Tag: football

On the same day football legends Nick Saban of Alabama and Pete Carroll of the Seattle Seahawks stepped away from iconic coaching careers, it seemed fitting that Steve Antonucci also made his exit.

Last year, Red Bank Catholic had a halftime lead on DePaul Catholic and saw the dream of back-to-back state titles slip away in a 19-17 loss. A year later, the Caseys were caught in the same scenario but finished the job with an elite defensive performance.

Soccer – or football as it’s known outside the United States – the world’s most popular sport, has historically lagged behind American football in viewership in the U.S. But now “the beautiful game” (the sport’s genteel nickname) is more popular than ever in the States as more and more fans develop deep bonds with European clubs.

Van Trease returned to his home field for the first time since that fateful night as the SJV community came together for a flag football game featuring the Lancers and the Boomer and Gio WFAN Morning Show. Jerry Recco, a longtime WFAN personality, is an SJV grad whose son is currently a senior.

Just a year ago, Alex Bauman was a two-sport standout for Red Bank Catholic. Now he’s responsible for one of the most thrilling finishes in the college football bowl season.

Rumson-Fair Haven was counted out when it started the season 0-2. And the Bulldogs were all but eliminated from the playoffs when they trailed on the road by 17 in the section finals against Raritan. So when RFH fell behind 18-7 to Caldwell in the Group 2 state championship, the Rumson faithful knew this team was capable of one more amazing comeback – and they nearly saw it.

With the state championship at MetLife Stadium, win or lose, the Caseys state semifinal against Holy Spirit was the final game of the season at Count Basie Field.

In the midst of a chaotic and magical fourth quarter that will be talked about for years in Rumson, first year head coach Jeremy Schulte said what everyone on the sideline was thinking, “How can you not love high school football?”

Every championship team has a compelling story but the Red Bank Catholic 2021 football state champs has a tale of inspiration that will last for many years.

When Aaron Van Trease was lying on a stretcher after suffering a serious spinal cord injury on the third play of the game Sept. 23 against Manasquan, he told his coach, “Don’t worry about me. Go win this game.” No one on the Saint John Vianney football team was surprised at the selfless act in the midst of a dire situation.