Griffins’ Might: McClaren, Staten lead No. 6 Donovan Catholic past Toms River East 35-0

TOMS RIVER –There was plenty of hype and expectations surrounding the 2025 Donovan Catholic football team in the preseason. A handful of key transfers sparked hope for a turnaround season on Hooper Avenue in Toms River. A combination of a tough schedule and a few injuries to key players, including junior quarterback Kahden Davis, caused the Griffins to spiral and fall into a 1-3 hole to start the season. On Friday night, the Griffins showed that they are rounding back into form as they surged back into the winning column for the second straight week behind two touchdown passes from freshman quarterback Chris McClaren and two rushing touchdowns from Alex Staten in a 35-0 win over crosstown rival Toms River East to improve their record to 3-3.

“I’ve said it over and over. I thought it was going to take a while to keep getting better and better at certain things with a lot of new guys playing this season,” said Donovan Catholic head coach Dan Curcione.  “The guys have done a good job during the week in practices, and I think we’re starting to get there.”

After a slow start to the game by both offenses, the Griffins finally got on the board with 2:04 left in the first quarter on a 9-yard touchdown run by freshman running back Justin Roberts, making the score 7-0.  Toms River East moved the chains for its first 1st down with 11:50 left in the second quarter, but on third-and-11 from their own 34, senior quarterback Braydon Flanagan lost 7 yards on a sack by junior linebacker Henry Burns.  After the Raider’s punt, Donovan Catholic took over on its own 36 yard line. On the first play of the drive, McClaren found streaking junior wide receiver Jason Madden down the middle of the field for a 64-yard touchdown strike, increasing the lead to 14-0. Another short drive and punt by Toms River East gave the Griffins the ball back on their own 37 yard line with 3:41 left in the half.  A 19-yard run by junior running back Ethan Nicolas moved the ball to the Raider 44-yard line.  A 5 yard penalty on the Griffins moved the ball back to the 49.  On first-and-15 from the 49, McClaren aired out a 49-yard touchdown pass to a wide open senior tight end Justin Tierney, giving the home team a 21-0 lead at the half.

The development and maturation of McClaren was on full display as he finished the game 4-for-4 with 136 yards and 2 long touchdown passes.

“Chris [McClaren] is a good football player,” said Curcione.  “He’s not a freshman anymore. He’s past that point. He’s a hard worker and just a damn good football player.”

In the second half, Donovan Catholic turned to their explosive junior running back to finish what they started. The Griffins went on a four-play, 62-yard drive, capped off by a 21-yard touchdown run by Staten, giving the Griffins a 28-0 lead. The Raiders went three-and-out on their next possession, and a short punt gave the Griffins the ball at the Raiders’ 43-yard line. Four plays later, Staten scored his second touchdown of the game, powering in from 2 yards out to give the Griffins a 35-0 lead which would remain the score for the duration of the game. Staten touched the ball just three times, but finished with 54 yards and two touchdowns in limited carries.

“We are taking the rest of the season one game at a time,” said Curcione.  “We play some really good competition, starting with Point Boro next week. Nothing is going to be easy. We need to show up from Monday to Thursday, and hopefully that takes care of Fridays.”

Donovan Catholic (3-3, 3-1) will hit the road to take on Point Boro in a critical Class A South game next Friday, 10/10, at 6:30 pm. A win would clinch a share of the division title for the Griffins who would need Brick Memorial and Jackson to lose another game in order to win the division outright.

Toms River East (3-3, 2-1) will host Lacey next Friday, 10/10, at 6 pm. The Raiders control their own destiny within Class C South as victories over Lacey and Pinelands would clinch the division title.

 

Statistics:

Passing:

Donovan Catholic: McClaren 4-4, 136 yards, 2 TD’s

Toms River East: Flanagan: 4-7, 0 yards

Rushing:

Donovan Catholic: Pena 2-56; Staten 3-54-2 TD’s; Nicolas 6-46; Eli Hester 5-36; Blum 1-25; Roberts 2-18 TD; Kelly 1-7; McClaren 3-minus 25

Toms River East: Harrison 7-17; Brush 5-16; Kamari 1-0; Flanagan 1-minus 7; Richardson 3-minus 1

Receiving: 

Donovan Catholic: Madden 1-64 TD; Tierney 1-49 TD; Jael Hester 1-18; Caruso 1-5

Toms River East: Harrison 3-2; Mendes 1-minus 2