EAST ORANGE, NJ — With just seconds left, East Orange pulled out the improbable birthday gift that any coach can appreciate.
The East Orange Campus High School football team defeated Montclair, 37-28, in the Rumble in the Raritan to begin the season Friday, Sept. 3, at Robeson Stadium in East Orange.
Although the game was supposed to be played Friday evening, Sept. 3, at Rutgers University’s SHI Stadium, it was moved to East Orange’s home field due to Tropical Storm Ida. The storm moved eight games that were slated for Friday and Saturday because Rutgers rescheduled its season opener to Saturday Sept. 4.
Montclair opened its season with new interim head coach Pete Ramiccio. He stepped in for head coach John Fiore, who is taking a leave of absence to address family matters. “We had a relatively young squad last year and we are now looking to make a push this year,” Ramiccio said optimistically at the recent Super Football Conference Media Day hosted by the New York Jets last month. After Friday’s game, he said, “I don’t want to lie and say I’m fine with the result, but I am frustrated being this is my first game as a head coach.” He was referring to the loss at the hands of a dominant Jaguars squad. “We had them down, but each time they found a way to flip it on us with the steady play.”
East Orange for the third year in a row has sent the Mounties home without the win. East Orange head coach Rae Oliver’s team, led by his son, quarterback Raeden Oliver, RB Damon Phillips, LB Kyle Louis and WR Josh Richards, made things interesting from the opening kickoff. The Jags immediately marched to the Montclair 1-yard line in three quick stick plays before the Mounties defense woke up, sacking Oliver twice on back-to-back plays and forcing a turnover on downs. Montclair couldn’t buy a yard in the first quarter as penalties and an early injury bug began to show their heads. East Orange again on its next three possessions would get excellent field position but would stall as the Mounties continued to not blink in the first quarter. It pretty much was open warfare as the two squads brought the big guns to the table. Montclair countered with QB Solomon Brennan, WR David Thorn- Rodgers and RB Maverick Salementi.
With the second quarter coming into view, the scoreless first quarter became a thing of the immediate past as East Orange opened the scoring with 5:28 after a big pass interference call on the Mounties, setting up the Jags inside the 3-yard line where Damon Phillips had slipped in behind his big line, led by senior OL Dieunerst Collins, to draw the first score of the game to go up 6-0 after a failed extra point kick. Montclair’s Solomon Brennan answered with a series of runs and passes that forced East Orange’s defense to do a double-take as the Mounties dropped quick strikes in the pockets of their receivers and backs, culminating with a 30-yard dart from Brennan to WR Semaj Adams, who fought off three defenders before scoring a touchdown with just under three minutes left in the half. The Mountie pulled ahead by the score of 7-6.
In the third quarter, the Mounties flashed the packed house as they moved the ball quickly with an 84-yard kickoff return that quickly was turned into points with Brenna finding Salementi in the back of the end zone for a diving 16-yard touchdown catch to stretch the lead to 14-6 coming out of the half. But it was like bombs going off over Roberson as East Orange’s field general Raeden Oliver led the well-balanced attack in seven plays, going 54 yards that included a 34-yard bomb to WR Josh Richards, who snared the ball in with two Mounties defenders hanging on for the ride as Richards dragged them into the end zone for the 14-12 score after the failed point-after try.
By the fourth quarter, the gas pedal was hot as both teams traded touchdowns with Montclair wondering how can this be? Simple answer, as Raeden Oliver said. “It goes back to our game last year. We wanted to win and we felt we could make that happen after we cleaned up our mistakes.” He also stated that with that win last season his squad was looking forward to playing them again. “We were a young squad last year. Now that we are veterans, we know what to do.” Oliver drove his squad on another long drive that ate most of the clock late in the third quarter and culminated with his quick-thinking, taking it 5 yards for the go-ahead 18-14 score. Montclair, known for its explosiveness, found open greenery as Solomon Brennan called his own number and jetted 61 yards for the 21-18 lead. That was short-lived as Kyle Louis got in and ripped off an explosive 62-yard touchdown to retake the lead once again for East Orange. Damon Phillips – 21 carries, 227 yards,, 2 TDs – would pad the scoring with a hard-nosed 17-yard run through the middle where the Mounties defense seemed to have left the door open for him to walk right in for the 31-21 lead.
But the Mounties weren’t done. They found the end zone again when QB Solomon Brennan airmailed the ball to David Thorn-Rodgers for a 38-yard score and pulled within 31-28 and possibly a late-game heroic gesture. However, that late-game heroics came in the form of Jaguars BJ Covington. Covington’s late score came with the clock winding down and the Jags needing a touchdown to stay in front. With the Jaguars driving almost the length of the field, Oliver – 18-for-27, 2 TDs, 1 interception; 5 Carries, 12 yards, 1 TD – found Covington in the end zone standing wide open, tossing a 5-yard strike.
“We wanted to flex the full strength of our team”, said Head Coach Rae Oliver. “But there were some points that we will address with our players during our practices that we can improve on.”
Montclair will have to face Ridgewood Friday, Sept. 10 at 7 p.m. before having its home opener against Newark East Side the following Saturday. Meanwhile, East Orange Campus will play host to Bloomfield Sept. 10. The time for the kickoff is yet to be determined. East Orange will hit the road the following week to see the Cougars of Columbia High School in Maplewood.
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