QB Jeremy Tejada runs for yardage against Clifton last season.
BLOOMFIELD, NJ — The Bloomfield High School football team has been relentless in practice since Day 1, looking to have a successful season.
“I like the leadership,” said BHS head coach Mike Carter, entering his 35th season at the helm. “The work ethic has been very good from the word, ‘go.’ Outside of weight-lifting, we’ve been working out from the first day the (state) allowed us (in June). We went out to camp out in East Stroudsburg (Pa.). That was a really good experience for us. The kids are here early, they are on the field early, they want to learn. It’s a nice group of kids.”
The senior captains are quarterback Jeremy Tejada (6-foot-1, 185 pounds), offensive/defensive lineman and linebacker Tyler Frantantoni (6-0, 210) and offensive/defensive lineman Shane Fernandez (6-0, 310), who are multi-sport athletes. Tejada and Fernandez are track and field athletes, and Frantantoni is a wrestling letterwinner.
The captains are excited about the upcoming season.
“The energy and culture have been great,” said Tejada, noting that the key to success will be consistency.
“It feels great,” Fernandez said. “The young guys are picking things up really quick. The bond is very strong. I feel very confident in our schedule and I feel we are going to win a lot of games.
“Chemistry is the main thing. We are showing up as one every time we are on the field and doing the right things.”
Frantantoni said, “I’m very excited about the season. We’ve been working hard all summer and we came into (preseason) camp strong. The young guys are picking up things fast. The main thing is tempo. Everybody is coming out here and ready to work and it’s definitely a good thing.”
Frantantoni said the Bengals are approaching the season game-by-game.
“It’s 1-0 every week,” said Frantantoni, regarding the Bengals’ goal to win each week.
The main goal is for the Bengals to reach the Group 5 state sectional playoffs. Bloomfield last made the playoffs in 2017.
The Bengals, who went 3-7 last season, have other players who will be key contributors. Those seniors are OL/DL Isaiah Figueroa (6-4, 260), OL/DL Josh Plonski (5-6, 195), wide receiver/cornerback Braeden Weber (6-2,175) and running back/linebacker Joel Rivera (5-10, 180).
The juniors are RB Aaron Varner (5-10, 160), RB/LB Aiden Ruiz (5-10, 170), RB/defensive back Brian Heredia (6-0, 180), DL Breakthrough Onyechere (5-8, 180), WR/DB Tayler Guerrero (5-8, 170) RB/DB Alex Noelvil (5-8, 160), WR/DB Michael Mickens (6-1, 180), tight end/defensive end Mekhi Wilson (6-4, 245), OL/TE/DE Joel Urdanivia (5-3, 250), QB Semaj Spence (5-10, 180) and RB/DB Christian Cradle (5-10, 170).
The sophomores are TE Andrez Valencia (6-0, 170), QB/RB/DB Brandon Plummer (5-6, 150), RB/DB Zhamir Scott (5-10, 180), OL/DL Declan Cunniffe (6-3, 290), TE/OL/DL Remel Jackson (6-2, 225) and QB/DL Derek Kittner (5-10, 180).
This season, the coaching staff has a few new faces. Among them is 1991 BHS graduate Jermain Johnson, who came over from Montclair, where he was the head coach from 2022 to last season. Johnson also was previously the head coach at Paterson Eastside and Belleville.
Schedule
Aug. 28: vs. Central, 6 p.m.
Sept. 5: at Nutley, 6:30 p.m.
Sept. 13: at Montclair, 1 p.m.
Sept. 19: vs. Barringer, 6 p.m.
Sept. 26: vs. Lincoln, 6 p.m.
Oct. 4: at East Orange Campus, 1 p.m.
Oct. 10: at Kennedy, 6 p.m.
Oct. 16: vs. Livingston, 6 p.m.
Oct. 24: vs. West Orange, 6 p.m.
Photos Courtesy of Jerry Simon
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