Middletown South - Burlington Township Football Playoff Preview

Photo above: Cole Rogers and head coach Steve Antonucci

No.8 seed Burlington Township Falcons (6-2, 4-1) @ No.1 seed Middletown South Eagles (6-2, 4-1)

Friday night 7:00 p.m.

ANALYSIS: The Falcons compete in the West Jersey Football League Patriot Division. They are currently in second place with a chance at a tie for the division title with a Hopewell Valley (7-1, 4-0) loss on Thanksgiving. Last season they defeated Middletown South 52-45 in the first round of the Central Jersey Group IV playoffs before losing to Brick Township 45-24 in the semifinals and are in search of their first state title since 1977.

Converted safety, Aaron Rogers, is a solid dual-threat quarterback for the Falcons with over 800 combined yards and seven touchdowns. However, the 6-foot-2, 180-pound senior has been out the last two games with an injury and is questionable for this game. In his absence, sophomore Bill McRoberts will be behind center but the Falcons will rely heavily on their punishing ground game that has gained over 1500 yards and scored 26 touchdowns this season. You can expect to see a lot of sophomore running back Drew Price, who was a workhorse for the Falcons in last week’s 41-13 win over Ewing, carrying the ball 31 times for 214 yards and a touchdown. Seniors Greg Taylor and Kenny Alexandre will share the load with Price in the backfield. Alexandre, a 5-foot-11, 230-pound fullback, has 10 rushing touchdowns while running for 191 yards on 43 carries while Taylor, a 6-foot, 180-pound halfback, has picked up 247 yards on 60 carries. Sophomore Everett Wormley is the Falcons top receiving threat with 16 receptions for 149 yards and a touchdown.

Sophomore Adam Conyer, a 5-foot-11, 190-pound linebacker, leads the team in tackles with 84 along with 4 sacks while Alexandre, an inside linebacker, has recorded 58 tackles, 1.5 sacks and an interception. Senior John Ejiofor a 6-foot, 285-pounder anchors the defensive line at tackle with 66 tackles, 4.5 sacks and eight TFL. 6-foot-1, 240-pound defensive end Edward Onyeka has registered 33 tackles with 2 sacks and 5 TFL. Sophomore free safety Nasier Brister leads the team with two interceptions.

The Eagles are second in the Shore Conference’s Class A North Division with one division game remaining on Thanksgiving against cross-town rival Middletown North – Manalapan has already clinched the title. South is the sixth- ranked team in the Shore Conference heading into this weekend’s state playoffs and are coming off a 42-0 thrashing of then No.9 Freehold. The Eagles have rebounded nicely from their first non-winning season in 29 years last season after a first-round playoff loss to these same Burlington Township Falcons dropped their season record to 5-5. Since 2000, the Eagles have reached 10 NJSIAA finals and won five state titles. After giving up 52 points to Burlington Township last year, Eagle head coach Steve Antonucci decided to change its defensive scheme from its traditional 4-4-2 to a 4-2-5 to combat the fire power that the now popular spread offenses possess. It was a smooth transition for the Eagles defense as they tied a team record by posting five shutouts this season while only giving up 78 points in eight games for a 9.75 points/game average.

The Eagles would like nothing more than to begin their quest for their first state title since 2006 by paying the Falcons back for last year. They’ll look to junior running back Cole Rogers - who’s had a break-out year for the Eagles rushing for 1153 yards and 21 touchdowns in leading the way. Sophomore running back James McCarthy, a 6-foot-1, 195-pound bruiser - who will run over people - is the perfect complement to Rogers and has run for 259 yards on 47 carries and five touchdowns this season. At quarterback is junior Matt Mosquera who has quietly put together a very solid year directing the Eagle offense. Mosquera, also one of the top placekickers/punters in the Shore Conference, is 74-of-130 for 889 yards and three touchdowns and has picked up an additional 101 yards on the ground. Junior wideout Tom Coffey is Mosquera’s main target with 17 receptions for 333 yards and two touchdowns while senior A.J. Leandro (17-107 TD), junior’s Spencer Pereless (13-106) and Tom Marron (11-105) are all on Mosquera’s radar. Much of the Eagles success hinges on their line play. They’re a physical offensive line that gets incredible push at the line of scrimmage as seniors James Wilson(6-5, 290), Kyle Maynes (5-11,245), Mike Spendio (6-1, 210), Brian Joyce (6-0, 215) and junior Joe Rutkowski (6-3, 250) have continued to jell as a unit as the season progresses. Tight end/DE Patrick Crowe has been invaluable piece of the unit as well.

Defensively it starts up front with seniors Dan Servido (23 tackles, sack, 4 TFL), Corey Grant (10 tackles, 2 TFL) Crowe and sophomore Will Gulick (eight tackles, five TFL) occupying the offensive lineman and disrupting the backfield for rotating linebackers Dylan Rogers (17 tackles, 2 TFL), McCarthy (eight tackles, five TFL) senior Sergio Gonzalez and sophomore Kevin Higgins (17 tackles, three TFL) to come up and make the stop. Nolan Pereless heads up the defensive backfield corps leading the team with three interceptions while providing tough run support with 21 tackles. Junior Rob Hulse and sophomore Maxx Imsho provide nice cover skills and aren’t afraid to hit as their 25 combined tackles will attest. Cole Rogers also sees time in the defensive back field and makes his presence felt when he’s back there.

PICK: It’s payback time for the Eagles and they’ll win this one by three touchdowns. South is better on both sides of the ball and even if Aaron Rogers does suits up and make the start, the Eagle defense will make him wish he was still on the bench. Look for another big night from Cole Rogers.

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