 4 championship last March.

A football player wearing a red and white jersey with the number 11, standing on the field and signaling to teammates. The player is wearing a helmet and appears to be in an active game situation. — *Devin Thomas of Plainfield. (Source: @DevinThomas8_ on Twitter)*

When Jones took over as Plainfield head coach last spring, he gauged Thomas’s interest in coming back to the gridiron.

“Why not?”

Six months later, everyone agrees it paid off.

Thomas threw for 2,214 yards and 29 touchdowns. He ran for another 482 yards and 4 scores. Week-in and week-out, Thomas put up video game numbers under center for Plainfield.

He put an exclamation point on his stellar season with a 296-yard, 4-touchdown masterpiece in Plainfield’s final regular season game – a 28-27 come-from-behind win at Linden that clinched the Cardinals’ spot in the North 2, Group 5 playoffs.

Click below to hear Justin Sontupe talk with Devin Thomas of Plainfield:

“Comeback” Award: Jack Kalikas, A.L. Johnson

A.L. Johnson standout athlete Jack Kalikas broke his leg in October 2024. Faced with the same situation, some might wonder if they’d ever play at a high level again.

Not Jack; he wondered if he’d be able to return to play hockey that season.

While that goal proved to be a bit out of reach, it kept him going.

A quarterback in a blue football uniform throws a pass while a teammate in a similar uniform looks on during a game at night. — *Jack Kalikas of A.L. Johnson throws a pass in this undated photo. (Source: @jackkalikas on Instagram)*

Jack then set his sights on returning for lacrosse in the spring. And although he couldn’t fully come back in time, the determination accelerated the recovery process.

By summer, Jack was full go and back on the football field for A.L. Johnson. On top of that, he’d be playing for his dad, Gus Kalikas, A.L. Johnson’s athletic director-turned-head coach.

Almost one full year after breaking his leg, Jack led A.L. Johnson to a 7-2 record, playing quarterback and linebacker for the Crusaders.

Next up: hockey and lacrosse.

Click below to hear Justin Sontupe talk with Jack Kalikas of A.L. Johnson:

“Body Builder” Award: Brady Gallogly, Piscataway

Originally nominated for the Longevity Award, this one really fit him more.

Brady had always played wide receiver, but an opportunity came up where Piscataway needed a center. Ever the eager freshman, he made the suggestion.

A football player prepares to snap the ball on a field during a night game, with teammates and opponents in the background. — *Brady Gallogly, Piscataway. (Source: Hudl)*

Now, he wasn’t quite dealing with a coach who barely knew him, because his father, Frank Uhrin, is the team’s offensive coordinator. He played at Piscataway, too, as did Brady’s uncle, Robert, who also was a smaller-sized lineman on the 2002 Central Jersey Group 4 championship team, the last to be coached by legend Joe Kuronyi. His uncle, Tommy “Guns” Uhrin, was a skill player for the Chiefs in the 1990s.

But beyond all that, Gallogly had work to do. He only weight 160 pounds at the time, but with weight lifting, diet, and a training regimen, he got where he needed to be and became adept at making all the movements offensive linemen need to make.

Click below to hear Chris Tsakonas talk with Piscataway’s Brady Gallogly:

The “Tough Break for a Record-Breaker” Award: Thomas Diemar, Bernards

Coming into Game Three of the 2026 season, with at least a half-dozen games to go, you’d figure, senior Thomas Diemarr should have blown away the school’s all-time career sack record.

He already had it, with 22: ten each his sophomore and junior seasons, and two already in the first two games. This was his chance to make it nearly untouchable.

Then, in the first quarter, he plants funny in the end zone on a kickoff, with no one around him.

Young male athlete with curly hair standing outdoors, wearing a black athletic shirt, in front of a sports field and a building. — *Bernards’ all-time sack record holder, Thomas Diemar. (Photo: Marcus Borden)*

He sorely wanted back in the game, which turned out to be a win over Delaware Valley.

As it turned out, he tore his ACL, and his senior season would be done.

Diemar was a bit surprised when head coach Jon Simoneau picked him for first team All-Patriot Gold Division. But he shouldn’t have been. He deserved it, or he would have had he played.

Coach decided to honor a young man who, himself, has honored and respected the program Simoneau has built. That’s why he got the recognition, and that’s why he gets ours!

Click below to hear Alec Crouthamel talk with Thomas Diemar of Bernards:

The “Sure, I’ll Play Quarterback” Award: Alex Schwark, Summit
The “Best Player Not To Play A Snap” Award: Cole Sabol, Summit

These two awards go hand-in-hand, if you’ll just follow along.

Cole is a multi-sport athlete, and he tore his Achilles last spring in lacrosse, on the very first day of the season. After getting evaluated, he found out he’d also miss football season. That’s when Alex Schwark took the job, having never played it before.

And he did well. In fact, when he got hurt later in the year, the Hilltoppers dropped those two games, then continued winning when he was back in the lineup, three weeks later in a 10-7 win upset at previously-unbeaten Woodbridge.

A split image featuring two high school football players. On the left, a quarterback in a light blue uniform holds a football and appears ready to pass on a field. On the right, another player in a maroon and gold uniform stands next to a coach on the sidelines, looking down at the ground. — *Summit’s Cole Sabol (left) and Alex Schwark and head coach Kevin Kostibos (right) (@colesabol3 on Instagram/File photo by Mike Pavlichko)*

But Schwark never would have done so well without Sabol, who was nominated for the Leadership Award by Coach Kevin Kostibos. Why? Because he could have walked away and sulked, but instead led the team in practices, meetings, gatherings, and games. He took his teammates under his wing, including Schwark, helping to make him the quarterback he became, even if he was sharing time with Matt McKeever down the stretch, with both of them on the field at the same time.

Click below to hear Alec Crouthamel talk with Summit’s Cole Sabol and Alex Schwark:

While the Colonia boys’ basketball team was very much a team in every sense of the word, there’s no doubt who is the big draw: Aiden Derkack.

They’ve got a lot of excellent ballplayers. Even Derkack – who was named GMC Tournament MVP for the second year in a row, the first to be so honored since Quentin DeCosey of St. Joseph-Metuchen in 2011 and 2012 – admitted R.J. Wortman could have at least shared the MVP honor with him.

That shows you, of course, what kind of leader Derkack is. But that’s not even something that came as naturally’ it was something he really worked on in the off-season leading into this, his junior year.

Which is another scary proposition for their Greater Middlesex Conference foes. While losing excellent senior guard Zach Smith to graduation, he’s the only senior departing – there’s not even another bench player moving on. So essentially, the entire band will be back in 2025-26.

And that includes Aiden Derkack, Central Jersey Sports Radio’s GMC Boys’ Basketball Player of the Year.

But back to Derkack. The numbers he’s been putting up are off the charts. While a full list of all-time scorers isn’t available, among GMC boys school career scoring leaders, he’s 14th all-time at 1,739 career points. He’ll easily crack the 2,000-point mark next year, joining a club that includes just ten players, although two of them just joined this year, seniors Jalen Fleming of Timothy Christian (2,152) and Alex Grospe of South River (2,173).

Derkack won’t catch No. 1 on the list – John Somogyi at 3,310 points – he could get very, very close, depending on how deep the Patriots go in next year’s postseason, to Blake and Brian Taylor of those great Perth Amboy teams. Brian finished with 2,495, graduating in 1969, while Blake landed at 2,541, graduating in 1975. Derkack would need 802 points to reach Blake Taylor; he scored 790 this season, averaging 24.7 points per game.

Click below to hear Central Jersey Sports Radio’s GMC Boys’ Player of the Year Aiden Derkack:

Here are our Honorable Mentions for GMC Boys’ Player of the Year:

R.J. Wortman, Colonia: Aiden Derkack may be the star, and everyone plays a role for the Patriots, but their run in the postseason may not have been possible without Wortman, who only played in eleven games last season and scored a grand total of nine points. This season he averaged 12.2 points per game, but was even bigger in the postseason. In the GMC Tournament, he averaged almost 18 points through four games, scoring 20 in the semifinals over St. Thomas Aquinas, then registering a double-double of 23 points and 13 rebounds in the title game win over Piscataway.
Nate Davis, Piscataway: There was plenty of talent to go around with the Chiefs as well, and Davis was the team’s leading scorer. Davis averaged 14.5 points per game, and hit a team best 53 treys on the year. Sophomore Landon Pernell was an excellent point guard, and he’ll have his day, but Davis – along with fellow senior Vaughn Turner, the two biggest pieces graduating – was instrumental in the success the Chiefs achieved under first-year head coach and Coach of the Year Bob Turco: providing senior leadership for the rejuvenated Piscataway program.
Aiden Ur, St. Thomas Aquinas: It was a difficult year around the Trojan program in 2024-25, but one player who was key and stuck with it en route to a 15-12 season amongst all the turmoil was Aiden Ur, who joined St. Thomas after playing his first two seasons at St. John Vianney in Holdmel. Ur averaged 16.2 points per game this season with 44 treys, and scored in double figures in all but five out of 27 games. Ur was a steadying force this year.
Alex Grospe, South River: The Rams weren’t able to duplicate their success of a couple of years ago, when they went to the Central Jersey Group 2 title game, but he had another outstanding year and was one of two GMC players to join the elite, eight-member 2,000-point club. Grospe – the program’s all-time top scorer – averaged an even 30 points per game this year, and finishes with 2,173 points, placing him fifth all-time in Middlesex County history (including before the GMC era). In his career, he hit 170 three-pointers, and was never someone you’d want to put on the foul line, where he was a nearly 80-percent free-throw shooter in his final three seasons as a Ram.
Jalen Fleming, Timothy Christian: Fleming is the other one to join the GMC’s 2,000-point club this year, finishing at 2,152, and also becoming the all-time leading scorer in his school’s history. Quick, but also powerful, he can hit the three or throw down a dunk in transition. Fleming had the biggest scoring season of his four years with the Tigers, going for 681, a 26.2 point per game average. He hit 136 triples in his career, and is an 82-percent free-throw shooter. On defense, he averaged over 40 steals a season all four years on varsity.