Tag: Union

by Mike Pavlichko

2024 Big Central Preview: American Gold Division

The Big Central Conference’s American Gold Division is one of the tops in the league. All play difficult and challenging schedules, and there’s a lot of parity.

To wit, Union was 5-6 in 2023, with all but one of those losses coming to playoff teams.

Elizabeth has been young, but should make strides in Year Three under John Fiore, who had a wonderful run prior to coming to Union County up at Montclair. Westfield has a new coach in Matt Andzel, while St. Joseph continues to be solid playing with the big boys in the BCC.

Click below to hear our preview of the American Gold Division from Big Central Conference Media Day:

by Mike Pavlichko

After 11 seasons at Union, Lou Grasso steps down to take AD job at Colonia

Union head coach Lou Grasso has stepped down as head coach of the Farmers’ football program after eleven seasons, making the announcement on the team’s Twitter page Friday afternoon.

Grasso will take over as Director of Athletics at Colonia High School, after being approved by the Woodbridge Board of Education Thursday night, as confirmed by the district office to Central Jersey Sports Radio. He’ll take over from Ben LaSala, who retired from coaching the Patriots in 2013 and has been in the position since.

Grasso has been the head coach at Union since 2013, compiling a 67-49 record, with his team’s best season coming in 2019. They went 12-1 and won the North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 title over Clifton, 42-28, before falling to Ridgewood in the North Group 4 “regional title game.”

In his first season at Union, he brought the Farmers to the North 2, Group 5 final at Rutgers, where they fell to Ridge in the championship game, 48-13.

Grasso is the fourth Big Central coach to leave a big school this spring, following the departure of Joe LaSala – Ben’s son – from Woodbridge. He was replaced by Joe Goerge, who left South Brunswick to take the Barrons’ job. And Jim DeSarno recently stepped down after a long run at Westfield to take the AD position there, following the retirement of Sandra Mamary.

Now, Union will be in the market for a new head coach with summer workouts right around the corner.

Click below to hear Lou Grasso talk about leaving Union, and becoming the new Athletic Director at Colonia High School:

by Mike Pavlichko

Central Jersey Sports Radio announces football “Specialty Awards” for 2023

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 2023 Central Jersey Sports Radio Specialty Awards:

“Three-Way Player of the Year: Sal Marchione, Monroe

Nominated by first-year head coach and Falcon alum Nick Isola for Two-Way Player of the Year, we decided he was overqualified for that award, and decided to honor his as the Three-Way Player of the Year for 2023.

Isola – who was elevated to head coach after serving as an assistant for Monroe – says he had “the most impressive senior year of any player I’ve coached the last seven years.”

Monroe’s Sal Marchone. (Source: Hudl)

On offense, Marchione had 62 catches this season – a Monroe record – for 769 yards and six touchdowns, while also carrying 34 times for 215 yards and two more scores. He even threw three passes, completing all of them, for 106 yards and a touchdown.

TOn defense, he logged 50 tackles – despite starting the year at free safety – as well as 15 tackles for loss, three sacks, three forced fumbles and two interceptions, one for a touchdown.

But wait, there’s more! He also punts… and booted 34 kicks for a 34.5 yard average, with 18 going more than 35 yards, and a long of 52!

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko talk with Sal Marchione of Monroe:

“Shutdown Defender”: Renick Dorilas, Union

He may very well be a “lethal defender” as his head coach Lou Grasso calls him, but Renick Dorilas also is a very feared defender.

Dorilas registered 32 tackles on defense, with three interceptions and ten pass breakups. Those may not sound like huge numbers, but they make sense. Why? Because no one wants to throw where he is.

Union’s Renick Dorilas. (Source: @dorilas_renick on Twitter)

Those that did paid the price. He gave up very few completions this year, according to Grasso, even though it’s not a stat regularly kept at the high school level, at least not revealed externally.

But Dorilas also is one of the top college recruits in the Big Central, with more than 15 FBS offers, including Rutgers, Penn State and Tennessee.

Click below to hear Alec Crouthamel talk with Union’s Renick Dorilas:

“Record Setter” Award: A.J. Bosch, Woodbridge

Bosch could be legitimately considered for any award this year, whether it be offense, defense or special teams. But we thought he’d be most deserving of our record-setter award, considering the marks he’ll leave on the Barrons record books.

In addition to being a three-year starter, Bosch will graduate tops in Woodbridge history in career receptions with 134 and career TD catches, with 27. He’s also No. 2 in career receiving yards with 2,842, and tenth in career rushing touchdowns with 12.

Woodbridge junior A.J. Bosch (Source: @boschboy8 on Twitter)

Of all those touchdowns, which one does he remember most? We’ll let him tell you…

Click below to hear Justin Sontupe talk with A.J. Bosch:

“Trailblazer Award“: Michael Schmelzer, Jr., Montgomery

An honorable mention for our Longevity Award, we decided to call Schmelzer a trailblazer instead.

He started as just such a player when he took the helm of an 0-4 Montgomery team at quarterback two seasons ago, then won three straight to help get the Cougars into the playoffs.

Overall, he finished his career 18-6-1 as a starter in two-and-a-half seasons, and he led the Cougars to three straight playoff berths, the first time that’s ever happened in Montgomery football history.

Montgomery junior quarterback Mike Schmelzer in the postgame huddle after a 27-21 home win over Somerville on September 16, 2022. (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)

Schmelzer had a fantastic capper to his career in 2023: 132 for 222 passing for 1,897 yards, 22 touchdowns, 447 rushing yards, and 11 rushing touchdowns.

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko talk with Michael Schmelzer, Jr. and Matt D’Avino of Montgomery:

“Heart And Soul” Award: John Wargo, Phillipsburg

Sometimes there is a player who so simply represents what his team is all about, they become the face of the team.

One one full of standouts, we felt runningback and defensive end John Wargo epitomized the tougheness and grit that defined Phillipsburg football all year long.

Twice this year, the Stateliners suffered tough losses, and twice came back with wins.

The first was against Hillsborough in the rain at Rutgers in the Rumble on the Raritan, followed up with a win over then-ranked Hunterdon Central.

The next time it was a loss to Union City in the North 2, Group 5 final, but they came back to beat Easton on Thanksgiving. That made it back-to-back wins over their arch rivals for the first time in 20 years, since 2002 and 20023.

Phillipsburg’s John Wargo scores a touchdown against Hillsborough in the Rumble on the Raritan at Rutgers University’s SHI Stadium in Piscataway on September 24, 2023. (Photo: Marcus Borden)

Wargo was instrumental in that win, with a 13-carry, 160-yard, three-touchdown performance against the Red Rovers. He missed a couple weeks due to injury, but came back strong, finishing the season with 1,014 rushing yards and 18 of his team’s 39 rushing touchdowns.

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko talk with Phillipsburg’s John Wargo:

by Mike Pavlichko

FRIDAY Cutoff Weekend Playoff Analysis: Group 5

It’s Cutoff Weekend, and we’re the place to get all the updated playoff standings all week long, with our coverage brought to you by My Family Appliances on Route 1 South in the Wick Plaza, Edison.

We’ll have more analysis throughout the day Saturday as scores roll in. And don’t forget to join us for our “Playoff Projection Show” on Saturday at 6:00 pm as Mike Pavlichko brings you all the playoff projections, with analysis and commentary by Marcus Borden, live in studio!

Here’s an updated look at the Group 5 supersections based on Friday night results as reported to Gridiron New Jersey.

NORTH GROUP 5

Passaic Tech clinched the top seed with a win over Paterson Eastside Thursday night, while also capping off its first perfect regular season since 1998. Phillipsburg‘s win over East Brunswick didn’t hurt them at all in power points, OSI rank or UPR, still 0.2 ahead of Union City, which also won Friday night.

Watchung Hills and Plainfield remained in fourth and fifth, respectively. The Warriors beat Elizabeth Friday night by a touchdown, but the Cardinals are in action Saturday against Franklin. We’ll see if that hurts them any, even with a win. They’re just 0.4 UPR points ahead of 6th place Montclair (5-3), which plays at Columbia (4-3) Saturday.

A loss by Union and a huge win by Westfield saw both those teams go in opposite directions Friday night. The Blue Devils beat Hillsborough on the road to improve to 4-4, and climbed from 13th to 7th pace. But the Farmers lost to Ridge and dropped from 6th to 8th place, tied with Ridgewood, which lost Friday night. It that tie remains, Union would get the tiebreaker, with a higher OSI at 52.20, compared to 48.36 for the Maroons.

Bridgewater-Raritan‘s win over Old Bridge was a big one, pushing the Panthers to 3-6 on the year, and elevating them from 15th to 14th, tied with Morristown, and if it remains that way, they Panthers get the tiebreaker with a 45.66 OSI, and Morristown with a 43.86 OSI. The Colonials lost Friday night, while Bayonne won to move from 17 to 16, with Eastside moving out to 17.

We’re taking BR off the bubble. They’re in, making it six Big Central teams in this section, with Phillipsburg the top-seed in what we think should be North 2; PCTI will get the top seed and probably be in North 1.

Key Saturday Games to Watch:

  • #5 Plainfield at Franklin
  • #6 Monctlair at #11 Columbia

SOUTH GROUP 5

The loss by Hillsborough to Westfield ended any chance the Raiders had at a top seed, having entered the night in second place. They fall to No. 5, behind No. 1 Cherokee, Toms River North, Washington Twp., and Marlboro. A win by North Brunswick over Cranford puts the Raiders up a spot to 6th place, right behind Hillsborough by one UPR point. Their standing is still up in the air though depending on two Saturday games, 4th place Marlboro hosting Middletown North and 7th place Rancocas Valley hosting Highland Regional.

Hunterdon Central moved up a spot from 9th to 8th with a win over Perth Amboy, while a South Brunswick loss to Somerville dropped the Vikings from 8th to 12th, so it looks like they start on the road. They look locked into the 12-seed at the moment, but everyone else in the BCC will have to wait for those two games tomorrow.

Key Saturday Games to Watch:

  • #4 Marlboro vs. Middletown North
  • #7 Rancocas Valley vs. Highland Regional
by Mike Pavlichko

Week 7 Friday night Playoff Analysis: Group 5

Note: This article contains an update to the North 5 standings and analysis due to a technical glitch on our part which didn’t include quality or group points for any of the teams. The below reflects the updated standings.

Through the end of the season, Central Jersey Sports Radio will be updating unofficial playoff standings following Friday night’s games. Full analysis after the weekend will come during the week as the official standings are released by Gridiron New Jersey.

Here’s a look at unofficial standings after games of Friday, October 13th in Group 5. Results are calculated using scores on Gridiron New Jersey as of 9:30 am on October 14th:

A quick look shows the Stateliners held steady with their win over Union, though their lead over third-place Union City has shrunk from 0.8 UPR points to 0.2 points. The question is: can they hang on with a win over winless East Brunswick next week, or will it hurt them? And will they get some help from Union City or others behind them? The Soaring Eagles play at 3-5 Clifton next week.

Watchung Hills holds in fourth, their UPR from from 3.4 to 4, while Union drops from fifth to seventh with their loss last night to the Stateliners, and Plainfield holds in sixth with a 6.2 UPR. Bottom line is all those teams should be pretty safe for first round home games if they close with wins next week.

Westfield dropped to 11th place; the Blue Devils host Ridge Saturday afternoon.

As expected, Bridgewater-Raritan went from the wrong side of the playoff bubble to the good side – 17th to 16th – with a huge home win over Elizabeth Friday night. The Minutemen dropped to 20 and should be out; they’ll guarantee that if they lose next week, having only one win, where the NJSIAA minimum is two.

Piscataway dropped to 18th place with its loss to Sayreville at home Friday night. The Chiefs visit New Brunswick next week, and even a win may not help them; the Zebras are winless, and without any other results entered, a win there would drop them from 18th to 21. It doesn’t look good for the Chiefs.

Hillsborough’s win last night, coupled with a Marlboro loss, puts the Raiders up a spot into third, while North Brunswick – which defeated winless East Brunswick Friday night – drops from No. 5 to sixth place. They will try and recoup those points when they play a solid Cranford team at home next Friday night.

Hunterdon Central holds in ninth as the Red Devils snapped a three-game losing streak with a win over Franklin, while South Brunswick’s win over Edison gave them a big boost, moving the Vikings from 12th into eighth place.

Old Bridge’s win at New Brunswick didn’t move the needle, as expected, keeping the Knights in 18th place. Franklin and Edison would have a lot of ground to make up. The Warriors are in 21st place, with Edison behind them at No. 22.

Then again, there are three teams in front of them who may not qualify for the playoffs. Williamstown (17th, 0-8) definitely won’t, since they have one game remaining and won’t meet the two-win threshold by the NJSIAA for playoff qualification. That might also be the case for Vineland (19th, 1-5) and Eastern (20th, 1-6), except they both still have two games left: one today, one next week. But even if they don’t, they still play into the UPR formula, so Franklin is 6.2 UPR points out of a playoff spot; Edison is 6.6 points out. That’s a lot of ground to make up. The one caveat here is that Edison plays St. Thomas Aquinas next Friday night and will be guaranteed at least 24 power points if they lose (way more if they win). That would up them from a 7.63 power point average to 9.45, a jump of five spaces (as of today) in power point rank, shedding 2 points off their UPR number.

Bottom line: Old Bridge has a chance, Edison may be a longshot. Vineland and Eastern are the games to watch today. Franklin should be out.

by Mike Pavlichko

Week 7 Playoff Analysis: Group 5

With just two weeks of play left before the state playoffs are seeded, things are heating up in the playoff chase. Here’s our look at the Big Central Conference teams in playoff contention in Group 5 as we head into Week 7 of high school football around the state.

And, of course, don’t miss our “Playoff Projection Show,” scheduled for 5 pm on Saturday, October 21st, when we’ll reveal our predicted matchups and seeds for the postseason. It’s all presented by My Family Appliances of Edison, which will be giving away three $100 gift cards during the show to lucky listeners!

All our analysis is based on Gridiron New Jersey’s official playoff calculations performed for the NJSIAA and listed on their website as of 9:30 am on October 10. For full standings, click on each supersection’s header below:

NORTH GROUP 5:

2. Phillipsburg (5-1, 2.4 UPR): The Stateliners remain in the second spot this week, but their lead has slimmed a bit over the third place team, which now is Union City, just 0.8 UPR points behind. Watchung Hills is just one point back. A win at Union this weekend would help bolster their cause, but it remains to be seen if a win over East Brunswick at home on Cutoff Weekend would hurt them. The Bears – at the moment – are the second winless team on P’burg’s schedule, which otherwise has three ranked teams – Sayreville, Ridge, Hillsborough – and two others (Hunterdon Central and Union) that had been ranked in the past couple of weeks.

4. Watchung Hills (6-1, 3.4 UPR): The Warriors rebounded off their first loss of the season to Montgomery with a road win against a very good Plainfield team. Things get no easier the next two weeks, with St. Joseph-Metuchen at home, then a road game at Elizabeth – which just stunned Elizabeth for its first win – on Cutoff Weekend. There’s a slim chance that if the Warriors could win out, they could get a top two finish and a top seed, but a lot of scenarios would have to break right. We’ll have a much better idea after this weekend.

5. Union (4-3, 5.8 UPR): The Farmers held steady this week in fifth, despite the loss to previously-winless Elizabeth, but they fell one spot in OSI standing and dropped in their UPR by 0.6 points. If things go right, they could end up with a top four finish, but they would also have to pull off two huge upsets, topping No. 4 Phillipsburg at home then No. 2 Ridge on the road in successive weeks.

6. Plainfield (4-2, 6.2 UPR): The Cardinals are a good example of what playing a strong schedule does. Despite their loss to Watchung Hills last Saturday, they gained 0.4 UPR points and moved from seventh place to sixth in the standings. Two teams (5-2 Montclair and 3-4 Clifton) are right behind them, within one UPR point, so there could be some movement there, but it looks like the Cardinals won’t finish in the top four, which only guarantees them a first-round home game.

10. Westfield (3-3, 11.4 UPR): The Blue Devils had a big win over Somerville Saturday, and climbed up five points in the standings in the process. We called them a bubble team last week, but no more. And with two challenging games remaining, we’re not even sure going 0-2 the rest of the way – with a loss to Ridge at home this week and Hillsborough on the road next week – can keep them from the postseason. We’re calling Westfield in, clinching a berth with their win against the Pioneers.

15. Piscataway (4-3, 15.2): Another example of how your schedule affects your standing, PIscataway dropped in UPR to 15.2 (by 0.2 points) and fell a spot from 14 to 15 this week with a victory over winless East Brunswick. The last two weeks, the news is a mixed bag. The Chiefs host a huge game this weekend with old GMC rival Sayreville (Friday night at 6 on CJSR – click here to listen) that they very well may need to make the playoffs, because their season finale against currently winless New Brunswick isn’t going to help them either. That would make it two winless teams and two two-win teams (Franklin and Monroe) killing their schedule. So it makes this Friday night uber-important.

17. Bridgewater-Raritan (1-6, 16.6 UPR): The Panthers are a win shy of the minimum wins required by the NJSIAA (2) to make the playoffs, but if they get one at this point, it will give them a huge jump against the six losses they have, even if it does come against one-win Elizabeth and/or two-win Old Bridge. They might need to win both, they might need to win just one, depending on what the teams around them do. We’ll have a better idea after next week.

SOUTH GROUP 5:

4. Hillsborough (6-1, 3.8 UPR): Thanks to No. 1 Cherokee and No. 2 Toms River North continuing to win – and even Marlboro, which has won its first division title since 1994 – it doesn’t look like the Raiders have a shot at a top four seed. The likely scenario is they finish fourth – giving them a two seed in whatever section they land – assuming they can close out the season with two wins over Somerville and Westfield. And both of them are at home.

5. North Brunswick (6-0, 5.2 UPR): Ah, the schedule. A road trip to winless East Brunswick this weekend may not hurt their cause much, but won’t help them either. The Raiders already dropped a spot from fifth last week to sixth this week, but with a win over the Bears – and another next week at home to Cranford – North Brunswick may be able to keep from dropping further, depending what everyone else does. As long as the Raiders don’t lose to East Brunswick, we’ll assume they start the playoffs at Steve Libro Field.

9. Hunterdon Central (4-3, 10 UPR): Here’s the benefit of a good schedule: despite a third straight loss, the Red Devils didn’t drop this week in the standings, though their UPR did go from a 9.6 to a 10, showing a fall of one ranking spot in power points. They are 0.8 UPR points behind eighth-place Atlantic City (6-1, 9.2 UPR). Can they finish in the top eight and get a first round home game? It might be doubtful, considering they visit Franklin this week and host Perth Amboy the next, a significant drop in their schedule from the likes of Ridge, Phillipsburg and Hillsborough the past three weeks.

12. South Brunswick (4-3, 10.8): If you figured this out and looked at the math, yes, the Vikings are just 0.8 UPR points behind Hunterdon Central, but three places back. IN fact, there are five teams within 1.6 UPR points of each other, from Atlantic City to Hunterdon Central, Kingsway, Freehold Township and South Brunswick. It just means anything can happen in the middle of the pack here, but we still think the Vikes end up in the bottom eight and playing on the road in the first round.

18. Old Bridge (2-5, 19.8): For the Knights, 32. UPR points is a tough hill to climb. They’ve won two of their last three – albeit against East Brunswick and Monroe – and visit New Brunswick this week (0-7) and host Bridgewater-Raritan next week (currently 1-6). We don’t think it’s enough to move the needle, unless the Knights get a lot of help, but it’s tough to tell if it’s possible until the Strength Index numbers lock next week and we know for sure how much each game is ultimately worth.

19. Edison (3-4, 20.2 UPR): Despite being a spot below the Knights, the Eagles have an extra win, and have a better shot at making the postseason a year after winning their first sectional title since 1991. Now, they might have to beat St. Thomas Aquinas to get in, but we’ll see. Assuming they beat South Brunswick this weekend, Edison would be a very good playoff candidate with a victory over the Trojans. A loss – even with the multiplier – might leave them in 17th, and then it depends what teams like Howell, Southern, Williamstown and even Old Bridge might do. Some of that help could come this week, so again, the picture will be clearer after this weekend.

by Mike Pavlichko

Elizabeth stuns No. 10 Union, 28-26, on big night from McDaniels for season’s first win

Coming into Friday night’s home game against 10th-ranked Union with an 0-6 record, the Minutemen simply ignored that fact.

After all, all six losses had come by a combined 26 points, and none by more than one score.

And by the time all was said and done, Elizabeth had pulled off a 28-26 upset win to pick up its first win of the season.

And it was a hard-fought one at that. No one led by more than nine points, as the teams traded scored the entire game, and a failed PAT and 2-point conversion came back to haunt the Farmers.

Ibn McDaniels scored twice, the first of which opened the scoring to make it 6-0 after a blocked PAT. Union got the equalizer and missed their kick to make it 6-6.

The teams traded two more touchdowns, a one-yard run by Jalais Mendoza for Elizabeth and a 69-yard pick six by Kasie McDowll for Union made it 13-13 after 12 minutes.

But it was Elizabeth that went into the home locker room with the lead after freshman QB Arique Fleming hit Amad Canty for a 21-yard score in the second quarter.

Union got within two on a third quarter TD pass from Omalley King to McDowell, but failed on a critical two-point pass try and the score held 21-19.

McDaniels picked off King and ran it back 17-yards for the score, putting Elizabeth up nine at the end of three.

And they survived Kordal Hinton’s two-yard TD run in the forth quarter to hold on for the win, which puts Elizabeth at 1-6 and keeps their playoff hopes alive, gaining major OSI points, with two games remaining at Bridgewater-Raritan next week, then home to Watchung Hills on Cutoff Weekend.

Union drops to 4-3.

Click below to hear Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko talk with Elizabeth head coach John Fiore about their win over Union:

by Mike Pavlichko

You Choose! What will be our Big Central Game of the Week for Week 7??

We have two weeks left in the high school football season, and now we’re letting you tell us what you want to hear! That’s right. We want to know: What should be the Big Central Game of the Week for Week 7 this Friday night?

We’re giving you five options of games to choose from:

  • Phillipsburg at Union: Some high level football here; the Stateliners were Number One in the polls for the first several weeks of the season, and Union has improved from a year ago
  • Somerville at Hillsborough: The Raiders are in contention for a top-seed in South 5, while the Pioneers are much improved
  • Piscataway at Sayreville: A classic GMC matchup between longtime rivals, and the game our listeners picked last year
  • Edison at South Brunswick: Another classic GMC game, this one with two teams looking to improve their playoff standing
  • Manville at Highland Park: Two small schools, with the Mustangs trying to stay in the playoff chase, and the Owls looking for their first win since 2016

So here are the basic rules!

  • Vote as early and often as you would like!
  • Share the poll on social media with your friends on Facebook and your followers on Twitter.
  • The matchup with the most votes will be the game we broadcast Friday night on Central Jersey Sports Radio, complete with pregame coverage with the coaches from each team, a live broadcast, and postgame recap on the site with reaction from the winning team’s coach and a standout player.
  • Voting will close at 5 pm Monday, with the winner being announced Tuesday on Twitter. (Follow us at @CJSportsRadio on Twitter if you don’t already!)

Good luck to your favorite team – vote early and often!

2025 Borden's Baller of the Year

Vote for your Borden's Baller of the Year!  The top vote getters in Middlesex County, Union County, and the BCC West (Somerset, Hunterdon, Warren) will square off to determine the one, true Borden's Baller of the Year for 2025!

Sorry, voting has closed!  But check back at cjsportsradio.com to vote for one of the three finalists starting Monday at noon!

Note: In the event a game turns out to be unavailable for broadcast or for other any reason, Central Jersey Sports Radio reserves the right to choose an alternate game, if necessary, regardless of the final vote.

by Mike Pavlichko

Week 6 Playoff Analysis: Group 5

Just three weeks of football remain before the state playoffs are seeded, and teams all across the state are jockeying for position.

Over the next few weeks here at Central Jersey Sports Radio, we’ll break down every Big Central Conference team’s playoff scenario like no one else. And our playoff coverage is sponsored by May Family Appliances, Route One South in the Wick Plaza in Edison.

While the nature of the NJSIAA’s UPR system – which uses Opponent Strength Index for 60 percent of the formula and traditional power points for the other 40 percent – is very fluid from week to week, things will come into much clearer focus on Cutoff Weekend, when Strength Index numbers are locked in.

Until then, it’s not just wins and losses that determine playoff seeding, but how much – or in some cases how little, which often is better – a team wins or loses by. A loss to a strong opponent can help, while a win over a weak one can hurt.

Here’s our team-by-team look at Group 5. Official standings on Gridiron New Jersey can be found by clicking the links below.

NORTH GROUP 5:

2. Phillipsburg (4-1): The top two teams here are Passaic Tech (6-0) and the Stateliners, with PCTI having a UPR of 1, and P’burg a UPR of 2. That means Passaic Tech is ranked first in both power points and OSI, while Phillipsburg is ranked second in both. If the playoffs were seeded today, the Stateliners would be the top seed in the North 2, Group 5 section. The schedule is never easy for them, but they’ve gotten through some very good teams already – like Ridge, Hunterdon Central and Sayreville – and have two more toughies coming up. This week at Bridgewater-Raritan (yes, they’re 1-5, but have traditionally played P’burg tough) and next week at Union (4-2), before a bit of a breather on Cutoff Weekend when they host currently winless East Brunswick. Assuming P’burg keeps winning, could their schedule hurt them down the stretch? Bridgewater may be 1-4, but they have an SI in the 70s, which would very much help P’burg’s current 61.29 OSI.

3. Watchung Hills (5-1): The Warriors are coming off their first loss of the season – to Montgomery at home Saturday night – but are in a good line for a two-seed. Currently, they’d be in Phillipsburg’s section. Their schedule is strong SI-wise. Even a win over 0-fer Elizabeth on the final weekend would help, as their Strength Index is around 60, still a few points higher than Watchung’s OSI. They have some tough ones the next two weeks, at Plainfield this Saturday, then home to St. Joseph-Metuchen. Keep winning, and a two-seed is likely.

5. Union (4-2): The Farmers are having a nice rebound year, and are in line for a third-seed if they can keep winning. They could even move higher – Union City in fourth is just one UPR point ahead of them – due to their challenging schedule: Elizabeth on the road this week, home to Phillipsburg next week, then at Ridge. A sweep would be a mighty feat, and it’s likely Union would be rewarded handsomely for it.

7. Plainfield (4-1): Boy, has James Williams got it going on with the Cardinals, who are looking to surpass their last two 5-5 seasons in a big way here in 2023. How much they can improve their standing, though, remains to be seen. The goal is a top eight finish to get one of the top four seeds in whatever section they land. A win against Watchung Hills at home this Saturday would be enormous, but wins over Monroe and Franklin – both 2-4 – may not move the needle, or worse. The Cards might need a sweep to play a playoff game at Hub Stine Field.

14. Piscataway (3-3): In 2011, the Chiefs started 1-2, and head coach Dan Higgins said from that point on, every game was a playoff game, just to get in. This year’s squad started 0-2, and is in much the same boat. Their biggest obstacle will be Sayreville next week at home, sandwiched between a home game against East Brunswick this Friday night (CJSR, 6 pm) and a road game at New Brunswick Friday night of Cutoff Weekend; the Bears and Zebras are a combined 0-2. For now, we’re calling them a bubble team on the right side of said bubble.

15. Westfield (2-3): Tough loss on a last-second field goal to St. Joseph this past weekend, but the Blue Devils are still in contention for a playoff spot. They’re also a bubble team, and on the right side of it, but they only lead Bayonne by 0.8 UPR points, and Bridgewater by a full UPR point. This could easily go either way for Westfield, too, with three very solid opponents coming up: Somerville (4-2) and Ridge (4-1) at home this week and next, followed by a road game at Hillsborough (5-1) on Cutoff Weekend. They might be able to get in with just one win against that slate; two seems like they’d sew it up.

17. Bridgewater-Raritan (1-5): Yes, even four games below .500 with three to play, the Panthers are still in contention. Such is life in Group 5 and a tough division like they play in, the American Silver. Consider the fact that it’s the only division in the Big Central with three ranked teams: No. 2 Ridge, No. 3 Hillsborough and No. 4 Phillipsburg. And they lost to all three by just a touchdown each; their five losses have come by an average 7.4 points. (Meanwhile, Spotswood is hanging on to a playoff berth at 6-0, but we’ll get to that when we get down to Group 2. In any event…) Bridgewater has a good schedule the rest of the way, and they may need to win all three. They start with Phillipsburg at home, then host Elizabeth next week before ending at Old Bridge.

SOUTH GROUP 5:

4. Hillsborough (5-1): The Raiders come after Cherokee, Toms River North and Marlboro, and expect 15th place Lenape to make a massive jump when they play – after Cherokee this weekend – multipliers St. Joe’s-Hammonton next week and St. Augustine on Cutoff Weekend. Yes, the nasty NJSIAA double multiplier will wreak some havoc on behalf of this 2-4 Burlington County team, which lost in last year’s Central 5 sectional final to Edison. Be that as it may, Hillsborough maintained its position at No. 4 this week with another big win, this time over Union. They have a good schedule the rest of the way, with Hunterdon Central in Flemington this weekend, then home games with Somerville and Westfield for the last two. And there’s some distance behind them., so they’re not too bunched together here.

5. North Brunswick (5-0): Despite being unbeaten, the Raiders – who are just 0.8 UPR points behind Hillsborough – dropped from third place last week to fifth, after a 50-0 victory over 2-win Franklin. Their problem is things don’t get better with the schedule, with a pair of 0-6 and low-SI teams the next couple of weeks: New Brunswick home Friday and East Brunswick away next weekend, before coming back home to finish out with a good Cranford team that’s 3-2 and has a 68 SI. We say the Raiders could go 8-0 and still not reach the top four, especially if the teams above them continue to win. They may need one of them to slip and fall in order to climb the ladder.

9. Hunterdon Central (4-2): The Red Devils started 4-0, but have since lost two straight. Can they get back to their winning ways? If so, a home first-round playoff game at Stewart Field could be in the cards. They’re just one UPR point out of the top eight. But the top half – and then some – in this supersection is very good. There are two undefeated teams and five one-loss teams in the top 12, and none of those teams has more than two losses. The good news for Central is that two of the teams directly behind them – Kingsway and South Brunswick – are well behind by 1.6 UPR points, and West Windsor-Plainsboro in 12th is three full UPR points in arrears. Keep winning, and they’ll stave off the teams behind them. This weekend is a tough one against Hillsborough, but it’s at home. The next two weeks are not as challenging: at Franklin and home to Perth Amboy; both are 2-4.

11. South Brunswick (4-2): The Vikings are tied with Kingsway for 10th, but the Dragons would get the tiebreaker by virtue of having a higher OSI (50.18 to 47.25). Their last three weeks are a pretty good schedule, starting with a trip to Basking Ridge to take on Will Deady, Ryan Olivo and the Red Devils this Friday night. Next week, they get Edison at home, and finish at Brooks Field against Somerville. We don’t think they make the top eight even with a sweep, but a win or two should lock up a playoff berth.

16. Edison (3-3): The Eagles are the quintessential bubble team, and have three huge games left. We think two wins gives them a very good shot to be in the field, and if things go the way they are now, they might be better off squeaking in at 16 to avoid Toms River North in the opening round. Edison lost to the Mariners in last year’s Group 5 semifinal. The next three opponents are St. Joe’s this week at home, South Brunswick away next week, and St. Thomas Aquinas at home on Cutoff Weekend. One win, however, might not cut it.

18. Franklin (2-4): Yes, the Warriors may have a mathematical shot, and teams like Edison may have a lot to do with it, but the schedule isn’t kind to the Warriors. They have No. 9 Sayreville this week at home, followed by 4-2, but reeling, Hunterdon Central, then a Saturday Cutoff Weekend game at Plainfield. Considering Franklin needs to make up big ground, they probably need two wins to have a shot at getting in, maybe even all three. Against that slate, it’s a big ask.

by Mike Pavlichko

Ridge remains No. 1 in Big Central Media Poll; Summit joins the mix

There was very little change in the Week 6 Big Central Media Poll, a week after then-top-ranked Phillipsburg’s loss to Hillsborough threw upheaval into the rankings.

Again, North Brunswick got three first-place votes, while St. Thomas Aquinas got two, but it was Ridge that took the top spot based on the poll math: 10 points for a first place votes, 9 for second, etc.

In fact, the top five teams stayed the same, while Montgomery and Watchung Hills flip-flopped after the Cougars’ win over the Warriors Saturday night.

Bernards and Union also flip-flopped – the Farmers falling to Hillsborough at home Friday night – and Summit joins the top ten for the first time ever. (This is the fourth season of the Big Central Media Poll.

Click below for the full Week 6 Big Central Media Poll: