HS football preview: Orange has young talent, seeks return to playoffs

ORANGE, NJ – Orange was disappointed about missing the playoffs last season, ending a streak of five straight postseason appearances.

Last year for the first time, the Born Power Index was used to help calculate the United Power Rating that determined playoff qualification. The Born Power Index was partly based on margin of victory in contests. That controversial system hurt Orange’s playoff chances. The Tornadoes defeated Belleville, 34-20, on the playoff cutoff date to improve to 5-3. Had the Tornadoes scored more points in that victory, they would have secured a playoff berth, said OHS head coach Randy Daniel.

This year, to the delight of many people, the BPI has been scrapped and replaced with the Opponents Strength Index.

“We were disappointed because we felt like we were a good enough team to get into the playoffs,” said Daniel, who has been at the OHS helm since 1996. “But this year, that is what we are striving. We’re going to take it one game at a time and try to get back in.”

The Tornadoes lost a ton to graduation from last year’s 6-4 squad, including cornerback Nyquee Hawkins, who signed with Virginia Tech. Hawkins suffered a season-ending injury in the middle of last year. This season’s team is mostly made up of sophomores and juniors, and only a handful of seniors.

The offense will be sparked by returning junior running back Montez Boswell.

“We think he’s going to have a good year,” Daniel said. “He’s got good balance. He’s short, but he’s thick. He’s got good patience when he runs the ball.”

Boswell will run behind a strong offensive line consisting of senior center/captain Tnaj Benjamin, junior guards Ashton Lively and Justin Cesaire; and junior tackles Walter Castro and Tyshon May. Lively also is a captain.

Senior Zyvion Latham has been tabbed as the quarterback. The wide receivers are juniors Jamaary Hall-Hawkins and Louce Julien, and senior Ashly Hertilien, and senior Al’Ky-juan Green is the tight end.

On defense, Boswell will lead the way at the inside linebacker spot. Junior Brantley Constant is the other inside linebacker, and senior Sean Sharpe and Latham are the outside backers. The line comprises Green and Cesaire at the end positions and Lively and Benjamin at the tackles.

In the secondary, Hertilien and senior Nyzeek Mann are the cornerbacks, and Julien is the free safety.

“The defense is going to be solid,” Daniel said. “We got size on defense. Up front, we got people who can hold their own at the line of scrimmage. These are some good players. They all played last year as sophomores, so they got experience. We think they are going to do well.”

Daniel also is high on the kicking game, with Julien as the punter and junior Evenson Metor as the placekicker.

Schedule

Sept. 6, Irvington, 7 p.m.

Sept. 14, at Snyder, 1 p.m.

Sept. 21, Ferris, 1 p.m.

Sept. 27, at Weequahic, 7 p.m.

Oct. 5, Bloomfield, 4 p.m.

Oct. 11, at Barringer, 7 p.m.

Oct. 18, at Millburn, 7 p.m.

Oct. 25, at Belleville, 7 p.m.

Nov. 1, Parsippany Hills, 7 p.m.