Coach Borden analyzes South Plainfield's football win over Woodbridge

Marcus Borden

Saturday Morning Rewind Week 7

Senior Night is always a memorable event for parents and players as they enjoy the limelight of the pre-game festivities when they are introduced in front of the hometown crowd prior to kickoff.  The event usually signals the last home game for the senior class unless they are fortunate enough to secure a home playoff game. #8 South Plainfield would introduce its entire fall sports program before its clash with #7 Woodbridge.

Woodbridge won the opening coin toss and elected to receive.  They would immediately go three and out in their first offensive series punting the ball back to the Tigers.  South Plainfield would set up on its own 17-yard line and get a a first down on a third and long Ryan Marston pass to Jason Lee at the Tigers 32-yard line.  Their drive would stall as the Barron defense would stuff the run and get the ball back around midfield.

Jason Lee

Fudge would get tackled for a loss as he looked to throw on first down under heavy Tiger pressure.  He would roll to his left on the very next play hitting Nate Lanier in the flat setting up a third and about 2 at the Tiger 42-yard line.  Woodbridge would hurry up to the line and draw the Tigers offside as they tried to snap the ball quickly before South Plainfield could line up.  The 5-yard penalty gave the Barrons a first down at the 32-yard line.  A quick stop route to Quaasim Glover gained 5 yards as Glover was tackled awkwardly on the Woodbridge sideline.  The very next play Fudge would fake an inside handoff and keep to the Tiger 22-yard line.   Fudge would then hit Lanier on a swing pass that would be called back for a holding penalty.  On first and 20, Fudge would set a screen to his left to RB Keshaun Henry who was injured on the play.  He would not return to the game.  On third and 16 from the 28-yard line, Lanier would take a scissors counter play for a first down and goal at the South Plainfield 10-yard line.  The Tigers defense would stiffen once again pressuring Fudge, forcing a Barron penalty and stopping a toss to Lanier on third down.  Woodbridge would look to kick a 38-yard field goal with 6’2 250 PK Harry Rutkowski, however it would come up short as the scoreless first quarter would come to a close.

South Plainfield would try the inside trap to freshman RB Zach Delvecchio for no gain and an inside counter play to Lee for minus one yard on second down.  Facing a third and 11 from their 19-yard line, Marston aligned in the shotgun, would be forced to scramble left as Barron LB Dylan Leone would sack him for a 3-yard loss to the Tiger 16-yard line.  South Plainfield would punt the ball back to Woodbridge at midfield.

Fudge would throw a seam route on first down to Lanier which was too high and incomplete.  On second and 10 he would complete a 7-yard hitch route near the Barron bench setting up a third and 3.  A poor snap would force Fudge to pick the ball up off the ground and deliver the ball to Lanier quickly 2-yards shy of the first down at the Tigers 42-yard line.  The ensuing punt would bounce into the end zone for a touchback at the 7:51 mark of the second quarter.

South Plainfield would go back to the running game trying to get something going with TB Jason Lee both inside and outside.  After a Tiger penalty, South Plainfield would be faced with a third and 5 from their own 25-yard line.  Following a timeout to discuss the play call, Martson would roll left trying to throw a crossing route to Lee.  Glover, who was only playing defense after being injured on his first quarter sideline catch, stepped in front to make a leaping interception at the South Plainfield 42-yard line.

Woodbridge would try an inside run on first down for no gain.  On second down Fudge would deliver a strike to WR James Modica who would catch the ball and looked to have his knees down when the ball came loose.  The Tigers were awarded the ball at their own 33-yard line.

Senior QB Pat Waldrop would enter the game and immediately throw a play action pass to Lee who was lined up as a flanker in the Tigers Double Tight I formation.  Both Lee and Glover would run stride for stride as they both went up for the ball which was deflected by Glover.  The yellow flag on the field indicated there was pass interference on Glover.  The Tigers would get to midfield but once again have to punt the ball back to Woodbridge at their own 16-yard line.

The Barrons would try a Lanier jet sweep to the right for 5 yards.  On second down a perfectly thrown laser seem pass from Fudge was dropped leaving them a third and 5 from their 21-yard line.  Fudge would try a sprint right and was sacked by South Plainfield LB Mark Robertson for a 4-yard loss.  Woodbridge would punt the ball back to the Tigers with 2:40 left in the second quarter.

South Plainfield looked content to get the ball in Lee’s hands as they started on their own 39-yard line.  After to inside Iso runs to Lee, the Tigers took a timeout on third and 7 with about 42 seconds left before the half.  With Waldrop in the shotgun he was sacked by a host of Barrons back to their 34-yard line.  South Plainfield would punt the ball back to Woodbridge with 28 seconds left on the clock.

The Barrons would go right to work with Fudge hitting James Modica on a 38-yard pass play to the Tigers 17-yard line.  The very next play the Woodbridge was called for intentional grounding as Fudge tried to avoid a sack while under pressure.  He would then send all verticals on the next play with Modica stopping near the Woodbridge sideline, making the catch and then stepping out of bounds at the 18-yard line with about 3 seconds on the clock.  Enter Rutkowski as the Barrons would attempt a 35-yard field goal.  The kick was low and hit the offensive line. The ball was scooped up by Jason Lee who was tackled after gathering the blocked kick near midfield.  There was a flag on the play.  The officials huddled in the middle of the field to discuss the play and the flag.  It was determined that Rutkowski was run into on the play and there would be a 5-yard penalty and one more untimed down.  Rutkowski’s second attempt was good from 29 yards and gave Woodbridge a 3-0 halftime lead.

South Plainfield would get the ball first to start the second half.  It was evident from the very first play that the Tigers were going to get the ball into the hands of their talented HB Jason Lee.  He would get 7 yards on a toss play to the right.  On second down they would run it again for a first down to the the Tigers 37-yard line.  A third consecutive attempt would not fool the Barrons as Lee was smothered by a host of Barrons for a tough one-yard gain.  On second and 9 from the South Plainfield 38-yard line an I counter to Lee would net no gain as DT Alex Lagrippo and LB Dylan Leone would stop Lee for little or no gain.  With Waldrop in the shotgun spread on third and long, he would attempt a screen pass to the elusive Bernie Gonzalez in front of the Tigers bench.  He was immediately tackled for a 2-yard loss as the Barrons pressured Waldrop and forced a punt.  The punt was nearly blocked and only gained 9 yards, however there was a Barron penalty on the play setting them back to their 41-yard line.

The Barrons would try to establish the run game with RB Ian Maina in the backfield for the injured Henry.  He would gain a couple of yards on the inside zone leaving Fudge and Woodbridge a second and 8 from their own 43-yard line.  With Glover only playing defense due to a first quarter lower leg injury, WR Tyler Bork was counted on to fill the void.  Bork would catch a quick hitch to the 47-yard line and get immediately hit by OLB Ben Lundy leaving the Barrons with third and 3 yards for the first down.  Maina would be blasted in the backfield by a blitzing Tiger defense that came out of the locker on fire to start the second half.  Fudge would punt the ball down to the Tigers 14-yard line but there was a roughing the kicker penalty on South Plainfield giving the Barrons a first down at the Tigers 41-yard line.

A toss to Lanier who was in orbit motion behind Fudge would be smothered by the Tigers for a 1-yard loss.  An inside counter scissors play to Lanier would gain 4 yards to the South Plainfield 38-yard line.  Using a tight bunch right formation, Fudge would roll right hitting Lanier on an out route for a first down to the Tiger 29-yard line.  Woodbridge would attempt a toss left to Lanier who once again motioned behind Fudge.  The Tigers swarmed to the ball tackling Lanier for a 1-yard loss.  Fudge would resort to the quick pass again as the relentless pressure by the South Plainfield defensive front line led by DT Justin Counts had him throwing off-balanced.  A 5-yard hitch to WR Darin Tabon would leave a the Barrons with third and 6 from the Tigers

25-yard line.  Using a tight bunch formation, Fudge was forced to scramble as the South Plainfield blanketed the Barron receivers.  Rutkowski would attempt his third field goal of the night, this one a 42-yarder from the right hash mark.  The kick would be wide left and short as Jason Lee would catch it in the end zone for a touchback at the 2:37 mark of the third quarter.

South Plainfield would go to its Beast formation with Jason Lee lined up in the tight Wildcat formation.  There was no drama here as everyone in the stadium knew who will carry the ball.  Starting at their own 10-yard line after a penalty, Lee would hand off to Gonzalez for a gain of 4-yards on first down.  Lee would take the direct snap again this time calling his own number for an apparent 20-yard gain but the play was called back due to holding.  Lee would run the same play again, this time for about 3 yards.  On third down Lee would go left coming up short of the first down at the Tiger 19-yard line.  Another short punt would give the Barrons great field position at the South Plainfield 42-yard line as the third quarter would come to an end.

Woodbridge would go immediately to the pass on first down with Fudge scrambling for 3 yards to the South Plainfield 39-yard line.  On second and 7 he would roll left under pressure throwing short to Lanier in the flat who was in motion from right to left on the play.  With the Barrons facing third and 7, they would align with trips left and try the identical flat pass this time to Maina.  Fudge was again under tremendous pressure as the Tigers had an all out blitz forcing a throw into the natural turf of Jost Field.  On fourth and 7 the Barrons nearly downed the Fudge punt on the 1 –yard line by a diving Messiah Daniels at the 10:53 mark in the fourth quarter.

The Tigers would go back to Lee from the traditional I formation on first down but were flagged for a penalty setting the ball back 5 yards.  On first and 14 from the South Plainfield 16-yard line Waldrop would align in the shotgun spread with Lee split out right in 1 on 1 coverage as the Barrons were coming on the blitz.  Waldrop would throw a laser strike to the leaping Lee in full stride as he took it the distance for an 84-yard touchdown and a 6-3 Tiger lead with 9:17 left on the game clock. The Tigers would be flagged for a procedure call on the first PAT attempt and would then miss their second.

Woodbridge would get the ball back on their own 36-yard line following a 16-yard Lanier kickoff return.  Fudge would immediately try to hit Lanier on a seem pass that was broken up by Lee from his Free Safety position.  On second and 10 Fudge would sprint right under pressure and throw the ball away near the Tiger bench.  Facing third and 10 Fudge would escape the initial pressure but still be sacked for a 2-yard loss by a relentless Tiger defense.  Woodbridge would be forced to punt the ball back with 7:59 to go in the game.

The Tigers would get the ball on their 36-yard line with the South Plainfield coaching staff imploring their charges to get a first down as they looked to run down the game clock.  To no one’s surprise, Lee would take the handoff from Waldrop for about 3 yards but there was a 10-yard holding penalty on the play.  An inside trap to the fullback would go no where setting up a second and 20 from the Tiger 26-yard line.  Enter the Beast formation and Lee weaving his way for 8 yards and a manageable third down and 12 passing situation.  Waldrop would re-enter the game and launch a bomb to a tightly covered Jason Lee along the Woodbridge sideline.  Lee would win the jump ball drill against the talented Quaasim Glover for a Tiger first down at the Barron 36-yard line.  On the very next play the “Beast” Jason Lee would take the direct snap and blast his way through the right side of the Woodbridge defense for a 36-yard back-breaking touchdown run at the 6:04 mark of the fourth quarter.  South Plainfield would miss the extra point however the Barrons would need to score twice as the lead was 12-3 in favor of the Tigers.

Woodbridge would be pinned down at their 9-yard line after an outstanding kickoff by the Tigers.  Woodbridge was forced to waste a timeout as a Barron raced on to the field to line up before the snap.  Fudge would be under siege as the Tigers pinned their ears back and forced the the normally unflappable signal caller to throw a desperation pass on third down into the leaping arms of South Plainfield’s CB Raeon Cohen with 4:48 to go.

South Plainfield would set up at the Barrons 36-yard line and use the “Beast” to milk the clock before punting the ball back to Woodbridge.  It was however not to be for the visiting Barrons as Lee and his fellow seniors were going to savor this memorable Senior Night by dominating the fourth quarter and hopefully setting the stage for another home game when the playoffs begin the second weekend in November.  South Plainfield improves to 5-1 while Woodbridge falls to 4-3.