Mustangs present a final challenge for Braves
Rutgers University

JERRY WOLKOWITZ staff Freehold Borough’s Nick Arnone, a lineman by trade, runs back a kick-off during the Colonials’ loss to Colts Neck on Thanksgiving Day in Freehold.

hosting CJ Group IV title game at 11 a.m.

BY TIM MORRIS

Staff Writer

No one can question the validity of Manalapan’s right to be playing for the Central Jersey Group IV championship football title Saturday at Rutgers University, New Brunswick.

Yes, the Braves were 4-4 when the state playoffs began, but, as they have proven, the playoffs have become a one-and-done crapshoot where regular-season records mean nothing at all.

How else can one explain that Saturday’s state sectional final is pitting the No. 7 seed Manalapan against No. 5 seed Brick Memorial Mustangs?

Make no mistake about it, both teams deserve to be where they are, especially Tom Tarver’s Braves.

Manalapan removed any doubts about its qualifications Nov. 22 when the Braves routed No. 3 seed Old Bridge, 34-0, in the semifinals. A week earlier, the Braves had thrown the CJ IV section into complete disarray when they marched into Brick Township and stunned the No. 2 seed, the undefeated Green Dragons, 21-7.

"We had nothing to lose," said Braves quarterback Kyle St. Angelo, whose leadership has been very important to Manalapan in the playoffs. "They (Brick) had everything to lose. We saw we could run against them, and when Eddie Gurrieri scored on the first play of the game, they were shell-shocked.

"The playoffs are a whole new season, anything can happen," he added.

The emergence of Gurrieri has given Manalapan’s rushing offense a two-headed monster. Gurrieri is a slasher who can turn a quick opening into a big play, while Chris Hegel is more a smash-mouth, grind-it-out runner who wears teams down.

Hegel was injured midway through the season and the Braves turned to Gurrieri. He ran for 143 yards, leading Manalapan to a critical 14-12 win over Freehold Township that helped get the Braves into the state playoffs. Gurrieri remained effective over the long haul, proving he could be a featured back.

"No one knew what Eddie could do," said St. Angelo. "His speed makes a difference."

Hegel returned for the playoffs against Brick, playing outside linebacker for the first time. The senior just wanted to play.

"At first he (Hegel) was down about it (the injury)," recalled St. Angelo. "He played defense for the first time in the playoffs. Chris just wants to win."

Gurrieri was injured early in the third quarter of the game and Hegel returned to the backfield, helping the Braves polish off the upset.

Now "Slash" and "Smash" are wreaking havoc as a duo.

Just in case anyone thought the Braves were a one-game fluke, the rout of No. 3 Old Bridge (7-3) silenced them.

"We wanted it (the win) more," said St. Angelo.

Last year Old Bridge eliminated the Braves from the playoffs, 21-13.

The Manalapan defense shined as the Old Bridge Knights were limited to just 147 yards of total offense. Just as the Manalapan offense has been jelling, so has the defense. The Braves have been getting sound play from the line, the linebackers and secondary. Teams are finding few things work consistently against Manalapan.

The Braves’ offense hit the Knights for 235 yards rushing and another 132 through the air. Gurrieri ran for 156 yards on 31 carries and Hegel had 55 on five rushes, including three touchdowns on runs of 3, 15 and 7 yards, respectively.

Gurrieri started the Manalapan romp in the second quarter, taking a short pass from St. Angelo and turning on the speed, racing 63 yards for the touchdown.

Next stop, Manalapan’s first-ever appearance in the Central Jersey Group IV title game. Before the Braves could think about the Mustangs of Brick Memorial they had to take on their crosstown rivals, the Mustangs of Marlboro (1-9), on Thanksgiving Day.

The Braves hit them with both barrels as Gurrieri and Hegel picked up more than 100 yards rushing and Manalapan warmed up for its state championship showdown with a 47-13 win over their rivals.

Manalapan-Marlboro is the oldest rivalry in the Freehold District and the Braves now hold a 23-7-2 edge in the series.

Gurrieri slashed his way for 150 yards and a pair of touchdowns (28 and 5 yards), while Hegel pounded the Mustangs for 107 yards on 10 carries and two TDs on runs of 44 and 7 yards.

St. Angelo was sharp, going 8-for-12 for 138 yards and a score, a 24-yard strike to Bobby Plaza.

Why this sudden turnaround, which has Manalapan riding a three-game winning streak into the state final?

"We never lost belief in ourselves," said St. Angelo. "Even if no one else thought we could do it, we believed we could. You have to believe in yourself."

Manalapan’s first trip to the state championship game changed the perception of this under-rated football program.

"The feeling is great," said St. Angelo. "We’re changing the way everyone looks at our school and town."

Brick Memorial (7-4) has had its own unlikely run to the state final. The Mustangs opened the playoffs with a 7-6 win at Steinert. In the semifinals against Jackson, the ’Stangs were down to their final play. Trailing 21-17 and facing a fourth down with 50 seconds left in the game, quarterback James hooked up with Garrett Graham in the end zone on a 17-yard touchdown pass. Graham made a jumping, one-handed grab to grasp victory from the jaws of defeat.

Manalapan and Brick Memorial are not strangers. The two teams kicked off the 2003 season in Brick with the Mustangs rallying for a 25-14 win. The Braves had jumped out to a 14-3 lead in the first half.

That was more than two months ago and neither is the same team they were then. Manalapan has reconstructed its offense. It went from a single back to the I-formation with the 6-0, 253-pound Joe Kircher moving to blocking back. The ’Stangs saw little of Gurrieri in that first game as Hegel picked up 86 yards on 21 carries.

St. Angelo is a more mature and confident quarterback now. His passing prevents teams from stacking the defensive line to stop the running game. He is also a running threat.

Manalapan’s defense has been superb and it is not likely that it will let a 14-3 lead slip away this time.

Neither Manalapan nor Brick Memorial have been to a state sectional final before. Both have reason to believe that this is their year. Manalapan, though, seems to be playing too well to be denied Saturday.

Kickoff at Rutgers is 11 a.m.

Thanksgiving Day wins for Freehold Township, Colts Neck

Freehold Township is carrying a lot of momentum into the off-season. The Pats (4-6) topped Howell (2-8), 28-3, to finish the season with three straight victories.

The good news for Dominick Lepore’s Patriots was the role played in this late season by the team’s underclassmen.

Junior Kevin Wagner scored a pair of touchdowns on a 6-yard run and on the receiving end of a 55-yard pass play from sophomore quarterback Tom Poricelli.

Poricelli scored on a 1-yard run himself as the Pats delighted their home fans with a season-ending triumph.

Pete Reilly’s 2-yard run concluded the scoring for the Patriots, who own a 3-1 lead in the Thanksgiving Day series against the Rebels.

Justin Sumerlin, a junior defensive lineman, was the catalyst for the Patriots, setting up a pair of third-quarter touchdowns because of his play on special teams. He blocked one punt that set up Poricelli’s keeper and later was in the backfield on another punt attempt by Rebel kicker Joe Blood, forcing him to try and run for the first down rather than have another punt blocked. That set the Pats up on the Howell 13 and Reilly closed out the scoring with his run.

There was a lot to like about Freehold Township’s end to the season. The Pats were 1-6 and had lost two or three games they could have easily won. Rather than fold up the tent, the team’s underclassmen continued to come and play, and a three-game winning streak will do wonders for them as they look ahead to next year.

Howell also went through a youth movement this year. The Rebels managed to pick up a pair of wins and be competitive in several other games. They have a lot to look forward to.

There’s something about Thanksgiving Day and Freehold Borough that brings the best out of Colts Neck. Suffering through their worst season ever, the Cougars (2-8) came to life against their down-the-road rivals, 26-13. Colts Neck owns a 4-0 lead in the series.

It didn’t look like Colts Neck’s day when Damian Walcott ran 50 yards for a touchdown to give Freehold Borough (3-7) a 13-0 lead in the first half. Quarterback Chris Coulson had put the Colonials on the scoreboard first, scoring on a 1-yard keeper.

After the first quarter burst, it was all Colts Neck. Ryan Keller started the comeback scoring on a 5-yard run in the second quarter.

A pass interception that was returned to the Colonials’ 6-yard line by Nick Turner set the Cougars up for the go-ahead score.

Pete Skelton scored on the first play after the Turner pick and the Cougars were up 14-13.

Colts Neck pushed the lead to 20-13 before the half on a 40-yard hookup from quarterback Joe Vrola to Brandon Emmons. It was a screen play that Emmons turned into a touchdown.

A 20-yard run by Keller in the third quarter gave the Cougars a two touchdown cushion, 26-13. Keller finished the day with 107 yards on 22 carries.

Walcott was the day’s leading rusher, picking up 130 yards on 23 attempts. That doesn’t include an 80-yard touchdown run by the senior that was nullified by a holding penalty. Had the run stood, the Cougars would have fallen behind by three touchdowns, but it kept them in the game.

The nullified touchdown was typical of the way things have gone over the last six weeks for Freehold Borough. Its once promising season (the Borough was 3-1 at one time) went south and the Colonials finish the season on a six-game losing streak with a 3-7 overall record.

Colts Neck, which had never experi­enced a losing season before 2003, can find solace in the way the team hung tough and found a way to win its last two games. Those wins could be building blocks for next year.