Silver Dollar – BCC Standouts Who Keep it a Buck
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As we continue our tour of New Jersey’s Big Central Conference, today we will wrap up our scouting report of its National Silver division. Perhaps the conference’s most stout division, the National Silver features Edison, North Brunswick, Sayreville, New Brunswick,…
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Continue ReadingAs we continue our tour of New Jersey’s Big Central Conference, today we will wrap up our scouting report of its National Silver division. Perhaps the conference’s most stout division, the National Silver features Edison, North Brunswick, Sayreville, New Brunswick, and Franklin all striving for the top spot.
Without further ado, let’s break down the film of some of the division’s top returning talent for the 2023 season and beyond.
Having a disruptive nose guard will give offenses fits all game long. That’s exactly what Nicholas Mojica Nicholas Mojica 5’10” | 245 lbs | DL Sayerville | 2024 NJ of the Sayreville Bombers does on a down-by-down basis. The 5’10” 235lb junior unquestionably gets his job done. Last fall he totaled 33 tackles and 2 TFL across 8 games.
Upon watching his tape, there is much more than the story his stats tell us. You will be hard-pressed to find a down linemen in the conference with as quick and sudden a get off as Mojica’s. If you blink, you will miss it. He blows past guards and centers, immediately forcing the issue in the backfield. Time-and-time again, Mojica is chasing down whoever has the ball, forcing bounces, and most importantly disrupting plays. From an offensive standpoint, this is worse than him holding the point of attack because there is no time for your play call to develop.
Mojica will benefit from a big offseason in the weightroom. With his twitchiness, adding size and strength will give him a legitimate shot at making all state.
Much of Edison High School’s success last season was attributed to, and justifiably so, heralded senior QB Matt Yascko; however, perhaps an under acclaimed component to the Eagle’s explosive offense was sophomore RB Nyekir Eato Nyekir Eato 5’11” | 175 lbs | RB Edison | 2025 NJ . Last season, the 5’11” 175lb tailback rushed for 1249 yards and 15 TDs, while averaging a whopping 6.8 YPC. He also caught 11 balls for 107 yards and 1 TD. He even impacted the game as a contributor on defensive and special teams by tallying 23 tackles, 5 TFL, 3 sacks, 1 FF, two blocked kicks, one of which he returned for a TD.
There are a lot of positives this young man brings as a feature tailback. First, he is a physical, violent runner who fights for extra yardage. Whether it is him lowering his shoulder or displaying his acrobatic balance, he gets the extra yardage he is fighting for. He also moves his feet through contact to break tackles and move piles.
How Eato manages his speed is interesting. He has the speed to get outside the tackles and into the alley. He also has a second and third gear that he turns on, seemingly at will, when he gets to the second and third levels of the defense. These gifts make him want to hit home runs every touch.
This is a young sophomore back. A good goal for him his junior year is to press the hole before bouncing outside. That is, he should look to run inside-out rather than bounce it immediately. These shorter 3- and 4-yard gains will add up; and he is destined to break them into huge gains with how his physical running style is complemented by his continuous leg drive.
Jack Garbolino
Jack Garbolino
For the last two seasons perennial division force North Brunswick has benefited from having a pitch-and-catch sibling combo, where younger brother Jack Garbolino has caught countless passes from older brother Frankie. Standing at 6’2″ 205lbs, Jack Garbolino plays WR and S on the football field, and also represents the Raiders as a member of their basketball and lacrosse teams. The sophomore caught 28 balls for 473 yards and 5 TDs, rushed twice for scores, converted a 2 point conversion, and totaled 41 tackles, 1 FF, and 2 Ints.
The first thing I noticed on film was that this sophomore is every bit of 6’2″ 205lbs. Despite such a large frame, he has shown the ability to play with finesse as a WR. He has an innate ability to lull opposing defenses to sleep as he slips into the soft underbelly of their zone coverage. Toward the goal line, he does a nice job using his large frame to box out defenders when making a play on the ball. He is also a willing blocker – whether it be at H-back, TE, or WR. He seems to like mixing it up so his teammates can spring a big play.
In North Brunswick’s 3-3 stack alignment, the younger Garbolino appeared both at single-high safety and a roll-down adjuster. From centerfield, nobody gets behind him; when he is rolled down covering the slot, he makes great breaks on the ball. He is also versatile enough to play at the LOS in goal line situations, having made several plays in the backfield.
Garbolino is a unique athlete. He possesses great vision with ball in hands and has another gear when he reaches top speed. Reaching that top speed a step sooner will help him made great plays explosive and play downhill on defense.
Remember: Garbolino only just completed his sophomore season. Entering his junior year, I feel he can be a menace in the opponent’s backfield and a headache for their defense to cover. This is a player to watch.
Lining up behind Mojica for the Sayreville Bomber’s defense is MLB Xavian Pena Xavian Pena 5’9″ | 190 lbs | LB Sayreville | 2024 State NJ . The 5’9″ 200lb junior commanded this defense while amassing 64 tackles, 4 TFL, and 2 PD’s across 9 games for the perennial playoff-qualifying team.
Pena will chase ball carriers from sideline to sideline in order to make plays. He also sticks with his assignment when in man coverage. He is a sure tackler who makes the majority of his plays by scraping over the top because he correctly reads his keys. I would love to see him fly into the backfield and make tackles for losses. He can do this by shooting the backside window when reading his keys.
With a strong junior campaign to build on, Pena is in position to make a big jump his senior year.
Dominating the trenches for the New Brunswick Zebras last season was the 6’3″ 240lb lineman Omari Williams Omari Williams 6’3″ | 240 lbs | OL New Brunswick | 2024 State NJ . Williams is a raw talent with plenty of physical gifts and potential. He also plays basketball for New Brunswick.
Williams made his impact on the defensive side of the ball playing mostly DE, but also contributing at DT. When pass rushing he does two things exceedingly well: closing in on the QB and utilizing the rip to get holding calls. He also keeps his feet moving, which allows him to fight through those holding calls and make plays. In the run game, he does a nice job keeping his gap-arm free and effectively makes plays with it. This indicates that he plays half-man technique well.
For Williams, I want to see him continue to effectively fight pressure and establish a new LOS in the backfield. Building up this will set him up to be a solid college prospect.