Pincus’ football picks: Ridge visits Westfield in the Game of the Week

Some thought of it as brave, and some considered it reckless, when the Ridge High School football team decided to go for the 2-point conversion, down by a point in overtime last season of the NJSIAA North 2 Group V semifinals against Bridgewater-Raritan. A successful conversion would have meant the Red Devils’ second trip to the sectional finals in three seasons – they won the 2013 crown -- and an unsuccessful conversion would end of the 2015 campaign.

Ridge came up short that night, denying what would have been a meeting with Westfield in the final – a game the Blue Devils won 10-7 over B-R – and now, nine months later, these teams meet in Week 2’s Courier News Football Game of the Week, 1 p.m. Saturday at Westfield’s Kehler Stadium. It’s a game that should not only say a lot about the way this year’s N2V playoffs shape up, but, more immediately, how the race for the Mid-State 38 Watchung Division comes together.

Westfield has beaten Ridge in each of the past two years, including a 37-13 victory last season, with the Red Devils last victory coming in the first round of the 2013 playoffs. Still, despite Westfield being off to a fast start after a 30-0 shutout of Linden last week, the Blue Devils are quite aware that Saturday’s meeting will be a strong indication of what 2016 might have in store for them.

“Ridge is always a good team,” said Westfield coach Jim DeSarno, whose team is riding a state-best 14-game winning streak. “There isn’t a year I can think of when they weren’t a good football team. They’re in every game, they were a 2-point play from being in the state finals last year, and every year they’re right up there. They’re definitely a measuring stick for us because we consider them one of the top teams in the entire Mid-State (38) league.”

The Blue Devils defense, which was so key to last year’s undefeated season, shone again last week, pitching a shutout. Junior linebacker Drew Ortiz, who led the team in tackles in Week 1 with seven, adding six assists and an interception, joined fellow junior first-year linebacker Jacob Dayon and junior defensive end Jake Vall-Llobera, as well as senior DT Jeff Gagun and senior end Owen Kessler in leading the way. Ishmael Glasco (two touchdowns) and Matt Varano, who rushed for 164 and a score, keyed the offense.

Ridge, which beat Montgomery 31-21 in their opener, also got contributions from a host of players. Junior RJ Miligan and senior Dan Skea led the offense, while senior Matt Rusiniak and junior Jack Forand stood out defensively, with seniors Scott Chiriaco and Nolan Hughes each contributing interceptions from the secondary. Both the offensive and defensive lines were also major contributors to the Red Devils victory, coach Bill Tracy said.

But like its opponents Saturday, Ridge also knows it will have its hands full.

“Last year, Jim DeSarno and his staff and his program showed everyone out there what we’ve known for a long time, as coaches, and that’s how good they are, how well coached they are and what a great program they have,” Tracy said. “So I’m not surprised that they have this winning streak, and they look good.

“I think we’ll be very fired up. We are very in-tune to the importance of a game like this and very in-tuned to who our opponent is. We’re going to give it our best effort, I know that. It’s kind of about us and if we can we do what we need to do (during) this week so we can play fast and loose on Saturday against a team of this caliber. If we can get that, we’ll let it all hang out, I’m sure we’ll have a great game together, and we’ll see what the score is when it’s over.”

PINCUS’ PICK: Westfield 23-19

Plenty of other interesting and important games on the Week 2 schedule, including a battle of upstarts highlighting the Friday-night slate.

I’ll take a mulligan on a disappointing opening week of  picking games. I pledge to do better this time around.

PINCUS’ RECORD:Last week - 10-7; Season to date - 10-7

FRIDAY

North Plainfield (1-0) at Somerville (1-0), 7 p.m. – The fortunes of the Canucks and Pioneers highlighted the Week 1 slate. Each team began what they hope will be a bounce-back season by executing inspired victories over favored clubs, as North Plainfield toppled Delaware Valley, 28-7, and Somerville upended reigning North 2 Group III champ Cranford, 41-17. This week, as they face off at Brooks Field, they get to test themselves against each other. Both squads are fired up, both are very much looking forward to facing one another, and both have tremendous respect for the other. All that’s left is to get ‘er done on the gridiron. North Plainfield lost to the Pioneers 26-20 in Week 3 last year, and with the home crowd behind them, I see that happening again, and I plan to be there to witness it.

PINCUS’ PICK: Somerville 33-31

FOOTBALL PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Somerville's Nasyr Petties-Jackson takes Week 1 honors

Bridgewater-Raritan (1-0) at Hillsborough (1-0), 7 p.m. – Another of the great games on this weekend’s slate (my colleague, Dan LoGiudice @Danny_logiudice, will have live updates and coverage), as these teams get together for a key Mid-State 38 Delaware Division tilt. Hillsborough, too, turned in an inspired performance in Week 1 to topple a favored team, 27-0, in Elizabeth, and after getting it done on the road, the Raiders will try and make it two straight, this time against defending champ Bridgewater-Raritan. The Panthers scored an impressive victory of their own, shaking off a slow first-half start by finishing a 21-10 victory over Hunterdon Central. The Panthers won this meeting last year, 28-0, with Boro having claimed the 2014 game, 34-27. I’ll go with this recently established every-other-year trend and home-field advantage.

PINCUS’ PICK: Hillsborough 28-27

RELATED: Bridgewater-Raritan tops Hunterdon Central in football opener

Bernards (1-1) at A.L. Johnson (1-0), 7 p.m. – It’s been a wild and wacky start to the 2016 season for our Mountaineers, as they followed up an inspired back-and-forth 54-40 victory at Shabazz in Week 0 by falling to Roselle, 61-54, at home last Friday night in an equally insane game. ALJ is coming off a 38-0 shutout of New Providence as the Crusaders look to establish themselves as the team to beat in the MS38 Valley Division, and while I could certainly see either team winning this game, I am fairly certain Bernards won’t be scoring another 54 points in this one.

PINCUS’ PICK: A.L. Johnson 40-34

Bound Brook (1-0) at South Hunterdon (0-1), 7 p.m. – Here’s what’s really unfortunate – relatively speaking, of course, to the insanity that’s seemed to engulf our planet: For the past 17 years, we’ve run a high-school football pool in the office where staffers past and present would pick the winners of each game, and the person with the best record at the end of the year is crowned champ. I only won the pool once (2005), and doesn’t it just stand to reason that the year I become the football beat writer and gain all kinds of new insight into our local clubs, the pool comes to an end. I believe there’s a three-letter acronym to describe how I’m feeling about this.

PINCUS’ PICK: Bound Brook 29-7

WEEK 1 FOOTBALL: Bound Brook handles Manville on opening night

Phillipsburg (1-0) at Hunterdon Central (0-1), 7 p.m. – I learned many lessons from 17 years in the aforementioned pool. One of them is that Phillipsburg is a monster. I try not to tangle with monsters. Well, except for Cookie Monster. I love that guy.

PINCUS’ PICK: Phillipsburg 21-17

Franklin (0-1) at Montgomery (0-1), 7 p.m. – Both teams fought hard last week but came up short in their respective openers, and each gets a chance to rebound Friday night in what’s a winnable game for both sides. Montgomery, which fell 31-21 to Ridge last week, is trying to get it done despite dwindling numbers, while Franklin, which lost 20-6 to Phillipsburg, is looking for a boost from a new head coach and a new attitude. These teams haven’t squared off since 2011 – a 41-0 Franklin victory – and you know what they say about revenge being a dish best served cold.

PINCUS’ PICKS: Montgomery 29-22

North Hunterdon (0-1) at Warren Hills (1-0), 7 p.m. – The good news for North is that it’s just a quick hop, skip and a jump up to Washington Township – an easy trip compared to the rest of the MS38 – and better news is that this is a prime opportunity for the Lions to get in the win column after falling to Summit 24-13 in their opener. I watched the Blue Streaks beat Scotch Plains-Fanwood 22-10 last Saturday, and while both teams displayed some nice things on offense, if North Hunterdon can succeed defensively where Scotch Plains-Fanwood failed in key sports, a victory should be in the offing.

PINCUS’ PICK: North Hunterdon 27-23

Pingry (0-1) at Manville (0-1), 7 p.m. -- Manville has won one game in each of the past five seasons, and after a 35-12 loss to Bound Brook on opening night, the Mustangs are hoping this week’s game with Pingry can be the start of its quest for their first multiple-victory campaign since 2010. The Big Blue are in their last year in the Mid-State 38, a fact I’ll likely bring up every time I write about Pingry this year, because, really, I don’t have much else to say.

PINCUS’ PICK: Manville 20-14

Voorhees (0-1) at Cranford (0-1), 7 p.m. – A week ago, I’d have sooner published my bank account number and pin than picked against Cranford, the reigning North 2 Group III champ, which opened its season by getting blasted 41-17 by Somerville. Of course, a week ago, I also believed my Jets would go 16-0.

PINCUS’ PICK: Voorhees 28-24

Watchung Hills (0-1) at Elizabeth (0-1), 7 p.m. – So, I met up with Harry Frezza on Tuesday at the Echo Lake Dog Park in Mountainside. We’ve each brought new puppies into our lives during the past couple of months, so it was a good opportunity to get together, do some shtick, and for him to let me borrow his extensive archive of football results, which I plan to digitize. Harry, who has a very highly energetic young border collie in his charge, is quite the schmoozer, as many of you know, and we got to talking with another gentleman in the park, who brought along his English bulldog named “Butkus.” Turns out, the guy is a former all-state linebacker from North Jersey who went on to play some Division I college ball and was named to the Bergan Record’s All-Decade team (2000-2009). Harry will be at this game Friday night, toiling for another outfit. Feel free to say hello. He misses all of you and would love to talk football and canines.

PINCUS’ PICK: Elizabeth 26-21

RELATED: The 2016 Courier News high school football preview

SATURDAY

Delaware Valley (0-1) at Roselle (1-0), noon – As surprised as I was by Del Val falling to North Plainfield last Friday night, seeing Roselle put up 61 points at Bernards might have thrown me for a bigger loop. So the question is which of those occurrences were an aberration and which, if either, is an indication of things to come for these teams. Here’s what I do know; it’s bad enough that the Terriers have to make the 50-plus-mile journey from Frenchtown to Roselle, so if the Rams do manage to tally another eight touchdowns, Delaware Valley coach Mike Haughey just might make his defense walk home.

PINCUS’ PICK: Roselle 33-27

Immaculata (1-0) at Summit (1-0), 1 p.m. – This has all the makings of a high-quality tilt, so good, actually, that if not for the fact Ridge is facing Westfield the same day, I might have made a rare exception and actually covered a nonpostseason game at the home field of a team outside my coverage area. Immaculata had no trouble with Plainfield, winning 35-7 last Saturday, while the Hilltoppers scored a 24-13 victory over North Hunterdon. The Raritan Division title could be on the line in this one, as the co-favorites for the crown get together here in a game that can really go either way. Normally, I might pick the home team, but I’m feeling the Spartans in this one.

PINCUS’ PICK: Immaculata 27-23

Linden (0-1) at Scotch Plains-Fanwood (0-1), 1 p.m. – As disappointing as Scotch Plains-Fanwood’s 22-10 setback to Warren Hills was for the Raiders last Saturday, there were plenty of positives, including the play of an offense that did a pretty good job moving the ball – albeit had trouble finishing – and the play of the Raiders’ wide receivers. Linden got off to a slow start, falling to Westfield 30-0. And though my dog is begging me not to pick SPF – his vet is in Fanwood, so he’s got beef with that town – I call the shots around here, whether he likes it or not.

PINCUS’ PICK: Scotch Plains-Fanwood 20-16

New Providence (0-1) at Hillside (0-1), 1 p.m. – A rough opening week for New Providence, which was shutout by A.L. Johnson 38-0, ruining first-year coach Mitch Goodstein’s debut. Hillside is also looking to rebound after a 26-19 loss to Rahway, setting up quite the quest for redemption at Conant St. Park.

PINCUS’ PICK: Hillside 26-13

Rahway (1-0) at Governor Livingston (1-0), 1 p.m. – GL is looking to go 2-0 overall and in Mountain Division play after handling Voorhees 21-13 last Friday night, while the Indians are playing their first divisional tilt after handling Hillside 26-19 last Saturday. The Highlanders took a big step toward earning their first winning season since 2008 with last week’s victory, but Rahway might be a little too much to handle.

PINCUS’ PICK: Rahway 31-24

Union (1-0) at Plainfield (0-1), 1 p.m. – I didn’t get a chance to see Plainfield last Saturday like I had planned, as the game at Immaculata was changed to a 6 p.m. start – ended far too late for our print deadline – and it was probably for the best, as the Cardinals fell to Immaculata, 35-7. Union handled Watchung Hills 40-13 in their opener, and if this is anything close to a vintage Farmers team, which it’s looking like it is, Plainfield is probably in for another long afternoon.

PINCUS’ PICK: Union 41-12

Simeon Pincus can be reached atSPincus@GannettNJ.com. Follow him on Twitter @SimeonPincus and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/SimeonPincusCN