Rocco Velluzzi had two second half interceptions to help Dumont cinch the shutout in a 20-0 victory over Tenafly in one of only two Thanksgiving Day games left in Bergen County.
DUMONT – Thanksgiving Day tradition or Mountain Lakes vs. Glassboro? That is the choice that the New Jersey high school football powers that be have forced on local school districts and the latter is winning. The season starts two weeks earlier than it used to so that the powerbrokers can satiate their desire to play down to one state champion, which actually ends with seven different state champions.
The wait between the end of the regular season, which finishes in late October for teams that don’t make the ever expanding state tournament, and Thanksgiving Day has become another hurdle. Teams that might have wanted to continue on Turkey Day now might have to try to plan a practice schedule with nearly a month between games.
Slowly but surely and then really fast at the end, the Thanksgiving Day games have gone the way of the dodo bird. There are only two remaining in Bergen County so that the schedule could be cleared for Mountain Lakes to play Glassboro in a Group 1 state final that zero people from Bergen County will be at save for extended families and friends.
This year Hackensack played Teaneck for the 98th time, a 17-7 victory for the Comets, and Dumont hosted Tenafly, which ended in a 20-0 win for the home team, a ninth straight for the Huskies in the 73rd Thanksgiving Day matchup between the two schools.
For most of North Jersey, gone is what those rivalry games used to represent, a chance to showcase and celebrate a community using the pageantry and tradition of high school sports. Despite the outside forces, it soldiers on for now in those four towns.
“We have a potluck dinner every year the night before the game and we talk about not only fighting for our team, but fighting for the community, playing for the community,” said Dumont head coach Mike Farrington. “Both towns love this game. I love it, it’s been 70-plus years now. Tradition kind of gets thrown away to the wayside nowadays, but this is something that we hang our hat on. And I am happy that the trophy stays here.”
Senior QB Asher Zorn helpled lead Tenafly to a 6-4 record in 2023.
Tenafly has fought the headwinds, too. There was a dip into the Ivy Division a couple of years ago, a probable return next year, the perennial fight for roster numbers and a new head coach this year, but the Tigers are still a standalone program and they came into the game with a 6-3 record and on a five-game winning streak. And they stayed close the whole way.
Devin Knause picked off a pass to end Dumont’s first possession and Tenafly’s defense was solid for the duration, but the Huskies put together an 80-yard drive the second time they touched the ball. Joseph Papp broke through on the right side for a 15-yard score with five minutes left in the first quarter, Ethan Chairamonte added the extra point and Dumont went ahead for good.
Sophomore quarterback Michael Gil found senior Jacob Pla for a 6-yard score with 7:19 in the first half to make it a 13-0 game and Dumont made it stick with its defense, which forced Tenafly (6-4) to punt on all four of its first half possessions.
The shutout was something the Huskies were keen on maintaining and Rocco Velluzzi helped with two second half interceptions.
“We wanted to keep the shutout and I got the two picks, but that only happened because of my teammates,” said Velluzzi, a senior defensive back. “We got pressure up front, we tackled well and we tried to force them into some mistakes. That is what happened.”
Richie Redfern will be one of the key returnees for Dumont, which finished the season with a 5-5 record.
Anderson Diaz added a 3-yard run with 5:01 left in the fourth quarter to close out the scoring in what was a second straight successful season for Dumont football. The Huskies (5-5) got back to .500 on the season playing against an upgraded schedule and reached the state playoffs for the second straight year after winning a first round game last season.
This senior class, which goes 11 deep has set the tone for the resurgence and exits having never lost to Tenafly on Turkey Day.
“These four years went by fast, so fast, and I wouldn’t have wanted to spend it with any other people than with Coach Farrington, the rest of the coaching staff and my teammates,” said Tyler Rivera, Dumont’s two-way senior lineman. “When Coach Farrington came in he just turned around this whole program for the better. I am just so thankful that he was here and we got to have this experience.”
The next order of business is to keep it rolling with guys like Gil, the sophomore who has the potential to really grow into the quarterback position, juniors Papp and Richie Redfern, who will both return to the backfield and junior wide receiver Joseph Sutera, who had a catch from the wideout spot. The Huskies will have lots coming back at the skill positions and if they can revamp in the trenches there is more room for continued growth.
“We are losing a lot of guys. Pretty much our whole line is leaving, but we have a great coaching staff and we are committed to getting better,” said Redfern. “We’ll put in the work.”
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