Khaleed Foster returns 2 interceptions for TDs
LINWOOD – Defending state champion Mainland Regional got its NJSIAA Group III playoff run to a solid start last Friday with a 49-14 victory over Barnegat, but a tough match awaits them in the South Jersey semifinals against Holmdel.
The 7-3 Mustangs, seeded No. 2 in the South Jersey Group III tournament, will host Holmdel (9-1) at 6 p.m. Friday at the Mustang Corral.
After a slugfest the previous week against defending Group III state champion Delsea, the offense appeared to get back on track mixing long drives with long scoring strikes against the No. 7-seeded Bengals.
“The first [playoff] win is always one of the biggest because you never know what to expect,” said Mainland wide receiver Jake Blum, who scored one touchdown in Friday’s contest.
Mainland had to recover from a punch in the mouth on Barnegat’s opening series when Jack Haviland connected with tight end Cole Todding on a 63-yard touchdown pass down the right sideline for 7-0 Bengals lead three minutes into the game.
“I looked at it as a good thing because we needed a wake-up call,” said Rocco DeBiaso, who scored three touchdowns and was one of the Mustangs’ main clogs on defense as linebacker.
The Mustangs, however, responded immediately, scoring on a seven-play, 58-yard drive after a failed on-side kick. DeBiaso finished the drive with an eight-yard touchdown run to tie the score 6:35 in the first quarter, giving hints of a possible shootout.
“It shows how well we can overcome adversity,” Mainland junior quarterback John Franchini said about responding quickly to Barnegat’s score. “We are all pulling for each other and it was good for us to get that score after theirs.”
Barnegat used nine plays on its next drive into Mainland’s territory before the Mustangs’ defense stiffened to force a punt. The Bengals’ punt was ruled dead at the Mainland 5. That’s when Mainland juniors – quarterback Franchini and wide receiver Blum – delivered the game changer.
On the first play, Franchini delivered a perfect play-action pass to Blum streaking down the middle of the field, with the wideout outrunning Bengal defenders for a 96-yard touchdown catch. The catch-and-run was the longest in recent memory for Mainland and allowed Blum to set the record for most touchdown catches in a season.
“[When coach Chuck Smith called the play] I knew exactly what we were doing because their safety kept rolling up [toward the line of scrimmage] on our motion,” Blum said. “It was a good time to go over top on them right there.”
Smith said the score was just what his squad needed to find its footing.
“Barnegat came out and gave us some fits a little bit with their offense and what they were doing,” Smith said. “We were able to get our wheels rolling on offense. I thought the 96-yard touchdown was a backbreaker early in a way when they had us pinned down there.”
Mustangs’ freshman Dylan Granzow scored a 32-yard run in the second quarter after a fumble recovery by Mainland’s Dan DeFeo on defense, increasing the lead to 21-7.
Mainland’s defense would be called up again after an interception, giving Barnegat the ball on the Mustangs’ end of the field. Barnegat drove to the Mainland 3 before a holding penalty and two incompletions ended the drive.
Three plays later, DeBiaso broke several tackles near the line of scrimmage to score on his longest run of the season, 72 yards for a 28-7 lead at halftime. It was reminiscent of Stephen Ordille’s playoff run last year when he put up some of his best running totals during the postseason.
“Yes, I kind of felt that way,” DeBiaso said. “In the playoffs it’s a whole new season. What happened in the regular season doesn’t matter. My number was called on that play and the o-line did their jobs and I just sprung it out.”
In the third quarter, Mainland defensive back Khaleeb Foster returned two interceptions for touchdowns. The first interception came with 9:32 left, darting in front of a pass in the flats for a 25-yard return to the end zone.
The second interception came at the 4:49 mark when Foster grabbed a sailing pass and picked up blockers on his way to the end zone, boosting Mainland’s lead to 49-7.
It was the first two-interception game for a Mainland defense back since Jamie Tyson did it in the NJSIAA Group IV state semifinals against Winslow. Tyson went on to win the NJ.com Group IV defensive player of the year honors.
Foster, however, did what Tyson had never done in returning two for touchdowns in the same game.
“It felt great [getting the interceptions],” Foster said. “The first time it felt great.”
His teammates quickly chimed in.
“Before he got the second one, he said he was getting another one,” Franchini said. “He called it.”
Sandwiched between Foster’s twin “pick-six” interceptions was DeBiaso’s five-yard touchdown run at 5:51 on a three-play drive after a short punt.
Smith was complimentary of both Foster and DeBiaso for their defensive efforts.
“I thought the kids overall came out and played well,” Smith said. “I thought it was a heck of a performance by Khaleeb Foster with the two interceptions for touchdowns and Rocco DeBiaso played like a man possessed out running the ball and on defense as a linebacker.
“Khaleeb is a quiet guy but he’s had a solid season. The first interception was phenomenal because he made such a great break on the ball to step in front. The second one was just pure athletic ability to run that all the way back. It was really impressive.”
Barnegat scored once again in the fourth against Mainland’s second-team defense with a running clock and the game well in hand.
This week
Holmdel and its quarterback Jack Cannon will present a similar challenge to Mainland on Friday as Delsea quarterback John Reardon presented in the final game of the regular season. In that game, Reardon rushed for 90 yards in Delsea’s hybrid option offense before Mainland escaped with a 21-14 victory in overtime.
Cannon rushed for 168 yards on 21 carries and five touchdowns in the 35-12 victory over Oakcrest in its South Jersey first-round playoff game at home last Saturday. Smith said he knows his team will have to improve their play if they plan on reaching their third straight sectional final.
“We took a step in the right direction, but can we get better? Absolutely,” Smith said. “We are always striving to get better all the time, but it was definitely a step in the right direction for next week. Every round you go, it gets tougher.”
Franchini said that it will be up to him and his teammates to maintain the standards that led to Mainland winning the Central Jersey sectional crown in 2022 and the South Jersey title in 2023.
“Everything’s got to get intensified,” Franchini said. “We have to be on each other more and make each other accountable.”
– By CLYDE HUGHES/For the Sentinel