Sports

Central Football Snubbed in National 'Best Rivalry' Tournament

No high school football teams in Morris County made the USA Today competition.

Organizing its second consecutive tournament, USA Today High School Sports is searching for the best football rivalry in the country.

West Morris Central wasn’t added to the 2013 tournament.

The media outlet selected five high school football rivalries in each state plus Washington D.C. after a month of searching and having conversations with local media and state and school officials, according to its website.

Find out what's happening in Long Valleywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Each state’s rivalry games were announced Monday afternoon and not a single team or contest in Morris County was selected. As chosen by USA Today, the top five contests nominated include:

  • East Orange vs. Barringer (Newark)
  • Millville Senior vs. Vineland Senior
  • North Hunterdon vs. Voorhees
  • Peddie School vs. Blair Academy
  • Westfield vs. Plainfield 

Season after season West Morris Central’s football team has played division and county rivals both in the regular season and playoffs. Battles against the Mendham Minutemen and Morristown Colonials often come to the forefront of football fans’ minds.

Find out what's happening in Long Valleywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

In 2013, Central lost a heartbreaker to Morristown, 3-0, but avenged its loss in the first round of the NJSIAA North 2, Group 4 playoffs Friday night with an overtime victory by a score of 14-7. 

With the win, the Wolfpack advanced to the semifinal round against rival and sister-school Mendham, which it beat in the regular season.

USA Today’s full “best rivalry” competition can be found here.

Do you think West Morris Central was snubbed? Should the Wolfpack football team have been part of the tournament in a contest with any of its rivals? Which of Central's football opponents do you think qualifies for a rivalry?

Editor’s note: Patch was not contacted by USA Today during its selection process. 


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here