Week 4 Shore Conference football preview: The battle for first place

Week Four in Shore Conference football is all about the getting in the driver’s seat.

Games in Class A South, Class B South and Class C South will all be for sole possession of first place, stamping teams as the clear front-runner to bring home the title. Class C North also has two games between four contenders that could potentially leave one team alone in first.

Here’s what to watch for as we get to the midpoint of the season for most teams.

(Full Week 4 schedule here)

Showdown in Stafford

Southern (4-0, 2-0) is off to its first 4-0 start since 2008 and welcomes Central (4-0, 2-0) to Ram Country on Friday night for a game that will determine sole possession of first place in Class B South.

Both teams have looked among the most improved squads in the Shore Conference this season, as both have already either tied or surpassed their win total from last year. They’re former Thanksgiving rivals, so there’s a long history between the Ocean County squads.

Southern’s last division title came when the Rams won the Constitution Division in 2019, while Central’s last crown was the Liberty Division in 2021, when the Golden Eagles last started 4-0. Southern hasn’t been 5-0 in at least 20 years and maybe ever, so this could be some uncharted territory for the Rams with a win.

The Rams enter off a 42-0 rout of Toms River East for their third shutout in four games this season and their highest point total since 2020. Central is coming off a hard-fought, 14-7 win over Lacey for its first victory over the Lions in 22 years.

Both teams feature balanced offenses. Southern is led by quarterbacks Cooper Dempsey and Carson Abbato and two-way stars Justin Silva and Evan Wyrsch, the latter of whom rolled up a career-high 156 yards rushing and a touchdown in the win over Toms River East. Central boasts quarterback Joe Vezzosi, running back Nick Ruggiero and a deep group of wideouts led by seniors Royalty Riley and Nnaemeka Amaechina.

Southern’s special teams have also been outstanding with multiple returns for touchdowns and the stellar performance of senior kicker/punter Keegan Foote. Both teams have generally been playing from in front all season, so getting the early lead or a double-digit lead in this game should be huge as far as putting the opponent in an uncomfortable spot they haven’t faced.

One extra wrinkle is that Central’s head coach, Jarrett Pidgeon, is a former All-Shore linebacker at Southern. His squad will look to halt a strong start by his alma mater and his former head coach, Chuck Donohue Sr.

The Mariners machine

The Toms River North threshing machine rolled into Brick last week and left with a 35-6 win over No. 5 Brick Memorial that puts them on the precipice of all but wrapping up the Class A South title.

On paper, the last big hurdle appears to be this week against No. 4 Point Boro. A win by either team puts them in sole possession of first place in the division. Toms River North has the state’s longest current winning streak at nine in a row and has won 30 in a row against public school competition, so the Mariners enter as the heavy favorite.

Point Boro and its triple option attack are coming off a 34-24 win over Jackson Memorial to remain unbeaten in the division. Given the fact that Toms River North has not been held under 31 points this season, the Panthers will need quarterback Jake Clayton, fullback Dylan Reitmeyer and Co. to find a way to score on a Mariners starting defense that has only given up one touchdown all season.

While all the big names for Toms River North (T.J. Valerio, Cam Thomas, Mordecai Ford, Nasir Jackson) dazzled in the win over Brick Memorial, the Mariners also gave teams yet another headache to worry about. Sophomore Cole Garrison returned a punt 75 yards for a touchdown, and head coach Dave Oizerowitz said afterward he expects Garrison to be next on the factory line of stars for the Mariners.

Point Boro’s defense has struggled against opposing passing attacks, and Toms River North may have the fastest group of wide receivers in the Shore Conference. Valerio can hit a deep shot at any time to Thomas, Garrison, Jackson and Mekai Morse, so getting pressure on Valerio from defensive lineman Lou DiBiase and others will be crucial. The bad news for Point Boro is Toms River North has an enormous offensive line led by Rutgers recruit Jaelyne Matthews.

It’s rare that teams that are fairly one-dimensional on offense like Point Boro can score enough to beat Toms River North, but the triple option presents its own headaches if opposing defenses aren’t disciplined and don’t play assignment football. It also allows the Panthers to control the clock and keep the ball out of the hands of explosive opposing offenses, but that only works if Point Boro’s defense doesn’t allow Toms River North to jump out to a quick lead.

Bengals-Hawks is a must-C game

Barnegat (3-1, 2-0) has been on fire with three straight 40-point games, and the Bengals head to Manchester (3-1, 2-0) for a showdown that will leave the winner alone in first place in Class C South.

The Hawks have never won a division title in their 48-year history, while Barnegat is looking for its first division crown since 2014 outside of a public co-championship in 2018.

It will be Manchester’s aerial attack led by senior quarterback Aidan Lunn (605 passing, 4 TDs) and wideout Marquis Goins (14-334, 2 TDs) against a formidable Barnegat ground game spearheaded by the tandem of Myquan Rush-Esdaile (262 yds, 4 TDs) and Johnnel Johnson (339 yds, 10 TDs). Manchester has played the tougher schedule so far, while Barnegat enters in the midst of the hottest offensive streak in program history.

Manchester senior linebacker Dante Mortellite leads the Shore Conference in tackles, and he will need to be at his best against Barnegat’s rushing attack. Manchester has to shore up its run defense after surrendering nearly 400 yards rushing in a comeback win over Pinelands two weeks ago.

On the other side, Barnegat senior Cole Toddings is a Colgate recruit and Defensive Player of the Year candidate at linebacker who will look to put pressure on Lunn and tackle Manchester’s playmakers in space.

Walling off the C North race

Following its wild 36-26 win over No. 7 St. John Vianney last week in a matchup of unbeatens, No. 6 Wall (4-0, 2-0) has another crucial division game this week against No. 10 Holmdel (3-2, 1-1) in its quest to win the Class C North title.

The Hornets enter off their best performance of the season, a 41-0 win over Manasquan. They feature junior quarterback Jack Cannon (1,209 total yards, 20 TDs) and wideout Frankie Serini (16-243, 4 TDs) leading the way offensively, while senior defensive lineman Cipriano Bodnar (4 sacks) anchors the defense.

Wall showed against St. John Vianney that it’s capable of scoring all kinds of ways, from kickoff returns to defensive touchdowns to explosive passing plays to its bread-and-butter running game. Holmdel’s defense has struggled against high-level offenses this season, so it really comes down to whether it can get stops against Wall’s versatile attack led by quarterback Franny Scaramellino (723 total yds, 10 TDs), running back Mason Adam (289 rushing, 4 TDs) and wideouts Derek Boss, Heath Reinhardt and Tony Credle, who have a combined 432 yards receiving and 5 TDs.

If Wall wins and St. John Vianney beats Manalapan (2-2, 2-0), the Crimson Knights would be in sole possession of first place in the division with divisional games remaining against Manalapan and Thanksgiving rival Manasquan. If Wall and Manalapan both win, that would set up a huge showdown between those two on Oct. 10 that would go a long way toward deciding the division title.

If Holmdel pulls the upset and St. John Vianney knocks off Manalapan, there would be a four-way tie for first in the loss column to send the division into chaos.

The Braves have won two straight heading into a game against a St. John Vianney team looking to bounce back from the loss to Wall. Manalapan beat Raritan and Manasquan by a combined 62-7 the last two weeks and has gotten the run game cranked up, while St. John Vianney star tailback Abdul Turay has registered back-to-back games of more than 200 yards rushing. Manalapan has a standout tailback of its own in A’shere Woolfolk (447 yds, 5 TDs), who is averaging 6.5 yards per carry.

What else to keep an eye on:

• Jackson Memorial star tailback Jonah Glenn remains week to week after sitting out last week against Point Boro and will be questionable against Howell (1-2) on Friday night.
• Same goes for Brick Memorial junior quarterback Jason Lajara and lineman Ben Szuba, who both left the Toms River North game with injuries last week, as their status is up in the air for the Mustangs’ game against Donovan Catholic.
• Middletown North is looking for its first 4-0 start in at least 20 years and possibly since the mid-90s when it takes on Freehold (1-3, 0-2) on Saturday.
• Long Branch heads to Colts Neck on Saturday for a Class A North game where the winner will pick up its first victory of the season.
• No. 3 Red Bank Catholic will look to win its 17^th straight game against Shore Conference teams when it faces Marlboro on Saturday.
• Shore Regional heads to Keansburg looking to start 4-0 for the first time since going undefeated in 2015.
• New Egypt travels to Keyport on Saturday in search of its first 4-0 start since 2011. The Warriors can also surpass their win total from last season.

Scott Stump is an award-winning 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]