Zach Konetzni runs for yardage against Pompton Lakes in last year's North 2, Group 1 state secttional playoff quarterfinal victory over Pompton Lakess at Hurrell Field.
GLEN RIDGE, NJ — The Glen Ridge High School football team won a state sectional playoff game in each of the past two seasons. Before that, the last time the Ridgers had won a playoff game was in 1982, when they won their last state sectional title.
In the last two years, the Ridgers came up a game short in getting to a sectional final.
With several key returning players, the Ridgers not only want to return to the playoffs, but to reach the final. That’s the goal for Glen Ridge, under second-year head coach Chris Strumolo.
“A lot of the kids were part of that team last year, that we feel maybe overachieved a little bit, because we didn’t know the expectations coming in. Now, they are hungry to get back to where we were last year,” said Strumolo, who was named the Super Football Conference–National Red Division Coach of the Year, after his team finished 5-5.
The Ridgers have to replace since-graduated Brad Foster at quarterback. Enter senior Zach Konetzni (5-foot-11, 170 pounds), who will take on the quarterback role this year after a dominant season as a receiver and running back.
“He is an athlete and takes on any challenges,”” said Strumolo of Konetzni, who made all-division first-team honors last season. “He has taken the position switch and has run with it. He just works and gets better every day. He loves challenges and this is a challenge and he is doing a great job with the adjustment so far.”
As strong as he was on offense, Konetzni was stellar on defense as a defensive back. He had seven interceptions, which ranked No. 2 in the state, and earned All-State Group 1 second-team honors on defense.
The other key returning players are senior tight end/defensive end John Leone (6-4, 185), senior offensive lineman/defensive lineman Thomas Barton (5-10, 205), senior offensive lineman/linebacker Alex Bowman (5-10, 175), sophomore offensive/defensive lineman Tyler Kamil (5-10, 190), sophomore wide receiver/defensive back Aiden Kelly (5-9, 165), senior fullback/wide receiver/linebacker Tristan Wilson (5-10, 180), senior wide receiver/defensive back Myles Adams (5-11, 170) and junior kicker Jimmy Gist (5-9, 160).
Leone will prove to be a dangerous target with his size and athleticism. Last year was his first as a skill player, as he made several big plays en route to making all-division second team on offense. So far, Leone has been getting better. Leone also made some strong plays as a defensive end.
Barton, as an offensive lineman, made all-division first team last year.
Kamil and Kelly are coming off a strong season as freshmen on defense. Both made the second team on the all-division defense, and will lead the defense, along with Leone on the line and Adams in the secondary.
Bowman made all-division honorable mention and Gist was selected as the all-division kicker last season.
The Ridgers are focused on the season-opener against Whippany Park at Hurrell Field at noon on Sept. 6.
In last year’s season-opener, the Ridgers pulled off a 21-9 victory over an experienced Whippany Park team. This year, the roles are reversed, as Glen Ridge has experience, while Whippany Park has a new coach and new system.
Whippany Park was a team last year “that was returning a lot of guys and thought they were going to handle us pretty easily and we went out there and shocked them a little bit,” Strumolo said. “We have to avoid that happening to us this year, because we’re returning a good amount of guys, and they have a new coach and a new system. So our job is to prepare for them and the new things that they’re going to be doing and not have a letdown at home to get the season started.”
Strumolo emphasized that the division will once again be daunting. Division foes include Cedar Grove, Verona, Newark Collegiate, Newark Central and Hoboken.
But Strumolo knows his team will rise to the occasion.“They have taken the challenge,” said Strumolo. “They know what’s in front of them. We had to work hard to win the games we won. In the games we lost, we competed pretty much in every game. It’s just a matter of finding a way to win those close games and find a way to get a little bit more in the games that we came up a little short.”
Notes – Strumolo coaching staff consists of GRHS graduates Brandon Haynes and Ryan Liddy, Tristan Mans, Bloomfield High School alumni Marc Polynice and Freddy Carter, Don Sellari and Angelo Intile.
Strumolo is a 1992 graduate of Nutley High School. He was teammates with Sellari at NHS. Sellari is a 1993 NHS graduate. In his senior year, Sellari helped Nutley win its last state sectional title in 1992. Sellari went on to play at Rutgers University on a football scholarship.
Intile, a Montclair High School alum, has been coaching football since 1977. He was an assistant coach at NHS when Strumolo and Sellari were there. Strumolo was the head coach at Belleville High School for three seasons from 2009-10 and was an assistant coach at Weequahic and Newark Central. He and Intile were assistant coaches together for the Caldwell University sprint football team, before coming to Glen Ridge.
Strumolo replaced Manj Singh, who was the Ridgers head coach for two seasons from 2022-23, before leaving to become the Verona head coach. In Singh’s second year at GRHS, the Ridgers ended their playoff-win drought as they upset No. 2 seed Waldwick/Midland Park, 33-26, in the North 2, Group 1 state sectional quarterfinals. Singh enters his second year at Verona. The Ridgers will visit Verona in Week 7 on Oct. 17.
The fourth-seeded Ridgers last season defeated No. 5 seed Pompton Lakes, 47-13, in the quarterfinals, before losing at top-seeded Butler, 40-20, in the semifinals in the North 1, Group 1 state sectional playoffs.
Schedule
Sept. 6: vs. Whippany Park, noon.
Sept. 13: vs. Central, noon.
Sept. 19: at Hanover Park, 7 p.m.
Sept. 26: at Hoboken, 7 p.m.
Oct. 4: vs. Newark Collegiate Academy, 2 p.m.
Oct. 11: vs. Cedar Grove, noon.
Oct. 17: at Verona, 7 p.m.
Oct. 25: at Dwight Morrow, 1 p.m.
Photos by Joe Ragozzino, unless otherwise noted.