Non-Public B Semifinal Preview: Red Bank Catholic vs. Paramus Catholic
WHO: (3) Red Bank Catholic (11-1) at (2) Paramus Catholic (5-6)
WHEN: Friday, Nov. 21, at 7 p.m.
WHERE: Paramus Catholic High School, 425 Paramus Rd, Paramus
RED BANK CATHOLIC’S ROAD TO THE NON-PUBLIC B SEMIFINALS: Defeated Hudson Catholic 41-0; defeated Paul VI 36-0.
PARAMUS CATHOLIC’S ROAD TO THE NON-PUBLIC B SEMIFINALS: First-round bye; defeated Immaculata 63-31.
RBC freshman quarterback Rahmir Rivera hopes to find the end zone often in a rematch with Paramus Catholic in the Non-Public B semifinals. (Photo by Patrick Olivero)
ANALYSIS
Red Bank Catholic’s only loss of the season was a 30-16 setback on the road against Paramus Catholic, so this is a chance to get some revenge and advance to the Caseys’ fourth state final in the past five seasons.
Paramus Catholic is the only New Jersey team to hold RBC under 21 points this season.
Both teams enter playing their best football of the season. RBC has three straight shutouts and 14 straight scoreless quarters, while Paramus Catholic ended the regular season with a 34-21 win over a Delbarton team that beat defending Non-Public B champion DePaul and then hung 63 on a nine-win Immaculata team in the quarterfinals.
The winner of this game plays the winner of the DePaul-Holy Spirit game, almost certainly at MetLife Stadium, in the championship game at a date and time next weekend to be determined.
RBC, which allows only 8.7 points per game, surrendered 351 yards of offense to Paramus Catholic in their first meeting, including 194 on the ground, so the priority will be stopping the run.
The Caseys’ defensive line led by junior defensive end Lorenzo Tartamella, sophomore defensive end Asher Cummins and junior defensive tackle Jordan Key will try to slow down Paramus sophomore quarterback Rowan Martin, who had 90 yards rushing on 11 carries in their first meeting while throwing for 157 and two touchdowns.
Now that RBC has seen the Paladins and their speed in person, they simply have to play better up front. Linebackers Brock Goodman and Luke Scaturro will also be important in shoring up the run defense.
In the first game, the Caseys were able to hold punishing runner Chukwuma Odoh to 54 yards on 10 carries, but he just erupted for 179 yards and five touchdowns in the win over Immaculata. Senior Achylles Dupont, who had 141 yards and a touchdown in the same game, is their speed back and also is a threat as a receiver.
RBC sophomore Jason Berecsky should be a pivotal player on both sides of the ball in the second meeting against Paramus Catholic. (Photo by Patrick Olivero)
Their biggest deep threat is junior wide receiver Nekhi Martin, who is having a huge season with 62 catches for 1,138 yards and nine touchdowns. However, RBC held him to 43 yards in their first meeting. Sophomore A.J. Lopez (22-459-7) is another big-play threat among a deep group of wide receivers.
Air Force recruit Dan Zabora, sophomore Jason Berecsky and junior Kieran McGonnell lead RBC’s secondary. Zabora had a pick-six last week in the win over Paul VI.
Martin replaced starter Marco Green at quarterback for Paramus Catholic after Green got hurt in the middle of the season, and the Paladins have stayed with the hot hand even though Green is now healthy.
Offensively, it’s going to be all about finishing drives for RBC and chewing up the clock with freshman tailback Gabe Kemp for an offense that averages 31.8 points per game. RBC had three field goals by freshman kicker Simon Picinich in the first game and looks to finish those drives with touchdowns this time around. Kemp had 132 yards rushing in the first meeting, so this could be the type of game where he gets like 40 carries if RBC is having success with him gashing the Paladins for four yards a pop.
The attention on Kemp also means RBC freshman quarterback Rahmir Rivera will have some opportunities to make plays down the field. He’s only thrown three interceptions all season while becoming the first Shore Conference freshman in history to crack 2,000 yards passing, and one of those was a pick-six against Paramus Catholic. Now that he’s seen them in person and felt the pressure of being in third-and-long, it should help him settle in and find Zabora, Berecsky, senior Johnny Williams and the rest of RBC’s receiving corps.
Paramus Catholic’s defense has allowed 28.1 points per game against one of the state’s hardest schedules. The Paladins have stars like North Carolina State recruit Jordan Mareta at linebacker, FBS prospect Austin Barrett at cornerback as well as senior Derion Johnson at linebacker and Lopez in the secondary. RBC still put up nearly 300 yards on them, so the Caseys showed they can move the ball against this group.
The Paladins are most comfortable in a shootout, while RBC wants to grind the clock and limit Paramus Catholic’s possessions.
The mistakes RBC made in the first game are correctable. It’s not like the Caseys got blown off the ball and have little chance of fixing things. If they take care of the ball, finish drives and don’t let up at the end of quarters or halves to allow a big play, they should be in a prime spot to get their revenge. Picinich also looms as a key weapon in case the game is close late in the fourth quarter.
The pick: RBC, 24-21.
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
