NJSIAA Football: Group 4 Preview
Shore Sports Insider is breaking down the NJSIAA public school playoffs with previews on each bracket involving Shore Conference teams.
A total of 23 Shore teams have qualified for the public playoffs across all five groups and seven different sections. Here is what to watch for beginning this Friday night when the battle for a state championship begins across New Jersey.
GROUP 4
Defending Champion: Winslow Township
Central Jersey Group 4
8- Marlboro at 1- Brick Memorial
5- Steinert at 4- Red Bank
6- Middletown South at 3- Middletown North
7- Hamilton at 2- Manalapan
The Favorite: Brick Memorial
Senior quarterback Jason Lajara and Brick Memorial are pushing for their first state sectional title since 2008. (Photo by Bob Badders | rpbphotography.com)
Plain and simple, this is the Mustangs’ best chance in years to end a 17-year drought of state sectional titles.
They reached a sectional final last season but had to face a powerhouse Millville team and lost 48-7 to a squad whose star player, wide receiver Lotzeir Brooks, now catches passes for Alabama on Saturdays.
This season they enter as the No. 1 seed and favorite to grab their first state title since 2008, with all opponents having to come to their home field.
Their offense is their calling card and averages 32.8 points per game. The Mustangs are led by senior quarterback Jason Lajara and senior wide receiver Nyzier Matthews, two of the Shore Conference’s best at their positions. Lajara has 1,831 yards passing and a single-season school-record 22 touchdown passes, plus 541 yards rushing and nine touchdowns despite missing two games with illness.
Matthews, who is the school’s all-time receiving yards leader, has 40 catches for 706 yards and a school-record 10 touchdown receptions.
He is just one of many weapons in their no-huddle spread attack. Senior Nazeer Whittaker is a running and receiving threat with 883 total yards and 8 touchdowns, junior Shawn Fowler is a big-play receiver who averages 22.9 yards per catch, junior tight end Joe Livio averages 19.8 yards per catch and has four touchdowns, and senior wideout Ricky Dillon averages 26.4 yards per catch.
Defensively, the Mustangs allow 20.1 points per game, but have returned star linebacker Trey Tallmadge to the lineup after he missed most of the regular season with a hamstring injury. Senior linebacker Mike Pappas leads the team with 76 tackles, while junior defensive lineman Jaxon Pacheco has five sacks. The defense’s main job is to just get a few stops so that the offense can get separation on the scoreboard.
Head coach Walt Currie led the Mustangs to that 2008 title, so this would be a nice addition to the resume in a career in which he has become the all-time winningest coach in school history.
This senior class has been viewed as the one to bring the Mustangs back to the mountaintop since they were freshmen. The best-case scenario for Mustangs fans is they get the job done and take their chances with powerhouse Winslow Township in the Group 4 semifinals.
Contender: Manalapan
Ah’sere Woolfolk and Manalapan are competing for the program’s first state sectional title since 2014. (Photo credit: Bob Badders | rpbphotography.com)
The Braves (6-3) are the heartbreak kids of the Shore Conference, as their three losses are by a combined five points. They have shown the potential to take playoff contenders like Wall and Donovan Catholic to the brink, but they have struggled when it comes to finishing games. Can they get over the hump when it counts the most in the playoffs?
Their only state sectional title came in 2014, but they have been to the finals seven times. If the seeds held true and they met Brick Memorial in the final, it would be the second time the two teams played for a state championship. Brick Memorial beat the Braves in 2003 for its first sectional title in history.
Manalapan’s offense averages 28.7 points per game behind junior quarterback Cameron Desfosse, who has thrown for 1,457 yards and 14 touchdowns against only two interceptions in his first season as the starter. The Braves boast a two-pronged rushing attack led by senior Ah’sere Woolfolk and junior Nicky Palmieri, who have combined for 992 yards and 15 touchdowns.
Senior Ryan Melendez is a rushing and receiving threat who has 591 total yards, and junior Cooper Savage leads the team with 19 catches. Manalapan has a balanced receiving group in which six players regularly touch the ball.
Their linebackers are the backbone of the defense, which allows 18.4 points per game. Palmieri is also a standout linebacker with 64.5 tackles, junior Donny Rocco Sosa leads the team with 65 tackles and junior Ethan Fogelstrom has 54 tackles and three sacks. Senior DJ Corsaro has four interceptions on a defense that has 12 takeaways this season.
Shore Shots: Middletown South, Middletown North, Red Bank, Marlboro
Jah’mir Lane-Bailey and Red Bank are searching for their first trip to a sectional final since 2015. (Photo by Tom Smith/tspimages.com)
The two Middletown schools and Thanksgiving rivals will square off in a playoff game for the first time since 2015 on Friday night in one of the more anticipated first-round games in the Shore.
Middletown South has a decided edge in their Thanksgiving rivalry at 37-12-1. The last time Middletown North beat the Eagles was nine years ago. Middletown South beat Middletown North two weeks in a row in 2015 between the playoffs and then the Thanksgiving game.
Both teams played a challenging schedule as members of Class A North this season, so they are both battle-tested. Middletown South has been playing some of its best football heading into the playoffs after nearly knocking off Rumson-Fair Haven in a 17-14 loss last week. For comparison’s sake, Rumson beat Middletown North 48-29. The Lions have lost four of their last five after starting the season 2-0.
Middletown South has often found a way to bottle up Middletown North’s offense, which the Eagles have held to an average of 13.6 points per game in their last five meetings.
The Lions are averaging 23.7 points per game this season and just put 38 on Holmdel, which is the No. 1 seed in Central Jersey Group 3. Senior quarterback Owen Robson has thrown for 1,272 yards and eight touchdowns for the Lions (3-4), but also has thrown seven interceptions. His main target is senior wide receiver Jack Viola (35-564-4), and junior Matt Belenko spearheads the running game with 880 yards and 10 touchdowns.
The Eagles (3-5) average 18.9 points per game and allow 23.5, so they are pretty balanced between their offense and defense. Quarterback Luca Donofrio (1,017 yds, 9 TD, 9 INT), running back Justin Rosato (642 yds, 6 TD) and receivers Logan Burbank (30-384-4) and Owen Maguire (28-382-2) are their main playmakers.
Senior linebacker Dylan Lynch has had a strong season with 9 tackles for a loss and 4 sacks for Middletown South. On paper, the game against the Lions looks like it should be a back-and-forth affair, but getting up early is big for Middletown South as far as reasserting its psychological advantage from having dominated this rivalry for so long.
Red Bank (5-3) is coming off its first division title since 2015 and is hosting its first home playoff game since that same season. The Bucs’ backbone is a defense allowing 11.9 points per game. The unit is led by senior linebacker Jason Huss (100 tackles) and his twin brother Matt (67) as well as senior linebacker/edge Jah’mir Lane-Bailey, who is having a huge season with 74 tackles, 16 tackles for a loss and 6.5 sacks.
The main question for the Bucs if they end up seeing Brick Memorial in the semifinals is if they can muster enough offense against a high-scoring Mustangs attack. Red Bank has thrown for 956 yards behind quarterback Brett Laude and run for 966 yards as a team, led by 660 yards and 6 touchdowns from Matt Huss. Senior Ari Fraser (34-375-6) is one of the Shore’s more underrated receivers.
Marlboro (2-7) is in the playoffs for the fourth straight season after playing one of the Shore Conference’s most relentless schedules. Its reward is facing Brick Memorial in the first round.
The Mustangs have struggled offensively, so it will be up to a defense led by senior linebacker Jennaro Percodani (70 tackles, 9 TFL) and junior linebacker Zach Mojares (5 sacks) to try to keep them close against Brick Memorial’s high-octane attack.
Non-Shore Player to Watch: Isaac Pate, Sr., RB, Steinert
Red Bank’s run defense will be geared up to try to slow down Pate, who has racked up 1,372 yards rushing and 13 touchdowns on an average of 8 yards per carry. Pate has 3,011 yards rushing and 27 touchdowns in his three-year varsity career.
South Jersey Group 4
8- Cumberland at 1- Winslow Twp.
5- Pennsauken at 4- Shawnee
6- Northern Burlington at 3- Central
7- Toms River East at 2- Millville
The favorite: Winslow Twp.
The defending Group 4 champions (7-2) are considered the top public school program in New Jersey. They are stacked with talent as usual and have tested themselves against a schedule that includes national power IMG Academy from Florida and state power Bergen Catholic.
Junior quarterback Jalen Parker is a veteran and one of the most explosive signal-callers in the state. He has thrown for 2,163 yards and 27 touchdowns, with nine interceptions, for an offense that averages 33.4 points per game. He already has more than 6,500 yards passing in his career and he still has another season to go.
His top wideout is senior Nyqir Helton (36-766-10), who was verbally committed to Boston College but decommitted on Wednesday after recently taking a visit to North Carolina. Sophomore wide receiver TJ Maddox (25-400-4) also has an offer from Boston College, and senior Quayd Hendrix (26-478-8) has verbally committed to UConn.
Senior defensive back Julian Peterson has offers from North Carolina, Clemson, Penn State and more, junior linebacker Ausar Heard (37 tackles) has offers from Georgia, Michigan and more, and senior defensive back KaRon Ali (39 tackles) is verbally committed to Towson. Senior defensive lineman Rob Castarphen is also one of the best in the state with 13 tackles for a loss and 10 sacks on a team that averages nearly four sacks per game.
Contender: Shawnee
A perennially strong program that has won nine sectional titles in its history, the Renegades played a quality schedule but still will be a heavy underdog to Winslow Township if they meet in the semifinals. Winslow beat Shawnee 32-8 in a sectional final last year.
Shawnee is a run-based team that has put up 2,072 yards on the ground, led by quarterback Cole Anderson’s 934 yards and 14 touchdowns.
Millville is also worth mentioning as a contender, but considering Winslow beat the Thunderbolts 49-6 during the regular season, that’s a big gap to close.
Shore Shots: Toms River East, Central
Central and C.J. Yates will try to win just their third state playoff game in program history. (Photo by Patrick Olivero)
Considering everyone is pretty much playing for second to Winslow in this bracket, a trip to the finals for either Shore team would be a major achievement, especially because both teams have a combined two finals appearances and zero sectional titles in their history.
Toms River East won its first division title since 2019 this season and is back in the playoffs for the first time since that year. The Raiders have a tall order in the first round when they go on the road to face perennial power Millville (4-4), which isn’t what it was last year but is still a quality team.
The Raiders’ strength is a defense that has allowed 11.4 points per game, although that number jumps to 29.3 in games outside of Class C South. Senior linebacker Luke Brush is the anchor with 67 tackles, and senior defensive lineman Shamus O’Grady leads the team with three sacks.
Central (8-1) has won six straight and has a chance at just its third state playoff win in school history when it hosts Northern Burlington (6-3) in the first round. The Golden Eagles’ only trip to a sectional final came in 1994.
The defense leads the way in only allowing 11.4 points per game, led by breakout sophomore linebacker Gustave Copes, who has 117 tackles and 22 tackles for a loss. Senior Austin Jarvis has also been outstanding with 92 tackles and 12 tackles for a loss. Junior defensive back Zyshun Carroll is among the Shore Conference interception leaders with four and fellow junior C.J. Yates has three, all of which he has returned for touchdowns.
The Golden Eagles average 26.2 points per game behind senior quarterback Jacob Halpin, who has thrown for 1,256 yards and eight touchdowns as well as seven interceptions. Central’s most explosive player is Yates, who has 24 catches for 411 yards and three scores, and Carroll is another threat with 217 yards receiving and a pair of scores.
Northern Burlington revolves around dual threat quarterback Brent Walulak, a junior who has 1,911 total yards and 24 total touchdowns, so if Central slows him down, the Golden Eagles will be in a good spot.
Non-Shore Player to Watch: Jalen Parker, Jr., QB, Winslow Township.
You can take your pick on Winslow, which has a host of stars and FBS prospects. Parker is one of the state’s top quarterbacks with 2,163 yards and 27 touchdowns. His No. 1 wide receiver, Nyqir Helton, is one of the top seniors in New Jersey and has 36 catches for 766 yards and 10 touchdowns. He was verbally committed to Boston College but reopened his recruitment this week.
North Jersey matchups
North 1
8- Hackensack at 1- Ramapo
5- Chatham at 4- Wayne Valley
6- Nutley at 3- Mount Olive
7- Morris Knolls at 2- Northern Highlands
North 2
8- Newark Central at 1- Phillipsburg
5- Colonia at 4- Ridge
6- Westfield at 3- Montgomery
7- Rahway at 2- Woodbridge
Scott Stump is the football editor and a reporter for Shore Sports Insider. He first started covering Shore Conference football in 1999 and has covered basketball, baseball and seemingly every other Shore Conference sport at some point.
Email: scottstump25@gmail.com
