North Jersey Game Balls for Week 7

All across the Garden State we found big performances by some of the best athletes on both sides of the ball in Week 7. In particular, North Jersey saw players dominate through the air, on the ground, and defensively as well. Each of these players made a huge impact on their team's success in Week 7, and will continue to impact the direction their teams heads as they near the playoffs.    The #11 Athlete and #55 overall prospect in the state, [player_tooltip player_id='311366' first='Steve' last='Klein'] lived up to the hype last weekend as he contributed greatly on both sides of the ball for Westwood. In the 30-0 rout of Ramsey, Steve put the team on his back when handed the ball and also played lights out when lining up on the other side of the ball. If you aren't familiar with Steve, now's the time to get acquainted. While he has already received offers from Syracuse and Boston College, performances like last week's will continue to draw interest in his direction.   Steve is an athlete in the truest sense, as he has the potential to line up at multiple positions at the next level. Steve is bigger, faster, and stronger than you're ordinary 2026 prospect. Defensively, Steve can thrive as a linebacker or a safety. He has incredible lateral quickness and is great when he drops into coverage, as he was able to make a leaping interception this past week.   On offense, Steve's size and quickness is just too much for most opponents to handle. He can deploy multiple tactic to pick up positive yardage, as he can dart by a defender or run right through them if the situation arises. Steve could not be stopped this past weekend, as he took 9 carries for 161 yards and 2 touchdowns. You will definitely hear more about Steve once playoff season arrives.      One of the top QBs in the entire state, [player_tooltip player_id='534373' first='Adam' last='Shaw'] showed this past weekend why he deserves to be in the conversation as one of the very best. In the 35-7 victory over a talented River Dell, Adam accounted for every one of his team's scores, as he connected 4 times through the air and ran one into the end zone as well.   Adam is a true do-it-all player for Pascack Valley. Leading his team to a 6-1 record, Adam has demonstrated that he can stay composed under duress and can perform at a very high level in any situation. What makes Adam so dangerous is the amount of ways he can hurt opposing defenses. Adam has a hair trigger release, allowing him to get the ball to his receiver extremely quickly and before the pass rush can get to him. On top of that, Adam's arsenal of throws gives him the ability to get the ball to his receiver regardless if it's a short, quick route or a lofty pass he has to get over DBs. Against River Dell, Adam went 9-11 for 175 yards and 4 touchdowns. If those statistics weren't enough, Adam also carved through the River Dell defense as he rushed for 97 yards and a touchdown. Pascack Valley has their toughest matchup of the season this weekend against undefeated Old Tappan. Adam has the ability to cement his legacy in a game like this.      [player_tooltip player_id='1183272' first='Chance' last='Fischer'] came out of Week 7 with one of the biggest rushing performances of the weekend. Bayonne took it to Columbia, as they walloped them 47-7 . In the win, Chance made the most of every opportunity he was given and popped off multiple times for big gains. It only took 10 carries for Chance to find the end zone 3 times and run for 182 yards.   Explosive the moment he takes a step out of his stance, Chance looks like he is shot out of cannon when coming out of the backfield. Hitting the hole with great speed, Chance can somehow cut through the middle of the field untouched and continue accelerating as he sprints downfield. That speaks to Chance's vision and ability to react to the everchanging flow of the play. Chance is quick on his feet and can pivot on short notice, changing directions to find the daylight.      [player_tooltip player_id='1524816' first='Cole' last='Capuzzi'] once again shined under the lights against Montville. Don't look now, but Mendham is on a 7 game winning after a big 28-0 win over Montville this past weekend. In the dominant victory, [player_tooltip player_id='1524816' first='Cole' last='Capuzzi'] was fed the ball again and again and made sure to make every carry count. With a heavy workload of 31 carries, Cole was able to turn those opportunities into 178 yards on the ground and 2 rushing touchdowns. Cole has been a challenge to stop ever since the season started, as he has gashed opposing defenses for 130 carries, 957 yards and 12 touchdowns. Cole is truly the bell cow of Mendham's rushing attack, but the success doesn't stop with him. Mendham has impressed through 8 games with 2839 total rushing yards and 31 touchdowns. If you want to slow Cole and the Mendham ground game down, you must be able to slow down this lethal rushing attack.     Here we have another huge rushing game from an RB up north. This time we are highlighting the fantastic play of Morris Knolls' lead back [player_tooltip player_id='1043551' first='Bobby' last='Brickner']. Leading the charge this past weekend against Morristown, Bobby was near impossible to slow down once he got going. Lining up as the fullback in an option offense, Bobby is that authority figure in the backfield. Bobby is a larger than life ball carrier with the size to contend with every linebacker he squares up against. Standing tall at 6'1" and 190lb, Bobby darts out of the backfield and gets through the first line of defense before the defenders realize what happened. For a taller back, Bobby's speed catches defenders off guard as he takes it between the tackle. He is able to get to the second level very quickly and can utilize quick lateral cuts to make the defenders miss. In the big win versus Morristown Bobby took control of the run game by accounting for 185 rushing yards and a touchdown. On the season, Bobby has demonstrated consistency and reliability as he has rushed for 845 yards and 8 touchdowns through 7 games.      [player_tooltip player_id='1525016' first='Jackson' last='Morrice'] may have had the most impressive offensive performance in the entire state this past weekend against Newark Central. In the 44-6 victory, Jackson took his double digit receptions for 214 yards and 2 receiving touchdowns. A great route runner, Jackson was consistently able to find the soft spot in the coverage and let his elite QB drop it in. Jackson and quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='933995' first='Stephen' last='Paradiso'] have some of the best chemistry in the state, which explains how they've been able to consistently dominate through the entire season thus far. In the 8 wins they have so far in 2024, Jackson has caught 50 passes for an astonishing 949 yards and 13 touchdowns. Arguably the most impressive skill Jackson displays is his yards after the catch capabilities. While Jackson has the ability burn a corner on a deep route, he has been most impactful when Cedar Grove dumps it off early and lets Jackson work his magic in the open field. To top off the victory against Morristown, Jackson made a big impact on defense as well as he made 3 tackles and picked the ball off as well.

All across the Garden State we found big performances by some of the best athletes on both sides of the ball in Week 7. In particular, North Jersey saw players dominate through the air, on the ground, and defensively as well. Each of these players made a huge impact on their team's success in Week 7, and will continue to impact the direction their teams heads as they near the playoffs.