In the first installment of the Central Jersey Top 10 last week, North Brunswick Township High School and Rumson-Fair Haven High School opened as the No. 1 and No. 2 ranked teams, respectively. Both squads dominated their week one opponents and looked like they were on a collision course toward state playoff championships.
Then they both lost in week two, North Brunswick to Saint Joseph Regional High School, 22-20, on Sept. 14 and Rumson-Fair Haven to Wall High School, 14-3, on Sept. 13.
In the Central Jersey Top 10, after just one week, there is complete and utter chaos. But chaos, as the great lord Littlefinger said in “Game of Thrones,” is a ladder.
The week two edition is below. It features a new No. 1 and a new No. 2.
(Ranking. Team, Record.)
1. Mater Dei Prep, 2-0: The Seraphs have outscored two opponents by a combined margin of 81-20.
2. Manalapan, 2-0: Coach Ed Gurrieri’s club improved to 2-0 by defeating Howell High School, 14-7, at home.
3. Red Bank Regional, 2-0: The Buccaneers have beaten two opponents by double digits, racking up 427 rushing yards and nine rushing touchdowns in the process.
4. North Brunswick, 1-1: A two-point loss to a talented team does not change one salient fact about these Raiders: They are still really good.
5. Rumson-Fair Haven, 1-1: With their loss to Wall, the Bulldogs fell back after their stunning upset of Red Bank Catholic on opening night.
6. Red Bank Catholic, 1-1: The Caseys bounced back from their season opening loss to Rumson-Fair Haven with a 7-0 victory at Manasquan High School on Sept. 14.
7. Saint Joseph Regional, 1-1: The Metuchen school needed a big victory after a rare regular season loss last week–and it got one.
8. Hillsborough, 2-0: Two home games, two victories for the Raiders so far. They have one more against Franklin High School next week before hitting the road for a game against a tough foe in Hunterdon Central Regional High School on Sept. 27.
9. Saint John Vianney, 1-0: The Lancers opened year two of the Joe Martucci era with a dominant victory, 35-7, over Middletown High School South on Sept. 13.
10. South Brunswick, 1-1: After a tough loss to North Brunswick on opening night, the Vikings got back on track with a 49-12 victory over Monroe Township High School on Sept. 13.