Football rankings: Big Central Conference Top 15, through Week 4
(record in parenthesis)
1. Phillipsburg (4-0) – last week No. 2 -- The Stateliners made a massive statement in Week 3 with a 34-0 lambasting of Hillsborough, which hadn’t lost a game since 2020, fueling P’Burg’s jump to the top spot in the rankings. Phillipsburg heads to Hunterdon Central (2-3) on Friday night.
2. Hillside (4-0) – last week No. 1 – The Comets continue to slice through their Group 2 schedule with another lopsided win, this time 42-7 to New Providence. Hillside faces its first real challenge of the season Friday night when it travels to North Edison to take on St. Thomas Aquinas (4-1).
FOOTBALL: Week 4 roundup and story links in the Big Central Conference
3. North Brunswick (4-0) – last week No. 5 - The Raiders scored their most impressive win to date, a 22-0 blanking of Sayreville to take command of the National Silver Division race. After a brutally tough early-season schedule, North Brunswick gets winless Franklin (0-4) this weekend., the first of three against struggling teams.
4. Hillsborough (3-1) – last week No. 4 – The Raiders 16-game winning streak came to a screeching halt Friday night with a 34-0 loss to Phillipsburg. Hillsborough will look to get righted this weekend playing host to Union (1-3).
5. Sayreville (2-2) – last week No. 3 – The Bombers missed their mark last weekend at North Brunswick, falling 22-0. Sayreville, which has now suffered losses to the No. 1 and No. 3 teams in these rankings, get a break from a brutally tough early-schedule with a game at East Brunswick (0-4) Friday night.
6. Ridge (2-2) – last week No. 8 - The Red Devils were tied with Hunterdon Central 7-7 at halftime last Friday night, before hitting the gas after the intermission and logging a 35-7 victory behind a big night from fullback Will Deady. Ridge will look to keep it going Friday night at Bridgewater-Raritan (2-3).
7. Edison (3-2) – last week No. 9 - The Eagles soared past Franklin 34-7 to snap a two-game losing streak, after setbacks to No. 3 North Brunswick and No. 5 Sayreville. Edison heads to New Brunswick (1-4) on Friday night looking to keep it going.
8. North Hunterdon (4-1) – last week No. 10 – The Lions rolled into Hub Stine Field on Saturday and made it five straight all-time against Plainfield with a 42-13 win, as Kente Edwards accounted for four scores. North Hunterdon welcomes in Colonia (5-0) on Friday night in our Game of the Week.
9. St. Thomas Aquinas (4-1) – last week No. 11 – The Trojans ran their winning streak to four straight with an inspired 37-24 win over Cranford to take command of the United Gold race. Huge test on tap this weekend with Hillside (4-0) coming to town.
10. Watchung Hills (3-2) – last week No. 13 – The Warriors scored a huge win last Thursday night, not only beating Bridgewater-Raritan, but doing it in decisive fashion, 38-14. Another huge game comes Friday night when Watchung Hills heads to undefeated Montgomery (5-0).
11. St. Joseph-Metuchen (3-1) – last week No. 7 -- The Falcons were stunned by Elizabeth on Saturday, falling 23-21, St. Joe’s first loss of the season. The squad will look to get back on track this weekend, but it won’t be easy, as the Falcons head to Westfield (3-1) on Saturday.
12. Colonia (5-0) –– last week No. 14 -- The Patriots escaped neighborhood rival Woodbridge on Friday night, escaping with a 14-13 win to remain unbeaten. Major test comes Friday night, as Colonia treks to North Hunterdon (4-1).
13. Montgomery (5-0) – last week No. 15 – The Cougars’ 5-0 run marks the best start in the program’s 21-year history, as a 41-2 thrashing of Hamilton West brought Montgomery to the historic mark. The undefeated record will very much be on the line this weekend with Watchung Hills (3-2) making the journey down Route 206.
14. Bernards (4-1) –– last week unranked -- The Mountaineers come surging into rankings on the strength of a dramatic 17-14 win over rival Delaware Valley to win the Mountain-Valley Ray McCrann Trophy, clinching the Patriot Gold Division championship. Bernards and Brearley became the first teams to win a title in the BCC this season. Mountaineers visit Bound Brook (0-5) this weekend.
15. Bridgewater-Raritan (2-3) – last week No. 6 – The Panthers fall under .500 and plummet in the rankings after a surprising 38-14 loss to Watchung Hills. Things don’t get any easier for Bridgewater-Raritan this weekend with a Friday night home meeting with Ridge (2-2).
ALSO RECEIVING CONSIDERATION: South Plainfield (4-0), Westfield (3-1).
DROPPED OUT: Delaware Valley (3-1)
BIG CENTRAL CONFERENCE WEEK 5 SCHEDULE
Friday, Sept. 30
Carteret at J.P. Stevens, 6 p.m.
Cranford at Rahway, 6 p.m.
Hillside at St. Thomas Aquinas, 6 p.m.
Old Bridge at Piscataway, 6 p.m.
South Hunterdon at Brearley, 6 p.m.
Woodbridge at Perth Amboy, 6 p.m.
A.L Johnson at New Providence, 7 p.m.
Colonia at North Hunterdon, 7 p.m.
Dayton at Highland Park, 7 p.m.
Delaware Valley at Bound Brook, 7 p.m.
Edison at New Brunswick, 7 p.m.
Linden at J.F. Kennedy, 7 p.m.
Manville at Dunellen, 7 p.m.
Middlesex at Belvidere, 7 p.m.
North Brunswick at Franklin, 7 p.m.
North Plainfield at Bernards, 7 p.m.
Phillipsburg at Hunterdon Central, 7 p.m.
Ridge at Bridgewater-Raritan, 7 p.m.
Roselle at Metuchen, 7 p.m.
Sayreville at East Brunswick, 7 p.m.
Somerville at Elizabeth, 7 p.m.
South Brunswick at Monroe, 7 p.m.
Summit at Scotch Plains-Fanwood, 7 p.m.
Union at Hillsborough, 7 p.m.
Watchung Hills at Montgomery, 7 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 1
North Bergen at Plainfield, 1 p.m.
Roselle Park at Spotswood, 1 p.m.
South Plainfield at Governor Livingston, 2 p.m.
St. Joseph-Met. at Westfield, 2 p.m.
Voorhees at South River, 2 p.m.
Rankings by Simeon Pincus and Andy Mendlowitz
Simeon Pincus has been covering New Jersey sports since 1997. He can be reached at SPincus@GannettNJ.com. Follow him on Twitter @SimeonPincus
Andy Mendlowitz can be reached at AMendlowitz@GannettNJ.com. Follow him on Twitter @Andy_Mendlowitz
This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: Big Central Conference NJ Football rankings: Top 15, through Week 4
