GMC, Mid-State 38 well represented in North-South All-Star Football Classic
Marlon Hart, who did not play football until his senior year in high school at Spotswood, will be among 15 players from the Greater Middlesex and Mid-State 38 conferences to participate in the 38th Annual Phil Simms North-South All-Star Football Classic at Kean University’s Alumni Stadium on Monday night.
“It’s a credit to him to get selected for this game,” Spotswood head coach Andy Cammarano said of Hart, a 1,000-point scorer as a four-year starter on the hardwood who made his return to the football field last fall after playing Pop Warner in middle school.
As a wideout, defensive back and return specialist, Hart was a major contributor to a Spotswood team that won a second consecutive GMC Blue Division championship.
He led the team in receiving yards (552), catches (20), all-purpose yards (1,152), kick return yards (371), punt return yards (155) and interceptions (2). Hart also was second on the team in touchdowns (11) and tackles (53).
Hart is among the most compelling storylines for this year’s North-South game, whose rosters include several major Division I signees, such as 2015 Home News Tribune Offensive Player of the Year Maurice Ffrench of New Brunswick, who is headed to the University of Pittsburgh.
The contest, which kicks off at 7 p.m. and features recently graduated high school seniors, is the state’s longest running all-star game, dating back to 1979. The South, which won last year’s meeting, 23-21, leads the series 18-16-2
“The North-South is the premier all-star game in the state of New Jersey,” said MyCentralJersey.com football analyst Marcus Borden, an NJSIAA and NJFCA Hall of Fame mentor. “It’s had some tremendous and great players that had the opportunity to go on and play in the NFL, so it’s exciting for the players in the GMC and Mid-State 38 to be participating, getting together to showcase their talent.”
L.J. Smith of Highland Park and Ricky Proehl of Hillsborough are among more than a dozen NFL players who participated in the North-South game. Others North-South alumni who went on to play in the NFL include Kareem McKenzie, Irving Fryer, Jim Jeffcoat, Dan Klecko, William Green and Alonzo Spellman.
The all-star game has gained more cachet since Simms, a 15-year NFL veteran and MVP of Super Bowl XXI who is now the lead analyst for CBS’ NFL coverage, lent his name to it three years ago.
“The main reason of doing it,” Simms previously told MyCentralJersey.com, “was to help the game, help the kids and all the New Jersey high school coaches that I’ve met over the last (nearly four decades). They’ve all been great to me. We have had unbelievable relationships. I have thrown or worked with 100 different coaches and their quarterbacks and receivers up here over the years. I still know many of them, and that’s why I did it.”
Six players from the Mid-State 38 Conference are listed on the North roster. They are DB Samad Starling (Linden), WR Kermit Hoffman (Ridge), RB Jack Curry (Westfield), WR Frank Rica (Watchung Hills), OL Sam Kowal (North Hunterdon) and DL Edriece Patterson (Rahway).
The South roster features one player from the Mid-State 38 Conference – DT Brandon Harrison (Franklin) – and eight players from the Greater Middlesex Conference. They are DE Jared Fraraccio (J.P. Stevens), WR Jaier Garrett (South Brunswick), WR Miles Shipp (Monroe), DT Fabian Maragh (Metuchen), DE Sam Kamara (Carteret), DB Maurice Ffrench (New Brunswick), DB Jake Esposito (Old Bridge) and DB Hart.
Hart will return kicks and play in the secondary, where Spotswood utilized him as a strong safety, free safety and weak safety.
“The kid is really coachable,” Cammarano said, noting Hart absorbed all that secondary coach Dan Krainski taught. “He was just all ears and eyes, getting a lot of reps and getting better every day. He’s not just an athlete. He’s really smart. He took the time to get to know three positions on defense.”
Hart’s scholastic gridiron career began inauspiciously, as he was relegated to filming scrimmages and running laps around the field during practice until he became eligible to compete. The delay stemmed through no fault of Hart’s, who missed offseason football workouts through his commitment to basketball, which Cammarano respected, and because of the fact that he needed a physical to be eligible to play.
“He didn’t view it as a demotion,” Cammarano said of Hart meeting his requirements. “He was willing. He said, ‘I’ll do whatever you want.’ He earned his time on the field with us. As a senior, he did everything we asked. Here’s how you know Marlon is not an ego kid. He stuck with the team, traveled to away scrimmages and helped film them. He did all the make-up running.”
Cammarano said Hart’s classmates encouraged him to return to the gridiron and help the Chargers defend their division championship.
“Just come play and we’ll figure it out,” Cammarano said he told Hart, noting that he simplified the responsibilities for his senior rookie. “Just catch it and run and cover guys who can catch it and run.”
Hart, who went from filming scrimmages to excelling on the gridiron, will now get a chance to shine in the state’s biggest all-star game.