SPORTS

GMC FOOTBALL: Marcus Borden talks playoff picture

Marcus Borden
@bordenfb4ever

So we now have your attention as week 7 (week 8 for some) has come to a close. Your favorite team has won, lost or had a bye week. Let's take a look at the current standings as well as how the power points are calculated.

Marcus Borden

As of Sunday October 26, 2014, these are the unofficial power point projections as listed by www.gridironnewjersey.com. You can read about all the potential participants by visiting their website often. If you are interested in computing the power points you can visit the NJSIAA Football Rules and Regulations webpage that we have linked here. The best 7 of 8 games will count towards the top 8 teams being selected. The week of November 14/15 will be the 1st round of the playoffs.

http://www.njsiaa.org/sites/default/files/document/14 Football Regs.pdf

Let's take my former team East Brunswick, which competes in Central Jersey Group V, and show how the power points are calculated. Here is their schedule with result and the power points associated with each opponent.

9/12 Piscataway N2 Group V Lost 40-0 Residuals +5

9/27 N. Brunswick CJ Group V Lost 40-13 Residuals +1

10/2 Edison CJ Group V Won 14-13 +6 win +5 Group +3 Residuals

10/10 S. Brunswick CJ Group V Lost 40-9 Residuals +5

10/17 Stevens N2 Group V Won 30-26 +6 win +5 Group

10/25 Marlboro CJ Group V Won 35-12 +6 win +5 Group

10/31 Sayreville CJ Group V

11/7 Monroe CJ Group V ___________________________________

47 points

Starting with Central Jersey Group 1 Middlesex (6-1) is still #1 with 79 power points. Their remaining schedule includes a game against Spotswood. Metuchen (4-2) is the 6th team with games versus Keyport and Spotswood. They have 63 power points. South River (2-5) is in the 10th position with 36 power points. They will need to upset Dunellen for a chance to make the playoffs.

Speaking of Dunellen (6-1), they are #1 in North Jersey Section 2 Group 1 with 102 power points with a game versus South River.

In Central Jersey Group 2 Spotswood (4-3) is presently in 5th position with 63 power points. They will face Middlesex on November 1.

Central Jersey Group 3 reveals that Carteret (5-2) is 2nd with 95 power points. Their remaining game is with Bishop Ahr. South Plainfield (2-4) is in 8th position with games against Perth Amboy and Colonia. They have 44 power points.

In North Jersey Section 2 Group 4 Colonia (7-0) holds the #1 spot with 122 power points. They have New Brunswick left on their schedule. J.F. Kennedy (5-2) is in 5th position with 81 power points. Their remaining opponent is Carteret. Woodbridge (4-3) is in the 7th spot with 64 power points. They still need to play St. Joes. New Brunswick (3-4) is in 10th position with 56 power points. They will need to record their 2nd upset in a row by defeating Colonia at home on Halloween.

Central Jersey Group 5 has South Brunswick (7-0) 2nd with 125 power points. They play Piscataway on Halloween. Monroe (5-2) is in 6th position with 79 power points. Their remaining game is with Old Bridge. Old Bridge (4-2) is in the 7th spot also with 65 power points. They will finish with Monroe and Piscataway. East Brunswick (3-3) is in 10th position with a forfeit win coming this week against Sayreville. They then most likely need to beat Monroe on November 7 to earn a playoff spot. The Bears have 47 power points.

As for Piscataway (5-1), they are in North Jersey Section 2 Group 5 presently in the 2nd position with 94 power points. Their remaining games are with South Brunswick and Old Bridge.

Parochial Group 3 has Bishop Ahr (3-4) in 6th position with 72 power points. Their next game is against Perth Amboy. In Parochial Group 4 St. Joes (2-4) is currently 8th with 51 power points. They have three games before the cutoff with Woodbridge and New Brunswick.

It should be noted that Monroe finishes its regular 9-game season on November 7 at East Brunswick. They do not have a Thanksgiving game. Only their first eight games will count towards the playoffs. Teams with a losing record will play in the playoffs as long as they are one of the top eight seeds. They can opt out if they have indicated to the NJSIAA that they will not play with a record lower than 4-4. Should two teams have the same number of power points, their playoff seed will be determined by strength of schedule.

Be sure to follow all the action on Twitter as there are some real interesting match-ups before the cut off date the weekend of November 7/8.

Playoffs?!? YOU BET! We've got you covered!