The Howell High School football team fell short of winning a state sectional playoff championship; however, the Rebels came through in gaining its achievements this season.
Howell posted a 9-2 record and advanced to the semifinals of the NJSIAA South Jersey, Group 5 playoffs. Howell’s season came to an end in that round with a 63-28 defeat at the hands of Lenape High School on Nov. 17 in Medford.
Howell coach Luke Sinkhorn wanted to focus on all the positives that happened during the season, including the Rebels playing in their first home playoff game in 10 years. The host Rebels defeated Cherokee High School, 31-17, in the first round of the South Jersey, Group 5 tournament.
“I think it was a successful season,” Sinkhorn said. “We finished 9-2. The players put in the work on the field and in the weight room all year. We had a great win over Cherokee in the first round in front of our home crowd. Obviously, we wanted to win the whole thing and that didn’t happen, but this was a great season for this program nonetheless.”
Sinkhorn was proud of his players, especially his senior class, which was led by standout quarterback Edwin Morales. He threw for 2,170 yards and 23 touchdowns while rushing for 763 yards and 10 touchdowns.
“Our entire senior class was really talented,” the coach said. “All 15 of them really shined on the field for us. Mark Welsh and Scott Prendergast were our two linebackers that really performed well for us. Obviously [Morales] was amazing this year. Ryan Mazik was overshadowed by [senior receiver Naseim] Brantley, but he made some great catches for us. He’s a special talent at receiver in his own right. Steve Cannon had his best game for us in the playoff game against Cherokee. Pat Handy was a guy that made a lot of plays in the special teams and had some big plays at safety for us as well. Wendall Wright was great for us as a defensive end as well.”
Sinkhorn believes the seniors will set the tone for generations of Rebels to come.
“Their competitiveness is what I’ll remember the most,” he said. “We had a lot of goals this year. They set the tone for what it takes to play big-time football for us. Hopefully, the younger classes will see that and try to emulate it.”