State of the Program: North Warren football surging in numbers and excitement

Eugene Fluri said goodbye to a strong and impactful class of seniors on last season's North Warren football team.

Among the 15 seniors on that team was his son Angelo, the leading rusher for the Patriots last fall. Despite losing that important group following a 6-3 season and a playoff berth, all is not lost for the Patriots in 2023. In fact, things have never been better.

"It begins when you're a freshman and seeing what the upperclassmen in front of you are building," Fluri said. "It shows us the template and what you need to be if you want to be a playoff team and you want to see this program grow."

North Warren remains one of the smallest schools in the state, but you'd never know it by looking at the football team. Losing a group of 15 players could demoralize any team, especially a Group 1 squad like the Patriots. But Fluri hasn't seen participation numbers like these since he became head coach in 2016.

"The numbers have never been as good as they are right now," Fluri said. "When I took over, we were around 33 or 34, but this year saw us open camp with 51 kids and lose a few over the summer to go down to 47."

Fluri remarked that the increased size of the team is not because of championship success and credits the culture that the players have built with one another. As numbers increase and talent improves, North Warren continues to strive for the first championship in the history of the team.

"It becomes a double-edged sword when you're a small group like us," Fluri said. "You don't get to come to the sidelines and reflect on what just happened, so it brings us together more. Now we have to ask those guys who were a part of the scout offense and the scout defense to be on the other side of that equation and take the reps in practice while also helping the younger kids in a way they were brought along."

The tradition

North Warren earned a winning season for the first time since 2015 with a 6-3 record last fall. It also brought the Patriots back to the playoffs for the first time since that same 2015 team qualified.

North Warren's playoff success is limited, with the last postseason win coming in 2013. The Patriots have never reached a sectional final.

"It was good for the kids to get there and see what it took," Fluri said. "Those ingredients that you add in during the offseason, the workouts and the practices, they build over time."

The challenge

The Patriots are not completely without experienced players, but losing a senior class of 15 leaves a lot of questions still needing to be answered. It remains to be seen who among the returning players will pick up for the offensive leaders who graduated.

Fluri has players in many positions with some experience that will see additional roles.

Seniors Landon White and Alex Barton are two of the returning players that received time in a run game that rushed for more than 1,500 yards as a team a season ago. White has been getting varsity experience since his sophomore season, while Barton has provided a boost on both offense and defense.

Expectations

North Warren will have a difficult try at reaching the postseason again this season in a Group 1 landscape that is often competitive and crowded. Fluri noted that the schedule provides a fair variety for the Patriots and can get them battle tested for a potential return to the postseason.

"We scrimmage with Hackettstown, who is a Group 3 team and just a very well coached team," Fluri said. "We don't have a break in our schedule and that presents a challenge but also an opportunity for our guys."

2023 schedule

Aug. 31: at Whippany Park

Sept. 7: vs. Hackettstown

Sept. 15: at Parsippany

Sept. 22: vs. Kinnelon

Sept. 29: vs. Boonton

Oct. 6: vs. High Point

Oct. 14: at Belvidere

Oct. 20: at Pequannock

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: North Warren NJ football surging in numbers and excitement