Wayne Hills quarterback Brendan DeVera threw for 151 yards and 2 TD and also ran for a score in Wayne Hills’ 28-18 win over Wayne Valley Friday night.
Ahh, yes, week 9 of the New Jersey high school regular season, also known as Week 4 of the NFL preseason for a lot of schools. Not much to gain, everything to lose, maybe.
But at Wayne Valley Friday night, the stakes were high. The 2 teams were playing for the Preakness Cup for the first time. Wayne Valley put on a carnival on the adjacent field. The Big North Colonial Division was on the line. And, I don’t need to tell you, there has been some bad blood between the 2 schools in the past.
However, Friday night, both teams acquitted themselves well. There was some extra stuff after the whistle a few times, but mostly, the 2 teams played hard and physical. I looked around at one point and saw the bleachers jam-packed on both sides, two awesome bands/cheerleader squads. And I was blown away. It was a heck of an atmosphere.
And a heck of a game. Joe Kenny for Wayne Hills is a heck of a player.
Ok, so I already set the scene, it was wild. My old friend Wayne Valley wrestling Coach Gavin Bannat told me they pre-sold 5,000 tickets, and I believe him.
I stayed on the Wayne Valley sidelines for the contest. When I think about the best jerseys in North Jersey, I always think of Garfield (purple and gold) but the baby blue Wayne Valley stuff is awesome, and the Indian style on the helmets is unique too.
And whereas Wayne Hills has The Rock, and the smoke, Wayne Valley has about a 30-foot tall Indian inflatable they run under when they take the field. I mean, where do you buy those things? Is there like a mascot catalog you get this stuff from. I need to know.
Ok, your quarterbacks, and this is important, because Wayne Valley starter Nick Goodwin was fully dressed, but didn’t play. He’s been out with an injury. So for Valley it was Grant Ferrauilo and for Wayne Hills it was Brendan DeVera.
Valley entered 8-0. Hills was 6-2, with those losses to Ramapo and Pascack Valley.
Let’s get it started….
Wayne Hills kicked off and Valley started with a boom as Joe Scancarella took off from his own 8 and shot through a hole up the middle. It looked like he’d score for a minute, but Wayne Hills Joe Kenny tracked him down at the last minute, at the Hills 32.
But Valley struggled to move, at first. They had some issues early in the game with penalties and just getting the play call. I think they were so pumped up from the KO return (or maybe it was a headset issue, you never know) they took a delay of game before their first play.
Eventually they looked at 4th and 8 at the Hills 26. They went for it. Ferrauilo had Scancarella open over the middle. Pass was incomplete, but Hills got called for the pass interference. Good call.
2 plays later, Will Kearney up the middle TD Valley. 7-0
But also on the play, Valley lost starting OL Mike Ludwig to an injury. He did not return.
Hills got the ball, and went 3 and out. Sean Lewandowski made a great tackle on Luca Grave on a swing pass, stopping him a half-yard away from the first down.
Valley took over at own 27. Ferrauilo hit Ryan Monteyne on a 14 yard gain. Then hit Jordan Montero on a post down to the Hills 32. The Valley offense was giving Ferrauilo lots of time and he was doing work.
Valley got to the Hills 23, fourth and 1, and went for it. Vin Tedesco went up the middle for 2.
But the Hills defense would hold on. Leyshawn Askew played a heck of a game on the D Line for Hills, and I started to wonder if Hills’ size up front wasnt going to wear Valley down. Valley made a FG, 10-0.
Hills got a good KO return, and DeVera kept the ball left for a 19 yard gain to the Valley 35. But on 3rd and 10, DeVera had Kenny open behind the secondary. Joe made big play after big play Friday night, so I hope he forgives me when I say this: he dropped it. It would have been a TD. Hills punted from the Valley 35.
Of course, the punt went into the end zone. Valley started at own 20. Boom. Boom. Boom. Deep pass to Elijah Beard for 50 yards. Nick Gould a 27 yard run, and Kearney in the end zone. 3 plays 80 yards.
Then Valley ran a fake for the PAT, and scored 18-0. About 9 minute left in the half.
At this point, Valley had 180 yards, by my unofficial stats. They would finish the game with only 89 more.
It’s hard to pinpoint maybe the exact turning point. But this might have been it, Jacob Casale gave Hills good field position with a KO return to the Valley 44. On 3rd and 8, DeVera hit Billy Tedeschi for 8.1 yards. He just got it. 2nd and 11, Luca Grave ran down to the 5. Then DeVera scored on a nice run when he was almost stopped in the backfield. 18-7, and now the Hills fans were loud.
Next Valley possession, an incomplete plass, a short run by Gould, and on 3rd and 9, Kenny and Mike Fiumarelli broke through with a sack.
Valley lined up to punt. The snap was over Lewandowski’s head. He was able to get it, and for a second, it almost looked like he had daylight and could run for the first down, but Hills was there to stop him for no gain.
And that really might have been 1 of the biggest turning points, because it just set Hills up inside Valley territory.
On 3rd and 10, DeVera stepped up in the pocket and hit Hunter Hayek down the sidelines for 21 yards. Big throw and catch.
DeVera hit Grave on a wheel route down to the 7, and on 3rd and goal, DeVera hit Kenny in the corner of the end zone. 18-14.
I won’t get into it too much, but the last Valley drive of the half was wacky, we had a hook and ladder play, and just some crazy stuff.
We went to Halftime. And at halftime, Valley honored Bob Bishop, in a great ceremony. Bob has been a Valley lifer, and he probably doesn’t remember me at all, but he was always great to me when I was covering wrestling. Just a good dude. He got a huge ovation.
Hills got the ball to start the 2nd half, Kenny got the opening KO and, made a play, running it back 41 yards to the Valley 47. Valley had a chance to get out of it, but on 3rd and 11, DeVera hit Billy Tedeschi again for a 14-yard gain. Valley had some secondary breakdowns in the second half. And DeVera has a Division 1 arm. He really does.
On first and 10 at the Valley 23, DeVera lofted the ball into the end zone for Kenny. The ball was underthrown, but the Valley defender just jumped a hair early and Kenny was able to go over him and get it. Touchdown. Hills had taken the lead 21-18.
Valley would have there next chance, starting at own 32. Ferrauilo was getting pressured now a lot. But he stepped up and hit Monteyne on a deep post down to the Hills 10. But Valley was called for a face mask on the play, pushing the ball back to the Hills 25. They couldnt move it from there, and had to settle for a FG try. It was long enough, but wide.
Then thing got more crazy. Hills was driving, DeVera was hit by Tyler Walther and fumbled, it was picked up by Tedesco and Valley had the ball at the Hills 32.
First play, Ferrauilo went deep, ball was tipped….I think by Grave, and Hayek made a diving interception in the end zone.
Hills would put together a drive down to the Valley 34, but opted to punt on 4th and 9. I thought it was a weird call at the time, and it almost bit the Patriots, because Valley got up to the 44. On 3rd and 3, Gould went up the middle, he was stopped by Askew and thrown back.
4th and 2 at the Valley 45, 922 left. Valley went with a fake punt. Shot snap to Kearney, who handed it to Mike Ocello. Clever design. Didn’t work. Kenny broke through and tackled Ocello for a loss.
So now, Hills with a chance to put it away. They get down to the Valley 19, converting on a 4th and 3 at the Valley 25 on a swing to Grave (maybe DeVera’s best read of the night, because Valley sent pressure and left the flat open, DeVera never hesitated and made the throw).
But on 4th down at the 19, Hills went for it, and DeVera’s pass for Vinny LoVerde was too high.
But what Hills had done was milk the clock. It now said 4:13 left. Valley needing a FG to tie, and a TD to win. They ran jet sweep for 1. Then a pass on the sidelines and refs said Monteyne was out of bounds. 3rd and 9, good initial pressure from Fiumarelli and Kenny with the sack. Valley had 4th and 17 at own 12, and no choice but to punt.
And incredibly, they would never get the ball back on offense. Hills scored on a TD run by Grave with 15 seconds left – it kinda makes the score look worse than it was, and Valley fumbled the ensuing KO.
In the stands, the Valley kids chanted something, um, rather profane, and a player on the Indians bench shouted “if we had Goodwin, it wouldn’t even be close.”
Well, we will have to see about that. It’s possible these 2 teams could meet in the playoffs. Valley is the 5 seed in North 1, Group 4 and Hills is the 7 seed. Hills has to go to Roxbury and that won’t be easy.
After talking to his team, Hills was presented with the “Preakness Cup”. Hills coach Wayne Demikoff said he couldn’t touch it, but why he wasn’t sure.
“My guys said its a hockey tradition, is it? I’m not a hockey guy,” he said.
It’s true, hockey teams only skate around with the Stanley Cup.
But the Preakness Cup is a nice tradition. You know this was only the 10th time these 2 schools have ever played. Hills now leads the series 8-2. Will we have an encore? Maybe. I was impressed by Valley’s athletes. I think (stress: think) Kearney may have gotten nicked up early in the 2nd half which may have hurt there running game. Looking at my stats, he didn’t carry the ball in the 2nd half, but still finished as Valley’s leading carrier with 48 yards.
Play of the Game: Well, pick a Joe Kenny play. To me, I think it was him stopping the fake punt. I mean, it was sort of an obvious call to try to fake it at that time and at that spot on the field, but really the design of the play was smart, it was meant to make the Hills kids step the wrong way, but Kenny just powered through it. I asked him about it after the game, and he said he had no idea it was coming (although his Mom said she knew). He just stepped through and make the tackle.
MVP: Kenny is the choice, clearly, but I’m going to also say Vin Tedesco from Valley played his heart out. Man, he made some plays. This was the 3rd time this season I had seen Wayne Hills play, and Friday I was surprised to see DeVera carry the ball so much. Maybe they thought Valley would key on Grave. But his running ability gives Hills an added dimension. I had DeVera with 14 carries for 73 yards and a score.
The Seen: The Valley people couldn’t have been nicer. North Jersey football assigner Carmine Picardo was there, checking things out. We talked some Super North. I asked Demikoff after the game about playing Old Tappan, because, um, you know, the Golden Knights are undefeated and the top seed in North 1, Group 4. Hills and Old Tappan have a pretty significant playoff history. But Demikoff wouldn’t bite, saying his team was focused on Roxbury, as they should.
On Deck: The final game in the history of the Big North United, Joes-PC at 4 p.m. Then LSU-Alabama.