Tag: Sayreville

by Mike Pavlichko

After surviving Vineland, Sayreville heads down to unbeaten Rancocas Valley in Central 5 semis

There’s little to no history between the Sayreville and Rancocas Valley football teams.

The last – and only – time they ever met was in 2010, when the Bombers won the Central Jersey Group 5 title behind standout runningback Delon Stephenson, and beat the Red Devils in the opening round of the playoffs, en route to a title win over Brick Memorial and an 11-1 finish.

This year’s club is 8-2 – with losses to solid squads in Ridge and at Old Bridge – and as the third-seed in Central 5, will travel down to second seed Rancocas Valley (10-0) Friday for a 6 pm kickoff in the sectional semifinals, with the victor to take on the winner of the other semifinal, featuring fourth-seed Williamstown at top-seed Old Bridge, a game you can hear live Friday night on Central Jersey Sports Radio.

The Bombers have had a solid season, winners of four straight as they head down to Burlington County. They’ve been a solid defensive group, and may have saved one of their best efforts for one of their arch-rivals, Piscataway, beating the Chiefs 16-7 on Cutoff Weekend, preventing Piscataway from getting a top-seed in the playoffs, while also improving their own standing.

In that game, their wealth of skill players showed, and the Bombers got offensive players all over the field, a scenario for which the Chiefs had no apparent answer. Last week, Sayreville led Vineland at halftime, but the game went back and forth the rest of the way. Dion Osae – who along with Sherwin Appiah had two rushing touchdowns – scored the go-ahead and eventual game-winning touchdown from 52 yards out with 1:36 to go, and they only ended up winning by two after the PAT was blocked.

That’s the kind of game it was.

This week, head coach Mark Poore may want to bring a case of Rolaids with him, because his Bombers are in for another battle.

Rancocas Valley won the West Jersey Football League’s Colonia Division, sweeping all five games. And while their schedule hasn’t been a they own some impressive wins: 36-6 over Shawnee, and 21-20 over an always tough Millville squad.

Among the players to watch are junior quarterback Zach Merhar (1,776 yards passing, 33 TD, 8 INTs) and three wide receivers who have at least 22 catches apiece: junior Andrew Byrdsong and juniors Mike McQueen and Malcolm Harrison. While their leading rusher, Hakim Theresa, Jr., has just 653 yards and six scores on the season, as a team, they’ve rushed for 1,653 and 14 touchdowns, showing a balanced attack.

On the other side of the ball, they have been nearly impossible to score on. In nine regular season games, only Shawnee, Millville and Pleasantville have avoided a goose egg. And in the opening round, eight-seed Jackson Twp. only managed a single touchdown in a 42-7 loss.

But the Bombers have weapons, and though they don’t throw the ball much – just an average of 7.6 attempts per game – sophomore QB Marcus Butka is a distributor, who runs the offense well. Factor in direct snaps to Osae and or Appiah, and it’s enough to give even the best defensive eleven nightmares.

Click below to hear Sayreville football coach Mark Poore talk about Friday’s Central Jersey Group 5 semifinal at Rancocas Valley with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Alec Crouthamel:

by Mike Pavlichko

INSTANT REPLAY:  No. 8 Sayreville 16, No. 5 Piscataway 7

No. 8 Sayreville fell behind 7-0 in the first quarter, but scored the next 16 points of the game to come out with a 16-7 win over No. 8 Piscataway in a classic matchup of former GMC rivals.

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Click below to listen to Mike Pavlichko and Max Scheiner call all the play-by-play live from War Memorial Stadium in Sayreville, NJ, on October 23, 2026:

1st Half
2nd Half

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.

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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

No. 8 Sayreville scores 16 unanswered to topple No. 5 Piscataway, likely earning home field advantage in first round of playoffs

In a series that has been back and forth over their first 40 meetings, Sayreville now has a 21-20 lead.

The eighth-ranked Bombers trailed No. 5 Piscataway 7-0 late in the first, and while they controlled the ball for most of the first half, just couldn’t get in the end zone.

Even on their 18-play, seven-minute drive that ended the first half, they had to settle for a 25-yard field goal by Phillip Sayouwah to cut the Chiefs’ lead to 7-3 as time expired in the first half.

After the Homecoming break, they kept Piscataway off the board, and got two touchdowns to move ahead, and put the game out of reach. The first was a one-yard run by quarterback Marcus Butka, capping an eight-play, 50-yard drive with 40 seconds to go in the third, giving the Bombers their first lead of the game, 10-7.

With 10:13 to go in the fourth, Shewrin Appiah came up with one of the most brilliant runs you’ll see at the high school level. With the ball on the Piscataway 34, he took a handoff, ran towards the middle, saw nothing, and made a 90-degree left turn on a dime. Then, he turned upfield, and with about five defenders scattered in front of him, turned up his speed to eleven and darted through all of them for a touchdown that put them up 16-7, as they missed the extra point.

Piscataway had chances, but missed a 40-yard field goal, and could not find the passing game to complement the run, with Landon Pernell often forced to throw the ball away – or just past everyone downfield – to avoid a sack, with the Sayreville defense hounding the Chief signal caller at every turn.

The Bombers improve to 7-2 on the season, and appear to have wrapped up at least a top eight finish in North Group 4, while Piscataway drops to 7-2, and should also finish in the top eight. Had they won, they would likely have had a No. 1 seed. Instead, the overall No. 1 appears it will go to Elizabeth, which beat Somerville at home Friday night to clinch a perfect 9-0 regular season.

Click below for postgame reaction from Sayreville head coach Mark Poore and runningback Sherwin Appiah with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen!

by Mike Pavlichko

Always a date to circle on the calendar, No. 5 Piscataway visits No. 8 Sayreville with a lot on the line for the playoffs

The Piscataway football team has a shot at a top seed in the state playoffs with a win Friday night. Sayreville appears locked in to a top eight seed and a first-round home game, but with this playoff system, who knows what can happen? Why chance it?

Just more fuel to the fire that is one of the classics in Middlesex County.

In Sayreville, it’s “Piscataway Week.” In Piscataway, it’s “Sayreville Week.” The coaches don’t need to talk about it. The players already know.

And so it goes for our Bellamy & Son Paving Big Central Game of the Week Friday night on Central Jersey Sports Radio: No. 5 Piscataway (7-1) and No. 8 Sayreville (6-2), with a ton on the line. You can hear the game live at 7 pm from Sayreville War Memorial Stadium with Mike Pavlichko on the call and Max Scheiner – in another classic GMC nod from their days together at WCTC Radio – on color. Pregame starts at 6:45; click here to listen.

Friday night’s game is sponsored in part by Piscataway Twp. and the Office of Mayor Brian Wahler.

Not only is this a highly-anticipated matchup, but one of the matchups to watch in the game will be Zaire Young and Sherwin Appiah – two great, thousand-yard runningbacks this year for the Chiefs and Bombers, respectively. This could be a game with some video-game like numbers if the offensive lines do their thing and both players go off.

There are more commonalities between the two. Each has lost to Old Bridge this season, and the all-time series is tied at 20-20 after Sayreville’s 42-24 road win last year. These two have alternated wins each of the last few seasons, so it’s been a very even series even of late.

Both are looking in championship form, and the last time they won sectional titles? It was – you guessed it – in the same year: 2018, a season in which Piscataway became the first – and remains the only – Middlesex County school to win 13 games in a season.

Click below to hear pregame interviews with both head coaches as they talk with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko:

Piscataway head coach Dan Higgins
Sayreville head coach Mark Poore
by Mike Pavlichko

Elizabeth stays No. 1, Hillside replaces Union in Week 8 Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten

For a second straight week, there were very little changes in the Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten. The only change in Week Eight was Hillside replacing Union in the final spot, as the first nine teams all remained the same.

From the top, Elizabeth (8-0) remains No. 1 after a 34-3 win Saturday at Westfield. The Minutemen host Somerville this Friday in their regular season finale, looking to lock up a No. 1 seed in the North Group 5 supersection.

At No. 2 is Old Bridge (7-1). The Knights blanked East Brunswick Friday night, 43-0, and have a huge game at No. 3 Ridge (5-2) Friday night. The Red Devils were 42-19 winners at Hillsborough last week. The Knights appear to have a shot at a No. 1 seed in South 5 if they can flip over Rancocas Valley (8-0), which plays Burlington Twp. (4-4) this week. The Red Devils may need a win to stay in the top eight of North 4 and get a first round home game.

Phillipsburg (5-2) remains fourth after a 35-14 home win over No. 6 Bridgewater-Raritan (6-2), leaving a three-way share of the American Silver Division title with Ridge. The Stateliners host Hunterdon Central at Maloney Friday night, while the Panthers host Watchung Hills.

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Piscataway (7-1) checks in at No. 5, after a 35-7 win at Monroe Friday. They play at No. 8 Sayreville Friday at 7 pm in the Bellamy & Son Paving Big Central Game of the Week on Central Jersey Sports Radio. The Bombers were 44-8 winners at North Brunswick last week.

Cranford (7-0) stays at seven after winning 24-12 at Carteret Friday. The Cougars get Hillside (7-1) this Friday night, with the Comets joining the top ten at No. 10 after beating Manville on the road Friday, 54-7.

And Rahway (7-1) holds at No. 9 after a 41-14 win at Colonia this past Friday night. The Indians host Edison this Friday.

Below is the complete 2026 Week Eight Bellamy & Son Paving High School Football Top Ten:

by Mike Pavlichko

After big changes the past two weeks, some stability in the Week 7 Bellamy & Son Paving Big Central Top Ten

Yes, the last couple of weeks have been somewhat tumultuous in the Big Central Conference among its top teams, reflected in big changes in the Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten, including a new No. 1 last week.

That’s not quite the case this week., as the top seven all stayed the same, the bottom two shifted around, one team dropped out, and another rejoined the Top Ten after falling out two weeks ago.

It all starts with Elizabeth (7-0), which continued its fantastic season with a 44-0 shutout of Hillsborough at home last Friday, to stay at No. 1. They Minutemen get an extra day of prep this week, as they’ll visit Westfield Saturday afternoon.

Old Bridge (6-1) remains at No. 2, after a 38-20 road win at Monroe last Friday. They’re back at it this Friday with a home game against East Brunswick.

Third-ranked Ridge (4-2) holds its position, thanks to a 34-0 shutout over Westfield last Friday night. The Red Devils visit Hillsborough Friday night.

At No. 4 is Phillipsburg (4-2), holding steady after a bye last week. They started in Week Zero this year, and still have a Thanksgiving Day game against Easton, which gives them a week off in the middle of the season. The Stateliners host No. 6 Bridgewater-Raritan (6-1) Friday night at Maloney Stadium, in a game you can hear live on Central Jersey Radio. The Panthers were 28-7 winners at previous No. 9 Union Friday night, and a win over the Stateliners would give them the American Silver Division title. Should Phillipsburg win, they would get the title on a tiebreaker, but if Ridge beats Hillsborough, it would be a three-way tie, with everyone splitting two games with one another.

Piscataway (6-1) holds in fifth after a 35-14 win at home over then-No. 8 St. Joseph-Metuchen Friday night. The Chiefs are in Monroe this Friday to take on the other Falcons in the BCC.

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

At No. 7, it’s Cranford (6-0) holding steady. The Cougars blanked South Plainfield, 14-0, on the road last Friday night, and this Friday, they travel to Carteret.

The last three spots saw some shuffling. Sayreville (5-2) moved up from ten to eight after a 23-16 win at Somerville, and this week are in North Brunswick to take on the Raiders Friday night.

Rahway (6-1) rejoins the rankings at No. 9 after falling out a couple of weeks ago with a loss to Cranford. But the Indians have won two straight since, including last Friday night at Plainfield, a 35-6 victory. This Friday, they visit Colonia.

And dropping one spot to No. 10 is Union (5-2), which lost at No. 6 Bridgewater-Raritan last Friday, 28-7. The Farmers play at St. Joe’s this Friday, in the Falcons’ once-a-year Friday night game with temporary lights at Brenner Family Field.

St. Joseph-Metuchen dropped out of the rankings this week after their fourth straight loss, this one to Piscataway; they’re now 2-4.

Below is the complete 2026 Week Seven Bellamy & Son Paving High School Football Top Ten:

by Mike Pavlichko

There’s a new team atop the Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten after Phillipsburg falls at Ridge, and it’s their first No. 1 ranking in BCC history

For the first time since the formation of the Big Central Conference in 2020, Elizabeth has reached the top of the Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten for Week Six.

The Minutemen are 6-0 for the first time since 2012, when they went undefeated, 11-0, and won the first-ever North 2, Group 5 championship, beating Piscataway in the final at Kean University in Union.

Phillipsburg had been No. 1, with their only prior loss coming out of state, to Freedom (PA) out of Bethlehem. But they were knocked off by No. 1 Ridge on the final play of the game Friday, and Elizabeth’s win helped cement the change. All in all, only two teams are in the same positions they were last week.

Elizabeth stayed unbeaten with a 39-18 home win against Linden Friday night, and the Minutemen will put that perfect mark on the line again this Friday when they host Hillsborough (1-4) in a crossover game.

Old Bridge (5-1) edged up a spot to No. 2 after a thrilling 14-12 home victory over then-No. 8 Sayreville Friday night, as heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio. This week, the Knights visit much-improved Monroe (4-2) in a National Gold Division contest.

Ridge (3-2) – which has played four ranked opponents, three of which have been in the top three at one point or another – moved all the way up to No. 3 after knocking off Phillipsburg at home Friday, winning on a touchdown catch off a tipped ball at the goal line on the game’s final play. This week, the Red Devils host Westfield Friday night in a BCC crossover. Phillipsburg (4-2) dropped down to four, and is off this week.

Piscataway (5-1) was a 46-6 winner over Franklin Saturday afternoon in the first meeting of the former Thanksgiving Day rivals in three years. The Chiefs are back at it Friday night at home in a crossover game against No. 8 St. Joseph-Metuchen.

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

Holding at six and seven are Bridgewater-Raritan (5-1) and Cranford (5-0). The Falcons were 5-18 winners at Hunterdon Central Friday, and visit Piscataway this Friday. The Cougars remained undefeated with a 13-12 home win over Montgomery Friday, and this Friday night are at South Plainfield for a crossover game.

Down three spots to eight is St. Joseph-Metuchen (2-3), which has dropped three straight after starting 2-0, including an impressive win over Bridgewater-Raritan. Saturday, they lost a non-conference matinee at Delbarton, 56-24. They visit No. 5 Piscataway Friday night in a crossover game.

Making its debut this season is Union (5-1), which already has topped last year’s win total by two. The Farmers won their third strai9ght on Saturday afternoon at Cooke Field, blanking Plainfield, 24-0. This week, they play a home crossover against No. 6 Bridgewater-Raritan.

And down two spots to the final position at ten is Sayreville (4-2), which lost 14-12 at Old Bridge Friday night, as heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio. The Bombers are back at it again this with a crossover matchup Friday, visiting previously-ranked Somerville.

Previous No. 9 St. Thomas Aquinas dropped out of the rankings this week, dropping its third straight game – 42-26 at Somerville – after starting the season 3-0. They host North Brunswick in a BCC National Silver Division game Friday night in North Edison.

Below is the complete 2026 Week Six Bellamy & Son Paving High School Football Top Ten:

by Mike Pavlichko

INSTANT REPLAY:  No. 3 Old Bridge 14, No. 8 Sayreville 12

Quarterback Aiden Rios ran for a touchdown and threw one to Amari Alsbrook, and that was enough for third-ranked Old Bridge to beat No. 8 Sayreville 14-12 in a Big Central Conference crossover game. The Bombers got two field goals from Philip Sayouwah and a 52-yard touchdown run by Sherwin Appiah.

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 Mike Pavlichko and Alec Crouthamel call all the play-by-play live from Lombardi Field in Old Bridge, NJ, on October 2, 2026:

1st Half
2nd Half
by Mike Pavlichko

Rizzo saves the day for No. 3 Old Bridge with late pick to down No. 8 Sayreville, 14-12

Even the rain that burst from the clouds at halftime at Lombardi Field in Old Bridge couldn’t spoil the Knights’ evening.

The PA speakers blared Neil Diamond and Miley Cyrus singalongs, and everyone enjoyed themselves, even as No. 8 Sayreville got as close as within two with under four minutes to go in the third, and as they threatened to go ahead of No. 3 Old Bridge in the closing minutes.

But on a 4th-and-11 from their own 48, sophomore quarterback Marcus Butka threw a bomb down the right sideline that was picked off in stride by junior Chase Rizzo, who smartly slid to the turf at the ten knowing the Bombers had just one time out, and that his team could close out the victory with a knee.

Which they did – in the Big Central Game of the Week on Central Jersey Sports Radio, presented by Bellamy & Son Paving – to improve to 5-1, win their second straight over their neighbors, and keep them in the hunt for a top-seed in the playoffs in the South Group 5 supersection.

Senior quarterback Aiden Rios threw a six-yard TD pass to Amari Alsbrook to open the scoring on the game’s first possession, and ran for a 36-yard score of his own in the third quarter, enough to give the Knights the win. He finished with 80 yards rushing on ten carries, and was 6-of-7 passing with an interception for 114 yards, while Rizzo – the only other player to run the ball – finished with 120 yards on 20 carries.

For Sayreville, Philip Sayouwoh kicked two first-half field goals, a 20-yarder, then a 42-yarder – a career best – while Sherwin Appiah had a 52-yard touchdown run in the third; he finished with 117 yards on 17 carries.

Sayreville drops to 4-2 with the loss, and has a visit to Somerville looming next week, while Old Bridge will head down to Monroe.

Click below for postgame reaction from Alec Crouthamel with Old Bridge QB Aiden Rios, RB/LB Chase Rizzo, and head coach Matt Donaghue, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen: