Marlboro, Football Team of the Week

Marlboro is the Jersey Mike’s Week 0 Shore Conference Football Team of the Week

Shore Sports Insider is proud to partner with Jersey Mike’s this fall to present our weekly Football Team of the Week award that recognizes one school for its accomplishments during the prior week.

Jersey Mike’s is a powerhouse national company with roots as a Jersey Shore institution. Founder and CEO Peter Cancro grew Jersey Mike’s from its original location in Point Pleasant Beach to a sprawling network of around 3,500 franchises across the United States with additional locations in Canada and Mexico. Cancro and Jersey Mike’s maintain strong ties with their local communities and have shown unwavering support for Shore Conference athletics throughout their years in business.

The first recipient of the 2024 Jersey Mike’s Football Team of the Week award is Marlboro High School, which opened its season with a 34-0 shutout victory over district rival Colts Neck in Week 0. Shore Sports Insider stopped by practice on Wednesday to present the Mustangs and head coach Jason Dagato with a special game ball and a $500 Jersey Mike’s gift card for a team meal.

 - Marlboro, Football Team of the Week

Plenty of question marks surrounded the Mustangs following one of the best seasons in program history. Last season, Marlboro earned a share of its first division title since 1994 and advanced to the NJSIAA South Jersey Group 5 championship game, its first sectional finals appearance since its only title in 1994. A large and impactful senior class graduated, however, including All-Shore standouts Matt Cassidy (RB/LB), Mike Consolazio (Edge) and Luke Rubin (K) and all-division selections Jon Moskowich (OL), Mike Garcia (OL), Rob Kenyon (DL), Anthony Tropeano (LB) and Nick Scaff (DB).

Marlboro showed it has been built to sustain such losses and be a competitive program on an annual basis. The Mustangs have posted three consecutive winning seasons for the first time in program history and are aiming to make it four in a row competing in a Class A North division that includes Red Bank Catholic, Rumson-Fair Haven, Middletown South and Colts Neck. They got off to a flying start by blanking a Cougars team that also lost a ton to graduation as senior running back Christian LaFonte busted loose for a career-high 214 yards rushing and three touchdowns on 22 carries to lead the way. Senior running back Jemell Bender added a touchdown run and junior quarterback Zach Caporale tossed a 2-yard touchdown pass to senior fullback A.J. Muhlbach.

Marlboro’s defense also picked up right where it left off last season by creating nine negative plays and forcing one turnover to secure a shutout. Senior linebacker Nick Diadema recorded eight total tackles including four tackles for loss and two sacks, while junior linebacker Jennaro Percodani posted a team-high 12 tackles with three tackles for loss, one sack and a fumble recovery. Senior defensive lineman Viacheslav Kostenko added a sack and a tackle for loss and Muhlback also got into the action with a hit for a loss.

The division schedule will be very challenging with No. 2 Red Bank Catholic and No. 3 Rumson-Fair Haven in the division, but Marlboro has come out of the gates with a message that it plans on executing the same successful formula that produced a championship season in 2023. The Mustangs, ranked No. 10 in the latest Atlantic Physical Therapy Top 12, return to action in Week 1 with a marquee nondivisional game at No. 12 St. John Vianney.