The North-South football game is not just another game for Butler’s P.J. Coffey.

When the Bulldog senior received word that he’d been invited to the all-star game, he was clearly pumped – maybe more than any other player.

For himself.

For his family.

For Butler football.

For the entire town of Butler.

Not many football players from Group I schools get recognized, but not many of those players are quite like the versatile Coffey.

Coffey helped lead the Bulldogs to both an NJIC and North 1, Group I championship and was named first-team All-Area by Big State Sports.

He will play receiver when the North takes on the South at Kean on Sunday at 2:30 p.m.

The game will be broadcast live by Big State Sports on You Tube.

Other players from the Morris-Sussex area who are expected to play in the game include Pope John D-Lineman Joe Pappa, Chatham QB Will Allen, Randolph O-Lineman Dean Mangiocavallo, Morris Knolls linebacker Bobby Brickner, and Parsippany tight end Omar Amin.

It would be hard to find a player more enthusiastic to play in the game than Coffey.

“This means a lot,” Coffey said. “I get to represent Butler as a program and get a chance to showcase my skills. Being that Butler is a Group 1 school, it is hard to get your name out there, so it means a lot to me.”

Coffey was at home when he received a text from Bulldogs coach Jason Luciani, who guided the school to one of the best seasons in the school’s illustrious history.

Judging by Coffey’s reaction to the invite, you’d have thought the Bulldogs had just won another state championship.

“Oh yeah, I was very excited,” he said. “Last year, (graduated Butler lineman) Jason Murray got into the North-South game and it was a goal of mine to play in the game. So when I heard I was ecstatic and immediately told my family.”

The University of Rhode Island-bound Coffey was one of the most versatile players tradition-rich Butler has ever had. He was 57 for 400 rushing with nine touchdowns and caught 37 passes for 615 yards and 13 more TDs. He was stellar on defense with two INTs for the 11-1 Bulldogs.

Marist, Lehigh and several D-3 programs came hard after Coffey before Rhode Island came along. URI finished 11-3 overall and was second in the Coastal Athletic Association to Richmond.

He will report to training camp in the summer as an athlete.

“They’ll throw me in at receiver and at defensive back and see where I fit in,” he said.

Coffey has been impactful in three varsity sports (he was a 1,000-point scorer at Butler and a good pitcher) at Butler, but he has always been in the center of things when it came to football. 

While playing for the Butler Bloomingdale Youth Club football league around the age of 8, he had seven TDs in a Super Bowl victory over Woodland Park.

The team-oriented Coffey is just as elated when a teammate spurs on a big victory, like when Butler’s Austin Bennett made a strip sack to clinch the team’s Super Bowl victory as an eighth-grader. Coffey scored two touchdowns in that game but was just as happy for Bennett and his Bulldog teammates.

“Their kid went down, the ball flew into the air … it was a good time,” Coffey said. “It’s great being on a team and watching your friends make plays.”

That summer, Coffey attended the DePaul football camp and toured the school’s facility while the varsity team was doing summer practice.

Many talented eighth-grade athletes are lured away from their district to play in more talented Catholic-school programs, but Coffey chose to remain a Bulldog.

His roots run deep in the town.

“I talked to their coaches about potentially going there,” he said.

“I went to Butler and I knew I’d get instant playing time. DePaul is a very good program, but all my friends were here. I have a very good relationship with the coaches. You don’t want to leave your hometown. Your family and friends are here. It’s a very good program. It’s pretty hard to leave that.”

And now he’ll get a chance to test the waters against some of the best graduating seniors from all over New Jersey from schools big and small.

“I’ll be playing receiver,” he said. “I think I’ll be able to show more athletic ability, have a little more fun. Receivers get more chances to score touchdowns and get a little more recognition. That can be more fun sometimes.”