A New Rivalry Among Old Foes: Hackensack Wins a Thriller in Montclair

Everything was going according to plan…

…until it wasn’t.

The Hackensack Comets marched into Woodman Field on Chestnut Street in Montclair—a pocket of the state that largely avoided the bulk of a nor’easter—rearing to go after a dominant win last week over Columbia.

And boy did they go.

By halftime, senior tailback Jason Bocio had rushed for well over 100 yards, while the defense dominated with a flurry of backfield tackles. The Comets entered the locker room with a 17-0 lead and a ton of confidence.

Then came the third quarter. 

You see, the Mounties were celebrating the anniversary of 4 of their 26 state championships on Saturday, and they weren’t about to let Hackensack spoil the fun that easily. 

Head coach and Montclair alum Manj Singh made a bold move after the half, moving division one prospect Simad Jiles to quarterback, a position he hadn’t played since week 0. 

And he didn’t miss a beat.

Jiles completed his first two passes of the game, including a 44 yard catch-and-run to fellow senior Jesiah Godfrey-Pelham, giving the Mounties prime field position to set up their first score…or so they thought.

Their good fortunes turned in a hurry, as the nasty conditions left over from the storm contributed to a red zone fumble seemingly killing all of Montclair’s momentum. That was of course, until the very next play when Sophomore stud Brad Webb masterfully read a route between the hash marks and picked off a pass, putting his team back in the driver’s seat.

Two plays later Jiles darted into the endzone, and suddenly the blowout became a ballgame.

And the fun was just starting.

Hackensack’s next play from scrimmage resulted in another fumble and a Montclair recovery set up a 35 yard dime from Jiles to Gabe Gill, putting the Mounties within striking distance of the lead. A lead they would take with another Jiles run and a 60-yard punt return from Zakir Huff. 25-20 Montclair.

Then came perhaps the ultimate blow.

The Comets went back to the power run game that built their initial lead and marched all the way downfield…only to be stuffed on a goal line stand with under 3:20 remaining in the ball game.

And at this point, most other teams might mentally throw in the towel. Everything that had gone Hackensack’s way in the first half, completely turned on it’s head in the second, as the Mounties went to the air to mitigate the superior run defense, and managed to stall the Comets at every turn. What would happen next, would spin everyone’s head even further.

Though Montclair had stopped Hackensack from scoring, they were still backed up in their own endzone, and ultimately were forced to send the punt team out. In a savvy move, Coach Singh instructed dual-sport standout Jaxson Parma to run out of bounds, sacrificing two-points of his team’s lead for better field position to kick the ball away.

The gambit nearly fell flat when Joel Cooper returned the free kick all the way back to the Mountie 30 yard line, or so everyone thought. After what felt like an eternity of deliberation among the officials, a call that was unclear at the time resulted in a re-kick, and the ball making it all the way to Hackensack’s 10 yard line. It was uncovered after the game that a whistle was accidentally blown during the play prior to the initial return.

Now the Comets were in a real bind. The game was collapsing in on them. What once seemed like an easy win had all but slipped away, and now they had just two and a half minutes to drive the length of the field mere moments after getting halted at the goal line.

It was quite the challenge for starting quarterback Mason Easley, the first freshman to ever start at the position in Hackensack’s 125 year history. Fortunately for them, he was up to it.

The 17 time state champs proceeded to find every soft spot in the Montclair defense, using sideline passes and quarterback runs to reach the Mountie 35 yard line. A gutsy in-traffic completion to receiver Francis Fonfara then helped set up another goal to go scenario for Hackensack with just under a minute to go, and this time, they refused to be stopped. Easley connected with Fonfara once more, this time in the back of the endzone, after a brilliant play fake from an inverted wishbone set. Final Score: Hackensack 29 – Montclair 25

“Being able to bring it home for my guys, that’s why we practice all week. I love them,” Fonfara said.

Humble words from a young man who just had the game of his life, hauling in four passes for 44 yards and a touchdown, while registering seven tackles, two for a loss, recovering a fumble, and intercepting a pair of passes.

Though the loss came in heartbreaking fashion, Coach Singh shared the sentiment with Hackensack head coach Brett Ressler that they should try to make this an every year affair.

For now, the two will head off in different directions, though if things break the right way, we may all be treated to a rematch in the state playoffs.

Watch the full replay for FREE here: https://watch.bigstatesports.com/programs/collection-5hqk2bdqqlu?cid=5013426&permalink=football-hackensack-vs-montclair-c1ac24

Thoughts on the Game:

–Both teams have truly special players in the trenches: College coaches should be shoving each other out of the way to secure Hackensack right guard Ezequiel Luna, and Montclair right tackle/defensive end Avery Burden. Their battles at the line of scrimmage were akin to a heavyweight prize fight.

–Hackensack’s defense is legit: Though they had a pair of rough results against Bergen County powers Ridgewood & Northern Highlands, this young crop of Comet defenders know a thing or two about wrapping up anybody, and getting into the backfield. After four game’s the team’s top three tacklers are all underclassmen: Sophomore Cameron Ballard (43 TKL, 3 TFL, Sack), Freshman Marquis Easley Jr. (35 TKL, 4 TFL, 3 Sacks), and Sophomore Rob Pizzaro (28 TKL, 3 TFL). They’re already good this year, but will be terrifying as they continue do learn and develop.

–Samad Jiles is a star no matter where he plays on the field: The Mounties’ superstar athlete lined up at quarterback, tailback, receiver, and multiple spot on the defense and proved to be a matchup nightmare for his opponents at all positions. While not the biggest, his speed and smarts compliment the power he generates, making him one of the most fun players to watch that I’ve seen this season.

–A new rivalry is born: With both programs dating back decades before the invention of sliced bread, and a proximity of under a half hour (depending on how routes 17 and 3 are behaving), it was astonishing to learn that this was just the 14th meeting between these decorated teams (and Hackensack’s 2nd victory). The game also got chippy at times, but never boiled over, and felt more like a sectional title game between familiar foes than a mid-season clash featuring out of division competition. I know that conference realignment just happened, but in my own personal dream scenario, Hackensack and their Thanksgiving rivals Teaneck, would end up in a division with Montclair, and another historic & gritty Essex County program, Bloomfield. Maybe one of these days I’ll do a piece where I realign all the divisions. No promises though, I already don’t have as much time to write these as I’d like.