By, Mike Lamberti

Four Essex County high school football coaches will be inducted into the Essex County Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame, at the 31st annual Paul Robeson Football Classic, on Tuesday, June 10. The game will return to
East Orange Campus High School, for the first time since 2022. Kickoff time is 7 p.m.

Joining the Hall of Fame will be Darnel Mangan Sr., Anthony Rea, Jamie Bittner and the late Anthony Bailey Sr.

Daniel Mangan, known as ‘Coach Tyson’, is a highly respected football coach and mentor, with over two decades of experience in coaching and mentoring. He began his coaching career in 2005, as an assistant at Malcolm X Shabazz High School. He was just 21 at the time. He has also been an assistant coach at Irvington High, for four years, helping that program win a state championship in 2021.

Daniel was the head football coach at Barringer High, from 2010-2012, and was an assistant high school football coach at Weequahic, Columbia and Irvington. He also served on the collegiate level as an assistant at Caldwell University

Daniel has also been an Assistant Youth Football Coach for the Brick City Lions 12 U program, from 2020 to the present, including a national title in 2022.

Anthony Rea is the current head coach at Montclair Kimberley Academy (MKA) and has been at the helm since 2014. He has a career record of 54-50 at the Montclair-based school. He also served as an assistant football coach at William Paterson University.

Anthony attended Summit High School, and later Gettysburg College, before starting his high school coaching career. Although MKA has one of the the smallest enrollments of any football team in Essex County, Coach Rea has maintained a roster of more than 40 players, and his teams remain highly competitive. He also represents Essex County at 7-on-7 tournaments, clinics and other events.

Jamie Bittner was a long-time assistant football coach at Montclair High, after previously serving as a head coach at Bogota (65-44-4, two state finals) and Emerson (8-12, after inheriting a program with 11 wins in the previous five seasons).

Bittner spent 23 years as an assistant at Montclair. During that time, Bittner served as defensive coordinator and guiding force behind a program that won five state championships and made 12 state finals. Bittner also founded
the Montclair High chapter of the FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes). He was voted FCA Coach of the Year in 2014, and was inducted into the NJFCA Hall of Fame in 2015.

In addition to his decorated coaching career, Bittner also had a stellar playing career. Under legendary head coach Tom Falato, Bittner was a three-year starter at running back and linebacker at Emerson. He also earned another seven varsity letters over his high school career: four in basketball and three in baseball.

The University of Delaware would be Bittner’s next stop. At defensive end, he was a two-year starter and impact player on the 1979 National Championship team. He was also voted the ECAC Player of the Week on defense twice over his college career. He still holds the University of Delaware record for most sacks in a single game, with six. Bittner signed with the Cleveland Browns upon graduating in 1982. Unfortunately, his career was cut short by several knee injuries.

Bittner has been married to his wife Lisa for 44 years. They have three children (son Ryan, daughter Noelle, and daughter Elizabeth) and four grandchildren (grandsons Ryan, Luke, and Matthew and granddaughter Elle).

Anthony Bailey Sr was a 1976 graduate of Barringer High. He would attend Imperial Valley College, in California, where he earned an Associate Degree. From there, Anthony earned a Bachelor’s Degree from
Southwestern College, in Kansas. He would return to New Jersey after graduation, where he began his career in Education, at St. Michael Elementary School, in Newark. He would later teach Science, at Essex Catholic High, in EastOrange, and began his football coaching career there, in 1989. Anthony later became head football coach at Essex Catholic, and put together an amazing football legacy before retiring, in 2019.

Anthony and his wife, Annatte have three sons, Reginald, Anthony Jr and Darin (Jasmine).

Anthony Bailey Sr passed away on Dec. 9, 2024.