East Rutherford, NJ — It’s not often that the turf of MetLife Stadium feels like your home field…unless you’re DePaul Catholic. The Spartans have participated in all three Non-Public B State Championships since the NJSIAA began crowing state titles in 2022. Despite a valiant fight from Dom Gaston’s Pope John Lions, Passaic County’s parochial squad hoisted their second trophy in three years, downing their opponents 33-21.

The game began as a battle with both teams trading touchdowns to kick off the contest, with fake kicks and missed extra points resulting in an early 15-13 lead for Pope John. In the midst, big plays were abound, including an 88-yard kick return by DePaul’s Keyshawn Bryant to set up his team’s second score.

Following Pope John’s lead, Notre Dame-bound Nolan James Jr., picked up a pair of 20+ yard carries, paving the way for an eight-yard Derek Zammit touchdown run that would give his team a 19-15 advantage heading into the half that they would never surrender.

As it was all season, James Jr. running wild was a key theme. He ran the ball 29 times for 244 yards (five shy of his career-high) and a pair of touchdowns, giving the Lions’ defense fits all day long. James Jr. wraps up his high school career with 5,911 all-purpose yards and 49 total touchdowns.

His extraordinary effort outpaced a superb display from Pope John’s Tylik Hill, who ground out 175 yards on 32 carries while scoring all three Lions’ touchdowns. He caps off an unbelievable 2024 where he ran for 2,236 yards, and 27 touchdowns.

Just making it this far was a huge accomplishment for Pope John, who entered the state playoffs with a 2-7 record. Along the way they took down then-undefeated Camden Catholic, avenged a regular season loss against St. Peter’s Prep, and dominated fellow Cinderella team St. John Vianney.

As for DePaul, they look like a team that can easily be in the same spot next season. Key pieces Zammit (QB), Michael Knox (TE), Logan Monteyne (LB), and Logan Nagle (DL) are all juniors and have the pedigree of winning and losing on the biggest stage.

Zammit also had a day, contributing three total touchdowns and piloting his unit to 403 total yards.

“We know that no one can really stop us on offense,” Zammit said, “I feel a lot more comfortable playing in big time games.”

He may just get a chance to do so again next year. But for now, it’s time to celebrate another sensation Spartan season.