The top-seeded and undefeated Irvington High School football team had to use a fourth-quarter rally to beat Morristown in the first round of the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3 playoffs.

Will they struggle again this Saturday in the semifinals against a tough Phillipsburg team that boasts a storied history?

No.

I think the Morristown game was a wake-up call for the Blue Knights. They know they have to be on their toes and have to take control from the outset. And there is no better player to help steer that approach than senior quarterback Joshua Evans, who willed the team to last Saturday's comeback.

Irvington will win.

Prediction: Irvington 35, Phillipsburg 13

Note: The game is at Untermann Field in Newark, next to Weequahic High, at 1 p.m. Like last Saturday against Morristown, Irvington wants to play at Untermann because its home field is in poor condition.

The East Orange Campus High football team beat Paterson Kennedy, 29-13, yesterday, Nov. 15 in a state consolation game to end the season with a 6-4 record.

The Jaguars won the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 1, Group 4 championship last year, capturing their first-ever playoff title.

They won five straight after starting 0-2 this year, but that streak ended with a loss to West Morris that knocked them out of a playoff berth.

The Bloomfield High School football team lost to Ridgewood, 26-17, in the first round of the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 1, Group 4 playoffs today, Nov. 16 in Ridgewood.

Bloomfield led 10-6 going into the fourth quarter, but Ridgewood rallied with three touchdowns.

Bloomfield (5-4) was looking for its first-ever playoff win.

Bloomfield also wanted to avenge last year's first-round playoff upset at the hands or Ridgewood. Last year, Bloomfield was seeded No. 2 and Ridgewood was seeded No. 7. This year, the roles were reversed - Ridgewood was No. 2 and Bloomfield was No. 7.

Still, Bloomfield has nothing to be ashamed of. They hope to end the season with a win against Montclair.

Four years.

That's how long the losing streak was for the Columbia High School football team.

Forty-5 straight losses.

It's finally over.

The Cougars crushed Dickinson, 48-0, in the season finale today, Nov. 15 at home to snap that dreaded losing streak.

Yes, they finally tasted a win.

It was the state's longest current losing streak. The last time they won a game was in 2004 against East Orange Campus. They finished that season 1-9.

I am so happy for the seniors, who finally got that elusive win, in their final game. They finished 1-9.

Congrats to the Cougars and head coach Dave Curtin.

The fourth-seeded West Orange High football team lost a heartbreaker to No. 5 seed Hackensack, 26-20, in the first round of the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 1, Group 4 playoffs today, Nov. 15 at Suriano Stadium at WOHS.

Hackensack broke a 20-all tie on Nick Hayes' 20-yard touchdown pass to Malcolm Bush in the fourth quarter.

The Mountaineers trailed 20-6, but scored twice to tie it.

Anthony Casalino scored on a 1-yard run in the second quarter to bring WOHS within 20-12 at haltime. Casalino then hit Mithcell Montlouis on a 56-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter, followed by Sheldon Montouth's conversion run to tie the game at 20.

Casalino connected with Montlouis on a 32-yard scoring strike in the second quarter to tie the game at 6.

WOHS, which began the season 5-0, finished with a 6-4 record.

Congratulations to head coach John Jacob and his team for a good season. 

This time, the Irvington HIgh football team came through.

Behind senior senational quarterback Joshua Evans, the Blue Knights rallied to beat Morristown, 27-20, in the first round of the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3 playoffs today, Nov. 15, at Untermann Field in Newark 

Trailing 20-14 entering the fourth quarter, Evans hit Aaron Yarbrough for a 13-yard touchdown pass and David Paraisy kicked the extra point for a 21-20 lead. Evans then sealed it with a 2-yard touchdown run.

The Blue Knights improved to 9-0 and will face fourth-seeded Phillipsburg in the semifinals.

The game was held at Untermann because of poor field conditions at Irvington High's Matthews Field.

Like last year, the Blue Knights were 8-0 entering their first-round playoff game against South Plainfield, which stunned Irvington, 18-12, in overtime.

But the Blue Knights didn't buckle this time.

Congrats to IHS head coach Darnell Grant and his team.

I am rooting hard for them. Best of luck.

The West Orange and Glen Ridge high school girls' soccer teams both lost in their respective sectional tournament championships yesterday, Nov. 14.

Both teams should be commended. They each had to play all their games on the road in the state tournament.

West Orange, seeded sixth, lost at fifth-seeded Randolph, 1-0, in the North 1, Group 4 final, while seventh-seeded Glen Ridge fell at top-seeded New Providence, 2-0, in the North 2, Group 1 final.

The Columbia High School boys' soccer team's bid to repeat as champion fell short in heartbreaking fashion, as the Cougars lost to Elizabeth, 1-0, in a shootout in the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 tournament final yesterday, Nov. 14, at Cameron Field.

The game was scoreless for 100 minutes and went to a shootout. Elizabeth goalie Matias Cei made two saves in the shootout.

Columbia fell to 19-3-2.

Columbia had a senior-laden team this season. Despite the loss, the Cougars should be proud of their season.

The Glen Ridge High School football team looked like it was going to get blown out by Brearley last night, Nov. 14.

The Ridgers were making their first state playoff appearance in 25 years and were down 14-0 at halftime against a team that was undefeated and won the sectional title two years ago.

But the Ridgers made a game of it. Nick DePhillips, who two days earlier signed a letter of intent with Ohio State on a lacrosse scholarship, scored two touchdowns. Now the Ridgers were down 14-13 and needed an extra point to tie the game. But the kick was missed and Brearley held on for the first-round win in the North 2, Goup 1 playoffs.

Glen Ridge (5-4) almost pulled off a big upset.

Give coach Duke Mendez and his team credit for coming back like that.

Sure, it was a heartbreaking loss, but they certainly showed they belonged in the playoffs.

Seventh-seeded Nutley, unfortunately, got hammered by No. 2 seed West Morris, 48-6, in the first round of the NJSIAA North 2, Group 3 playoffs last night. Nutley (5-4) was down 28-0 at the end of the first quarter.

Belleville lost to Passaic Valley, 28-14, in the consolation last night to fall to 4-5.

The Orange vs. Hillside high school football playoff game has been moved to Union High School on Saturday night, Nov. 15, at 7, according to the NJSIAA website.

Hillside apparently has a bad field and the forecast calls for bad weather this weekend.

Here are my football state playoff predictions for this weekend:

Irvington 27, Morristown 21 (OT)

West Morris 28, Nutley 14

Orange 35, Hillside 33

West Orange 28, Hackensack 25

Bergen Catholic 21, Seton Hall Prep 18

Ridgewood 33, Bloomfield 13

Brearley 28, Glen Ridge 6

Dragos Ries was sad to miss last year's sectional tournament final because of an injury.

He made sure his team would get back to the final.

The senior forward scored eight minutes into overtime to lift the second-seeded Columbia High School boys' soccer team to a 1-0 win over sixth-seeded North Hunterdon today, Nov. 10, at Cameron Field.

The Cougars are back in the sectional final, looking to win it for the second straight year.

Last season, Ries missed virtually the entire season because of a torn ACL.

In a touch of deja vu, the Cougars beat North Hunterdon in last year's sectional semifinals in which head coach Gene Chyzowoych won his 700th career game. The Cougars then beat Westfield, 1-0, in the sectional final.

The Irvington High School football team, seeded No. 1 in the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3 playoffs for the third straight season, will move its first-round game from IHS' Matthews Field to Untermann Field in Newark this Saturday at 1 pm.

Last Saturday, Matthews Field was turned into a "mud bowl" because of rain. The Blue Knights beat West Side, 28-8, but head coach Darnell Grant said his team could have scored more if not for the poor field.

Irvington will play eighth-seeded Morristown in the first round. Morristown is under head coach Chris Hull, who previously coached at Cranford, a team that competes in the same conference as Irvington, the Watchung Conference.

The game will also feature two of the best quarterbacks in the state in Morristown's Michael Colvin and Irvington's Joshua Evans.

Untermann Field is adjacent to Weequahic High School on Chancellor Avenue.