BY DOUG McKENZIE
Staff Writer

High school football teams across the state with visions of capturing state championship glory this year have learned their respective paths.

With the cutoff for qualifying come and gone, only four local teams will be playing for sectional titles this fall, though all are longshots, to say the least.

First off, there’s the Central Jersey Group III bracket, where Middletown South, without question, is the class of the field. The top-ranked Eagles, who got to 8-0 this past weekend with a 45-7 win over Marlboro, are the top seed, the defending champion and the prohibitive favorite.

And for good reason. Only Wall Township (the third seed in CJ Group III) has played the Eagles close this year, and in year’s past, when teams get a second chance against the Eagles after playing them well the first time around, the results have not been pretty.

This year, the Eagles have plowed through the competition, led by the incomparable Knowshon Moreno, who surpassed the 4,000 career rushing yard-mark this past weekend, and a dominant defense that does not get the credit it deserves.

South will open with a familiar opponent — Red Bank Regional — tomorrow night in Middletown. The Eagles beat the Bucs earlier this year, and will enter Friday night’s game brimming with confidence. RBR earned its shot at the Eagles by beating rival Red Bank Catholic, 22-21 this past weekend, as senior linebacker Jon Cetera blocked a 24-yard field goal attempt with 1:05 on the clock to seal the win for the Bucs, and give them the state playoff berth.

The Bucs, who got a career high 210 rushing yards from senior running back Michael Livingston against RBC, can certainly be looked at as a dangerous team, with terrific athletes at the skilled positions.

That being said, the Bucs would be the first to admit that they have their hands full tomorrow night.

Elsewhere in the CJ Group III bracket, the Long Branch Green Wave, who improved to 6-2 with an impressive 42-7 win over rival Matawan on Saturday, earned the fifth seed, and as such will travel to fourth-seeded Hightstown tomorrow.

The Green Wave used Saturday’s game with Matawan as a warm-up for the playoffs, and performed well, playing well on both sides of the ball. The Wave is a team that has been getting stronger as the season has progressed, and as a result, finds itself in a winnable first-round game tomorrow night.

Under head coach Dan George, Long Branch has earned a reputation as a strong finishing team, and this season is no exception. The Ocean Township Spartans are the seventh seed in the CJ Group III bracket and will travel to second-seeded Hamilton West on Saturday. The Spartans are coming off their bye week, and will be refreshed on Saturday.

But they will need to be in top form if they hope to knock off the Hornets this weekend.

That leaves Red Bank Catholic, who entered last Saturday’s game with RBR hoping to fine-tune some things before the playoff push.

They were also hoping that a win over RBR would help secure a higher seed in the Non-Public Group IV playoff picture.

Unfortunately, thanks to Cetero’s block and four costly turnovers, the Caseys spoiled another strong effort from running back Donnie Brown (184 yards and two touchdowns on 35 carries), and couldn’t get the win.

As a result, the Caseys got the sixth seed in the Non-Public Group IV bracket, and a first-round meeting with the third-ranked team in the state, Don Bosco Prep, of Ramsey. And while this may seem like an impossible spot for the Caseys, keep in mind they have a couple of things going for them.

First, they have nothing to lose. No one expects them to make a game of this, not against a state power like Don Bosco. Then add to the mix Brown, who has proven himself to be among the state’s top running backs, and has the ability to put a team on his back in a big spot.

The Caseys are big underdogs, and rightly so. But that doesn’t mean they’re not dangerous.