Bulldogs get one step closer to perfection

ERIC SUCAR staff After rolling through the regular season to the tune of a perfect 8- 0 mark, the Rumson-Fair Haven (RFH) football team still felt like it had something to prove.

Rumson-Fair Haven quarterback Michael Villapiano tries to elude A.L. Johnson linebacker Steve Roglieri during the first half of the NJSIAA Central Group II quarterfinal game at Rumson-Fair Haven's Two River Field at Borden Stadium on Nov. 13. The Bulldogs shut out Johnson by a score of 23-0. ERIC SUCAR staff There were still some doubters out there who questioned whether the Bulldogs were a state-championship contender in what is a loaded Central Jersey Group II bracket.

On Saturday, RFH showed everyone just how good it could be in routing A.L. Johnson, 23-0, in the first round of the sectional tournament.

With the RFH offense methodically putting points on the board after a scoreless opening quarter, it was the Bulldog defense that stole the show, allowing just 50 total yards of offense and forcing two turnovers to pace an impressive victory.

Rumson-Fair Haven running back Michael Guzman tries to get past an A.L. Johnson High School player during the first half of the NJSIAA Central Group II quarterfinal game at Rumson-Fair Haven's Two River Field at Borden Stadium on Nov. 13. ERIC SUCAR staff "Come playoff time, everybody's pretty good, and Johnson's got a good ball club," said RFH head coach Shane Fallon. "We certainly didn't expect to hold them to three first downs [including none after halftime], I can tell you that. But overall, obviously, we were

very pleased with our play."

RFH got on the board early in the second quarter when quarterback Sean Burke faked a handoff and found Paul Michael Barrows in the end zone for a 10-yard scoring play. Up 7-0, RFH added to the lead with an 18-yard Tucker Smith field goal before the break. Up 10-0, the Bulldogs put the game away in the third quarter when Mike Villapiano found the end zone from a yard out. John Riley then finished the scoring with a two-yard scoring run in the fourth quarter, but by then the outcome was hardly in doubt.

Riley was the workhorse for the RFH offense, carrying the ball 16 times for 117 yards on the day, but it was the defense that was the difference in this one.

For their efforts, the Bulldogs earned another home playoff game this Friday night, when Manasquan (14-7 firstround winners over Keyport on Sunday) comes to town. The Warriors will certainly be a step up in competition for the Bulldogs — 'Squan has just one loss on the year (a recent defeat to Long Branch in a game where five Manasquan starters did not play due to disciplinary reasons).

While RFH enters the game with the perfect record, Fallon understands what the perception will be heading into the game.

"We'll be the underdogs, no doubt about it, but we'll show up and we'll play hard, and hopefully, the fans will get their money's worth," the coach said. "We've scouted them and seen them play. We played them two years ago, so we know what we're up against. They've got good size and some good skill kids."

Fallon also recognizes what it will take for his team to remain perfect and advance.

"We have to win the turnover battle and win the special teams battle," he said. "With a team like Manasquan, everything you get, you have to earn. They don't make many mistakes, and they're always extremely well coached.

"Hopefully, things will break our way, but we know that traditionally, Manasquan is not a team that's going to beat itself."

One thing Fallon doesn't have to worry about is his team showing up. This may not be the biggest, most talented team that Fallon has had during an impressive coaching run at RFH, but this year's Bulldogs have certain attributes that have led to an undefeated season to this point.

"We never go into a season saying we're going to go undefeated and win a state title," Fallon said. "We just take it a game at a time and get better each week.

"Back in July, we didn't think [this kind of season] was possible, but at the same time, we as a coaching staff knew we had something we could work with. We felt our offensive line and defensive line, although they lacked size, were both very athletic. They're not as big as some of the lines we've had in the past, so that was kind of an adjustment for the coaching staff. But we tweaked our scheme a little bit, and it worked."

The results have been everything Fallon and his staff envisioned back in training camp. The Bulldogs play disciplined football on both sides of the ball, and tend to wear teams down with their tenacity and athleticism late in games.

"We're athletic up front and we're going to get into people and give our backs and quarterbacks a chance to make plays," the coach said, adding that this year's Bulldogs represent one of the more coachable teams he's been around during his career.

"We've been brutally honest with our kids," Fallon said. "We tell them that it may not work in the first quarter, but by the third or fourth quarter, it's gonna work. And not every team will buy into what you're telling them. This team has done that."

And as a result, this team finds itself chasing a perfect season, with a second-round playoff match-up with one of the premier football programs in the state. And with an army of local gridiron fans fully enthralled with the success of this year's team, Friday night's affair is certain to have the entire Rumson- Fair Haven community buzzing throughout the week.

Just don't expect the Bulldogs to get lost in the moment.

"The kids have surprised a lot of people this year," Fallon said. "They've bought into everything we've tried to sell them. They believe in the system and they believe in themselves.

"We're all on the same boat rowing in the same direction. From our seniors to our sophomores, everyone's on the same page, and as a coach, that's very refreshing."

Not to mention, very rewarding.

Gridiron notes: The Bulldogs were not the only local team to post a first-round state playoff win this past weekend. The Ocean Township Spartans were equally impressive in routing Steinert, 36-0, in Central Jersey Group III action.

Ocean caused four turnovers in this one, returning two of them for scores, with Michael Acquaro in the middle of both plays. With his team up 7-0 courtesy of a Brandon Robinson TD run, Acquaro ripped the ball from Steinert QB Adam Riese and raced 35 yards for a score. Two possessions later, after Ocean's Raymond D'Apolito made it 21-0 with a two-yard TD run, Acquaro struck again, picking off a Riese pass and racing 25 yards for a second score.

At that point, the rout was on, and Ocean never let up, allowingKlein to let his stable of running backs (262 yards on 43 carries) control the game from there.

With the win, Ocean earned a shot at Monroe this Friday night on the road. Monroe knocked off Princeton, 42-0, this past weekend to complete a weekend where all four of the higher seeds in the CJ Group III bracket advanced.

This represents a very winnable game for Ocean Township, because the Spartans seem to be back to playing the type of football that allowed them to race out to a 5-0 start. Ocean is a battle-tested team that can win with its offense or its defense. This Friday night, they hope to earn a shot at a sectional title that they believe they can win.

It was not a particularly good weekend for Shore Regional, Long Branch and Red Bank Catholic.

After losing a close game to defending CJ Group I champion Asbury Park earlier this year, Shore hoped to be on the winning end of another close game this weekend. Unfortunately, it didn't work out, as the Blue Bishops once again resembled a championship-level team in beating the Blue Devils, 22-6. Shore finally got on the board in the third quarter, when senior Thurston Cooper broke some tackles and raced 60 yards for a score, but by then the damage was done. Asbury Park moves on the face David Brearley High School in the second round this weekend.

Long Branch may have won the higher seed over Raritan with its recent win over Manasquan, but Raritan was more than ready to enact its revenge on Saturday. A pair of interceptions led the Rockets from Kevin Furlong, who returned both picks for scores late in the game to seal the win. Both picks came on long pass attempts from Miles Shuler.

Up to that point, it was 13-7; however, Furlong's play was the difference, as Raritan advanced with a 28-7 win. Next up for the Rockets is a date with Matawan (a 37-13 winner over New Brunswick) in a CJ Group II semifinal this weekend.

Red Bank Catholic ran into the buzz saw that is Don Bosco Prep and suffered a 55-7 defeat in their NJSIAA Non-Public IV opener. This one was 48-0 by halftime, as the state's top team (and the second-rated team in the nation) flexed its muscles in front of its home crowd. ERIC SUCAR staff