“This game said a lot about that coaching staff over there, how great those guys are and the way their kids play,” said the veteran Knights head mentor. “They were not Caldwell last week (season-opening 34-7 loss to Passaic Valley) and I told our guys that they would be a much-improved team.”
West Essex (2-1) locked down its defense as it staged a second half comeback and then earned a 20-14 victory over the persistent Chiefs (0-2) at Travis Field on Jake Long’s 1-yard quarterback sneak in the first overtime.
But, it was never an easy chore.
Caldwell’s defense registered three second quarter sacks of Long while taking a 14-7 halftime lead while sparked by speedy Nick Moyano’s 60-yard burst forward on a well-conceived shovel pass from QB Jake Matanin on the first play of the second quarter.
The Chiefs’ workhorse running back Nick Mignone (27 carries for 147 yards and a TD) was repeatedly picking up significant gains against the usually stingy Knights defense.
However, the West Essex coaching staff, with veteran defensive coordinator Tim Glenn and company altering strategy just a bit, limited the Chiefs’ offense for the most part the rest of the way.
“They ran the ball down our throats in the first half and we made adjustments, including bringing (DB) Anthony Drago down to linebacker, and I think that made a difference,” said Benacquista. “We had to really earn this win and we have a lot to clean up, but I’m proud of our kids’ effort tonight.”
While West Essex had won seven of eight meetings between the two local rivals between 2010-2019 in the on-again, off-again series, the past three clashes have been closely contested with Caldwell winning 16-13 in North Caldwell in 2022 and 21-14 at Bonnel Field last fall while in the midst of its 37-game winning streak.
In the latest meeting Caldwell’s defense limited the usually efficient West Essex ground game, holding the Knights to just 68 rushing yards, but Long, the first-year starting junior signal caller (5-of-12 for 163 yards and a TD), came up with big passes, including completions of 31, 31, 32 and 58 yards to highlight the attack.
His TD strike over the middle to Max Garcia, who split the defenders and raced to the end zone to complete a 58-yard aerial score, helped tie the contest, 14-14, with 4:16 remaining in the third quarter.
“Jake made big passes while our offense struggled a bit against their line’s push up front, and we weren’t able to run the ball as well as we usually do,” said Drago, the talented wide receiver and DB headed to Duke to play lacrosse. “But, we continued to fight and find a way.
“We’re a good second half team and our defense picked it up a lot. This was the type of game you usually see when we play Caldwell and we have a lot of respect for them.
“You know that it’s always going to be a hard fight when you face your local rival.”
Caldwell, which missed on two field goal attempts in the contest, almost grabbed the lead in the waning seconds of the fourth quarter on another well-conceived play on a 3rd and 3 at the Knights’ 38 yard line when freshman QB Adam Sepe (5-of-9 for 47 yards, 8 carries for 46 yards) gave the ball to Nick Mignone who then delivered a halfback option pass toward the left sideline that his brother Mike came down with for what would have put the Chiefs deep in Knights territory and with a good opportunity to attempt what could have been a game-winning field goal however, the senior wide receiver was ruled to be out of bounds.
The Chiefs had the first possession in overtime with teams starting at the 25-yard line, but West Essex’s defense pushed back and an incomplete pass on fourth down halted that drive.
West Essex made quick order of a winning push forward on its initial possession capped by Long’s TD on third down, his second QB sneak of the night.
“I told coach (Benacquista) that I knew I could sneak it in,” said the ever-improving West Essex signal caller. “While our offense struggled at times tonight, I knew that we could still make things happen when we had to, and it felt great to get into the end zone there to finally nail down a victory against a really tough opponent.”
NOTES- Both West Essex’s Drago and Caldwell’s Sean Murtagh punted very well all evening long for their respective teams. Murtagh also picked up a first down on a 4th-and-7 fake punt from midfield with a nice 26-yard gain to the Knights’ 24 late in the second quarter; however, his brother, sophomore Matt Murtagh could not convert on a 32-yard field goal attempt. He was also wide right on a 31-yard attempt four minutes into the third quarter…Sepe, the 5-9, 160-pound freshman, made a strong impression in his first varsity action as he combined with the sophomore Matanin at QB for the reloading Chiefs…West Essex’s opening drive was its best of the night as it had an 11-play, 77-yard march downfield eating up six minutes in the process and capped by Nick Mignone’s 8-yard TD burst. Nick, the younger brother of standout linebacker-WR Mike Mignone, had eight carries for 50 yards in the drive…West Essex junior WR Justin Perini had two strong receptions of 31 and 11 yards...Before Friday night's kickoff there was a moment of silence to honor the Sept. 11th victims and their families and also remember West Essex graduate James Ciampi, a Fairfield police officer who passed away on Sept. 9th...Caldwell travels to meet defending Group 2 state champion Westwood (2-1) next Friday night (Sept.20), while the Knights continue what will be a 3-game homestand as they will host Lakeland back at Travis Field.
CALDWELL (0-2) 0 14 0 0 0 - 14
WEST ESSEX (2-1) 7 0 7 0 6 - 20
WE- Jake Long 1 run (Robert Warmington kick)
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