MIDDLESEX, NJ–After traveling up to South Amboy and watching the Cardinal McCarrick Eagles go at it with the Trojans of Bishop Ahr in their Thanksgiving Rivalry game at Waterfront Park earlier in the evening, GMC Hoops got back into the car, and traveled back up Route 287 North, and eventually to Route 28 to reach the final destination of the evening, Middlesex High School. At MHS, the Blue Jays and Dunellen Destroyers had already started their Turkey Day Eve football contest. These two schools have become tremendously fierce rivals over just the past several years. Aided by their close proximity geographically, these two schools have played each other at least twice a year for the past several years in boys basketball. In addition, there is not a whole lot of love lost between these schools. A couple years ago, a good deal of the trash talking on the now extinct GMC Hoops Message Board, went back and forth between the Middlesex and Dunellen fans.
Middlesex has had a lot to be upset about as Dunellen has enjoyed a great deal of success on the basketball court while it has not. Since 2002, the Blue Jays have not qualified for the state tournament while the Destroyers have made it every year for the past six seasons. On top of that, the Blue Jays, which entered this year’s contest with five wins in the previous eight meetings, lost to Dunellen last year, 36-6. Both teams just missed qualifying for the state tournament due to not having enough power points. DHS actually began the season at 4-0, but lost three of its last five for a 6-3 mark. Meanwhile, MHS entered the game at 5-4. Each team is a member of the Greater Middlesex Conference’s Gold Division, which includes the likes of Highland Park, Metuchen, and Cardinal McCarrick as well. With a victory, the Blue Jays, Destroyers, and Bulldogs would all end up in a three-way tie for second place at 6-4 overall and 2-2 in divisional play.
Coming into Wednesday evening’s contest, Dunellen had outscored its opponents 184 to 122 this season, or by an average of 20 to 13 each game while Middlesex was actually outscored 156 to 152, or by an average of approximately 17 to 16. Like the Destroyers, the Blue Jays started the year strong with four straight wins, but then lost four of their next five contests. Middlesex was 2-3 at home entering the game while Dunellen was 2-3 on the road. Looking at the last three years of this rivalry, the Blue Jays have won in 2004 (19-7) and 2005 (33-19) while Dunellen won in 2006 (33-6). Since 2004, the Destroyers have compiled a record of 15-23 overall, and 7-11 in divisional play while the Blue Jays have gone 25-14 overall, and 12-8 in division.
Many thought that this game would come down to which team had the ball last, and convert the most two point conversions since Dunellen doesn’t kick many extra points. However, while both teams did move the ball well, the defenses held their own, and made big plays to prevent scores. As a result, the game was a low scoring affair with both schools scoring on back to back possessions that bridged the late first quarter and the middle of the second quarter. Blue Jay Quarterback, Nick Farriella, who started for the boys basketball team at Middlesex in 2006-07, scored on a keeper play from about five yards out with a minute remaining in the first quarter, and then the team scored two more points on a conversion run by Steve Krutz for an 8-0 lead. The Destroyers then took the ensuing kickoff, drove back down the field by making a few third down conversions and one on fourth down, and scored a touchdown on a run up the middle off a direct snap by Chris Hartje to make the score 8-6 with exactly six minutes to play in the first half. However, the biggest play of the game was on the two point conversion attempt by Dunellen following their only touchdown. Senior cornerback, Ernest Prempeh, managed to stop Destroyer running back, Owen Harshaney from getting in on a sweep to the right toward the Dunellen sideline, and the score remained 8-6, and that would be the difference as Middlesex won by the same margin.
According to the statistics from an article on the game in the Thursday Star-Ledger, Dunellen, a team that averaged exactly 21.1 points per game coming into the contest, ran 15 more plays, and outgained the home team by a 252-150 margin. However, the Destroyers shot themselves in the foot with turnovers including three interceptions by Quarterback T.J. Wenzel, who also played basketball for DHS in 2006-07. The most critical interception in the contest came with under a minute remaining when Wenzel threw to his right toward the Destroyer sideline, and the pass was picked off by junior linebacker, Mike Little to preserve the victory. The Blue Jays took a total of six minutes with a 13 play drive that encompassed some 74 yards to get on the board in the opening quarter. Similarly, Dunellen go its score on a 14 play drive that covered 64 yards as well as nearly seven minutes of play. The Destroyers managed to keep the drive alive with a 3rd Down and 2 conversion with a run up the middle by Hartje at the start of the second period, a Wenzel pass to Harshaney on 4th Down at 6 with 9:12 to go in the half, and then a 3rd Down and 3 conversion by Harshaney on a run to the 19 yard line with 7:04 remaining in the first half.
After Hartje completed the drive by taking a direct snap and knifing through the middle for a seven yard touchdown run at the 6:00 mark, and the missed subsequent two point conversion play, Dunellen kicked the ball off to Middlesex, which was picked up by wide receiver and defensive back, Dave Maloney, who collected two key interceptions on the night, and the senior had a nice return up the Middlesex sideline to the Blue Jay 47 yard line with 5:52 left in the half. Following two plays that produced short gains to the midfield stripe, Farriella snapped the ball, faked the option, and kept it with a run through a hole on the left side that turned into a 19 yard gain on 3rd and 7 to the Dunellen 31 yard line for a first down at the 4:16 mark. On the next play, Farriella kept it again, and ran right this time for about six yards to the Destroyer 25. Then, Farriella executed the option, by running left, and pitching to diminutive running back, Vinnie Zaccardi, for another first down at Dunellen’s 13 yard line with 2:50 to go before halftime. However, the Blue Jays went to the well once too often as they tried the option again, and when Farriella’s pitch to Prempeh was fumbled, DHS recovered the ball at the 17 yard line with 2:32 to go in the half.
Following an incomplete pass intended for Ryan El-Halim by Wenzel with 1:25 left in the half, the 6’3″, 190 senior went back to the air again with a throw over the middle to Harshaney for a completion to the Dunellen 44 yard line with 1:17 to go before the intermission. After making the first down completion, Wenzel attempted to connect with El-Halim again on the right side, but the ball was incomplete at the 1:01 mark, but a flag was thrown. Discussing the play, the officials decided that there was no penalty, and so Dunellen had a 2nd and 10 from its own 44. The Destroyers went to the run on 2nd and long as they handed off to Hartje for a seven yard gain up the gut to inside midfield with 41 seconds left in the period. Facing a 3rd and 3 situation with close to a half minute left in the half, Wenzel took the snap, dropped back to pass, and uncorked a deep one toward the Dunellen sideline for Harshaney, who battled with Zaccardi for the ball that went off the Destroyer running back’s hands at about the eight yard line. On fourth down, DHS went with a direct snap to Harshaney, who tried to run a sweep to the right side, but Middlesex’s defense stayed in pursuit to stop the play, and get the ball back with 23 seconds remaining in the half. Both teams then went into their respective locker rooms with the Blue Jays still clinging to an 8-6 lead.
In the third quarter, MHS put together a nice drive to get in range for a score, but Dunellen’s defense came up with a big stop, and got the ball back on downs. The Blue Jays started with good field possession for this drive as they took the second half kickoff, and got another nice return from Dan Skazenski to near the Blue Jay 44 yard line. On first down, Middlesex ran up the middle for a seven yard gain to get to about the 49 yard line of Dunellen with 11:35 left in the third. On the next play, Middlesex ran up the gut again for a short gain, and on third down, Farriella ran another keeper, and tried to hurdle a Destroyer defender, but was taken down at about the 45 of Dunellen for a first down with 10:27 to go in the third. Getting the first down, the Blue Jays went to the ground again, and ran the option to the left as Farriella pitched to Zaccardi near the Middlesex sideline for a gain of three yards to the 42. Farriella then kept it himself on the second down play, and ran to his right for about a yard or two to about the Dunellen 40. With a third down and four situation, Middlesex went back to the option as Farriella ran to his left, and pitched to Zaccardi, but the ball fell short, hit the ground, and the Blue Jay running back picked it up on a kind bounce, and got back to about the line of scrimmage, but the drive was kept alive thanks to a face mask penalty on DHS.
Rejuvenated by the penalty, Middlesex now had the ball in range for a score. With a first and ten on the Dunellen 28 yard line at the 9:11 mark of the third quarter, Farriella called his own number again, and ran it down inside the 20 yard line to the Destroyer 19 for a 2nd and 1 with 8:46 left in the period. But the Blue Jays were assessed a five yard penalty for a false start that made it a 2nd and 6 at the 24, and then got most of that yardage back with a run up the middle by the fullback to set up a third down and short situation. On a 3rd and 2 from the 20, Farriella handed off to Prempeh, who found a nice hole on the right side of the line, and ran through it to the 15 yard line, and another Middlesex first down at the 7:38 mark. Continuing the drive, MHS went back to the ground as Farriella handed off to Zaccardi for a run through the left side of the line that gained several yards to about the Dunellen 13. With a 2nd and 8 situation at the 6:44 mark, the Blue Jays had a busted play as Farriella recovered a fumble, but managed to get three more yards for a 3rd and 4 at the 10 with 6:12 to go in the third. Dunellen came up with a stop on third down to force a 4th down play, and that’s when Wenzel stuffed a running play by Zaccardi on the left side for a loss to give the Destroyers the ball back at their own 14 with 5:15 left in the third.
Dunellen would get a first down on its next possession, but wouldn’t get much farther than that as the Destroyers were forced to punt. Fielding a low snap, Harshaney punted the ball with some pressure from the Blue Jays, and the ball traveled to about the Middlesex 40 yard line, but took a very friendly Blue Jay bounce to about the 48 of Dunellen with about a minute left in the period. MHS was then stopped for a loss on first down to its own 48 as the fourth quarter began. In the final period, Middlesex appeared poised for a knock out as it won the battle of field position throughout the quarter, and got another interception from Maloney at the 9:17 mark. However, on the very next play, the Blue Jays fumbled the ball back to the Destroyers with 9:08 remaining. Dunellen then spent the next 2:35 driving the ball down field as it had all night, but once more, Middlesex’s defense didn’t break as they came up with a big stop on fourth down. With 6:33 remaining in the contest, the Destroyers were facing a 4th Down and 4 situation at the MHS 31 yard line. Chanting defense, the Blue Jay players on the sideline urged their teammates on the field to make a play, and junior linebacker, Curtis Vestol answered the call by stopping Harshaney on a pitch play up the middle just short of the first down marker.
The next big play by Middlesex would come from its special teams as on a 4th and 6 from the 35 yard line, senior Kevin Rivera, who shanked a punt earlier in the period, drilled a booming punt that bounced and rolled to the Destroyer 17 yard line with inside four minutes to go. Dunellen managed to get the ball up field thanks to another clutch play on 4th Down and 3 from the 24 yard line with a bit more than two minutes remaining. However, after getting to the 40 yard line, Wenzel’s pass to the right toward the Dunellen sideline was picked off by Little at the Middlesex 45 yard line with 44 seconds remaining. Farriella then closed out the win by kneeling down twice to run out the clock. With the 8-6 victory, Middlesex finished the season with a 6-4 record overall, and a 2-2 mark in division while Dunellen dropped to 6-4 overall and 2-2 making it a three-way tie for second in the GMC Gold behind Highland Park, which finished its season at 8-3 overall, and a perfect 4-0 in division. The Blue Jays have now won three of the last four years in this series despite being outscored by the Destroyers 68-66. View the video highlights of the game courtesy of YouTube.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Middlesex (6-4) | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Dunellen (6-4) | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 |