The Super Football Conference’s Top Games: Week 3

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In this article, we preview some of the Super Football Conference's top games going into Week 3 of football here in the great, Garden State.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Thursday, September 19</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>North Bergen (2-0) at Memorial (2-1), 7pm</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Under new coach Evan Rodriguez, the Bruins of North Bergen are off to a 2-0 start, including a tight, 8-0 win last week at Belleville. As they hope to rebuild and graduate from the conference's Ivy division, quarterback Dom Velazquez appears to be leading the programmatic resurrection. On the season, Velazquez has found several ways to score. The team's quarterback has passed for a score, rushed for 3, and even converted a two-point conversion.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Opposing him will be the Memorial Tigers' quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1466359' first='Matthew' last='Rodriguez']. Rodriguez is the team leader scoring with two touchdowns, while also being third on the team in rushing yards and amongst the team leaders in tackles. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Friday, September 20</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>West Morris (2-1) @ Warren Hills (2-1), 7pm</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There could be a case made for West Morris that they should be 3-0 going into this game, with their only loss being a 27-26 game against Morris Knolls. It appears that the Wolfpack's strength might be up front in their defensive line. Anchored by senior [player_tooltip player_id='1466361' first='Brady' last='Ashburn'] and junior [player_tooltip player_id='1088364' first='Tom' last='Borgia'], team's ought to take note as to exactly how productive these two are. It is rare that a defensive lineman leads his team in tackles - especially when it is by 16. That is just how productive [player_tooltip player_id='1466361' first='Brady' last='Ashburn'] has been this season. Of his team-high 37 tackles, 19 have been of the solo variety while 5 have been for a loss. Lining up next to him is recent Week 2 Game ball recipient [player_tooltip player_id='1088364' first='Tom' last='Borgia']. Borgia had the game of his career last week and looks to keep the momentum rolling. Thus far, Borgia has 19 tackles (9 solo), 5 tackles for loss, 4 sacks, and 1 forced fumble. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Blue Streaks have been a fixture in in the North III bracket in recent years. This year's rendition relies heavily on a pair of brothers - and not brothers-in-arms, actual brothers - [player_tooltip player_id='1027666' first='Brock' last='Duerring'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1027668' first='Dylan' last='Duerring']. Both seniors, both Duerring boys are important to their team's success on both side of the ball. Dylan edges out Brock on the ground in terms of attempts, yardage and touchdowns (47/318/4 to 17/233/3); however, Brock is slightly more explosive as he averages 13.71 yards per carry to Dylan's 6.77. Dylan leads the team in tackles with 27 (13 solos) and 2 tackles for loss, while Brock has 17 (8 solos), 3 tackles for loss and 1 pick. [player_tooltip player_id='1466362' first='Mekhi' last='Garrett'], a receiver, leads the ground-heavy attack through the air with 4 catches for 75 yards, but 3 of Garrett's 4 receptions have gone for scores. Expect him to be targeted in the red zone.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Pequannock (3-0) @ Ramsey (3-0), 7pm</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Pequannock is ripping and running, off to an unbeaten start. Three players of note for the Golden Panthers are their two-headed running back tandem and a destructive defensive lineman that they likely run behind. Seniors [player_tooltip player_id='1466365' first='Angelo' last='Cundiff'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1466367' first='Eddie' last='Shalongo'] lead a rushing attack that has outpaced their passing attack by better than 4:1 in terms of yardage. Respectively, Cundiff and Shalongo have slashed had a near-even split, slashing 38/326/5 and 35/342/3. Another stat I was a bit surprised to see what that senior lineman [player_tooltip player_id='1466371' first='Nicholas' last='Pownall'] leads his team in tackles with 30 - a 10 tackle lead over the next closest. Although he has not gotten to the quarterback yet, Pownall has made two tackles for loss and recovered one fumble.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Similarly, Ramsey is also off to an undefeated start, most notably a week 0 game in Florida against Palm Beach Christian. Running back [player_tooltip player_id='1105271' first='Jonathan' last='Davis'] has appeared to earned the lead-back role this season. In just his sophomore campaign, Davis leads the team in carries, yardage and scores with 53, 281, and 6 respectively. On othe other end of the spectrum, senior linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='1466373' first='David' last='Larsen'] appears to be the heart-and-soul of a Rams defense that is ready for the challenge. Larsen has made 29 tackles (22 solos), while also making 6 tackles for loss, 1 sack, and 1 interception. Expect him to chase Cundiff and Shalongo from sideline-to-sideline all game long.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Saturday, September 21</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Union City (1-1) @ Newark East Side (2-1), 12pm</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After starting the season week 1 with a loss to parochial power St. Peter's Prep, Union City crushed Bayonne 56-14 in a game where the Soaring Eagles did all of their scoring in the first half, ran the clock early in the second quarter, and sat their starters the entire second half. The traditional Wing-T offense is headlined by wingback [player_tooltip player_id='341839' first='Mark' last='Boyd'] and fullback [player_tooltip player_id='1198088' first='Jazaire' last='Aurelus']. Boyd, who was a Prep Redzone NJ Week 2 Player of the Week Nominee, has totaled 280 yards and 4 scores on the round on just 23 carries; whereas teammate Aurelus has rushed 14 times for 212 yards and 3 scores. Those averages are 12.17 yards per carry and 19.27 yards per carry, respectively. Another player to be mindful of is senior skill [player_tooltip player_id='1466376' first='Kingston' last='Evans']. Although the team has just two completions on the season (remember, Wing-T team), Kingston has 1 grab for 18 yards and 1 score. Although he has made three tackles on offense, some explosion might exist in his game as he has 2 kick off returns for 145 yards - including an 80 yarder to open up the scoring against Bayonne last week.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Newark East Side surprised some in the North V playoff bracket by getting off to a 2-0 start, including a 8-6 victory over a talented Plainfield team in week 0, before getting humbled by East Orange, 20-0 last week. That said, this is a big game for the Red Raiders to see just exactly who they really are as they hope to vie for a playoff berth. Junior quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1022163' first='Xavier' last='Smith'] seems to be the engine that drives this machine, as he has gone 24-40 for 356 yards through the air with 2 touchdowns and 1 pick. Additionally, Smith leads the team in rushing with 32 carries and 164 yards, while scoring once. Taking the pressure off of Smith is the tailback who flanks him, senior [player_tooltip player_id='1466382' first='Gershom' last='Thompson']. Thompson has rushed for 148 yards and two scores on 28 carries. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Montclair (1-2) @ East Orange (2-0), 1pm</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Continuing the theme with another matchup up North V playoff contenders we, again, try to figure just exactly who and how good these two teams are. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After an 0-2 start where they were shutout in back-to-back games, a team who played deep into last years playoffs in the Montclair Mounties got back to their winning ways in a convincing 48-14 win at Bloomfield. A trio of seniors look to continue the momentum for the Mounties in [player_tooltip player_id='1055375' first='Jayden' last='Lee'], [player_tooltip player_id='1043550' first='Ja-khi' last='Chance'], and [player_tooltip player_id='1043566' first='Jace' last='Auletta']. Chance, the teams running back, scored 7 times last year on 124 carries that netted him 679 yards. Auletta has explosive play-making abilities, as he has won many accolades and superlatives for his long jumping performances during the track &amp; field seasons. On the field this converted to a 21/567/9 performance as a target - or an explosive 27 yards per reception average. Lastly, [player_tooltip player_id='1055375' first='Jayden' last='Lee'] seems to be their Mr. Do-It-All. Starting the year at receiver, where he recorded 34 grabs for 411 yards and 2 scores a year ago, he returned to that position to start the season; however, sources around the program tell me that he played quarterback against Bloomfield. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After an apparent year of retooling that had the Jaguars endure a 3-7 campaign in 2023, the 2024 rendition is off to a 2-0 start with wins over the aforementioned Newark East Side and home against Livingston, 33-26. A name new to many, [player_tooltip player_id='1466384' first='Tyshawn' last='Sewell'] seems to be the lead back for the Jags. Sewell has been credited with a team-high 12 carries for 92 yards and 1 score. However, defensively is where it appears East Orange makes their bones. The two Jags on the prowl in the secondary are [player_tooltip player_id='1199937' first='Isaac' last='Mathurin'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1032189' first='Shakur' last='Taylor'], both seniors. To their credit, the duo splits a pair of pick-sixes between them.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->