There was some chatter on the sidelines during a Friday, Oct. 10th, evening of high school football as word came in about Glen Ridge being tied 21-all at halftime while taking on powerful Cedar Grove in Panther country.
It may have been a bit premature to even entertain thoughts of a Ridgers' upset bid, and the high-octane Panthers rode a 21-7 burst in the third quarter to an eventual 49-28 victory.
But, the halftime deadlock with perhaps the best team in all of Group 1 circles this fall could have been seen as an indication that the visitors were indeed on to something; and maybe that solid play in The Grove would eventually translate into a couple of significant victories in the weeks to come.
Fast forward a month and Glen Ridge (5-4) has won two of its next three games, beginning with a solid 21-14 upset of Verona at Hurrell Field on Oct. 19 followed by an offensive showcase, albeit in a 54-42 loss to a much-improved Dwight Morrow of Englewood team (5-3-1) on Oct. 25, and then - just this past Saturday - another prolific offensive outburst in blowing past fifth-seeded Pompton Lakes, 47-13, also at Hurrell Field, in the North 1, Group 1 playoff quarterfinals.
Next up is the biggest challenge of the season for the fourth-seeded Ridgers, who have the unenviable task of making the trip up Route 23 in Morris County to take on the top-seeded and undefeated Butler Bulldogs (9-0) at the Butler Athletic Complex Friday night to play on that big blue turf field under the lights.
But, the positive news for the Ridgers is that they come into this weekend in a good place. Whether that translates into a huge upset win remains to be seen; however, first-year coach Chris Strumolo likes where his team is at this late juncture of the 2024 gridiron campaign.
"Every game at this point of the season is a big challenge," said the Ridgers' rookie head mentor. "We've been playing our best football of the season and our kids are excited about facing Butler in what should be a great playoff setting."
In the other N1G1 semifinal it will be third-seeded Mountain Lakes at second-seeded New Milford with the sectional final slated for Friday night, Nov. 15.
Glen Ridge shined on both sides of the ball in roaring past Pompton Lakes in last Saturday's playoff opener as junior running back and wide receiver Zach Konetzni scored four touchdowns. He had 13 carries for 165 yards and 2 TDs alon gwith 4 receptions for 137 yards and 2 more scores.
Impressive senior quarterback Brad Foster was also superb completing 11 of 16 passes for 336 yards and 4 TDs.
Defensively, there were a number of top performers including linebackers Paul Wiley (8 tackles) and Luke Olczack (7 tackles), end Jake Liloia (7 tackles) and freshman D-lineman Tyler Komil (6 tackles).
In the secondary, both Konetzni and cornerback Myles Adams had interceptions.
Now the challenge will be trying to slow down a Butler attack that features a proflic passer in junior QB David Smith (1,284 yards, 23 TDs, 2 Int.) and trying to stop one of North Jersey's best receivers in senior end PJ Coffey (30 receptions for 549 yrds and 12 TDs).
"I saw them 'live' last year when I went up there for their playoff game with Weequahic (21-14 Butler win in N2G1 semis) and they had loads of talent then, and we know they are very talented now, even with some different players in key roles," said Strumolo. "Our players will be prepared and ready to go, we'll play hard and then we'll see where we're at.
"What I do know is that the exciement level is sky high for our kids!"
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