It was the year of the pass. The pitch. The keeper.
In Morris County, it was the year of the quarterback.
From the beginning of the season right until the end, Morris County QBs played a huge role in the success of their teams.
Many quarterbacks were masterful at reading a defense, passing, running with the ball, or running an entire offense.
Here is a rundown of some of the top QBs in 2024:
- Delbarton’s Jadon Prinzivalli (140 for 229, 2,083 yards, 16 TDs) performed superbly against one of the most demanding schedules in all of New Jersey.
- Chatham’s Will Allen (157 for 270, 2,022, 17 TDs, 82 for 336 rushing, 5 TDs) helped spearhead one of Morris County’s surprise teams. This year, Chatham won its first playoff game since 2015.
- Mount Olive’s Jake Asbury (133 for 205, 1,591 yards, 17 TDs, 47 for 157 rushing, 4 TDs) helped the Marauders reach the sectional semifinals.
- Butler’s David Smith (101 for 169, 1,499 yards, 28 TDs, 5 INTs, 96 for 706 rushing, 6 TDs) was at the controls of the Bulldogs winning both the NJIC championship as well as North 1, Group I.
- Randolph had a bit of a down year but Jackson Magley (112 for 177, 1,288 yards, 13 TDs) proved himself to be an able passer in the Liberty White, the best public division in Morris-Sussex by a wide margin.
- Morris Knolls’ Chris Kaiser only threw for 331 yards, but he was one of the Golden Eagles most valuable performers and was one of the best the school has seen in a long time. He was 66 for 833 rushing (15 TDs) and orchestrated the team’s intricate spread option running attack. Others from the county who orchestrated run-heavy offenses in the same way included Boonton’s Metin Ahmedi and Mendham’s Cam Parrinello
- Hanover Park’s Joey Borrello had a monster season passing (123 for 170, 1,679 yards, 19 TDs, 6 INTs) and running (146 for a team-leading 510 yards, 11 TDs) in helping to lead the Hornets to their first sectional title since 1990.
- Montville’s QB Michael Ciullo had a strong year throwing the football (113 for 191, 1,334 yards, 10 TDs, 3 INTs) and ran well when needed (77 for 321, 4 TDs) as the Mustangs reached the sectional semifinals.
- When he was a sophomore, Kinnelon QB Zach Grande engineered the Colts’ old-school Power-T formation as the team stunned highly regarded Park Ridge in the playoffs. Now a senior, Grande showed he can throw the ball (945 yards, 13 TDs, 3 INTs) as well as run it (511 yards, 9 TDs).
- Morristown-Beard’s Ryan Novak played in a little anonymity (The Crimson play an independent schedule) but he deserves some kudos after a season in which he was 127 for 180 for 1,642 yards and 21 touchdowns while throwing just four INTs.
- Jefferson struggled this year but sophomore QB Connor Consiglio (160 for 285, 2,224 yards, 17 TDs) showed some promise.
Player of the Year: Morris Knolls’ Bobby Brickner was the best all-around player in Morris County. He rushed 189 times for 1,366 yards and 12 touchdowns in a balanced backfield. On defense, he was all over the field as a linebacker (1 sack, 9 tackles for loss, 93 tackles, 2 INTs) for the undefeated champions of the rugged SFC-Liberty White and sectional finalists in North 2, Group IV.
Team of the Year: The Butler Bulldogs have one of Morris County’s best programs. Year in and year out, coach Jason Luciani has Butler playing at a high level – but not as high as this year, when the Bulldogs fielded one of their best teams ever.
Coach of the Year: Hanover Park has always had a good-not-great team – until this year, when the Hornets were great under coach Dan Fulton. The Hornets won the American White and their first sectional title since 1990. They went through their league undefeated by beating playoff teams Madison, Pequannock and Mountain Lakes and were a point away from beating sectional finalist West Essex.
BIG STATE SPORTS
ALL-MORRIS FOOTBALL
FIRST TEAM
OFFENSE
QB-Jadon Prinzivalli, Delbarton
RB-Tyler Cumming, Mount Olive
RB-Cole Capuzzi, Mendham
RB-Peter Miragliotta, West Morris
RB-Bobby Brickner, Morris Knolls
OL-Tyler Frame, Pequannock
OL-Rowan Killam, Mendham
OL-Brent Berchin, Morris Knolls
OL-Richie Banatta, Mount Olive
OL-Dean Mangiocavallo, Randolph
OL-Tommy Borgia, West Morris
WR-Phil Folmar, Delbarton
WR-Nick Lagunowich, Chatham
PK-Will Kramer, Delbarton
UT-Joey Borrello, Hanover Park
UT-David Smith, Butler
UT-Will Allen, Chatham
UT-Chris Kaiser, Morris Knolls
DEFENSE
DL-James Giammanco, Mount Olive
DL-Luca Lopez, Delbarton
DL-Dante Palladino, Montville
DL-Justin Gryszkin, Pequannock
DL-Luca Toriello, Butler
LB-Kyle Checchio, Delbarton
LB-Joe Filippone, Hanover Park
LB-Drew Cabalar, Boonton
LB-Brady Ashburn, West Morris
LB-Lincoln Youtz, Mount Olive
DB-Brady Bentrewicz, West Morris
DB-Troy Bailey, Delbarton
DB-Mike Vito, Montville
DB-Anthony Feaster, Montville
DB-P.J. Coffey, Butler
P-Alex McWilliams, Chatham
SECOND TEAM
OFFENSE
QB-Jake Asbury, Mount Olive
RB-Brock Dandridge, Delbarton
RB-Sylas White, Boonton
RB-Angelo Cundiff, Pequannock
RB-Kevin King, Mendham
OL-Lorenzo Petrucci, Delbarton
OL-Greydon Carcich, Morristown
OL-Andrew Stickley, Kinnelon
OL-Hudson Flemming, Madison
OL-Holden Gillespie, Mountain Lakes
OL-Jase Catullo, Chatham
WR-Jason Post, Jefferson
WR-Jasiah Brown, Morristown
PK-Jake Merlucci, Morris Knolls
UT- Emilio Mendez, Dover
UT-Ryan Novak, Morristown-Beard
SECOND TEAM
DEFENSE
DL-Tyler Jackson, Delbarton
DL-Sam Cobane, Whippany Park
DL-Aaron Leak, Madison
DL-Chase Bright, Morristown
DL-Timmy Wiedman, Morris Knolls
LB-Erik Edelman, Morris Catholic
LB-Hector Lopez Hanover Park
LB-Dimitrios Mihala, Morristown
LB-James Doehner, Madison
DB-Connor Higgins, Mountain Lakes
DB-Jayden Koger, Morris Knolls
DB-Reed Donegan, Morristown
DB-Jaxson Corkery, West Morris
P-Trevor Klapmuts, Roxbury
UT-Tommy Suchanek, Mendham