A pair of things happen every two years, the world has a different season of Olympic games, and the Super Football Conference realigns its divisions. Last year’s American Gold is now the American White with four teams carrying over. Out are Essex County legacy programs Caldwell and Verona, and in come formidable foes Pequannock and Parsippany, creating an all-Morris County division. There’s certainly a bit of a hierarchy among these six teams, but each program has an interesting storyline and plenty of must-watch football ahead of them this fall. 

Hanover Park 

Dan Fulton’s Hornets were the buzz of eastern Morris County last season, finishing their campaign with an impressive 7-3 record, and only losing to teams that won their respective divisions (and in Rutherford’s case their conference. Their defense was sensational surrendering just 12.9 points per contest and picking off 15 passes. 

Their signature win came against the eventual Group 1 Champion Mountain Lakes Herd under the lights at The Hive, which put their defensive dominance and big-play capabilities on full display. With another year under the collective belts of offensive weapons Joey Borrello, Azmir Parks, and Joey Fillipone, Hanover Park will look to take a leap forward with the ball in their hands. On the other side, Fillipone, Hector Lopez III, and PJ DiMaiolo expect to continue the tradition of lockdown defense just off the banks of the Passaic Rivier. 

Their schedule presents quite the challenge this season with divisional rivalries against Madison and Mountain Lakes kicking off their first pair of games, then closing out with the reignition of the Cardone Cup against West Essex followed by Newark superpower Weequehic. And oh by the way, exactly evenly matched Pequannock is in that mix as well.

There are a few new faces in the trenches for the Hornets this season, but if those units solidify, their experienced group of seniors could carry this team to a fourth-straight playoff appearance. 

Madison

Despite a 3-6 record, Chris Kubick was able to guide his Dodgers to a second-consecutive playoff birth and a reputation as a tough-out for any opponent. Gregory Randell’s swan song at running back was admirable, helping surge the offense with 1,130 all-purpose yards and 12 total touchdowns. The key to their 2024 will hinge on how well they can replace that production either with a rising star or in the aggregate. 

A defensive improvement would also go a long way for Madison, as they gave up just 16 points per game in their three victories, but 37.8 points per game in their losses. They did a great job slowing down Pequannock in a 24-21 victory, holding their dynamic rushing attack to just three scores despite 265 yards. 

What will be intriguing for this team is how well junior quarterback Luke McGuire performs on the gridiron. The Dodgers’ third starting signal-caller in as many seasons showed maturity beyond his years on the baseball diamond, pitching to a 1.96 ERA as a sophomore last spring. The arm talent and mental toughness are there, and there are plenty of reasons to be bullish on him in 2024.

Overall, the new starters will have their work cut out for them with Mendham, Cedar Grove, and Lenape Valley rounding out their schedule beyond the gauntlet of their division. There’s a chance this team surprises a lot of people outside of Ted Monica Stadium. 

Morris Catholic

Newly minted head coach Rae Oliver will bring his championship reputation to a program that’s looking to rebound following a winless 2023 campaign. Oliver is known for creating winners on the field and in the classroom, garnering multiple Sectional Championships as an assistant and a head coach at Montclair and East Orange respectively, and elevating the GPA of his previous team by a whopping 1.4 points. 

He’ll be inheriting a group that’s lost some key contributors but gives him an opportunity to make his mark on the team right from the get-go. In terms of returners, junior quarterback Ethan Everett showed some flashes last season during his first season as a starter. In a tight 22-13 loss to Glen Ridge, Everett completed 60% of his passes for 172 yards and a touchdown while adding another 50 yards on the ground. Senior wide receiver and defensive standout Erik Edleman (264 receiving yards, 28 tackles for a loss) should also factor heavily into Oliver’s game plan.

The Crusaders’ schedule remains a challenge as a member of this division, but their other games will be an excellent litmus test for how they’ve improved since ‘23. 

Mountain Lakes

The defending Group 1 Champions are back and looking to continue to roll in 2024. Despite an 11-2 overall record, they actually finished just third in the division last season with losses to Caldwell and Hanover Park in a nail-biter their only blemishes en route to the history books. The Herd was incredibly strong on both sides of the ball, putting up 29.3 points per contest while holding opponents to 12.2 per game, including two shutouts, and letting up just six points in the state title game. 

Coach Fusco’s Wing-T offense and smothering defense have been plug-and-play throughout his tenure thanks to excellent coaching and development. Still, graduating two-year starting quarterback Ben Miniter, Jordan Hernando (RB), Cosmo Fusco (OL/DL), Ian Redzepagic (RB/DB), and Marco Dzamba (WR/DB) creates a lot of holes to fill, and therefore a lot of opportunities for younger players to step up. One young man to highlight is running back Carson Fitch who led the team with 11 rushing touchdowns and finished second in ground yards with 821 as a sophomore. 

The Mountain Lakes season kicks off with the reignition of an old rivalry with a Week 0 matchup at home against Weequehic (10-1 in 2023), followed up by a gauntlet of divisional opponents with a sprinkling of Sussex County foes in Lenape Valley and Newton, and of course Boonton. This year’s campaign for the Herd will boil down to how well the next core of young players rises to the incredible standard this program has prided itself on since its inception, and there are plenty of signs to indicate that they’ll do just that. 

Parsippany

The Redhawks are one of two former National Blue teams to join the newly minted American Gold, reuniting with the prior four teams in what looks very much like their divisional alignment in 2021. They’ll look to rebound following a disappointing 2023 that featured a 1-7 record and zero home victories. However, a schedule shake-up may be just what this team needs to make a solid leap in the standings. 

Starting quarterback Kevin Regan returns after a junior season full of positive flashes. In six games with stats reported, he threw for 1,047 yards, including a monster 286 against Kittatinny. His receiving yardage leader Lukas Grippo will be his top option this fall, racking up 17.5 yards per catch and three scores last season. On the other side of the ball, leading tackler Nick Graziano (67 tackles, 3 FF) returns to reprise his role as the anchor of the defense. 

Parsippany is not too far removed from the glory days of 2019’s sectional runner-up team; there’s every reason to project a productive and far-improved 2024 campaign. 

Pequannock

If I were the other teams in this division, this just might be the program I’m most afraid of. Mike Moschella has this team on a serious upward trajectory and ready to compete with anyone this season. Last year, they followed up a 2-2 start with a four-game winning streak, including edging out Hanover Park in a thrilling 31-24 victory at The Hive and a shutout of North Warren. One could also argue that they could’ve given Caldwell a run for their money in the state playoffs had turnovers not marred their 14-7 sectional quarterfinal loss to Lakeland who went on to beat the Chiefs. 

Though starting quarterback Tyler DeNaples has graduated, the Golden Panthers retain a ton of key pieces on both sides of the ball including four of their five starting offensive linemen, who all happen to be four-year starters. Their primary objective will be to pave the way for junior running back Dylan Roemmele, who led Pequannock with 868 rushing yards and eight touchdowns. Fellow ballcarrier Angelo Cundiff will look to make some noise in a running game as well. 

Defensively, Roemmele will continue to be a major factor and could even improve his total of a dozen tackles for a loss from last season. Nick Zuccala returns in the secondary, finishing second on the squad last season with a pair of interceptions. 

Outside of the division, St. Mary’s, and Sussex Tech highlight what will be a schedule designed to battle test this team for the postseason. Their inclusion in the American White makes this one of the top divisions in the SFC, especially when it comes to smaller schools. Get ready for plenty of instant classics involving the Golden Panthers this season.