GMC Gridiron Game Capsules–Week Ten–State Playoffs–Opening Round–Saturday Afternoon

First Round of Playoff Action Concludes With Three GMC Games

SOUTH PLAINFIELD, NJ–On Saturday, week ten and the opening round of the various state playoffs will conclude with three playoff games involving GMC teams.  The biggest match-up of the three will be at Ciardi Field in Piscataway where the second seeded Chiefs will host seventh seeded Bayonne of Hudson County in the opening round of the North Jersey Section 2 Group V playoffs.  The other two match-ups involve GMC Blue schools as Middlesex hosts New Egypt in the opening round of the CJ Group I tourney while Spotswood hosts Delaware Valley in the opening round of the CJ Group II tourney.  Below are game capsules with predictions on these three games:

Bayonne (6-3) at Piscataway (7-1)–The Chiefs have posted four shutouts this season including last week’s 42-0 drubbing of CJ Group V qualifier Old Bridge, one of the top four or five teams in the GMC.  P-Way, which gave up the most points since 1970 last season, has put more emphasis on the defensive side of the ball this year, and it has resulted in 27 total points, or an average of 3.4 points per game.  Piscataway’s only loss this season was a 14-7 defeat at the hands of CJ Group V top seed South Brunswick two weeks ago.  The Chiefs have also played and defeated playoff teams Monroe (24-14) and East Brunswick (48-0).  Meanwhile, Bayonne has recorded two shutouts of its own this year, but has also been shut out twice.  The Bees lost three games to Union City (42-0), state and national powerhouse St. Peter’s Prep (49-0), and North Bergen (13-12) by a combined score of 104-12.  Piscataway is led by Danny Haus at QB, Elijah Barnwell and Elijah Pierson at RB, Tyrell Bush at WR, Kamal Stewart, and Elorm Lumor on defense.  Possible match-up with Elizabeth for the third time in four years looming in the semifinals.  Chiefs should advance here.  Prediction:  Piscataway wins 28-7.

Delaware Valley (5-3) at Spotswood (6-3)–The Chargers are coming off one of its biggest wins in school history after a 10-6 win at Metuchen last week for the GMC Blue Division crown.  Spotswood got key plays from QB Ryan Smolin and RB’s Ryan Long and Chase Fee on offense while Mason White made big plays on defense.  Now, the Chargers are looking to get a first round playoff win, which they didn’t get last year.  Spotswood finished the season with three straight losses after winning wild game against Dunellen late in the season last year.  This time, the Chargers are looking to turn the tables, and make a nice run in the states.  While being 5-0 in Blue Division play this year, Spotswood was only 1-3 against teams outside the GMC.  However, two of those teams included CJ Group I top seed Shore Regional, which the Chargers lost on the road 10-0 in Week #2 and CJ Group I qualifier, Point Pleasant Beach, which was another road loss (9-6).  The Chargers also lost to CJ Group III Holmdel (33-14), which just finished the season last night at 2-7.  Meanwhile, the Terriers of Delaware Valley again open up tourney play on the road against a GMC team.  Delaware Valley has played five playoff teams this season with a 2-3 record.  Wins have come against West Essex (21-14) and Johnson Regional (21-20) and losses have come against Roselle, the top seed in CJ Group II (34-29), Cranford, the top seed in N2 Group III (35-18), and N2 Group III qualifier, North Plainfield (22-21).  The Terriers have also given up an average of 21.5 points per game although they’ve scored an average of nearly 32 per game.  Spotswood has yielded just 11 points per game while scoring a little more than 20 points per contest.  Keep in mind though that the Chargers played mostly Group I schools this year with the exception of the game against Holmdel.  Spotswood is at home, but Delaware Valley gets the edge.  Prediction:  Delaware Valley wins, 21-20.

New Egypt (6-2) at Middlesex (6-2)–Former South Plainfield head coach and Dunellen assistant, Phillip McGuane returns to Middlesex County as the head coach of New Egypt from the West Jersey Football League as the fifth seeded Warriors take on the fourth seeded Middlesex Blue Jays.  McGuane knows what it is like to be the underdog and make a big run through the states.  He did it with eighth seeded South Plainfield in 2007 when the Tigers upset top seeded Irvington in the opening round and then knocked off Scotch Plains-Fanwood in the semifinals.  Does he have that magic to sprinkle on the Warriors?  Middlesex had its best season since the 2008 season, and only lost its two games by a combined total of 10 points including one in overtime.  The Jays have beaten the likes of Point Pleasant Beach (14-6), Asbury Park (20-6), Sussex Tech (33-13), and Keansburg (26-0) outside of conference, and have played playoff teams such as Point Beach, Spotswood, and Metuchen with a combined record of 16-10.  The other five teams Middlesex has played has a combined record of only 10-34.  New Egypt was routed last week by the CJ Group I second seed, Palmyra (45-0) and lost to seventh seeded Florence earlier in the season.  The Warriors have also won games against five teams with a combined record of 11-35.  The only other victory was against Riverside (42-8), which missed the cutoff to qualify for CJ Group I with 59 power points.  MHS has outscored opponents 22-10 per game while New Egypt has  outscored its foes by an average of 25-19.  Both teams have played similar strength of schedules, but Middlesex is at home, and has given up fewer points per game.  Jays get a slight edge.  Prediction:  Middlesex wins, 21-18.

GMC Gridiron will not be covering any of these playoff games.  Instead, GMC Gridiron will be out at J.F. Kennedy to see the Mustangs take on West Morris in the opening round of the North Jersey Section 2 Group IV state playoffs.  The site will also cover a Freshmen Game of the Week between Edison and J.P. Stevens on Friday afternoon.