Living the Dream: Pinelands Reaches Its First Sectional Final in OT Thriller
MAYS LANDING – Even the players on Pinelands found it hard to fathom the accomplishment they pulled off in the NJSIAA South Jersey Group 3 semifinals on Saturday afternoon.
“I’m at a loss for words,” junior linebacker Montrell Carter said.
A program that only had one state playoff win in its entire history coming into the postseason is now an undefeated squad headed to its first state sectional final after pulling out a 13-7 overtime thriller on the road against second-seeded Oakcrest. A nine-yard touchdown run by senior J.J. Jenkins in the extra period sealed the win after the Pinelands defense overwhelmed Oakcrest to start overtime.
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“People didn’t think we were going to be here this season,” Jenkins said. “We had a lot of doubters, so it feels good to finally prove everybody wrong. We stayed true to ourselves. We know what we’re capable of.”
The greatest season in Pinelands football history rolls on after the third-seeded Wildcats (11-0) rallied from a 7-0 hole in the fourth quarter and dominated overtime. They will now play at top-seeded Seneca (8-3) in the South Jersey Group 3 championship game next week. Pinelands is one of five sectional finalists among public schools from the Shore Conference this season, joining Middletown North, Middletown South, Toms River North and Point Boro.
A defense that has allowed the fewest points (38) of any squad in New Jersey this season was the backbone of the team once again on Saturday, shutting out Oakcrest (7-4) after halftime. Pinelands held the Falcons to zero total yards after the break and 93 total yards in the game. Fiery defensive coordinator Joe Adelizzi, whose unit has not given up more than 12 points to any team all season, gave a rousing halftime speech that had the Wildcats playing with their hair on fire for the rest of the game.
“Adellizzi got us hyped up,” said senior defensive lineman Brody Rawa, who had two sacks in the win. “He told us it was going to be on us. It shows a lot of respect to us, and we’re going to play smashmouth football. Greatest defense in New Jersey, and we’re going to do what we can to win.”
Pinelands defensive lineman Brody Rawa had two sacks against Oakcrest (Photo by SidelineSamsShots)
“(Adelizzi) put it on them,” Pinelands head coach John Tierney said. “He said, ‘They don’t score again.’”
The offense then came through when the Wildcats had to have it. Trailing 7-0 and facing a fourth-and-2 from the Oakcrest 13 to start the fourth quarter, Jenkins ran three yards for a first down. Three plays later, he pushed his way in for a 1-yard touchdown to cap a 13-play, 42-yard drive to tie the game 7-7 with 9:40 remaining in regulation.
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Pinelands was set up with good field position because of a high snap on a punt that was corralled by Oakcrest’s Maison Webster, who then tried to run with it before being hit for a 27-yard loss.
The Falcons responded to the Pinelands touchdown by driving 49 yards to the Wildcats’ eight-yard line. They were flagged for a false start on third down, but Tierney showed the ultimate faith in his defense by declining the penalty and deciding to roll with stopping Oakcrest on fourth-and-3.
“To me, it was a no-brainer,” Tierney said. “I’ll take my defense, one play, over anybody.”
Junior RJ Clark broke up a pass on fourth down to draw a roar from the large Pinelands crowd and keep it tied at 7 with 3:14 left in the game. Pinelands wasn’t out of the woods yet, as it ultimately had to punt into a stiff wind from its own end zone with just over a minute remaining. However, Oakcrest muffed the punt and it was recovered by Pinelands junior Alex Hickey, sending the game into overtime.
“If it wasn’t for our defense, honestly it would’ve been a blowout,” Jenkins said. “Our offense was playing at a very slow pace and wasn’t playing right together today, so it felt good that we got another chance to win the game in overtime.”
Pinelands quarterback JJ Jenkins scored two rushing touchdowns against Oakcrest (Photo by SidelineSamsShots)
Pinelands won the toss and unsurprisingly elected to be on defense to start overtime. Senior Anthony Bonds had a hit for a six-yard loss on the first play, and the avalanche started to build.
Carter roared in to sack Oakcrest sophomore quarterback Zane Forest for a nine-yard loss, and then Rawa hit him for a three-yard sack on third down. The Wildcats had struggled to put the elusive Forest on the ground much of the afternoon, but didn’t let him get free with the game on the line.
Pinelands linebacker Montrell Carter (Photo by SidelineSamsShots)
“I missed him four times in the first half,” Rawa said. “He’s slippery, but we ended up just breaking him down. He got hit once and that was it.”
After forcing an incompletion on fourth-and-29, Pinelands had a chance to end it on its overtime possession. Jenkins ran for eight yards on first down and then Clark picked up a first down with a two-yard run. Two plays later Jenkins took off for the end zone, got stood up at about the 1-yard line and then bulled his way backwards for a 9-yard touchdown that touched off the celebration.
“I followed my big guys,” Jenkins said. “I trust them with my life. Coach Tierney had us lifting a lot in the offseason last year, and I told him squats got me into the end zone.”
“All those squats paid off,” Tierney said. “All those preseason workouts, that’s what that’s for. One yard. Last year we didn’t get the one yard. This year we got the one yard.”
Oakcrest led 7-0 at the half thanks to a two-yard run by junior Jayden Graves in the second quarter, but the Pinelands defense mitigated the damage. Jenkins lost a fumble at the Wildcats’ six-yard line early in the second quarter, and the Wildcats’ defense stonewalled Oakcrest on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line to negate the threat.
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“We practice those situations a lot,” Carter said. “Our mindset was just to be fierce. Don’t let up a single yard.”
The Wildcats’ defense did it again early in the third quarter when Jenkins was picked off at the Pinelands 25-yard line. They forced Forest out of bounds for a 5-yard loss on second down and then forced two straight incompletions, including a pass break-up by senior defensive back A.J. O’Brien on fourth down, to kill the threat.
That set the wheels in motion for a comeback thriller that notched the latest piece of Pinelands history. The Wildcats have set a school record for wins (11), won their first division title since 1987 and second in school history, won their first outright division title and won two state playoff games after having not having won a postseason game since 2004.
“The feeling is awesome, but we’re only going to feel awesome today, and tomorrow we’re back at work,” Rawa said. “Our main goal is to win it all. We’ll celebrate all the other stuff at the banquet.”
Pinelands has dealt with questions about its strength of schedule all season. Now the Wildcats have gotten it done in the playoffs, which is the ultimate proving ground.
“The only thing I worry about is our locker room,” Tierney said. “I don’t care about outside people. We may not run the Shore or recruit the Shore, but I love my team.”
Scott Stump is the football editor and a reporter for Shore Sports Insider. He first started covering Shore Conference football in 1999.
Email: scottstump25@gmail.com
