Piscataway cruises past Linden, 27-0
Sunday, November 21, 2004
BY GUY KIPP
For the Star-Ledger
There is an assembly-line consistency to the way Piscataway goes about winning games.
Gain the upper hand early with a big special-teams play or two, stifle its opponent defensively, come up with some turnovers and put its offense in advantageous positions.
Yesterday, Piscataway scored 13 points in the first quarter -- while gaining just 15 yards from scrimmage.
Kyle Wilson, who finished with three touchdowns, and Malcolm Jenkins each broke a long punt return in the opening quarter to help Piscataway, No. 7 in The Star-Ledger Top 20, build its 13-point lead on its way to a 27-0 victory over Linden in the semifinal round of the NJSIAA/Coca-Cola North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 playoffs in Piscataway.
Piscataway (10-0) will meet No. 8 Phillipsburg for the championship in two weeks at either Rutgers Stadium or Giants Stadium.
It was the sixth shutout of the season for Piscataway, which is seeking a third consecutive sectional championship.
"We focus on special teams and try to use them to put us in good field position," said Wilson, who returned two punts for 54 yards. "We know there are three keys -- offense, defense and special teams. We try to excel in all three."
Yesterday, Piscataway excelled so thoroughly in the latter two that the first -- the offense -- became almost incidental. Piscataway ran just 26 offensive plays the entire game, totaling 155 yards of offense. Linden, meanwhile, also finished with 155 yards, but the Union County team needed 54 plays to achieve that scrimmage total. And Piscataway added 96 yards on returns.
Wilson's 25-yard punt return to the Linden 18-yard line set up the first touchdown, a three-yard run by Wilson on a toss left with 7:39 left in the first quarter. When Linden was forced to punt after its second possession, Jenkins picked up the low liner on a bounce and outran Linden's coverage 42 yards for another TD. Matt Voliva kicked the first of his three PAT for a 13-0 lead.
"I just ran to where the seam was and took it to the house," Jenkins said of his return. "Kyle and I are both playmakers."
Jenkins, who verbally committed to Ohio State last summer, is also a pretty good play designer. With Piscataway holding a 13-0 lead, he discussed a play with quarterback Rob Rose that the team could run in the third quarter.
"At halftime, we talked it over and I told Rob that the outside zone would be open on a pass play," Jenkins said. "Rob had a couple of tough passes in the first half, but he just reloaded and stepped up."
Linden gave the ball up on downs at the Piscataway 26 after a 12-play, 50-yard drive on the first possession of the second half. On Piscataway's next play, Rose and Jenkins put their play into action, with the quarterback connecting with Jenkins on a bomb down the right sideline for a 74-yard touchdown after Jenkins caught the perfectly thrown spiral at the Linden 40.
After Piscataway linebacker Robert Damon forced Linden into an intentional grounding deep in its own territory, Linden punted from its end zone and Wilson returned the kick 29 yards to the Linden seven. Three plays later, Wilson scored on a sweep around the right side for a 27-0 lead with 2:34 left in the third period.
Damon finished with 13 tackles, including three for losses, to pace Piscataway's second consecutive shutout in the playoffs. The team beat Union, 41-0, last week.
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