Freshman QB Leads Matawan To State Championship

Photo above courtesy of Ken Cook: Huskies pose for team picture after Friday night’s huge win.

UNION – So much for the “freshman jitters.” 14-year old frosh quarterback George “L.C.” Pearson threw for 198 yards and a career-best four touchdowns to lead Matawan (8-4) to a 27-7 victory over Carteret (8-4) in the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III championship game Friday night at Kean University’s Alumni Field.

He is believed to be the first freshman quarterback to lead his team to a state title in the history of Shore Conference football and having already set the Shore Conference record for passing yardage as a freshman, he now has 1,953 yards on the season with 16 touchdowns.

“He’s certainly not your average freshman,” said Matawan head coach John Kaye, who won his first title in his third season at the helm. “He’s unlike any kid I’ve ever coached; he’s unbelievable. Nothing fazes him, he just plays.”

Playing on the biggest stage of his short career in nasty cold and rainy conditions, Pearson went 10-of-14 while displaying the demeanor and poise of a seasoned veteran. The composure he exhibits in the pocket is uncanny for a signal caller his age with such limited varsity experience.

“Most of the time I forget he’s a freshman, to tell you the truth,” said senior wide receiver Justin Ferrara. “I feel like he should be graduating with me.”

In steering his team to the school’s first state title since 2011 and seventh overall in program history, the unflappable Pearson had a lot of help and Ferrara was definitely one of the one’s offering.

The lanky 6-foot-3 Ferrara caught a 17-yard scoring strike from Pearson on the Huskies second possession of the game to give them a 13-7 lead after Carteret’s senior running back Ra’Keem Bennett had put the Ramblers ahead 7-6 on a 18-yard burst off left tackle.

Bennett had 86 yards on 12 carries out of Carteret’s power-I formation but the Huskies defense, led by junior linebackers Aliem Shaw and Issiah Phillip and senior defensive end Jake Weber, held him to 11 yards on five carries in the pivotal second half. Shaw recovered two fumbles and Phillip and Weber each recorded a sack.

Ferrara’s heroics weren’t just limited to offense as he excelled on defense from his safety spot recording 12 tackles, including a huge stop on a fourth-and-1 near midfield with 8:55 left in the fourth quarter. With the Ramblers driving and still in the game at 21-7, Ferrara and Shaw teamed to stop Bennett at the line of scrimmage for no gain dealing a demoralizing blow to Carteret’s chances of gaining any sort of momentum.

“That was a pivotal play in the game,” Ferrara said. “Alien came up with a big hit, we stopped them for no gain and they didn’t get it.”

Carteret took the opening kickoff down to the Huskies 20-yard line in 11 plays, highlighted by Bennett’s eight straight carries for 60 yards, before junior cornerback/wide receiver DeJohn Rogers picked off Ramblers senior quarterback Nelson Baez at the six-yard line.

On the ensuing nine-play, 94-yard Matawan touchdown drive, Pearson - throwing from his own end zone -found Rogers near the right hash marks at the 20-yard line before he broke it down the left sideline for a 45-yard pick up all the way down to the Ramblers 35. Six plays later, Pearson lobbed a 32-yard pass into the end zone that was tipped by Carteret cornerback Hassan Williams and into the hands of Huskies senior James Pierce for the early 6-0 lead.

“I thought it was coming to me for an easy touchdown,” Ferrara said. “Then it got tipped and Jimmy (Pierce) was the right guy in the right spot.”

After Bennett’s run gave the Ramblers the lead at 7-6, the Huskies went in front for good. Striking fast on a four-play, 84-yard drive punctuated by a 56-yard run by junior Shawn Ramcheran on jet sweep down the left sideline, Ferrara scored the go-ahead touchdown giving them a 13-7 lead at intermission.

The score remained unchanged until early in the fourth quarter as the weather began to take its toll with each team turning the ball over once.

After Shaw pounced on a fumble at the Ramblers 45-yard line with 4:15 left in the third quarter, the Huskies put together an eight-play drive that ended with Ramcheran accepting a shovel pass across the middle of the formation for an eight-yard touchdown on second-and-9 from the nine. Ferrara then made it 21-7 with a trick play, hitting Pierce for the two-point conversion with 11:58 left in the game.

On the drive, facing third-and- 4 from the 30-yard line, senior running back Devon Spann was stopped at the line of scrimmage but with a tremendous second effort and pure brute strength he bulled his way to a first down just inside the 26-yard line. Spann was a work horse all night grinding out 42 tough yards on 18 carries without a turnover in extreme conditions.

With time now running out on Carteret and the Matawan defense smelling blood, the Ramblers were faced with a fourth-and-1 on their own 49-yard line in desperate need of a first down. Once again they turned to Bennett and once again Shaw and Ferrara were there to make the stop for no gain.

Now taking advantage of the momentum gained on the stop and great field position, the Huskies put the dagger in the coffin going 49 yards in nine plays and finishing it off with the same shovel pass play to Ramcheran, only this time for a 32-yard game-sealing touchdown run. Ramcheran exploded for 61-yards rushing on just three carries and three receptions for 50 yards and two touchdowns for the game.

The Huskies outgained the Ramblers 358 yards to 235 yards and much of the credit has to go to the unsung heroes up front on both sides of the ball. Weber recorded eight tackles to go along with his sack and was his usual disruptive self the entire night as were his line mates Andrew Conzo and Dan Corredor.

“I can’t put into words what I feel right now,” an elated Weber said. “I’ve been in Matawan my whole life and coming to games as little kid and always said ‘I’m going to win a state championship’ and for it to be my last game with this team is unbelievable.”

The Huskies were 0-2 when they made the switch to Pearson and have since won eight of ten games and five in a row. It was a roller coaster ride with an improbable playoff run after sitting at 3-4 on the eve of the state playoffs cutoff date.

“At 0-2 we never stopped believing in the coaching staff, believing in the players and the players believing in themselves,” Kay said. “We were like dogs backed into a corner; we came out fighting. I feel great; like a kid on Christmas day. We have a bunch of great kids who are all gamer’s that never stopped believing and never stopped working.”

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