By:
Matt Manley SSN Senior Editor
RISING SUN Head Coach: nd
Nick Famularo, 2 season Career Record: 4-2
outh and inexperience may be a reason for some programs to temper expectations within a given season, but that is not and has not been the case at Asbury Park in recent years.
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Assistant Coaches: Lamar Davenport (Off. Coordinator/CB), Chris Demarist (Def. Coordinator/RB), Ikie Calderon (Special Teams/RB/S), Matt Ardizzone (QB/ILB), Rob Ward (OL/DL), Keith Killea (WR/OLB), Nancy Saphow (Athletic Trainer)
2020: 4-2 2019: 5-4 2018: 4-6 2017: 6-4 2016: 8-4
Player To Watch: ( L- R )
Iquann Crawford, So., RB/MLB Although Asbury Park will have a young squad, the freshman class likely won’t have an instant-impact players to give the varsity lineup, at least not right away. The sophomore class, though, does have some potential impact, particularly with a pair of
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TBD
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J A ’ M A O U R E L L I S ( 6 ) , J A I ’ S U N B R O W N ( 1 ) , LY D E L L B R O W N ( 8 ) JASHUA HANDY (60) & ELIJAH DRAKE (56)
playmakers in Crawford and RaLee Stephens. Stephens played some last year and will be a key receiver and defensive back, but Crawford was extremely limited in his playing time as a freshman. This year, thought, Crawford has returned as one of the programs most improved players and could find himself with a significant number of carries on offense, not to mention his work at middle linebacker..
P LAYER U NDER T HE R ADAR
IMPACT NEWCOMER:
TBD
It helps when the young players that emerge within the program can play like Asbury Park’s current quarterback, Jai’Sun Brown. A starter since his freshman year, Brown is at the center of what Asbury Park will try to do to opponents and the hope among second-year coach Nick Famularo and his staff is that the Brown’s presence will help ease the transition for Asbury Park’s many new starters.
Offense: Multiple Defense: ________________3-4 _____________________________
Josh Handy, Sr., RT/DE The offensive and defensive lines will be where Asbury Park is the least experienced, but the return of Handy to both should help solidify both fronts as the new blood catches up. Junior Darren Bacoute will play both ways and classmate Shaki Ford is a returning starter on the defensive line, but it will be Handy holding it down on both sides in order for the offensive line to protect Brown and the defensive line to cause chaos.
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Whether or not the Blue Bishops have been loaded with seniors or breaking in a new core of underclassmen hasn’t necessarily made or buried their prospects in a given year.
Team Record Last Five Years:
Jai’Sun Brown, Jr., QB Still only a junior, Brown is one of the top returning quarterbacks in the Shore Conference and it shows both on film and in the numbers. He is a dual threat who already has a good feel for the finer points of the position, which show in his 14 touchdowns against only four interceptions last season, as well as a 61 percent completion percentage. Brown’s 1,508 passing yards were good for fifth in the conference and those 14 passing touchdowns ranked No. 2 in the Shore Conference.
Thur. 9/2 Red Bank Fri. 9/10 @Shore Fri. 9/17 Point Boro Fri. 9/24 Jackson Liberty Fri. 10/1 @Barnegat Sat. 10/9 @Manchester Fri/Sat 10/22-23 Shore Conference Pods Fri/Sat 10/29-30 Shore Conference Pods Thur. 11/25 Neptune
T O P P O S I T I O N G R O U P : Secondary With Brown calling the signals, the quarterback position is probably Asbury Park’s best, but the secondary deserves some light shined upon it for its talent and experience. Lydell Brown, Jamour Ellis and
Knasir Alston are all returning seniors within the group and Stephens is an impact newcomer at strong safety. Alston is also a key cog in the offense as the projected starter at tailback and Ellis will be among Brown’s options at receiver.
BIG SHOES
TO
FILL:
Lydell Brown, Sr., 3RS One of the reasons Brown could but up such gaudy numbers as a sophomore was because he had an AllShore senior receiver in Mikai Brown-Jones. With BrownJones gone, it will be up to the remaining receivers to step up and for Brown to develop a connection with them. Brown is the experienced senior in the group, so he will
be the leading candidate to emerge as a dependable target, although Ellis, Stephens and tight end Tajere Burress are all capable of picking up the slack as well
X-Factor: Youth Getting a host of underclassmen and under-experienced juniors up to speed will be a challenge for Famularo and his staff, but they have some things going for them. Brown at quarterback and a history of plugging young players in with a degree of success are two of them and another is that other small-school teams at the Shore are also undergoing something of a youth movement as well.
