8 Shore Conference storylines to watch in the 2024 public football playoffs

There are no more mentions of “it’s still early” and “we have time to figure it out.”

It’s win-or-go-home time.

The NJSIAA public school playoffs are upon us, and there are 22 Shore Conference qualifiers. The three non-public teams in the Shore are also headed to the postseason, but that won’t start for another week.

The public sectional semifinals are Nov. 8-9, the sectional finals are Nov. 15-16, the Group semifinals are Nov. 22-23, and the Group and non-public finals are between Nov. 29 and Dec. 4 at either MetLife Stadium or Rutgers University.

(See all the brackets here)

Here’s a look at the big storylines concerning the Shore heading into this weekend’s sectional quarterfinal action.

Toms River North is going for a legendary hat trick

The top-ranked Mariners (9-0) have the state’s longest current winning streak at 14 games and are the favorite to win five more and capture a third straight Group 5 title.

They are looking to cement themselves in the pantheon of the greatest Shore Conference teams of all time. The Group finals only came into existence two years ago, and the Mariners have won both in Group 5 so far. A three-peat might be the type of feat that won’t be seen for 20 or 30 years from another Shore Conference team.

They’ll start as the top seed in South Jersey Group 5, where anyone who wants to end their reign is going to have to come to Gernerd Field to try to pull it off. They have already beaten fourth-seeded Howell, a team they could see in the semifinals, 35-0 in the regular season.

Second-seeded Rancocas Valley (7-2) looks to be a challenge if they end up meeting in the sectional championship. The Red Devils have played a tough schedule in the West Jersey Football League and have a win over state-ranked St. Augustine.

As far as the overall Group 5 picture, Toms River North is ranked No. 7 in the state by NJ Advance Media, while Union City (7-1), the top seed in North 2, Group 5, is ranked No. 10. Passaic Tech, which Toms River North beat in the Group 5 final in each of the last two seasons, is the No. 3 seed in Union City’s bracket.

No other Group 5 teams are ranked in the top 20 in the state besides Toms River North and Union City, so on paper at least, those two are on a collision course. However, the Mariners can’t get caught looking ahead because they will get every team’s best effort.

Their defense has taken it to another level after a close call in a 24-21 win over Point Boro. Since that game, they have beaten four teams by a combined 142-0. The most terrifying part is that all four of those teams they dominated are playoff teams.

It helps that they have veterans like quarterback T.J. Valerio, running back Mordecai Ford, linebacker Blaise Boland, lineman Ja’elyne Matthews, WR/DB Nasir Jackson, lineman Hathem Hooranyi, linebacker Eddie Slosky, and WR/DB Cam Thomas who have played in every big game imaginable at this point.

They know the mission. Now it’s time to carry it out.

Rumson-Fair Haven is done being second best

This has the potential to be the greatest team in Rumson-Fair Haven history. They just need to find a way to win that last game.

The past two seasons, the Bulldogs (8-0) have reached the Group 2 final before falling just short in heartbreaking fashion. This season looks like their best shot with a balanced and explosive offense, the most accomplished quarterback in program history, a hard-nosed defense, and a hungry senior class.

The group led by senior quarterback Owen O’Toole, wideouts Nick Thomas and Jordan Angstreich, running back Kellen Murray and a physical offensive line is averaging 39.8 points per game. No team has stopped Rumson offensively all season. Only one team, Red Bank Catholic, has held Rumson under 30 points.

At No. 9, they are the highest-ranked Group 2 team in the state by NJ Advance Media, with Point Boro checking in at No. 17. However, winning it all will by no means be easy for the Bulldogs.

The team that rallied to beat them in last year’s Group 2 final, Westwood, is the No. 1 seed in North 1 Group 2 and is a perennial playoff contender. In the top-seeded Bulldogs’ own bracket in Central Jersey Group 2, the No. 2 seed is Shore Conference foe Wall (6-1), which is enjoying a resurgent season.

The No. 3 seed in Central Jersey Group 2 is Haddonfield, another perennially tough playoff team that has had success against the Shore in the postseason in recent years. Rumson beat them 14-7 with a goal-line stand in the final minutes of last year’s sectional final.

If they take care of business in their section, they could then be facing either Camden (6-2) or Point Boro in the Group semifinals, both of which would be a formidable challenge. Rumson beat Point Boro 41-28 in its season opener, and the Panthers (7-2) are eager for a rematch. Meanwhile, Camden’s only losses are to state-ranked Winslow Township and Holy Spirit.

Winning sectional titles has practically become Rumson’s birthright as it continues the greatest stretch of playoff success in Shore Conference history. The Bulldogs have won eight sectional titles in the past 13 years and been in the sectional final 10 straight times, so handling that part of the equation has not been a problem.

This year’s team could separate itself as the greatest of them all. No Rumson team has gone undefeated since the Bulldogs went 7-0-2 in 1959, so this has the chance to be a year for the ages on Ridge Road if they can deliver. They also would be the first Shore Conference team besides Toms River North to win an overall public Group title.

Holmdel has a Cannon as it shoots for its first sectional title 

The Hornets have already won back-to-back division titles for the first time in program history, and now they’re ready to add an even more impressive line to the resume: their first state title.

Quarterback Jack Cannon has set the school’s single-season and career passing records, and he’s only a junior. He just put up 300 yards of offense in a 27-21 win over Manalapan to continue a monster season in which he’s amassed 2,550 total yards and 31 total touchdowns.

A deep offense that includes running back Matt Iulo, receivers Frankie Serini and Michael Todisco, and tight end Alex Reyes is the Hornets’ calling card. They are the No. 3 seed in South Jersey Group 3 and will take on Oakcrest in a first-round game where Holmdel is the favorite.

Their semifinal game could potentially be a bigger challenge than the final. Unless Barnegat stuns second-seeded Mainland in the first round, Holmdel (7-1) will have to head to South Jersey to face a perennially tough program.

Mainland won the overall Group 4 title last season by destroying everyone in its path, but this group isn’t as loaded as last year’s squad. The Mustangs are 6-3 with losses to South Jersey’s top three teams – Winslow Township, St. Augustine and Millville. They have played a much tougher schedule than Holmdel, but the Hornets won’t back down from the challenge.

Hopewell Valley (9-0) is the top seed, but its schedule leaves the Bulldogs with a lot left to prove in the postseason. The winner of the game between annual contenders Timber Creek and Seneca could give Hopewell a real challenge in the semifinals.

Can Middletown North and Brick Memorial topple the South Jersey powers?

Speaking of Millville and Winslow Township, that’s who two of the Shore’s top six teams, Middletown North and Brick Memorial, will most likely have to tangle with if they make a run to their respective sectional finals.

Millville is the No. 1 seed in Central Jersey Group 4, where six of the eight qualifiers are from the Shore Conference. The Thunderbolts will face Red Bank in the first round and then the winner of Toms River South-Marlboro in the semifinals unless the Bucs stun them.

On the other side of the bracket, Brick Memorial is the No. 2 seed and will play the winner of Jackson Memorial-Central in the semifinals if the Mustangs take care of business against Northern Burlington. Brick Memorial already beat Jackson Memorial 37-0 and has a 34-0 win over the Toms River South team that just beat Central, so the Mustangs are a heavy favorite to reach the final.

Millville (6-2) features senior Lotzeir Brooks, arguably the greatest wide receiver in New Jersey history, who has the state records for career receiving yards and touchdowns. He’s also committed to Alabama. But Brick Memorial has plenty of weapons of its own, so if the Mustangs can make a run, they have some firepower on their side, too.

As for Middletown North, the undefeated Lions (7-0) have an even bigger hill to climb. Winslow Township (9-0) is the highest-ranked public school in the state at No. 6 by NJ Advance Media and has a lop-sided win over Millville on its resume. The Eagles won the Central Jersey Group 4 title last season.

Middletown North, which has not won a sectional title since 1996, is off to its best start since going 11-0 in 1983. The Lions are a strong favorite at home against Steinert in the first round and then face the winner of Middletown South-Shawnee at home in the semifinals.

Winslow will be almost certainly waiting on the other side unless Manalapan or Pennsauken can shock the state by taking them out. Cam Miller is a superstar WR/CB who is committed to Wisconsin and leads Winslow, whose defense boasts four shutouts.

Point Boro is looking to finish the job

Few, if any, Group 2 teams in the state are as battle-tested as Point Boro. The Panthers played Rumson-Fair Haven outside the division and competed in the rugged Class A South, where they pushed No. 1 Toms River North to the brink in a three-point loss and beat a good Brick Memorial team.

They are a strong favorite to make it to the final in South Jersey Group 2. They lost a heartbreaker to Willingboro in last year’s sectional final and lost in the semifinals to the Chimeras a season earlier, so they are eager to get over the hump.

There is a chance they could see Willingboro for a third time this year if the Chimeras can upset top-seeded Camden on the other side of the bracket. The good news is the Willingboro quarterback who has tormented them in the past two seasons, junior Lamar Best, is now the QB at St. Joseph’s-Montvale after transferring in the offseason. Camden most likely makes it to the final, which will be a tough test for Point Boro.

Considering Toms River North is light years better than anyone else in this bracket, Point Boro enters with the confidence that it can go toe-to-toe with anyone behind its triple option attack led by quarterback Jake Clayton, fullback Dylan Reitmeyer and slotback Nick Spanola. Senior linebacker Colin Obser leads a hard-nosed defense.

While the goal is winning all of Group 2, revenge is also on Point Boro’s mind. If the Panthers win the section, there’s a good chance they will face Rumson-Fair Haven in the Group 2 semifinals in an anticipated rematch. The Bulldogs beat Point Boro 41-28 in Rumson’s season opener.

Shore Regional is eager to show its full potential

The Blue Devils (8-0) dominated all but one of their games this season, but they are still somewhat of an unknown commodity because none of those teams were ranked in the Shore Sports Insider Top 12.

This is Shore’s chance to show its capabilities because it most likely is going to have to beat top-seeded Woodstown on the road to win Central Jersey Group 1 for the first time since going unbeaten in 2015.

The Blue Devils open with New Egypt, a team they already beat in the regular season, and then face the winner of Woodbury and Middlesex at home in the semifinals. Woodbury is only 3-5 but its record is deceiving because it played a tough schedule for a Group I squad. The Thundering Herd could certainly upend third-seeded Middlesex in the first round and then give Shore a real challenge.

The consensus best two teams in Group 1 in the South Jersey region all season have been Glassboro and Woodstown, and Glassboro just beat Woodstown 20-7 last week in a matchup of undefeated teams. Point Beach has the unenviable task of going to top-seeded Glassboro in the first round in South Jersey Group 1 after reaching the state playoffs for the first time since 2019.

If Shore wants to reach the Group 1 final, it likely will have to go through Woodstown and Glassboro, so this is the Blue Devils’ chance to open eyes around the state.

Possible rematches everywhere

There could be all kinds of rematches coming up, some anticipated and some not so much given how the first games went.

Manchester has a chance to do the “grand opening/grand closing” act on West Deptford’s season. The Hawks beat the Eagles 26-21 in the season opener at the “Battle at the Beach” showcase event in August. Now they host them in the South Jersey Group 2 quarterfinals in the first Manchester home playoff game in history and can end their season.

This is only the third state playoff game in Manchester history. The Hawks have never won a playoff game.

The scenario for a Point Boro-Rumson-Fair Haven rematch was discussed above. There’s also the chance Toms River North could see Howell again in the South Jersey Group 5 semifinals after beating the Rebels 35-0 on Oct. 10.

Brick Memorial could also see Jackson Memorial again in the Central Jersey Group 4 semifinals if the Jaguars knock off Central on the road. Brick Memorial just beat the Jaguars 37-0 this past weekend.

Shore faces New Egypt in Central Jersey Group 1 on Friday night after beating the Warriors 32-0 during the regular season.

One fun scenario is the potential of the Middletown schools playing each other twice in the next three weeks. If Middletown North handles Steinert in the first round and Middletown South upsets Shawnee on the road, they would play in the South Jersey Group 4 semifinals and then play again on Thanksgiving in their annual rivalry game.

Who will be the surprise teams?

Who is this year’s Long Branch? The Green Wave upset two teams on the road, including unbeaten Brick Memorial, to reach last season’s Central Jersey Group 4 final before falling to Winslow Township.

My best guess would be Wall. The second-seeded Crimson Knights are in the shadow of top-seeded Rumson-Fair Haven in Central Jersey Group 2, so if they made it to the final and handed Rumson its first loss, that would be a story around the state.

I could also see sixth-seeded Freehold Township upsetting third-seeded Hillsborough on the road in South Jersey Group 5, but getting past Rancocas Valley in the next round would be a large mountain to scale. The Patriots have never reached a sectional final, so that would be a big story.

Middletown South just played Red Bank Catholic tough so maybe that gives the Eagles some momentum to go down and knock off Shawnee (6-3) in South Jersey Group 4. For comparison’s sake, Shawnee lost 7-3 to a Cherokee team that beat Middletown South 30-0 in the season opener, but that was two months ago.

If the Eagles won, they would get Middletown North, whom they have owned in their Thanksgiving series over the years. While the Lions would be favored, all bets are off in a rivalry game like that.

Scott Stump is a reporter, newsletter writer and editor who first started covering Shore Conference football in 1999 and has covered basketball, baseball and seemingly every other Shore Conference sport at some point. 

Email: [email protected]