The star who stayed: Nazir Treadwell's loyalty has Keyport football winning big

POINT PLEASANT BEACH – Nazir Treadwell is fast. The Keyport High School football star explodes through the hole like a speeding train. That train barreled 96 yards for a touchdown on the final play of the first half in Friday night’s 41-0 romp of Point Pleasant Beach.

Treadwell is strong, too. On a 35-yard touchdown run Friday, he bounced off a would-be tackler just beyond the line of scrimmage, steamrolling the defender with ease.

And he’s got an arm. The senior, a lifelong running back who was pressed into quarterback duty in the preseason, threw a 50-yard frozen rope of a pass Friday, dropping it perfectly into the hands of a teammate who had gotten two steps on the defense. Alas, the receiver bobbled it away. Treadwell still threw two for touchdowns on the night, adding to the three achieved with his legs.

But the most important, impressive thing about Nazir Treadwell is a trait you can’t see. It’s not on film. There is no stat for it.

It’s loyalty.

Year after year, the poachers came for him. Transfer here. Move there. Leave that Group 1 program to play on our collection of all-stars.

No shot.

“Keyport has always been part of me,” he said after Friday’s domination (168 rushing yards on five carries) put him over the 1,000-yard mark for the season. “I had the option to leave but I had to stay with my boys. I had to stay home, and it feels really good to bring back all the goods to Keyport – to put Keyport back on the map.”

It's happening.

'I know who I am'

The Red Raiders are 6-1, having won five straight and clinched at least a share of the Shore Conference’s Patriot Division title. Keyport went 6-3 in both 2022 and 2021, but this feels different. This is a senior-driven squad that takes immense pride in playing for their hometown – and has the combination of lunch-pail linemen and playmakers to make noise in the postseason.

“It comes down to kids staying home and believing in what we have here,” fifth-year head coach Jason Glezman said. “They believe in themselves and they believe in each other. That’s what makes them special.”

A transfer situation was part of the reason why Treadwell, who is headed to the College of Holy Cross next fall as a running back, had to move under center.

“I knew quarterback was a different role, but I’m ready for the challenge week by week,” he said. “I know who I am, and if I step into it and listen to what I’m being coached up on, I can get the job done.”

Glezman already had designed a wildcat-type package for Treadwell, and with explosive sophomore Mekai Henderson and versatile junior Andrei Matthews helping out, he felt confident that Treadwell could thrive at quarterback.

“With Andrei on the perimeter and Mekai being able to go inside and outside at tailback, and with Naz being the read off all that, it forces defenses to defend three threats," the coach said. "It’s worked out well.”

For example: On Friday Henderson struck first with a 51-yard touchdown scamper. And Matthews wrapped things up with touchdown catches of 25 and 10 yards.

Of course, it takes a capable offensive line to make all this possible.

“Our O-line doesn’t get enough credit – I’ve been with these guys since I was yea high,” Treadwell said, holding his arm out four feet above the ground. “It’s a brotherhood. I love these boys with all my heart – and we’re going to keep rolling.”

The love is mutual.

“He’s been special since his freshman year, and even younger than that,” senior lineman Ryan Burns said. “We’ve been friends since we were little kids. I think he still has a lot left to prove.”

Here is what Treadwell has proved so far this fall: 1,144 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns on 82 carries (an average of 14 yards per carry), plus 612 passing yards and 10 touchdown throws compared to just two interceptions (and he’s completed 75 percent of his passing attempts).

“He’s got an arm, but what makes it work is his commitment,” Glezman said. “You see that throughout our team.”

'You don't have to go anywhere else'

Commitment. Seems like an outdated virtue sometimes, with some athletes changing schools like they change socks.

But for Ryan Burns, it’s real. His brother Dylan wore Keyport’s uniform before him. They know this program’s stellar tradition, one that goes back generations. That matters.

“It means so much to me, that Keyport is a powerhouse again,” Ryan said. “This is something the seniors have been grinding for.”

Around town, locals stop Treadwell to chat about football and wish him well. When Keyport is winning on the gridiron, the entire borough takes notice.

“Small town, everybody knows everybody,” Treadwell said. “Those relationships you have, that’s what makes it special.”

When your star player cares that much, it has a ripple effect.

“It sets a culture that you don’t have to go anywhere else,” Glezman said. “Now that gets passed down to the next wave of guys. It starts with them believing in themselves. And Naz believed in himself since eighth grade – and you see how contagious that is with the rest of our players.”

Keyport (6-1) 6-13-15-7--41

Point Pleasant Beach (0-7) 0-0-0-0--0

First Quarter

K: Mekai Henderson 51 run (kick failed)

Second Quarter

K: Nazir Treadwell 35 run (kick failed)

K: Nazir Treadwell 96 run (Marshall Colangelo kick)

Third Quarter

K: Nazir Treadwell 33 run (Colangelo kick)

K: Andrei Matthews 25 pass from Nazir Treadwell (Matthews run)

Fourth Quarter

K: Andrei Matthews 10 pass from Nazir Treadwell (Colangelo kick)

Jerry Carino has covered the New Jersey sports scene since 1996. Contact him at jcarino@gannettnj.com.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Shore Conference Football: Nazir Treadwell has Keyport winning big