The Central New Jersey Home News from New Brunswick, New Jersey • 46

1SFTD16A1209 sports 1SPTD16A1209 ZALLCALL 22:37 120896 PAGE DIG 'ifmT" 'i 1 TflE HOME MONDAY, DECEMBER 9, 1996 DECEMBER 9, 1996 THE HOME 4 PAGE D17 NEW JERSEY STATE INTERSCHOLASTIC ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION SECTIONAL FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS nn 5 fig. Oftofi Ilia Scores Centra! Jersey Group IV Middletown North 33, Hillsborough 8 Warmrs enqed 'homefield' advantage 1 i V' jt I vr, A ti h' I "ill Hi I V- 1 Franklin's Donnie Sargeant drags down Hamilton West quarterback QB Greg Muckerson for a sack during the second half last night. EAST RUTHERFORD In front of more than 70,000 empty blue and red seats, the Franklin High School football team enjoyed a home-field last night. Franklin played for the Central Jersey, Group III championship at Giants Stadium for the third consecutive year and made itself feel jight at home in Bergen County during the opening quarter. Franklin's Mercer County opponent, Hamilton, played for a state champi onship on any football field for the very first time.

Eleven minutes into the sectional final, Hamilton had run eight offensive plays and Franklin had scored 20 points. The Warriors, who blocked a punt and recovered a pair of JOSEPH SKREC fumbled kickoffs in the opening quarter, scored a 26-3 victory and captured their second section title in the last three years. This wasn't Franklin's House, but the Somerset County football program has turned Giants Stadium into a familiar home away from home. Like any houseguest, Franklin's football players and coaches feel a little more comfortable with every return visit. "When you walk on to that field for the first time you're intimidated no question," said Franklin coach Joe Goerge, who made his third working visit to The Meadowlands.

"But we're confident when we're here This was the third time for some of the seniors." "It's different playing here," said left- I. 7 Blocked punts, takeawayson kickoffretums spark Warriors By JOHN HALEY STAFF WRITER EAST RUTHERFORD As the Franklin High School football team began preparing for its showdown with Hamilton West in the Central Jersey Group III championship, there was only one facet of its game that wasn't sharply tuned special teams. The Warriors put an extra emphasis on their special teams play this week and it certainly showed up at Giants Stadium last night as two fumble recoveries on kickoffs and two blocked punts led them to a convincing 26-3 decision and the CJ Group III title. Playing in its third straight title game Franklin (10-1) won its sixth sectional title and second in three years. The Warriors had won the crown in 1994.

Hamilton West lost for the first time in 11 games. "I can't say enough about our special teams play and our defense," said Franklin coach Joe George, who is now 38-11-2 after five seasons at the helm. "Our special teams hadn't been performing that well, but the kids made a commitment this week." Hamilton West had to be stunned. After the Hornets had run just eight offensive plays, gaining just 22 yards and one first down, the score was 20-0 with a minute left in the opening period. And while the Warriors' special teams were busy doing their thing, the defense was equally overwhelming, holding potent Hamilton to 174 total yards.

Overall, Franklin recovered five fumbles and held highly-regarded quarterback Greg Muckerson (7-of-18, 82 yards in the air, 32 yards rushing) in check. "We got to read a lot about Hamilton this week," said George. "And we saw that No. 12 (Muckerson) run up and down the field against Trenton and Neptune all week. But our defense was second to none.

We set our sights on him all week. With Sarge (Donnie Sargent), Plummer (Daryn Plummer), Solomon (Nick Solomon), Evans (Carlton Evans) and all the guys, we were able to bounce it out wide and we were also able to contain the dive. We bent a few times, but we didn't break." Offensively, Solomon led the way with 103 yards on 10 carries, while Marcus Hamilton gained 85 tough yards on 19 carries. But this victory was for the defense and special teams. "Offensively, it wasn't the greatest game for us, but we got the job done," said Jonathan Brown, who alternates at QB for the Warriors along with Chris Wielgosz.

"But defensively, hat can yoif say. We h'dd- thet three! points. We had to be ready to play." Central Jersey Group III Franklin 26, Hamilton West 3 North Jersey Section Group ill Hoboken 33, Passaic Valley 12 North Jersey Section II Group III Morris Knolls 36, Shabazz 20 South Jersey Group ill Mainland 14, Fennsauken 7 Parochial Group I St. Joseph (Montvale) 28, Marist 16 Stories, Roundup Pages 18-19 ON THE COVER: Franklin's Carlton Evans (58) shouts in celebration as Franklin runs onto the field after winning the CJ HI championship over Hamilton West yesterday at Giants Stadium. I'lonkiiR'j MIKE NIXON handed Franklin quarterback Jonathan Brown, who threw for a touchdown and a two-point conversion.

"My heart was pounding. But after the first sacked I stopped looking around and said, 'It's time to get down to business'." The unfamiliar environs with the bright lights, artificial turf, hot seats on the sidelines and security personnel everywhere were clearly more familiar to Franklin, ranked second in The Home News Tribune's Top 10. "I honestly didn't think (playing in Giants Stadium) would affect us because of the nature MIKE NIXONStaff photographer of our kids, but it was a big difference in today's game," said Hamilton High School head football coach Keith Hartbauer. "Just in the way Franklin got the bounces, they seemed a little more relaxed. "We were a little bit tentative and we pressed." Franklin wasn't and didn't.

Playing in big-time stadiums is still something special to the multi-millionaires who play in them on Sundays. So imagine how overwhelming of an experience it might be for a teen-ager to play in an NFL "Playing on the same field as NFL teams makes you want to step up and play at another level," said Franklin linebacker Daryn Plummer, the Warriors' captain. The trip north on the New Jersey Turnpike is a thrill that that elicits lots of genuine and boyish enthusiasm from Franklin's head coach. "I'm 42 years old with 23 years in coaching and when I stepped on to Giants Stadium Wednesday night (for practice) it was the thrill of a lifetime," Goerge said. "It's something not that many people and I'm talking about a lot of good coaches get an opportunity to do.

Since this was our third year, the TV people were surprised that we still got so excited. "Man, playing here, is something real special We try to emphasize to our players how fortunate they are." The this-is-a-chance-of-a-lifetime attitude was still evident after the game, when a couple of Franklin players rolled around the dark blue end zone near the 'd' in Meadowlands to take away some sort of keepsake from the memorable affair. Please see Warriors, page 19 N' i 1 trim. S. i MIKE NIXONStaff photographer for a touchdown during the first half West's Detrik Watson.

booming them out of the end zone. We kicked long to open the game, but we didn't want to take any more chances of kicking it long to them." After the first period, the game was basically evenly played, although Solomon was able to seal it with a 44-yard TD run late in the game. "We have good athletes here, but these kids also have the hearts of a champion," said George, whose team gained 239 yards. "I'm very proud of them. They made the commitment last January and it paid off." FRANKLIN (10-D- 20 0O6-26 0300 3 HAMILTON WEST(lO-l)- Evans recover fumble in end zone (kick failed) Hamilton 12 run (kick tailed) Hrri 16 pass from Brown (Garrett past from Brown) Hamilton 29 field goal Solomon 44 run (kick failed) Franklin's Carlton Evans chases down yesterday at Giants Stadium.

Pursuing are Franklin set the tone early as Gordon Greene recovered a Hamilton fumble on the third play of the game, on the Hornets' 28. The Warriors couldn't do anything with the field position and wound up punting. That's when things really started unraveling for the Hornets. Taking over deep in its own territory, Hamilton was forced to punt from the 10. Once again, Greene came up big as he smothered the punt.

Carlton Evans was able to pick up the loose ball at the three before diving in for the score. "We work very hard on blocking punts," said George. "I think we've had eight or nine this m-iwraom Xm thetensuing kickoff, Franklin's Rod So-well, who had kicked deep to open the game, a blocked punt that he picked up and ran in teammate Ryheem Lockhart and Hamilton punched a line-drive about 40 yards. The ball bounced off a Hamilton player and into the arms of a diving Chris Harris on the Hamilton 23. From there, Marcus Hamilton carried four straight times, finally scoring on a 12-yard run to the left side after a series of moves.

On the very next kickoff, Sowell punched a short one this time and the fleet-flooted one was able to recover it himself after it bounced off a Hamilton player on Hornets' 43. After Harris converted a third-down play with a 21-yarder on a reserve, trie Warriors made it 20-0 when Brown hit Harris with a 16-yard scoring strike. Harris caught the ball at the five, then broke two tackles en route to the end zone. "Those kickoffs are said George. "We practiced here on Wednesday and he was MIKE NIXONStaff photographer it t.m Franklin's Chris dives pas Hamilton West's Nick LaEzza and over the goal line for a first-half TD..