I got back a little while ago from watching my younger brother play some state sectional playoff football in Ridgewood. He’s one of the captains of the Roxbury football team and he and his teammates did a good job in upsetting two-time defending Section 1, Group IV champions, Ridgewood.
As far as reflections on the game, from a football standpoint – the Roxbury football team has really come into their own. They played an outstanding 4 quarters of football on an opponent’s turf and walked away with a clear victory (21 to 7). I take nothing away from the Ridgewood team – they seemed to be well-coached and well-fired up for the game. However, the Roxbury team finally seems to be getting back to basic Roxbury football – pretty much a “going to work” attitude where you eat up the clock on offense, and send your opponents three-and-out on defense. Really a terrific job by Roxbury this afternoon.
I can’t wait to see them play against Montclair next weekend (another Saturday filled with driving for me, huh?)!
If anyone out there has a chance to go and support your home team in the football sectional playoffs, you really should go and cheer them on. The end of my younger brother’s Roxbury football career (which will happen either after he wins a state championship or after his team is eliminated) will mark the end of a nearly fifteen year run for my family in Roxbury football. My older brother played in the pre-high school league and eventually went on to play for the high school. He was followed by myself and my cousin (same age as I am). We both were on our high school’s only state championship football team. And now we have my younger brother who is one game away from a state championship final game.
Yeah, it’s pretty exciting, but it’s also weird to know that next season there won’t be a family member playing football for Roxbury. Besides one of my good friends who coaches over there now (former state championship member, my age), after this season is over, there will be little left tying my family to Roxbury football games.
I have a feeling, though, that we’ll be there in the stands again at some point watching the boys play in the IHC-Iron Division. We were talking today and I think my Mom has watched something like close to 150 Roxbury football games. That’s insane! But I’m sure that she, just like the rest of the parents who have watched generations of their family play football at the rest of the schools in this state, will still want to go and be a part of that mysterious “Go Team!” feeling that is a local high school football game.
Anyway – go out and support your home town team! High school football in New Jersey is great!
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