Group I Regional Championship Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As we head into Regional Championship weekend, we will finally determine who-will-face-who to earn the right to be named the outright Group Champion. Group I's playoff bracket features two games on Friday, November 17 where Mountain Lakes will travel to Shabazz and Glassboro will travel into Woodstown.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Below are a handful of athletes that I suspect to have big games and play key roles in determining the outcome of each.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Shabazz @ Mountain Lakes</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1087589' first='Nazir' last='Smith'] is who quarterbacks Shabazz. In his senior season, Smith has had a solid year with new head coach Naz Oliver. Smith has completed 71 of 128 attempts for 1048 yards while throwing 14 touchdowns to 6 interceptions. Smith has a hair under 200 rushing yards on the season while scoring 3 times wit his feet. Another sophomore who could play a pivotal role in this matchup is [player_tooltip player_id='402249' first='Zaiden' last='McDonald']. From the secondary McDonald has been active as he has registered 39 tackles on the season. Beyond that, McDonald has recorded 2 sacks and recovered a fumble for a score. Given the info available for Shabazz, I suspect that their individual players' statistical output is under reported. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Coming off the heels of a breakout junior season, [player_tooltip player_id='606204' first='Cosmo' last='Fusco'] has proven that last fall was no fluke. The senior is looking to go out on top as he has build and expanded upon last year. Thus far Fusco has made 47 tackles (18 solos) with 10 tackles for loss, 1 fumble recovery, and a team-high 8 sacks. Is it any coincidence that his recruiting has picked up? I think not. It would behoove Shabazz's offensive pass protection to slide his way. Offensively, Mountain Lakes is riding the heels of young running back [player_tooltip player_id='1087585' first='Carson' last='Fitch']. The lead back in the backfield as just a sophomore, Fitch has totaled 799 yards on 106 attempts while finding the end zone 11 times. Also a lacrosse player, Fitch will keep you honest as a pass threat, finding pay dirt once on the season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Glassboro @ Woodstown</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Coach Breaker has his team rolling down in Glassboro, as he has one of the Garden State's most exciting freshman on his roster in [player_tooltip player_id='426571' first='Xavier' last='Sabb']. Sabb may not have a true position yet, but make no mistake - this kid is simply a football player. Defensively seems to be where he gets most of his burn. Sabb has registered 28 tackles on the season and intercepted 2 passes. He has ran for a score and slashed 26/422/5 as a receiver. However, Sabb might be most electric in the open field as proven by his output on special teams. At some point I think teams learned to kick away from him, but not before Sabb was able to house 2 punt returns and 2 kick returns each. The Glassboro youth movement is not exclusive to offense, as [player_tooltip player_id='402196' first='Brandon' last='Simmons Jr.'] lines up with his hand in the dirt on defense. More of an interior guy - and one that I would personally love to coach - Simmons has been a stone wall making 75 tackles on the season (50 solos). His havoc-play numbers are impressive too, having made 5 tackles behind the line, sacked the quarterback 4 times, forced a fumble, and recovered another one for a score. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1040432' first='Bryce' last='Belinfanti'] has been the straw that stirs the drink for Woodstown this season. A junior, Belinfanti has rushed for 1641 yards and 21 touchdowns on 200 carries. In all but two games has Belinfanti rushed for better than 130 yards and he has been kept out of the endzone only once this season. Defensively, Belinfanti is a key contributor too. As a defensive back, he has made 60 tackles (26 solos), 6.5 tackles for a loss, and intercepted 2 passes. Belinfanti forms a strong tandem on defense with [player_tooltip player_id='1040433' first='Bobby' last='Donahue'], who as a linebacker has made 63 stops, 8 tackles for loss, forced 1 fumble, and recorded 5.5 sacks on the year. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->