NORTH CALDWELL, NJ — “This game should be easy,” said a West Essex fan, as the Knights of West Essex Regional High School were ending pregame warm ups for the North Jersey Section 2 Group 3 football playoffs this past Friday evening, Nov. 1, in North Caldwell. The game featured a surprising Dwight-Morrow squad who took the Super Football Conference – Ivy Championship last year along with the high-powered offense of West Essex. What no one expected was the high-powered attack the Maroon Raiders would come with much less give as good as they got. “It has been eight years since our program has been in the state playoffs,” said Dwight Morrow Athletic Director Joe Armental who explained the enrollment and school dynamics along with COVID dictated their being in the Ivy and not making the playoffs during that time. West Essex has been on a roll, winning two out of their last three games over Passaic Valley and Hanover Park before dropping their last game before the playoffs to a surging Morris Knolls 21-13. The Maroon Raiders were riding a five-game winning streak that included a 54-42 high-stakes shootout over Glen Ridge to close out the regular season.
The game got off to a relatively conservative start after the Maroon Raiders received the game’s opening kickoff. Taking the ball from their 23-yard line, Dwight Morrow, led by QB Damani Williams, RB Arieyon Williams, Amari Roots, WR Kai Porrata and Keyshawn Jackson, drove 11 plays that included an 8-yard double-pass, but would stall out at the West Essex 31-yard line. West Essex’s defense, led by LB Brady Phillips, was able to force the Maroon Raiders into a fourth-and-18 situation that ultimately gave the ball to the Knights at their 31-yard line with 6:10 left in the first quarter. The Knights, led by Phillips, along with QB Jake Long, WR Anthony Drago, RB Max Garcia, Nick Sangillo and Vincent Giaquinto, made quick work of their 69-yard march in six plays. Long tossed a quick screen to Drago, who used his truck stick on Maroon Raider DB Sakai Maxwell to plow his way into the end zone from 6 yards out for the 7-0 lead with 3:10 still remaining in the opening quarter. “He was small and I didn’t think he was going to come up and challenge me on that play,” said a smiling Anthony Drago after the game. “I felt it was either me or him, so I just ran through him.”
Dwight Morrow QB Damani Williams did not let that faze his team. In fact, it only energized their response with a 10-play, 53-yard march of their own. Williams would cap off the drive with a 13-yard dart to Keyshawn Jackson to start the second quarter, trailing 7-6 after the failed two-point conversion and 11:02 remaining in the first half.
West Essex, still feeling festive, made it known that they can be explosive as well. On their next possession and starting from their 37-yard line, Long would feed Phillips and Garcia the ball. Phillips would muscle his way for an 11 yard gain and Garcia would contribute 5 yards, but there was a holding call. So the very next play, Long flipped a quick pass to Drago, who raced 62 yards up the Dwight Morrow sideline like he had a sandwich order ready for him at Boardwalk Pizza on Passaic Avenue in Fairfield. The gamebreaking 14-6 touchdown was supposed to be an intimidating factor to the Maroon Raiders, but they swung immediately back without flinching. Kickoff returner Sakai Maxwell thought a sandwich order was a good idea and hit the express lane for an 84-yard house call to pull 14-12 after their second failed two- point conversion. The Knights would find their way to yet another speedy six-play, 65-yard touchdown capped by RB Brady Phillips from 5 yards out. Long would dive in for the two-point conversion, taking a 22-12 lead with 7:07 left in the first half. Again, Dwight Morrow wasn’t intimidated, shocking the West Essex fan base with their patient response. QB Damani Williams put his team through its paces, driving them 65 yards in 12 plays where he snuck in the back door from 5 yards out, then completed a two-point conversion pass to WR Kai Porrata to trail 22-20 going into the half.
The third quarter started with the ball in the Knights’ possession. QB Jake Long had the keys to the hotrod and pressed the gas, feeding his backfield, Phillips and Giaquinto the ball. Drago would sped for 20 yards, setting up Phillips’ barreling 11-yard touchdown to keep the 29-20 edge. Dwight Morrow found themselves behind the eight ball and attempted a fake punt, giving the ball back to the Knights who made them pay for the mistake by going 42 yards in seven plays, with Phillips scoring his third 2-yard touchdown on the evening, stretching the lead to 36-20. The Maroon Raiders were in rally mode with 2:03 remaining in the third quarter. QB Damani Williams, with the help of RB Arieyon Williams, WR Kai Poratta, TE Maurice Williams and EJ Maxwell, declared open season on the West Essex secondary while pounding the turf, keeping the Knights guessing on their next move. But the Maroon Raiders were hit with costly personal foul and delay-of-game penalties, putting them in a third-and-a country mile that stalled their attempt to get back in the game and shoot for the upset. Knights DB Vincent Giaquinto had his hands in Dwight Morrow WR EJ Maxwell’s back pocket when he stepped in for an interception from QB Damani Williams with 8:42 left in the game. Working from their own 27-yard line, the Knights were looking for the icing to put on the cake. It was running back-by-committee time with Max Garcia, Anthony Conforti, Dante D’Achille, Kyle Cocoran, and WR Anthony Drago. D’Achille ripped off a pair of runs for 20 and 18 yards, coupled with Garcia’s 11 yards, Conforti’s 9 yards, Drago’s 17-yard jet sweep, and Cocoran’s 4-yard dive to push the needle to 43-20 with 5:51 remaining in the game.
Dwight Morrow refused to go quietly into the stilled night. Starting from their 20-yard line and time running out, Williams would marshal three consecutive first downs with the help of Jackson and Maxwell for a combined 25 yards before escaping the Knights’ defensive pressure for 17 yards. But the Knights were able to force a final turnover on downs, sealing their ticket to the sectional semifinals Friday Nov. 8, at 6:30 p.m. at West Essex against West Morris High, who pitched a 28-0 shutout over Wayne Hills.
“We wanted to play our brand of football,”said West Essex Head Coach Chris Benacquista. “We thought that we would have an easier time, but they came to play like we did. I have to give them my respect and wish them luck in the offseason.”
Dwight Morrow Head Coach Joe Hoyle felt that his team was indeed the better of the two squads, but the mistakes that cost them scores were something that they couldn’t recover from in the second half. “We wanted to change the narrative since most schools don’t respect those who are coming from the Ivy,” he stated, “I believe we’ve accomplished that and look forward to building on that going forward.”
Photos Courtesy of Kerry E. Porter
About the Author
