LIVINGSTON- Livingston’s Abel Paul continues to raise his own game, and that includes more than being one of New Jersey’s top running backs this fall. And while he might still approach last fall’s grand rushing totals of 2,372 yards and 25 touchdowns for a 7-4 Lancers playoff team, what’s most impressive so far halfway through this regular season is that he’s so much more than any proverbial ‘stat stuffer.’
The dynamic senior co-captain, who now also sees double duty at linebacker in addition to being a return man on kickoffs and punts, had another highly-productive and workhorse performance on the ground in this past Friday night’s 22-12 victory over Montclair at Allen ‘Jake’ Jacobson Memorial Field as he had 35 carries for 245 yards and 3 touchdowns in addition to scoring on a 2-point conversion in helping to lead Livingston (2-2) to an important Super Football Conference-American White Division contest vs. the young Mounties (2-2).
For his efforts in securing a much-needed win in the North 1, Group 5 playoff power point standings, the Lafayette College-bound Lancers standout is the latest Parisi Fairfield/Sideline Chatter Athlete of the Week.
Paul, who has rushed for 585 yards and 7 TDs in the first four games this fall in addition to recording 2 sacks, 5 tackles for a loss, 8 solo tackles and 21 total tackles, is also emerging as one of the team’s bona fide senior leaders along with fellow captains including standout University of Delaare-bound two-way lineman Kodi Gbanite who had his own stellar performance in excelling all night long in the battle in the trenches vs. the Mounties in a physical contest.
“We came into practice last week knowing that we needed this win more than anything for our playoff hopes, and that was a motto for us because it definitely was not just another game with the power points we were able to pick up with the victory,” said Paul, an outstanding student who plans to graduate in January and leave mid-year to begin his college career at Lafayette. “Our seniors are determined to keep leading the way and our younger players are getting better and gaining more experience each and every week.
“Now Morristown (6:30 p.m. Friday in Mo-Town) is a must win, and it will be East Orange (Oct. 2, away) and Barringer (Oct. 9 at home) after that because we’re playing for something every week and it’s not to play a consolation game later in the season.
“I thought we looked more like last year’s team vs. Montclair. I know we graduated a lot of key guys off that team, but we’re trying to hold ourselves to the standard those seniors set.”
That 2025 Livingston team saw 29 seniors graduate last June. Quad captains Paul, Gbanite, 3-year starting center Mason Gordon, 2-way lineman Nico Tarabocchia (who is currently sidelined with an injury) and quarterback Troy Naylor have all tried to do their part on and off the field to establish themselves as the new vanguard of veteran leaders.
There are up-and-coming young players for them to inspire including sophomores such as starting offensive tackle and defensive end Darren Lyell and starting right guard Gavin Feola and versatile freshman ‘H’back and D-lineman Michael Crawford.
“We started out this season with two tough opponents (Bayonne and West Orange) and some of the kids we put out there against them had never been in a varsity game before, and to be thrown into the fire like that is hard for anyone,” continued Paul. “They keep getting better and we’ve all come together as a team.
“The senior captains have tried to set the tone since early in the summer in trying to do as much as we can to set the tone for our underclassmen, and our coaches keep coaching them up, which is great!”
Bob Breschard, who is now in Year No. 4 of his second tour of duty as Livingston’s head coach, has been thrilled with the continued hard work put in by his seniors and the younger kids who are picking more things up each and every week.
“We knew that our schedule would definitely test our players, especially those without much or any varsity experience,” said the veteran head mentor. “Bayonne’s O-line and D-line are phenomenal and West Orange is the class of our North, Group 5 right now. They fly around and their kids make plays at every position and we put some puppies out there against them.
“You have to play the best to get better and as tough as those games were for us our players also learned some lessons that will be beneficial. I think we’re also getting healthier as the weeks move on and a few kids ae able to return from injuries, and hopefully we will continue to improve as a complete team.
“Montclair is young, but they are physical and athletic and will keep improving and we expect another tough game at Morristown this Friday night.
No one on our schedule is easy and we have to keep preparing each week for that next challenge in front of us.”
Having a future Patriot League player in Paul is definitely a huge plus for the Lancers.
“We’ve been playing him both ways this season, including at linebacker and he continues to handle punt and kick returns, and he is definitely a complete player and tremendous leader for our team.
“I’ve gotten close with the Lafayette coaches and I joke with them about being careful because he could be a steal for their defense, if they took that step, but – seriously- Abel is just that talented!
“He didn’t start playing football until his freshman year in high school and he just continues to get better and better each year.
“He’s strong and tough including running the ball. I was watching film vs. Montclair and I see him earning physical and tough yardage out there.
“He may not have rushed for 522 yards and 7 TDs like he did in last year’s (49-39) win over Montclair when he had more breakaway runs, but the way he earned his 245 yards in Friday night’s win was also very impressive and I see him continuing to impress everyone with his strong play on both sides of the ball.”
NOTES- The incredible rushing performance by Paul in last year’s Montclair game would go down as the third-highest single-game yardage record in New Jersey high school football state history, just behind Netcong’s John Giannantoni’s 754 yards and 9 TDs in a 1950 game vs. Mountain Lakes, and St. Mary’s of Rutherford’s Derious Stone who amassed 577 yards in a 2015 contest….Paul was also a state sectional champion in the 100-meter dash and in the long jump last spring…Unlike most of teammates who started out in local junior Pop Warner-level football, Paul did not begin playing football until his freshman year in high school as his parents, from a strong Haitian-American background that stresses academics over almost everything else were initially very too keen on their son playing the physical and possibly dangerous sport of football. But, mom Lydia and dad Jean finally agreed that their sons, also including Abel’s older brother, the since-graduated starting DB Asa Paul, could join the Lancers gridiron squad in 2023 and the rest has been a continuing evolving journey of accomplishments on the gridiron. “My parents love football now and we’re a football family,” said Abel…His brother Asa is a red-shirt freshman defensive back this fall at Montclair State University… The younger Paul selected Lafayette after receiving numerous offers including from an FBS school in UConn along with FCS programs at Lehigh, Fordham, Monmouth, Maine and Bryant….Abel and Asa’s cousin Ernest Jeune, who played at East Orange, is a sophomore linebacker at Lafayette…The Easton Pa.-based football team finished a solid 8-4 last fall in head coach John Troxell’s third season at the helm when the offensive unit was second in the Patriot League in both passing and rushing…Among the other North Jersey products on the Lafayette roster is former Seton Hall Prep standout Justin Cook, who is a sophomore linebacker this season....Paul finished first in the 100-meter dash (10.84) and long jump (22-5) in the N1G4 state sectional championships this past May…Abel’s name refers back to the Old Testament and about Cain & Abel, who was the younger son of Adam & Eve…Paul’s electrifying 522-yard, 7 TD performance vs. Montclair last fall was listed as the state’s second-best individual performance of the 2025 season on si.com (Sports Illustrated), just behind the 9-TD output of Holmdel QB Jack Cannon who passed for 6 TDs and ran for 3 more in a 65-42 Central Jersey, Group 3 playoff victory over Neptune.
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