The formation in 2018 of the Big Central Football Conference – essentially an amalgamation of the GMC and Mid-State Conferences – was born out of necessity, intended to address scheduling difficulties.

Six years into the grand experiment, which began play in the 2020 season, league officials couldn’t be happier about where it is, and where it’s going.

The 2024 campaign brought two state sectional champions (Phillipsburg and Somerville) and the first berth for a league team in the state Group finals, with the Stateliners going all the way to the Group 4 title game at Rutgers, falling to Winslow Twp.

But it also saw JP Stevens break its long losing streak, then win a second game, while Highland Park – which snapped its own, even longer skid in the 2023 finale – put together four straight victories overall after getting off to a 3-0 start.

League President Scott Miller is just as proud of those two achievements as he is the first two.  And better yet in regards to the Hawks and the Owls?  They did it without being in an “Ivy” Division, and NJSIAA-sanctioned division where struggling teams can be together, with the understanding they will not qualify for the playoffs in exchange for schedule relief.

It’s meant to help struggling teams regain their footing.  But HP and Stevens are getting there without it. And Miller says he never wants to tell a team going into a season they can’t make the playoffs. The Owls nearly did.

As the league embarks on its sixth season, Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko spoke with Big Central Conference President Scott Miller at the third annual BCC Media Day up at Kean University’s Harwood Arena in Union. 

Click below to listen:

The Big Central Conference’s second annual Media Day was another huge success, showcasing every team in the league to spread the word about its 59 teams as the conference heads into Year Five of existence.

What began with years of work ahead of time, a merger between the Greater Middlesex Conference and the Mid-State 39 – helmed by current BCC President Scott Miller, and now-retired Athletic Directors Ben LaSala of Colonia and John Maggio of Bridgewater-Raritan – is now starting to rock and roll.

Speaking with Miller at the 2024 Media Day at Kean University’s Harwood Arena in Union, the league’s top man noted that a website is on its way sooner than later, and an Instagram account is already up and running. You can see it and follow by clicking here.

The league also unveiled a new logo, featuring a football in dark blue and gold, with lettering reminiscent of traditional college apparel.

We caught up with several coaches and their players last night, and you’ll see those stories and hear those interviews in the coming weeks here on Central Jersey Sports Radio, along with our divisional previews with comments from every team on the dais.

Click below to hear Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko talk with Big Central Conference President Scott Miller about the upcoming season:

Hard to believe: the Big Central Conference is about to begin its fourth season of play.

Through no fault of its own, Year One was an inauspicious start. Of course, everything looked good on paper as the calendar turned to its debut year, 2020. That is, until March, when the COVID-19 pandemic reached every square inch of the globe, shutting down schools, businesses, and, of course, sports.

No one even knew if there would be a football season, let alone a school year, as remote learners put away their laptops in June.

As it turned out, there was an abbreviated schedule, but no playoffs to be had. Too bad, because the fledgling league had some exciting teams. In one last dose of irony, a highly anticipated “pod playoff” matchup between 6-1 Phillipsburg and 7-0 Somerville – widely considered the best in the conference, especially after the Pioneers won a battle of unbeatens in Woodbridge the week prior – got cancelled due to COVID-related issues with both schools.

Now, the league is in Year Four. Tuesday, it ran its first ever Big Central Media Day – Part one of Two, with the second taking place today back at Iron Peak Sports & Events in Hillsborough. It’s all thanks to numerous sponsorships and partnerships. The Big Central is on Twitter (or “X,” for the few who choose to call it by its new name) at @big_central_nj. And there’s a website coming soon.

One of the key men behind it all is Scott Miller, the Brearley Athletic Director and former longtime football coach. We caught up with him at Iron Peak Tuesday to talk about the direction of the Big Central.

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko’s interview with Big Central President Scott Miller: