The Freehold High School football team, as expected, will call upon its outstanding quarterback, Ashante Worthy, when the Colonials seek to win a state sectional playoff championship on Dec. 2.
But as Freehold coach David Ellis is quite aware, other players must step up if the Colonials are to continue their upset run and knock off Long Branch High School when the teams meet for the NJSIAA Central Jersey, Group 4 championship at High Point Solutions Stadium on the Rutgers University campus in Piscataway.
The eighth-seeded Colonials and third-seeded Green Wave will square off at 4 p.m.
The Colonials, who come into the game at 8-3, reached the finals after they eliminated fifth-seeded Brick Township High School, 35-28, in the semifinals on Nov. 17. Freehold launched its run of surprises when it defeated top-seeded Nottingham High School, 51-34, in the playoff opener on Nov. 11.
Worthy has been electrifying with both his legs and his arm this season. The senior has amassed 2,600 yards and 34 touchdowns running the ball, while he has passed for 2,067 yards and 21 touchdowns.
In the playoff victory over Nottingham, Worthy rung up an astounding 635 yards of total offense. He ran for a total of seven touchdowns in that upset. He followed that gem by rushing for 130 yards and three touchdowns while passing for 117 yards and a score in the semifinals triumph against Brick Township.
Ellis knows that Worthy will show up in the big game, but he is also confident in his other playmakers.
“Just like every game, you never know who can step up and make plays for you,” the coach said. “Everyone has to be ready for that moment when it’s time. Worthy won’t be out there by himself. Matt Krauss has caught about 50 balls for us this year. Quincy Davis caught about 30 balls for us and has about 485 yards and seven touchdowns. Matt DaSilva caught 20 balls for over 300 yards as well. Our offensive line has been opening up holes for us in the run game all year. They’ve been great all year. So we really like our offense. We’ve been spreading the ball around all year, which is great. It should be a great game, and I’m excited to see what they do.”
Ellis is aware Freehold must beat a quality team in Long Branch, which defeated seventh-seeded Jackson Memorial High School, 28-3, in the semifinals and sixth-seeded Middletown High School South, 20-0, in the opener.
“We have to continue to do what we’ve been doing all year,” Ellis said. “Obviously, we’ll adjust some things for this matchup, but the most important thing we can do is go out there and play our game.”