Garden State Gamers: Week 7’s Top Defensive Performers
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With week 8 being the NJSIAA cutoff for the playoffs, it was key that certain teams prevailed during week 7. Here were a few who took the biggest step when their team needed them the most. Week 6’s Top Pass…
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Continue ReadingWith week 8 being the NJSIAA cutoff for the playoffs, it was key that certain teams prevailed during week 7. Here were a few who took the biggest step when their team needed them the most.
Week 6’s Top Pass Rushing Performances
In a throughout 47-0 win over Morris Catholic, Immaculata was led by the defensive play of Davis, a stout lineman who consistently won in the trenches. Davis was a terror all game long as he made 5 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, forced 1 fumble, and recorded 3 sacks.
The St. Joe’s Hawks are hot. They have now rattled off 4 wins in a row and just upset perennial contender Watchung Hills on the road. Int his game Scott made 7 tackles and 4 tackles for a loss. Where Scott made a big impact was in the passing game as he made 3 huge sacks in the game, especially as the Warriors were pinned deep in the fourth quarter.
Wynn played a big part in Timber Creek’s big win at Williamstown. In the 20-6 victory of the chargers, Wynn proved too much to handle throughout the course of the game. Very active for a defensive lineman, Wynn made 9 tackles (8 solo), forced a fumble, and led the state this week with 5 quarterback sacks.
Waldwick rolled to a 35-7 victory against Pompton Lakes this week. Rock, one of the cornerstones of their the Warriors defense, kept Pompton Lakes behind the chains all day long and killed drives before they even started. In the victory Rock made 7 tackles (5 solos) and recorded 3 sacks in the contest.
Week 6’s Top Pass Defending Performances
Abdul has only recently entered the lineup for the undefeated Indians. In the 58-2 romping of rival Newark West Side Abdul continued his personal momentum from the week prior. Abdul managed to make 2 tackles, but more importantly he had three interceptions in this game. Two of those three interceptions Abdul took back for a scores.
Savage had one helluva individual game in Kittatinny’s 43-13 victory over Parsippany. Going full-on savage mode, offensively Savage rushed for 166 yards and 3 scores on 17 totes; however, he stood out defensively as from the secondary as he intercepted 3 passes – 1 of which was returned for a touchdown.
I guess I own a crystal ball because Hudson was a player I identified as one to watch out for entering week 7. Hudson proved me a genious. In the upset victory at Watchung Hills, the Hawks – who are now on a four game win streak – actually got plenty of offense from their defense. Although Hudson was credited with just 2.5 tackles, Hudson intercepted 2 passes. Both those passes, however, went the other way for touchdowns.
Week 6’s Top Run-Stuffing Performances
Altemus, already coming off a strong junior season, is having an incredible senior year. Already credited with 131 tackles (74 solos) on the season, Altemus’ year was highlighted last week against South Hunterdon. A tough 41-7 loss, the linebacker made 25 tackles (17 solo), 1 tackle for loss, forced a fumble, and intercepted a pass.
Highlights
Indian Hills pitched a shutout this week, 35-0, over Hopatcong. De La Cruz had his best, most active game of the season from his linebacker spot. De La Cruz absolutely cleaned up with 18 tackles and 1 tackle for loss in the dominant win.
Despite trying to spread the love, on a week-to-week basis Linthicum makes it really difficult for me to not call his name as a top performer. This week he left me with no options. Falling short in a 13-0 game against Cedar Creek, the sophomore – who might be more seasoned than some seniors at this point – had an incredible game. Linthicum made 21 tackles in the contest. Incredibly a total of 9 tackles went for a loss. With this performance Linthicum has made 104.5 tackles on the season and made 22 tackles for loss.
Highlights
Linthicum was only outdone by one player this week, a linebacker from Verona. In an utterly heartbreaking loss at Glen Ridge by a score of 8-7, Maisano led a tough Hillbilly defense that frustrated its opposition all game long. Maisano was a madman as he made 22 tackles in the game – 13 of which were solos. Additionally, Maisano made 4 tackles behind the line of scrimmage as well.