EAST ORANGE, NJ — The Paul Robeson High School All-Star Football Classic made its return on Thursday, June 9, at Paul Robeson Stadium in East Orange.
The game, played for the 27th time, featured seniors from five counties. The West team, comprising players from Passaic, Morris and Sussex counties, defeated the East team,
comprising players from Essex and Hudson counties, by a score of 19-0.
After the game, East Orange Campus High School defensive lineman Moungue Nyame was named the East team defensive player of the game. The East offensive player of the team was Kayee Williams, of Dickinson High School in Jersey City. Wayne Hills quarterback Joe Riina was the West offensive player of the game, and Morris Knolls defensive back Patrick Blum was the West defensive player of the game.
At halftime, the Essex County Football Coaches Association inducted several coaches into its hall of fame. Among them was former East Orange Campus High School head football coach Marion Bell, who attended the game. Bell was the head coach of the Jaguars for 11 seasons, from 2004 to 2014, guiding the team to its first state sectional championship victory in the current playoff system in 2007. That year, the Jaguars defeated Montclair in the North 1, Group 4 state sectional championship game on a snow-covered Giants Stadium. He also led the Jaguars to the North 1, Group 4 final, which they lost to Roxbury on a rainy day at the old Giants Stadium.
After coaching at EOCHS, Bell was the head coach at West Side.
The other coaches inducted into the hall of fame were Tom Lamont of Caldwell, Julius Montford of Weequahic and Central, Chris Ostrowsky of Newark East Side and the late Dave Curtin of Columbia High School.
The Robeson Classic was played for the first time since 2019. It was canceled in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic.
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