Middletown North - Jackson Memorial Football Playoff Preview

Photo above: Sophomore quarterback Donald Glenn 

No.6 seed Middletown North Lions (6-2, 3-2) @ No.3 seed Jackson Memorial Jaguars (8-1, 6-1)

Friday night 7:00 P.M.

ANALYSIS: Middletown North is fourth in the Shore Conference Class A North Division with one division game remaining against cross-town rival Middletown South on Thanksgiving. The Lions have clinched their first winning record since the 2000 season and enter the playoffs for their second consecutive year after a four-year drought. They are in search of their first state title since 1996 and first playoff win since 2000. Both their losses this season came against top ten Shore Conference teams and they are in the midst of a four-game winning streak where they’ve outscored their opponents 120-21.

Sophomore quarterback Donald Glenn is already the all-time career leader at North with 28 touchdown passes and unofficially set Shore Conference records last season for passing yards as a freshman with 1,557 yards and touchdown passes with 15. This season Glenn is 87-of-154 for 1055 yards and 13 touchdowns. Senior wideout/DB Jordan Pitts has been on the receiving end of 34 Glenn passes for 372 yards and three touchdowns. Senior tight end/LB Troy Thompson has developed into Glenn’s go-to guy with a knack for making the big play when it’s needed and has seven touchdown catches to prove it. He’s hauled in 24 balls for a team-leading 422 yards so far this season and is a leader on both sides of the ball. All-Shore running back/LB Chad Freshnock is having another sensational year and is sixth in the Shore Conference in rushing with 1,136 yards and 14 touchdowns. As a receiver out of the backfield he’s grabbed 17 of Glenn’s passes for 153 yards and three touchdowns. The offensive line consisting of seniors Parker Anderson (6-1, 211), Anthony Pianoforte (5-8, 191), Vincent Pianoforte (5-8,220), Joe Antonio (5-11, 274), Constantine Dudzinski (6-1, 248) and sophomore Jake Goldfarb (6-1, 220) have quietly done an outstanding job up front.

The 6-foot-1, 201-pound Thompson play’s a hybrid rover position that allows him to line up as a defensive end, linebacker or safety depending on what the offensive set dictates. As the undisputed leader on defense he’s collected 70 tackles, two sacks, five TFL and an interception. Sophomore outside linebacker Nick Kish’s 86 tackles leads the team along with a sack and an interception. As most the North players do, the 6-foot-0, 196-pound Freshnock plays on both sides of the ball at inside linebacker where he’s been credited with 29 tackles, 4 TFL and three sacks. Junior outside linebacker Matt Dombrowski has added 20 tackles, two sacks and seven quarterback hurries while senior Dylan Hallard has had a solid year at linebacker registering 49 tackles, four TFL and a sack in six games. Unfortunately, Hallard has missed the last two games with an injury and his status for Friday night is uncertain. The defensive line is anchored by Anderson (34 tackles, seven TFL and two sacks), Anthony Pianoforte (47 tackles, six TFL, two sacks and seven quarterback hurries), Vincent Pianoforte (37 tackles, one sack and five quarterback hurries), Antonio (15 tackles and one sack) and Goldfarb with 14 tackles and four TFL. Pitts has been outstanding in the secondary in both run support (34 tackles) and pass defense (three interceptions) as has sophomore cornerback Dwight Wilkerson (31 tackles, six PD, Int.), senior cornerback Aaron Borrero (23 tackles, five PD, Int.) and junior safety Josh Gomez (29 tackles, two TFL and two quarterback hurries). Sophomore safety Brendan Kube has been solid in his first varsity season recording 16 tackles.

Jackson Memorial finished second in the Shore Conference Class A South Division after winning the division title in 2013. The Jaguars are in search of their first state title since 2005 when they beat Brick 30-28. Last season they lost to eventual champion Cherokee in the semifinals after defeating Rancocas Valley in the first round. They’ve won five games in a row after absorbing their only loss of the season in a thrilling 30-24 OT loss to Brick Township while last week’s 33-27 OT win over No.1 Red Bank Catholic – breaking a string of 40 consecutive Shore Conference wins by RBC – will go down as one of the greatest upsets in Shore Conference history. The Jaguars are now ranked No.1 in the Shore Conference.

Jackson has run for 2,333 yards as a team and average 7.2 yards per carry. They feature a two-headed monster in the form of running backs Vinny Lee and Mike Gawlik. Gawlik, only a sophomore, scored the game winning 18-yard touchdown in overtime last week and ran for 149 yards and three touchdowns. He’s run for 782 yards on the season with a 7.9 yard/carry average and 15 touchdowns. Lee, a 5-foot-9, 155-pound junior speedster, has 823-yards rushing on the year on 131 carries with 11 touchdowns. Senior quarterback Joe Demaio can beat you through the air or on the ground. He’s 41-of-86 for 739-yards passing and six touchdowns while averaging 7.7 yards a carry on 45 carries for 346 yards and four touchdowns. He spreads the ball around to senior wideouts Aaron Curet (11-297, 3 TD) and Matt Castronuova (7-138, TD in five games) and junior Kyle Johnson (12-234, TD). 6-foot-4, 250-pound senior tight end Brody Graham (9-76, 2 TD) is a pass catching threat as well as a devastating blocker. The offensive line is overpowering and just stem rolls its opponents. Seniors Brad Greenway (6-foot-0, 280-pounds, Glenn Kipila (6-foot-4, 260-pounds), Tyler Rauch (6-foot-1, 225-pounds), Ryan Frasier (6-foot-1, 245-pounds) and junior Dylan Smith (6-foot-3, 265-pounds) form one – if not the best – offensive lines in the Shore Conference.

Defensively, the Jaquars are led by an outstanding linebacker corp with Zach Tetro (89 tackles, 7 sacks, 12 TFL), 6-foot-2, 225-pound senior Cole Collins (81 tackles, 3 sacks, 3 TFL) and Adante Davis (59 tackles, TFL) possessing the speed and strength to make plays from sideline-to-sideline. The defensive line, which does a great job disrupting at the line of scrimmage and creating opportunities for the linebackers as well as making plays themselves includes: Greenway (22 tackles, 4 sacks) and Kipila (31 tackles, sack, 3 TFL) at tackle and Graham (56 tackles, 4 TFL, sack), juniors Tyler Towns (57 tackles, 5 sacks, 3 TFL) and Austin Ostrander (37 tackles, 3 sacks, 3 TFL) at defensive end. Although small in stature, Gawlick is one of the hardest hitters on the team from his free safety position and leads team with 90 tackles along with one interception and a fumble recovery. Castronuova (48 tackles, 2 TFL, Int.) and Johnson (38 tackles, Int.) also excel in the secondary at both run support and pass defense.

PICK: A Middletown North upset is not out of the question. The Lions have the skill players to put up points on anyone and this game has all the markings of a trap game for the Jaguars after their huge win last week. However, Jackson’s team speed, intimidating size and depth will be too much for the Lions to overcome at the “Jungle.” Look for the Lions to hang tough until the Jaguars eventually wear them down in the second half.

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