In a little over the month, beyond the intended progress of one’s aerial attack through the now-customary 7-on-7’s, the start of practice for many on Aug. 11, and the inevitable pre-season scrimmages to get ready for it all, the 2025 New Jersey high school football season will get underway in Week 0, Thursday, Aug. 28, through Saturday, Aug. 30.
While some teams may not begin until the post-Labor Day weekend, Sept. 4-6, the importance of season openers can be talked about regardless of one’s start date.
Just how important are season openers in dictating the tone or eventual outcome of a team’s entire autumn gridiron campaign?
Perhaps a season-opening defeat can deflate some teams, but that was certainly not the case for Ramapo last fall as coach Nick Guttuso’s Green Raiders were 0-3 out of the gates and then jet-started with a 24-14 win at Montclair on Sept. 28 proceeded to win eight straight games including a North 1, Group 4 state sectional playoff title before falling to a superior Phillipsburg team, 35-6, in the Group 4 semifinals.
Ramapo will entertain Irvington (4-4 in 2024) in one of the intriguing Week 0 season openers on Friday, Aug. 29. Second-year head coach Marco Soto’s Blue Knights will hope things can improve with some talented, young players returning from a .500 squad.
West Essex lost twice to a mighty Old Tappan team last season including 19-7 in its season opener, yet the Knights then reeled off six straight wins and finished a solid 8-3 on the season.
The Knights are now led by first-year head coach Dan Fulton, who did a terrific job during his tenure at nearby Hanover Park, and will be challenged to say the least as a new-look Wessex squad entertains Old Tappan, Friday night, Aug. 29, at Travis Field, to kick off 2025.
Longtime Wessex head man Chris Benacquista is now coaching at Wayne Valley with the high school in the town where he lives, and the Indians have an interesting season opener on Saturday, Aug. 30, taking on Group 1 juggernaut Cedar Grove as the Panthers reload after losing some very key pieces from last fall’s superb 13-1 squad.
For those teams such as Barringer, which was 0-9 last fall, a loss to start the 2024 season led to eight more defeats, which makes this season under first-year head coach Markell Thomas perhaps one to keep a close eye on as the Blue Bears look to begin to turn things around as they prepare to host Livingston (3-6 last fall) in a big Friday, Aug. 29, season opener for both teams at Schools Stadium in Newark.
The Lancers, who have great interest from a large number of student-athletes in the sport despite some tough times posting winning seasons, look to get off to a strong start behind coach Bob Breschard and superb athletic talents such as RB-WR Abel Paul.
An Essex County game to watch to help kick things off on Thursday, Aug. 28, will see Newark Central, with a very talented arsenal, visiting Bloomfield at Foley Field.
