Football preview and pick: Bernards battles Westwood in state Group 2 semifinals

The Bernards High School football team made history last weekend, winning the program’s first ever sectional championship. The North 2 champion Mountaineers will visit North 1 champ Westwood at 7 p.m. Friday in the NJSIAA Group 2 semifinals.

Bernards report

Third time was the charm for the Mountaineers, who captured the program’s first-ever sectional championship last Friday night with a dramatic 23-17 overtime win over Lakeland in the North 2 Group 2 final. Bernards had fallen in its two previous trips to finals, 19-18 in overtime to Shore in 1997, and 42-6 to Manasquan in 2014.

While the Mountaineers tore through the regular season, decimating opponents nearly every time out, and did the same during the first two rounds of the playoffs, Bernards was finally tested for real last week and came through with flying colors against Lakeland.

Bernards was pushed to the brink several times last weekend after outscoring opponents 40-6 this season. The Mountaineers trailed 14-7 heading into the fourth quarter before closing the deficit to 14-10 and then taking the 17-14 lead with a 12-yard Connor Laverty to Jake Caldwell touchdown pass with under a minute left in regulation. But Lakeland pulled off the unlikely charge down the field, tying it with a 44-yard field goal by Eydan Linares as the fourth quarter expired.

After a missed field goal on Lakeland’s first possession of overtime gave Bernards the ball with a chance to win, the Mountaineers finally had their championship, as Laverty’s seven-yard scoring run ended it, not only delivering the crown but proving Bernards is perfectly capable of winning nail-biters against top teams as it is blowing out lesser clubs.

“It was what we expected would happen in a state championship game, so we stayed calm and collected and focused on the task at hand,” Bernards coach Jon Simoneau said. “It allowed us to focus on the little details we needed to execute at the end. The confidence in knowing we can stick to the plan and go through four quarters and OT is definitely there now, even if it is uncharted waters vs. a better opponent and a bigger stage.”

Bernards improved to 12-0, with each win extending the program’s record for victories in a season, and now the Mountaineers are eying even bigger things with an even tougher opponent, facing a fellow undefeated club, one ranked No. 6 in the state among public schools – Bernards is No. 17.

More: NJ football rankings: Wild week shakes up Statewide Public Top 20, Non-Public Top 10

Westwood report

The two-time North 2 Group 2 champion Cardinals are seeking their first trip to the Group 2 state final after falling to eventual state champ Caldwell 13-7 last year. Westwood, which finished 11-1 last year, is 11-0 headed into this game, looking to avoid the same fate as last season.

Like Bernards, the Cardinals tore through their regular-season schedule, winning every game by three or more touchdowns until they topped Rutherford 20-7 in last weekend’s sectional final, with senior Robbie Carcich throwing for 228 yards and three TDs, with nine of those catches for 127 yards being posted by classmate Joe Klein.

Like Laverty for Bernards, Carchich is a dual-threat quarterback, having completed 80 percent of his passes this season, for 2,048 yards and 21 touchdowns to go with just three interceptions, adding 646 rushing yards and 11 scores. Junior Aidan Dugan is the other top threat out of the backfield, having tallied 633 yards on 90 carries and a pair of scores, while Steve Klein has added seven rushing TDs. Joe Klein leads the receiving corps, having hauled in 53 catches for 663 yards and seven scores, while Tommy Bussanich (33-590) has also caught seven TD passes.

Senior linebacker Michael Carchich, junior lineman Dario Mathurin, junior linebacker Luke Biello and Steve Klein at DB have led a talented and deep defensive corps that hasn’t allowed more than 12 points in a game all season and pitched four shutouts. They’re averaging 5.4 points against this year.

The picks

Bernards is pretty much playing with house money at this point, but that doesn’t mean the Mountaineers don’t plan on bringing their A-game with them on the long ride up to the state’s northeast corner. Nothing would make my weekend better than a Bernards upset, and while it’s certainly a possibility, I’m looking to lock up my Prophet’s Cup crown. I’ve got a five-game lead over my esteemed colleague coming into this weekend with this plus four Thanksgiving tossup games to go. So, I‘m going to play it safe and not mind at all if I’m wrong. If I am, it means we get one more game to pick next weekend.

PINCUS’ PICK: Westwood 27-20

If we automatically go by favorites, then our picking season would be over and we’d be looking at the Westwood/Caldwell game as fans. Of course, Lakeland upset Caldwell in the sectional finals, which led to Bernards topping Lakeland in that overtime thriller last week. So, anything can happen here in the state semifinal. True, Westwood is a scary, tested opponent all around. Nine defensive starters returned from last year’s team and Carcich threw for 1,302 yards last season, so he likely won’t get frazzled at home. The teams have one common opponent with Westwood beating Lakeland 30-7 on Oct. 13. Here’s My Bernards pitch: The Mountaineers showed a lot in coming back last week, so they passed the do-or-die exam. That they weren’t tested earlier is a positive. Bernards has simply been that much better than its opponents and that matters, too. Dominance is a good thing. It becomes a no-brainer for me to pick Bernards when you factor in that I need a Hail Mary in our Prophet’s Cup race. Hey, I’m the defending champion and it’s hard to go back-to-back with a target on your picking fingers all season. Maybe, like the Mountaineers, I'll find some late magic. I’ll be making the trip to cover the game, so kindly check in for updates on X/Twitter @andy_mendlowitz.

MENDLOWITZ’S PICK: Bernards 24-22

Simeon Pincus has covered NJ sports since 1997. He can be reached at SPincus@GannettNJ.com. Follow him on Twitter @SimeonPincus

Andy Mendlowitz can be reached at AMendlowitz@NJPressMedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @Andy_Mendlowitz

This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: NJ football preview Bernards vs. Westwood in NYPHSAA Group 2 semis