Snapple Bowl: Andrew Roberts eager to play quarterback
It’s not throwing a perfect spiral that gently lands in a receiver’s hands. Or a juke and a move, making a linebacker miss on the way to the end zone. For Andrew Roberts, the thing he likes most about football is taking on a leadership role: those aspects of motivating his teammates and putting in the behind-the-scenes work, willing others to do more.
“Everyone’s looking at you, and you have to be a leader,” he said. “You have to know how to act in front of people. So quarterback definitely shapes you up to be not only a great football player but a man and a leader.”
The recently graduated J.F. Kennedy High School player led the Mustangs to the playoffs as an underclassmen. As a senior, though, the coaches moved him to running back in midseason to help the inexperienced team.
Now, Roberts returns to quarterback the Middlesex County squad in Snapple Bowl XXIII on July 21 at Woodbridge High School against a Union County all-star team. The game of recently graduated seniors benefits Children's Specialized Hospital and the Lakeview School, a program of the New Jersey Institute for Disabilities. The game has raised more than $535,000 since the inaugural contest.
READ: Father and son make Snapple Bowl history
READ: The players and cheerleaders at this year's game
READ: Central Jersey's Caring Community
Middlesex features a dream team of Woodbridge signal callers, as the Barrons’ Tracy Fudge Jr. will share duties with Roberts. Both are dual threats and have known each other growing up in the township. While practices for the game begin today, Roberts and Fudge have been meeting recently to work on routes and footwork drills.
Both players had outstanding junior seasons. In 2014, Fudge threw for 1,545 yards and 10 touchdowns, and he followed it up last year by throwing for 1,495 yards and 17 touchdowns. He’ll be playing at NCAA Division III Stevenson University in Baltimore County, Maryland.
Roberts’ senior fall wasn’t as smooth, through no fault of his own. As a sophomore in 2013, Roberts started at quarterback as his senior brother, Anthony Roberts Jr., starred at running back. Andrew said it was the “greatest thing ever” to get to play with his sibling. The Mustangs went 5-6, made the playoffs and beat in-town rival Woodbridge in the regular season. His father, Anthony Roberts Sr., also played running back for J.F. Kennedy in the mid-1980s.
As a junior, Roberts played in a spread offense surrounded by experienced teammates. He threw for 1,145 yards and rushed for 825 with a combined 20 touchdowns as the Mustangs finished 7-4. It was the first time in school history that the team earned postseason berths in consecutive seasons. Roberts was electric, taking whatever was open.
What made his fall even more remarkable was that Roberts injured his right throwing shoulder in a preseason scrimmage after lunging at a receiver while playing defense. He said it hurt throughout the campaign but didn’t affect his accuracy, so he kept quiet. In the offseason, a MRI revealed a torn labrum, and he had arthroscopic surgery in the spring.
In 2015, he entered the season fully healed, but this time J.F. Kennedy returned just three other starters. That’s the cyclical nature of high school sports, with the numbers in each class changing every few seasons. It’s inevitable that programs will have up and down seasons, especially in a sport like football where depth is vital. The Mustangs had young and inexperienced players learning with every snap. Additionally, head coach Andrew Maurizio resigned at midseason. Interim head coach Tom McFadden installed a Power I running offense out of necessity — the complex spread offense just wasn’t working.
The 6-foot-1, 178-pound Roberts suddenly became the lead running back, lining up eight yards back. Despite having running back DNA with his dad and brother, he needed to learn the subtleties of the position. Roberts finished with 701 rushing yards and four touchdowns and threw for 314 yards. He also played cornerback and free safety, punted and returned kicks. Roberts didn’t become a diva or a problem in the huddle. As he said, “Quitting is not an option.”
“I wasn’t complaining,” Roberts said. “I did it. They put me in the position, I got it done. … I just did it for the team. I sucked it up. I didn’t want to play running back. I wanted to play quarterback. I had to show the young guys, if there’s change don’t quit. Stick through it. You started it — finish it.”
Roberts said he loves two quotes. One is, “Let your life inspire someone else’s.” The other is, “Slow feet, don’t eat,” as in work hard or you won’t succeed. Indeed, he doesn’t take things for granted. Fans might have noticed that Roberts points to the air after every score. It’s to honor his mother, who died his freshman year. He got a tattoo on his left forearm with a rose and the roman numerals of the date. Roberts said he works hard with his mother in mind.
In the fall, he will attend Midwestern Preparatory Academy in Orland Park, Illinois, with the hope of eventually playing in college. The prep school, located near Chicago, had recent players commit to all levels of schools, including Syracuse and Wyoming. Roberts said he’s open to playing whatever position he’s needed in college. For now, he gets one more chance to play quarterback in his backyard.
“Oh man, this is the last time to let everyone know,” he said. “Go out with a bang.”
TAKE PART
What: MyCentralJersey.com Snapple Bowl XXIII, New Jersey's most successful charity all-star football game.
Where: Woodbridge High School.
When: 7 p.m. Thursday, July 21.
Participants: Recently graduated high school senior players and cheerleaders from Middlesex and Union counties.
Tickets: At the gate for $10 or at each practice site during practices.
ABOUT THE EVENT
MyCentralJersey.com Snapple Bowl XXII
Beneficiaries: All proceeds from the game, which has raised more than $535,000 since its inception, benefit Children's Specialized Hospital and the Lakeview School, a program of the New Jersey Institute for Disabilities.
Practice venues: Woodbridge High School (Middlesex County All-Stars) and Union High School (Union County All-Stars).
Key dates: Middlesex County All-Stars visit the Lakeview School in Edison and Union County All-Stars visit Children's Specialized Hospital in Mountainside on July 18; Snapple Bowl banquet at Pines Manor restaurant in Edison July 20.
Previewing the game: Leading up to Snapple Bowl XXII, the Home News Tribune, Courier News and MyCentralJersey.com will feature at least one story daily, as well as videos.
Game coverage: Look for a game story, a notebook, a Middlesex County sidebar, a Union County sidebar, a Page 1A story, a photo gallery and video highlights from Snapple Bowl XXII in the Home News Tribune, the Courier News and at MyCentralJersey.com.
Social media: Follow us via Twitter @MyCJ_Sports and @SnappleBowl for updates and to interact with reporters and Snapple Bowl XXII game director Marcus Borden.
Official website: https://worknotes.com/NJ/SouthRiver/SnappleBowl/