East Orange Campus HS football team’s conditioning pays dividends in win over Livingston

LIVINGSTON, NJ – The East Orange Campus High School football Jaguars found themselves in control of their early season, riding a two-game winning streak as they went to visit nearby Livingston High School Lancers this past Saturday, Sept. 23. Both teams on paper seemed to be pretty even as they both sport relatively young squads. But that is where it all ends, as the Jaguars won, 26-2, to remain unbeaten with a 3-0 record.

The Lancers and Jags both held each other in the first quarter but it would be East Orange that would land the first punch when QB Quadir Scott (8 of 14 passing, 124 yards, 1 TD; 8 carries for 77 yards rushing, 1 TD) sped his squad six plays in just under two minutes, completing 3 out of 5 passes in the series and calling his own number for a bootleg run which got him in the end zone 32 yards later with just 5:33 left.

But the Lancers, led by QB Jack Ernst (19 -33, 160 yards, 0 TD, 1 INT) tried hard to answer back late in the second quarter. The Lancers played clock management to keep the ball out of East Orange’s quick-strike offense. But it would be Livingston’s defense forcing the Jaguars to fumble a snap in their own end zone for a safety with less than a minute left in the half.

The second half was all East Orange where they put on a balanced performance on both sides of the ball. East Orange’s defense, led by senior linebackers Rady Rojos (11 tackles, 1 TD) and Devonne Swan (11 tackles,  2 sacks, 1 fumble) stifled the Lancers’ offensive attack in Corey Rosenbaum (2 receptions, 11 yards), Joe Cullen (11 attempts, 33 yards), and Tyrell Garnes (12 attempts, 25 yards) and added a pick-6 by Rojas to the fun.

“We looked at this as another step in our ladder climb to the top of our division and possibly the playoffs,” said an optimistic Jaguars Head Coach Rae Oliver. “We worked on our conditioning over the past week and it was a testament to how we played this week.”

On the offensive side of the ball, East Orange ran wild with a steady diet of Swan and Scott, Fayeson Carney and Rojas. Scott found Carney on a 55-yard hookup with just fewer than 6.5 seconds left in the third quarter. Swan scored a 4-yard touchdown with 5:24 left in the game.”East Orange was very athletic and were completely well-coached,” said Livingston Head Coach Bob Breshard.

East Orange will face Paterson Kennedy on Saturday, Sept. 30, at Paul Robeson Stadium at 1 p.m. before going on a bye week in preparation for the mid-season home tilt against Montclair on October 7.