Team falls in Group III state title game to Old Tappan 28-16
PISCATAWAY — The Mainland Mustangs’ quest to repeat as state champions ended Sunday after a hard-fought battle against the Old Tappan Golden Knights in the NJSIAA Group III championship game at Rutgers University.
Senior Rocco DeBiaso brought the Mustangs within five points of the lead with an electrifying 73-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter, but defending Group IV champion Mainland Regional High School could not complete the comeback and fell to Old Tappan 28-16 on Dec. 1.
It was a bright and sunny but frigid day at SHI Stadium, where Mainland fell into a deficit early in the third quarter after a disastrous kickoff to start the second half. That turned the game upside down.
Tied at 7-7, Mainland lined up to receive the kickoff but Old Tappan surprised the Mustangs with a weird-looking onside kick. The Golden Knights managed to steal a possession from Mainland and capitalize on it as they marched down the field for a go-ahead touchdown run by quarterback Alex Orecchio.
Mainland head coach Chuck Smith described the effect of the kickoff turnover as “gigantic” and talked about how it changed the landscape of the whole game.
“The kickoff to start the second half to steal a possession and score points on it was huge,” Smith said. “We were trying to play catchup on it after that. They were effective on offense in the second half chunking the clock down and putting points on the board, but we were in that catchup mode the whole time and just could not overcome that.”
Old Tappan moved the ball only 44 yards on its drive and still managed to burn more than 5 minutes of game clock.
Orecchio and the Golden Knight offense seemed to have had all the answers in the second half and kept the Mustang offense off the field by converting all six of their third downs. Orecchio finished the game with a receiving, rushing and passing touchdown for a rare stat line featuring all three by a single player.
On offense, the Mustangs moved the ball well leading up to the red zone but stumbled as they got closer to the goal line.
After junior quarterback John Franchini finally got his first possession of the half, he brought the Mustangs to the 9-yard line with a huge completion on fourth down to tight end Andrew Gillman. Mainland’s drive then proceeded to go backward as DeBiaso was tackled in the backfield, which forced the Mustangs to settle on a 29-yard field goal by Nate Kashey on a fourth-and-12.
It was the last time the Mustangs would possess the ball while down only one score, as Old Tappan drained another 6 minutes of clock and extended its lead to 21-10.
DeBiaso responded and kept Mainland in the game with one last heroic run in his Mustang career. On the first play from scrimmage after the Mustangs got the ball back, DeBiaso broke tackles and ran towards the sideline before he found a hole in the defense and sprinted downfield. He ran free before spinning out of two more tackles in the open field for a huge 73-yard touchdown to keep Mainland in the game. A week prior against Somerville High School in the semifinals, DeBiaso scored three times, including the eventual game-winning touchdown in overtime.
“Rocco really came alive here in the second half of the season after being banged up midway through it,” Smith said. “He had a tremendous run there today and really rode with us in the playoffs and got our offense going.”
Mainland cut the lead to 21-16 but an attempted two-point conversion play to bring the Mustangs within three points failed.
With 7:21 remaining in the season, Mainland needed one more stop for a chance to win.
The Golden Knights tried to burn as much clock as possible to close the game, using the entire 40-second play clock before each snap. The Mustang fans who traveled up to Rutgers made as much noise as possible on one last third down, but Shane Small caught a pass over the middle for an Old Tappan first down.
With the clock still ticking away, Orecchio found Small in the end zone for a 14-yard touchdown pass to seal the game.
It was Old Tappan’s second Group III title in three years.
Mainland finished the year with a record of 10-4 and won the Group III South Jersey sectional title. It was the Mustangs’ third sectional title in a row and second year in a row in which they made the state championship game.
“I am very proud of the team, and it was a great year coming back from what we had a season ago,” Smith said. “Getting 10 wins is one thing but to add a sectional championship and compete for a state championship is something to still build upon at Mainland.”
DeBiaso leads a small but decorated senior class of Mustangs who will move on and graduate in the spring. Defensive lineman Matt Muits led Mainland in sacks this year while defensive back Khaleeb Foster led the team in interceptions.
When asked about what he will remember most about this year’s team and senior class, Smith said, “There was a lot of big shoes to fill this past year, and they stepped up and did a great job with it. It’s a great group of kids who are a part of the legacy and culture we build at Mainland.”
Foster kept the Mustangs in the game early after he hauled in an interception on a promising Old Tappan drive after the Golden Knights struck first.
Foster allowed Franchini to get back on the field and find his favorite target. Franchini threw a deep pass to junior Jake Blum who leaped over his defender and walked into the end zone for Mainland’s first score of the game. He also caught an interception of his own in the second quarter to further delay the Old Tappan offense.
Blum had a record-breaking junior year with more than 1,200 yards receiving and 15 receiving touchdowns. Both of those statistics are school records for a single season as he also became the first Mustang ever to eclipse 1,000 yards in a season.
Along with Blum and Franchini, the offense will retain DeBiaso’s brother Lucas DeBiaso who came in as an alternative option to his brother Rocco in his sophomore year at running back.
“We have a lot of kids coming back next year and this is a great building stone for that next year, Smith said, noting no one was predicting the Mustangs as a state title contender after graduating so much talent the season before. “It’s a tribute to the kids’ work ethic and dedication along with the coaches.”
– STORY by WILLIAM TRUITT/For the Sentinel
– PHOTOS by DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff
