HNT Football: St. Joseph plows ahead to beat Woodbridge
by WoodbridgeFootball.com / MyCentralJersey.com / NJ.com on 10/01/16
WOODBRIDGE - Pound, pound, pound.
For the most part, the St. Joseph High School football team didn’t use too many fancy plays in its 28-6 win Friday over Woodbridge
“It doesn’t need to be if you’re moving them,” Falcons running back Luke Yakely said.
Indeed, Yakely is that gritty fullback who just keeps plowing ahead, as a big and talented offensive line creates space. The 5-foot-10, 215-pounder filled in at tailback for the injured Manny Resto, who hurt a shoulder apparently toward the end of the first quarter. St. Joseph head coach Casey Ransone wasn’t sure the extent of the injury.
READ: EDISON, OLD BRIDGE BATTLE TO 42-42 TRIPLE OT TIE
Enter Yakely, who unofficially rushed for 146 yards on 25 carries and scored a 9-yard touchdown. He broke for runs of 29 and 23 yards, but most of his carries were in the single digits. St. Joseph already was without starting quarterback Paul Cocozziello, who suffered a hairline fracture of his right tibia in last week’s 41-6 win over Colonia. Senior Mitchel Epstein took over, and superbly managed the game. He threw three passes, but rushed for three first downs and a two-yard score.
Resto added a 4-yard touchdown before he got hurt, and Brian Reilly rammed ahead for a 3-yard touchdown. Kicking star Jon Sot nailed four extra points. The Falcons’ Christopher Starkweather and Epstein, who doubles as a DB, both got interceptions. Defensive end Roderic Carson had an active game for St. Joseph (4-0), which has now outscored opponents 150-33.
“It wasn’t the prettiest win that we’ve had all year,” Ransone said. “But we also had some guys go down. Obviously, we’re missing our starting quarterback. I’m very proud of Mitch Epstein who stepped in, who hasn’t taken a snap at quarterback since a freshman. He steps in and did a great job controlling the game for us. Then we have another injury with Manny Resto, our starting tailback. Those are two big holes to fill. And I was very proud of how our kids were able to fill those holes. It’s a sign we’re a good team.”
The win sets up a showdown next week against fellow unbeaten South Plainfield (4-0) for first place in the Greater Middlesex Conference White Division. St. Joseph is ranked No. 6 in the Home News Tribune Top 10 and South Plainfield is No. 5.
First, the Falcons had to get past Woodbridge (1-3), which won last season’s meeting 27-25. Each team scored on its first possession, as St. Joseph led 7-6 with 6:30 remaining in the first quarter.
Then St. Joseph’s running attack took over. In the second quarter, the Falcons put together a 14-play, 71-yard drive that lasted just over eight minutes. Every play was a run with Yakely getting the last eight carries in a row for 39 yards. That included a short gain on fourth-and-one from Woodbridge’s 33-yard line. He ended the drive with a nine-yard touchdown with 2:43 remaining in the first half with St. Joseph opening its lead to 14-6.
“They had the time of possession,” Woodbridge coach Kevin Coleman said. “Just three yards, four yards and a cloud of dust. They stuck to their game plan. They ran the ball.”
In the rainy weather, it was more like three yards and a splash. Yakely, who also plays linebacker, isn’t exactly a rookie. The senior has been a workhorse for the Falcons the past two seasons.
“He’s a program kid,” Ransone said. “He’s a face of the program. Back-to-back 1,000-yard rusher. Hasn’t gotten as many carries this year just based off of our personnel. But here he is, filling a void. Guy goes down, and it’s time to give the ball to old Number 31 and he gets the job done.”
He said he simply saw the holes and made the needed cuts. The offensive line includes Bucknell commit P.J. Barr (RT), John Olmstead (LT), David Barattucci (LG), Starkweather (RG) and Steven Springer (C).
After the Yakely touchdown, Woodbridge responded with its own drive that started on the Barrons’ 38-yard line. Quaasim Glover made an athletic 19-yard catch when he leapt for the ball over the middle to keep the drive going. But on the last play of the half, St. Joseph’s Epstein intercepted the pass in the end zone.
The Barrons (1-3) had some highlights, as sophomore quarterback Donovan Tabon threw a 67-yard pass to Messiah Daniels in the first quarter. Later in the drive, Tabon connected with Daniels for a 16-yard touchdown pass.
Woodbridge entered having lost its two previous games by a combined four points. Now, the Barrons have another defeat in which they played well at times. Coleman said, “Going forward I just think we need to stay the course and execute in practice during the week. … I’m proud of my guys for playing hard.”
Friday, it was St. Joseph’s night.
“It was a great team effort,” Yakely said. “Everybody all around. The line was pushing. The defensive ends were making plays. The secondary were making plays. It’s all about the team. We work hard. We always say one. And we are one.”
ST. JOSEPH (4-0) 7-7-7-7-28
WOODBRIDGE (1-3) 6-0-0-0-6
SCORING SUMMARY
SJ – Resto 4 run (Sot kick)
W – Daniels 16 pass from Tabon (kick failed)
SJ - Yakely 9 run (Sot kick)
SJ - Reilly 3 run (Sot kick)
SJ - Epstein 2 run (Sot kick)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing - SJ:
Yakely 25-146, Resto 8-42, Epstein 5-30, Davis 5-16, Reilly 1-3; W:
Henry 7-34, Ellington 10-1, Ellington 1-1, Tabon 2-minus 10.
Passing - SJ: Epstein 1-3-1-41; W: Tabon 10-18-2-156.
Receiving - SJ: Carson 1-41, Yakely 1-0; W: Daniels 3-86, Glover 4-53, D. Tabon 1-13, Henry 2-4.
