SPORTS

Morris County football players to watch

Joe Hofmann
Correspondent

When Ryan Barnett was a freshman at Chatham, the football coaching staff immediately took notice. Now all of the Ivy League schools as well as Pittsburgh, Colgate and Lafayette like what they see of the 6-foot-3, 245-pound senior tight end-linebacker as well.

Barnett became a two-way starter as a sophomore but broke his collarbone midway through the season. Last year, Barnett was healthy for the entire season and had 65 tackles, three sacks, five tackles for losses and a fumble recovery for a touchdown. He also caught 10 passes for 90 yards and two touchdowns.

In the classroom, he has a 4.06 GPA and 32 ACT score. Barnett also plays hockey and baseball.

"When Ryan was a freshman, he was a bigger kid and had some good football skills and we noticed him right away because of his size and ability," Chatham coach Jason Isza said. "As he got a year older he started to grow more in height and started to put on some muscle and spent a good amount of time in the weight room. At his height and weight he moves very well and is very athletic. He grew as a football player the last couple years and takes the sport very seriously and works very hard."

Here are some of the other players in Morris County you will be hearing about this fall.

Hubert Bakowski, Montville: The 6-foot-3, 260-pound senior will play center and on the defensive line for the Mustangs. Rutgers, Monmouth, Delaware, Colgate and Dartmouth are recruiting him.

Ethan Bolson, Morristown: If the Colonials are in a tight game, they have an advantage in the lightning-footed Bolson, who booted a 52-yard field goal in practice this summer and is an even better punter.

Dan Castro, Dover: The Tigers won five of their last six games last year and Castro was in the middle of it as a terrific blocker from the fullback position and a solid outside linebacker (45 tackles, two for losses, two sacks, four pass breakups).

Jack Clevenger, Roxbury: A terrific all-around player, Clevenger caught 35 passes for 607 yards and five TD, rushed nine times for 68 yards, and had six touchbacks to go with two field goals and 43 for 44 in extra points.

Mike Dalena, Madison: Dalena is expected to be in the thick of the Dodgers’ battle for the NJAC-Freedom and North 2 Group II.

Brian Fajardo, Morristown: The Colonials always have one of Morris County's best offensive lines and they'll be counting on Fajardo's work in the trenches this fall.

Daymon Fleming, Morris Hills: Scarlet Knights coach Mike Sabo raves about the work of Fleming, a junior quarterback who is already entering his third year as a starter.

Jake Foukas, Pequannock: The Golden Panthers lost quite a bit defensively, so coach Ed Kopp hopes Foukas can turn in the same type of season he did last year, when he registered 59 tackles (16 for losses) to go with eight sacks and two forced fumbles.

Sam Johnson, Delbarton: Johnson caught seven passes for 95 yards and two touchdowns last year and is an impact defensive end who is being heavily recruited by Ivy League schools.

Joe Lapinski, Morris Catholic: New Crusaders coach John Hack hopes the senior can duplicate last year, when he had 69 tackles, including 15 tackles for losses and four sacks.

Steven Loreng, Roxbury: Loreng (46 for 1,037 receiving, 15 TD last year) gives returning 2014 All Daily Record Player of the Year Grant Dixon a terrific target.

Ricky Lorenzo, Morristown: As a junior in the rugged NJAC-National, Lorenzo was not the Colonials’ first option in the passing game but still managed to haul in 27 passes for 497 yards and six touchdowns.

Seamus Nelson, Kinnelon: As a sophomore last year, Nelson had 87 tackles, including nine for losses, to go with seven sacks.

Matt Nestler, Chatham: The Cougars struggled in their first year in the NJAC-National but Nestler proved he belonged with 550 yards rushing and eight TD to go with 45 tackles (two for losses) and four sacks out of the linebacker position.

Anthony Olivieri, Hanover Park: The Hornets struggled defensively last year, but Hornets coach Gerry Moore has high hopes thanks to the return of Olivieri, who registered 151 tackles (10 for losses) as well as five sacks. He also caused seven fumbles and recovered four.

Tyler Piekarcz, Mount Olive: The Marauders hope the 6-foot-6, 235-pound tackle follows in the footsteps of former standout Zack Heeman (now at Rutgers).

Tomasz Radomski, Hanover Park: Radomski caught 45 passes for 893 yards (19.8) and 12 touchdowns, often outleaping and outworking defenders who were helpless against his athleticism.

Craig Roumes, Roxbury: The Gaels figure to put a lot of points on the board and Roumes (101 for 508 rushing, 16 for 242 receiving, 8 TD) is a huge weapon.

Zack Stanilious, Mount Olive: Yale, Princeton, Penn, and Colgate are after the stellar defensive back, one of the NJAC-National's best.