SOUTH PLAINFIELD, NJ–On Friday night, GMC Gridiron will head over to Kean University to see the non-conference clash between Summit of the Mid-State 39 Conference and Madison of the Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference. These were the top two seeds in the section this year, and come into this come undefeated. Each team has been dominant not just this past season, but for the last several seasons. This should be an exciting game that could go down to the wire. Here are the particulars for this game:
Current Weather Conditions–South Plainfield, New Jersey at 5:10 PM on Friday afternoon
- Sky Conditions: Partly Cloudy
- Temperature: 48 degrees
- Humidity: 49 percent
- Dew Point: 29 degrees
- Barometer: 30.32 inches of Hg (Mercury) and Rising
- Winds: SSW @ 1 mph with gusts up to 5 mph
- High Temperature: 53 degrees
- Low Temperature: 29 degrees
Weather Forecast–Kean University at 7:00 PM EST on Friday night
The past several days have brought very nice weather to the Central Jersey area. Clear skies have dominated things, but the temperatures have been on the chilly side. A storm system moved through the region on Tuesday, and left very cold and even windy conditions in its wake on Wednesday morning.
It was quite a way to end the month of November, which had an average temperature of 48.6 degrees here in Northwestern Middlesex County. The saturated ground also got a break with only 2.48 inches here, but colder temperatures kept the ground a bit saturated. There should be nice conditions tonight. See more details on the latest weather in the GWC Blog and Journal.
The forecast for Friday night at Kean University from the National Weather Service office in Mount Holly calls for a nice night, but temperatures will be dropping into the low to mid 30s. Skies will be mostly clear with winds being somewhat light. May have some radiational cooling. So, no need for rain gear, but dress warmly since it is going to be chilly toward the end of the game.
Weather information provided by Greg’s Weather Center.
Directions to Kean University
Address: –1000 Morris Avenue, Union, NJ 07083
From the Garden State Parkway
Northbound: Leave Parkway at exit 140 onto Route 22 East. Turn right onto Route 82 East. At sixth traffic light, make a right onto Green Lane. Make a left onto campus at first traffic light. Â Harwood Arena, Alumni Stadium, D’Angola Gymnasium, Jim Hynes ’63 Baseball Stadium, Cougar Field and Alumni Stadium Tennis Courts are on your right.
Southbound: Leave Parkway at exit 140A onto Route 22 West. Follow signs and turn right onto Route 82 East towards Elizabeth. At sixth traffic light, make a right onto Green Lane. Make a left onto campus at first traffic light. Â Harwood Arena, Alumni Stadium, D’Angola Gymnasium, Jim Hynes ’63 Baseball Stadium, Cougar Field and Alumni Stadium Tennis Courtsare on your right.
From the New Jersey Turnpike
Leave Turnpike at Exit 13A (Elizabeth). Follow North Avenue West signs and proceed to Routes 1-9. Â Crossover Routes 1-9 onto North Avenue (Route 439). Â Proceed to intersection with Morris Avenue and make a right onto Morris Avenue (Route 82). Â Kean University is located on your left. Â Go three lights and make a left onto Green Lane. Make a left onto campus at first traffic light. Â Harwood Arena, Alumni Stadium, D’Angola Gymnasium, Jim Hynes ’63 Baseball Stadium, Cougar Field and Alumni Stadium Tennis Courts are on your right.
From Route 22
Eastbound: Drive under Parkway and take exit ramp to Route 82 East. Continue toward Elizabeth to campus. At sixth traffic light, make a right onto Green Lane. Make a left onto campus at first traffic light. Â Harwood Arena, Alumni Stadium, D’Angola Gymnasium, Jim Hynes ’63 Baseball Stadium, Cougar Field and Alumni Stadium Tennis Courts are on your right.
Westbound: Drive under Parkway, keep right and follow signs to Elizabeth/Route 82 East. Turn right on Route 82 East. Continue toward Elizabeth to campus. At sixth traffic light, make a right onto Green Lane. Make a left onto campus at first traffic light. Â Harwood Arena, Alumni Stadium, D’Angola Gymnasium, Jim Hynes ’63 Baseball Stadium, Cougar Field and Alumni Stadium Tennis Courts are on your right.
From Routes 1-9
Northbound: Take jughandle at North Avenue and cross over 1-9. At the 11th light, make a right onto Morris Avenue. Go three lights and make a left onto Green Lane. Make a left onto campus at first traffic light. Â Harwood Arena, Alumni Stadium, D’Angola Gymnasium, Jim Hynes ’63 Baseball Stadium, Cougar Field and Alumni Stadium Tennis Courts are on your right.
Southbound: Entering Elizabeth follow signs for Local Traffic (extreme right). Follow signs to North Avenue. Turn right onto North Avenue (Route 439) and at the 11th light make a right onto Morris Avenue. Go three lights and make a left onto Green Lane. Make a left onto campus at first traffic light. Â Harwood Arena, Alumni Stadium, D’Angola Gymnasium, Jim Hynes ’63 Baseball Stadium, Cougar Field and Alumni Stadium Tennis Courts are on your right.
Game Outlook
This is the first and only non-conference game that the site will cover this season. With that said, it was a tough game to pass up since both of these teams are very good. Each team enters this contest at 11-0. Madison has won 24 in a row since losing to Summit in the North 2 Group II tourney two years ago. Summit has won 32 of 33 over the past several years.
The last time Madison lost was in November 2009 when it fell to the Hilltoppers in the North Jersey Section 2 Group II semifinals. The last time Summit lost was last November to Orange (37-34) in the first round of the 2010 North Jersey Section 2 Group II tourney. Summit features the spread offense when it has the ball, and a tough, steadfast 4-4 defense. According to the Tuesday Star-Ledger, the Hilltoppers have rushed for 3,154 yards, and thrown for 1,244 yards for nearly 4,400 yards of total offense. Summit has scored 475 points per game this season, or about 43.5 points per game.
Madison keeps its offense on the ground. The Morris County school has only thrown the ball 44 times this year. They will need to use their ground game to keep the ball out of Summit’s hands, and take time off the clock. Madison has run for 3,831 yards this season, or about 348 yards per game. A high scoring contest will favor Summit while a low scoring game will help Madison. GMC Gridiron’s take on this game will center around the matchup of Summit’s defense and Madison’s offense. Whoever wins that battle will win the game.
Prediction: Summit wins 27-17.