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ABOUT THE COVER
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edicated coaches and star players are the foundation for success of any high school football program, but to sustain success for a decade or more you need much more than that. It takes not only a vision and a mission statement, but the consistency to implement those things day in and day out, over the course of many seasons. In this edition, with Tim Watson recently stepping down from his post as head coach at Cedar Creek, we take a deeper look at how Watson, his staff and his players built one of the best programs in South Jersey from the ground up. The Pirates started with literally nothing, flipping tires and doing push-ups at a community field before the school even opened, and have since become a perennial playoff contender in the always difficult South Jersey Group 2 bracket. Dave O’Sullivan, Publisher
GLORY DAYS MAGAZINE General contact: 609-788-4294/advertising@acglorydays.com Dave O’Sullivan, Publisher: sully@acglorydays.com On Twitter: @GDsullysays Giuseppe Ungaro, Managing Editor: gungaro@acglorydays.com On Twitter: @GDgisepu Amy D’Adamo, Graphic Design: advertising@acglorydays.com Bill Lynskey, Director of Advertising: bill@acglorydays.com STORY IDEAS/ADVERTISING: Have a story you’d like to see told in Glory Days Magazine? Want to get your business noticed with a marketing campaign at glorydaysonline.com? Call us anytime at 609-788-4294. Volume: 7 Issue: 13 Overall Issue Number: 147. Cover Photography: Dave O’Sullivan 2020 Glory Days Magazine. All rights reserved.
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OLD CAPE RECYCLING
Scholar Athlete
Senior Ben Nguyen helped lead the EHT boys swimming team to another outstanding season that culminated in a berth in the South Jersey Public A championship meet. Submitted photo
Nguyen’s ‘team-first’ attitude set example By TIMOTHY MEDINA Student correspondent or a student-athlete, success can only be measured on the field if it is matched in the classroom. This is something Egg Harbor Township’s Ben Nguyen stands by on a daily basis. His dedication to both competing for the boys swimming team and earning academic recognition is what stands out the most about this senior. Nguyen started swimming at the age of 8 and has continued to swim, both for his high school team and club. Eagles coach Mark Jamieson recognizes Nguyen as an essential part of this past season’s spectacular
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boys swimming team. “When Ben is on he has enough energy to support the whole program. I’m thrilled Ben finished his senior season the way he did with the two best times against Cherry Hill East in the sectional final. Besides physical growth, he’s developed into what the model of a student-athlete should be,” Jamieson said. Nguyen has made a name for himself both on and off the pool deck, being named as a captain of the team as well as receiving honors for his performances. “The feeling of being a captain on the boys swimming team is like no other,” he said. “As a captain, I feel like
my actions have an effect on the underclassmen. It means the world for me to be able to guide a group of swimmers to success along with giving them my personal experiences over the last four years of my high school swimming career.” Nguyen’s encouraging spirit hasn’t gone unnoticed. Jamieson is one of the first ones to compliment his support of the team. “He has always been a great ‘team’ guy. He’s the first to congratulate others on their swims and pick them up when it was needed,” the coach said. When asked about Nguyen’s academics and what it means to the pro-
gram, Jamieson had nothing but praise for the senior. “Academics are a huge part of our program,” he said. “Ben is one of our many swimmers on National Honor Society. I know with the education he received here at Egg Harbor Township High School he will continue to excel in his studies at whichever university he chooses.” When it comes to colleges, Nguyen seems to have things figured out after his final season swimming for EHT. “After high school I plan on attending college, majoring in biochemistry.
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May 20, 2020 w Glory Days Magazine w Page 5 Nguyen, from page 4 While I am still undecided, I have applied to a plethora of schools, both instate and out,” he said. When all is said and done, Nguyen said he is pleased with the work he put in, both in class and with swimming. He praises both his team and coach for the amount of support he’s received over the years. “There are never enough words in the world for me to express my gratefulness and gratitude toward coach Jamieson and my fellow teammates,”
Nguyen said. “Thank you for pushing me and standing by my side these last four years. Through the great times and the rough times, I wouldn’t have wanted to swim in the end lanes with anyone else. Thank you for all these great memories. I wish the best of luck to all the graduating seniors and the rest of my teammates.” Coach Jamieson said he expects nothing but great things from Nguyen: “I hope to see him in the pool again someday competing, there is still a lot of success to be had.”
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Ben Nguyen, a senior, is an outstanding student at Egg Harbor Township High School and plans to major in biochemistry in college.
Know a scholar-athlete you’d like to see featured in Glory Days Magazine? Contact Publisher Dave O’Sullivan at sully@acglorydays.com or call 609-788-4294
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SENIOR SPOTLIGHT: WINCHESTER PLOYRATANA, EHT BOYS SWIMMING
Finding the passion again Ployratana’s return to swimming was a big boost for the Eagles By TIMOTHY MEDINA Student correspondent rom the beginning, Egg Harbor Township senior Winchester Ployratana had a passion for swimming. That passion continued until around middle school. However, it was Eagles varsity coach Mark Jamieson who inspired Ployratana to join the swim team at EHT High and take a swing at competitive swimming one more time. “Winchester has come a tremendously long way. He took a small break from swimming before high school and, lucky for us, he agreed to join the team to add some depth as a freshmen. This sparked his love for the sport,” Jamieson said. “He has continuously improved throughout his four years, finishing as a team captain and individual state qualifier in two events. He was also on three record-breaking relays and I’m confident to say with his work ethic and talent, he will continue to have success as he goes on to swim in college.” In light of all of his accomplishments, Ployratana said he feels especially proud of the team’s last-second victory over St. Augustine Prep this season. “My personal highlight from this year was definitely in the 100-yard freestyle at St. Augustine Prep. We were losing by a couple seconds and I was able to win the event by a second,” Ployratana said. “I’m grateful for my team who rallied me to keep pushing myself until we came away with the victory.” The EHT Boys’ Swimming team finished with a record of 8-1 and their season came to end with a loss to Cherry Hill East in the South Jersey Public A championship meet. However, that loss does not take anything away from the amount of success both Ployratana and the rest of the team had this season. “He is someone who’s work ethic cannot go unnoticed,” Jamieson said. “As people look to him for his secret to success, they see him practice and understand it doesn’t come free; he puts in a lot of hours and meters to be at the level he has achieved. He is also a stand-up guy who supports his teammates and is a great ambassador of Egg Harbor
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Winchester Ployratana took a break from swimming before high school, but got back in the pool once he started his career at EHT High, and by the time he was a senior was named a team captain.
“My personal highlight from this year was definitely in the 100-yard freestyle at St. Augustine Prep. We were losing by a couple seconds and I was able to win the event by a second. I’m grateful for my team who rallied me to keep pushing myself until we came away with the victory.” Township High School.” With the season in the books and the next step approaching quickly, Ployratana plans on making waves after high school. He also had some words of wisdom for his team, and some final words for his coach. “After high school, I plan on swimming at The College of New Jersey. I would like to thank coach
and the rest of the team for everything,” he said. “My final words to them would be, ‘keep working hard. Manifest your own destiny.” Ployratana wasn’t the only one with final words. Coach Jamieson had some words to say to the parting senior as he goes on to the next level: “Enjoy what the next chapter has in store for you, don’t skip a page.”
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FOOTBALL Holy Spirit star RB Patrick Smith relied on research before committing Junior plans to take his talents west, to Colorado State By DAVE O’SULLIVAN Staff Writer ost high school students loathe doing research for an essay or exam. It’s high on the list of least likely things they’d like to be doing, right up there with cleaning the garage, getting up early on a Sunday or mowing the lawn. But when it came to where Holy Spirit junior running back Patrick Smith wanted to spend the next four years after graduating in the spring of 2021, he wasn’t about to select a college without doing the proper research. The dynamic playmaker — who spent his freshman year at St. Augustine Prep and his sophomore year at The Peddie School, near Hightstown — rushed for more than 1,300 yards and 19 touchdowns last fall while helping lead the Spartans to a state championship. And those kinds of numbers tend to get a guy noticed. The offers started rolling in during the winter, and Smith said he knew he had to put in his due diligence to find the right fit. “It came down to about five-to-seven schools; Lehigh, Holy Cross, Army, Navy, Yale, Colorado State. All those schools were recruiting me heavily, but with CSU, I felt the most comfortable with the decision for both me and my family about what was best for me. Between coach (Steve) Addazio, (running backs coach) Bryan Applewhite — they had a great connection not only with me, but with my parents as well,
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Junior Patrick Smith, who rushed for more than 1,300 yards and 19 touchdowns this past fall, recently gave a verbal commitment to Colorado State University. and that’s what I want. It’s not just about me, because my actions and my decisions affect my family as well,” said Smith, an Egg Harbor Township resident. “I felt as though they were most beneficial to not only me, but my family, and they can help me succeed and develop me into the great player I know I can be. I have 110 percent trust in what they are doing with their program. Coach Addazio is a great coach, when he was at Temple and Boston College they were winning big games.
And coach Applewhite is one of the best running back coaches. I just fell in love with the coaching staff and the bonds they put the effort into creating, not only with me, but with my family.” Smith said Colorado State wasn’t a slam dunk, however, as his parents also liked schools such as Lehigh, Holy Cross and Yale. “They loved Lehigh and the coaching staff, and they liked Army, too. Army is a great school and the coaching staff was on me heavy. That was
one of my final three schools. They also liked Holy Cross and Yale because academics are important and they know (going to those schools) I’d be set up well,” Smith said. “But the CSU business program is very good, and I know if I don’t make it to the NFL, I’ll still be set with my major. There are plenty of opportunities just outside of CSU, and those are some things I researched as well — what are the hiring
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May 20, 2020 w Glory Days Magazine w Page 9 Smith, from page 8 rates for the different majors. I did my own research, and after showing (my parents) that I had done my own research, they fell in love with CSU as well and the opportunities I’ll have.” The fact that Colorado State has a new coach in Addazio probably swayed Smith more than anything. Addazio coached at Temple from 2011-2012 and then Boston College from 2013-2019, where his teams were known for punishing rushing attacks. He also was an offensive coordinator under Urban Meyer at Florida when the Gators won two national championships. “I know what I want to be as far as a football player. I want to be able to play at the highest level, the NFL, so sitting down and doing my own research with not only the football program, but the schools as well. I want to major in business and Colorado State has a great business school. I was doing my own research, and as far as playing at the highest level, I know I have a chance to go in there and start as a freshman — and I know the whole coaching staff there has great connections and will be able to help develop me to where I want to be so I can reach my dream,” Smith said. “There were other schools that could do the same thing, but this is where I think me and my family will be happy. I keep stressing that because my family is a big part of this decision. I just felt as
“The CSU business program is very good, and I know if I don’t make it to the NFL, I’ll still be set with my major. There are plenty of opportunities just outside of CSU, and those are some things I researched as well — what are the hiring rates for the different majors.”
Patrick Smith Holy Spirit running back
though this is the best opportunity for all of us.” Still, it was far from an easy decision. “During the process — even before the quarantine — people were telling me it was stressful. In my head, I was thinking it couldn’t be that hard. But after getting the first two offers, and seeing more keep rolling in, I was like, ‘wow, this is a lot to think about.’ It’s not just football, it’s about academically what will set you up for after college,” he said. “It’s not like middle school, where you have four more years of high school, then four more years at college. After college, you’re in the real world. So, it was a big decision and it did get a little stressful at times, especially not being able to go see a lot of the schools that were interested in me. But CSU did a great job as far as the virtual tours and providing different information about the campus and facilities. I also talked
to players on the team and saw how they benefitted from getting a new coaching staff, and that helped me make my decision.” Before Smith can don the hunter green and Vegas gold of Colorado State, however, he and his Holy Spirit teammates must focus on defending their state championship this fall. And with star running back E’lijah Gray graduated, all eyes will really be on No. 4 this fall. “Holy Spirit welcomed me with open arms. Before I even went to St. Augustine, that’s where I was going to go. I wasn’t nervous, but I was a little concerned. I didn’t think I would play as much as I did because of the simple fact that they had E’lijah there already. When I transferred in there was only a week and a half before we played our first game. So I had to learn all the plays, and E’lijah helped me a lot. I was a little concerned as far as playing time but it worked out great in the long run, and I’m very grateful and happy for that,” Smith said. “I’m excited. I’ve been working every day to get better during this quarantine. I can’t wait for this last season at Holy Spirit, just to finish out with coach (A.J.) Russo and my teammates. They’ve been very supportive of me in terms of my decision. As far as college, I talk to the (CSU) coaches just about every day. The offense they run fits me perfectly. They are a run-first team and I feel like I will get the most opportunity there.” Contact Dave O’Sullivan: sully@acglorydays.com; on Twitter @GDsullysays
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VIC’S SUBS COVER STORY
From the ground up What began 10 years ago with flipping tires and push-ups has evolved into Cedar Creek becoming one of the premier football programs in South Jersey By DAVE O’SULLIVAN Staff Writer im Watson’s first game coaching the brand new Cedar Creek High School Pirates in the Cape-Atlantic League came on Sept. 7, 2012, at iconic Carey Stadium nestled against the boardwalk in Ocean City. Cedar Creek was a fledgling program — and school, for that matter, with the paint barely dry a year after the Egg Harbor City campus opened. Where did a team like this, not even two years into its existence, get the audacity to come out at Carey Stadium wearing all white uniforms with eye-popping neon green cleats? And not just a few star players — everybody on the team was sporting the florescent footwear. The Pirates came into the CAL with a flourish, and wanted to let everyone know, right from the jump, what they were all about. They were going to be flashy and fast, but also have the discipline to grind down an opponent throughout the span of four quarters. At least, that’s what Watson and his staff were hoping for when they decided this would be a fun, fashion-forward football program that paired style with wins. “In 2012 we wore the neon green cleats, and nobody was really doing that at the time. We went 4-5 the previous year as an independent schedule team. We go to Ocean City for our first CAL game, everybody is fired up — and that’s such an iconic place to play a game, with the Ferris wheel in the background. We were in all white with neon green cleats, and we ended up winning 47-0,” said Watson, who recently stepped down after leading Cedar Creek to 74 wins and two sectional championships in 10 seasons, in-
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During its first nine years in existence as a varsity football program, Cedar Creek has racked up 74 wins, including 11 in the state playoffs, and won two sectional championships. cluding a JV schedule the first year the school was open. “That was our first CAL game and I think that made a statement about what type of program we were and what we aspired to be. It takes a lot to come out wearing those cleats, in just your second season of varsity football, but we backed it up. That’s a great visual memory that stands out in my mind. “We took a gamble. Sometimes when you try to do things and have fun and have a little bit of swag, if you don’t win you almost look silly. We did the neon stuff and we ended up coming out on the right side of a lot of those games, so it worked out in our favor and created a little bit of an energy. That’s what we were going for, a loose program but a disciplined program. A fun program, but a tough and physical program. And hopefully a program that would have some playmakers on offense, sling the ball around, and fly to the ball on defense,” Watson added. “We’re really blessed, it has really worked out. There was a lot of synchronicity that made things click. It was an awesome 10-year run. I love looking back on some of the pieces that (Glory Days) wrote about some of the teams and kids. It’s been awesome.”
“We were talking recently — we still do ‘Pirate TV’ a few times a week for the kids and we did a special on coach Watson recently. He talked about the neon cleats and having that swagger, and hopefully backing it up, having the kids buy into it. I’ll never forget, we had a night game in Ocean City, I think it was our third year as a program, he’s looking at Oregon and getting those colors. All the kids run out under the glare of those lights at Ocean City in those neon green cleats. People were taken back. Could they back it up? He brought the swag, he really did, and got the kids to believe in it,” said Cedar Creek Athletic Director Mike McGhee. “I was brought up in a different time, but he (Watson) took them to the edge, and as long as they didn’t jump over that ledge or step over the boundary. With what we talked about early in the program, and when Cedar Creek opened if you applied within our district you got into the school. The first two years, anybody who applied got in just to fill the seats, and with that there were a lot of eyes look-
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May 20, 2020 w Glory Days Magazine w Page 11 Creek, from page 10 ing at Cedar Creek High School. That first year we played all over the state. It was our third year when we finally got into the Cape-Atlantic League, and all eyes were on Tim and the program at that time and that’s when Tim started making a name for himself and when all that swag started to happen. It was good. The kids bought into it. He’s been able to do stuff with these kids, he’s a father figure to these kids and it was always more than the Xs and Os with these kids. It was about making sure they became good young men. You can act (with swagger) on the field, but when you’re walking the hallways or in class, you act appropriately. That’s always been his message to these kids.”
Laying the foundation
Before Watson ever slung a whistle around his neck to begin his football coaching career, he knew what he stood for — and what he wanted his teams to stand for. That’s why he had his core values engraved in wood and hung in the Pirates’ locker room.
“When you look at E.A.T., effort, attitude, tenacity — there were two big things, foundationally, for us. No. 1 was that — and there’s a whole thing they have to remember. There was a definition we created and the kids had to memorize it. The things we could control, we were going to make sure we mastered those. And our core values, we had them burned on wood and put up in the locker room, and those are respect, a positive attitude, sacrifice and integrity. And on the bottom of that is ‘how you do anything is how you do everything.’ We would really harp on that stuff, and I think it gave the players sort of a backbone,” Watson said. “Sometimes you have to pinch yourself and you wonder if you did a good job, if the lessons and the values that you wanted to teach really took hold, and I think they did. What made it interesting was that we started off with just freshmen and sophomores, so we were really able to consecrate the ideas in a smart, foundational way. So when that first class played their senior year they had a strong identity of who they were. I think we took pride in the program
from the very beginning. The first summer we couldn’t get into the building, so we got permission to use the Egg Harbor City recreation field, where the Crusaders play. We had a local tire shop donate a bunch of tires, and we were just flipping tires. It was crazy because the kids really bought into it. You wouldn’t think the kids would be so into flipping tires and doing push-ups, but they were. That’s how we started things off. We knew we were going to play a JV schedule but we didn’t want to fall behind. That was when the foundation was laid. Those guys laid the foundation with hard work and taking pride in everything you do.” Added McGhee, “I’ve been around football since I’ve been 10 years old, and what Watson has done in such a short period of time — he’s built something special. When you go through the interview process and talk to these other candidates — they tell you what they think about our program and what Tim as done — it just goes to show you how special it is. It’s above the Xs and Os. What he does, he has a theme for every season. It started out with E.A.T.,
Effort, Attitude, Tenacity; this year was ‘The Greatness Getback.’ He has all these things and he motivates kids to the point where they buy into his system.”
Dreaming big
Watson and his coaching staff couldn’t have known what Cedar Creek would turn out to be 10 years down the line, but they knew what kind of program they wanted to have. They wanted to be the kind of program that not only competed for sectional championships every year, but also the kind that could send kids to college every year, and get more and more college coaches interested in what was going on in Egg Harbor City. “I thought it would be pretty cool to build a program based on some principles that had guided me as an assistant, and things I was passionate about beyond football. It was a great opportunity because we didn’t have to start over, we got to build it based on certain principles and core values. I’ve been around long enough to where I liked
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May 20, 2020 w Glory Days Magazine w Page 13 Creek, from page 11 what we had and the way the guys were working. In high school football, if you have kids who are tough and who buy in and believe in each other, you can win your share of football games, and that (first) group had that. And their senior year we ended up making a run at the South Jersey Group 2 championship,” Watson said. “That was part of the vision, trying to think big and dream big. We were fortunate enough to have guys like Duwop (Damon Mitchell) in the beginning to become a school that could produce Division I talent. That helped us from a coaching standpoint because we had (college) coaches coming through, they knew the style we played and they knew we were doing a good job in our program of developing guys. Coaches would come through regularly. The past couple of years we’d have 80 to 100 coaches come through every spring. Even the years when we didn’t have a marquee guy, they would still come through because of the reputation that we had built. And that was part of the vision, especially once we got going, was to be the best we could be. Once we got rolling, we knew we were doing alright. If you’re competitive and making runs at Group 2 in South Jersey, you’re pretty good. With teams like West Deptford and Haddonfield, you’re talking about two of the better programs in the state. We knew if we could find a niche in South Jersey Group 2 that we could be a good program. That made it an easy goal to shoot for because it was in our face. If we wanted to build a championship program we’d have to beat those types of teams.” McGhee said he believes the success the football program has enjoyed the past 10 years has really helped give Cedar Creek an identity all its own. “We started the school and the football and girls basketball programs really put us on the map at that point, and we’ve developed the other programs along the way. But the culture in the building starts with that fall season, it gives you that identity for the year and creates a community. Football — and girls basketball, when we first started, that gym was packed every night with that crew we had come through — but football, from a community aspect,
Tim Watson’s Pirates have appeared in the sectional championship game four times in the last nine years, winning the title twice. that’s where a lot of people gather,” he said. “They come out there on a nice Saturday afternoon, you have your Pirate Burger, you sit there and watch a game, and our community has been fantastic. I tell Tim all the time, that program has really helped create that positive culture we have at Cedar Creek, and we want to keep that going. It starts with the fall season, and specifically with football.”
What’s next?
Watson has three children and his oldest, Kylee, is graduating from Mainland Regional High this spring and will be off to the University of Oregon to continue her outstanding basketball career. Coach Watson — who has two boys, including Hunter, who is set to start high school in the fall — said he felt like now was the right time to step away from being a head coach and let somebody else steer the Pirate ship. Still, it wasn’t an easy decision given all the young men he’s mentored in the past decade. “That was probably the toughest part of it, was knowing you’re stopping that. I told the guys I’m always going to be there, I’m still in the building so I’ll be mentoring them in any way I can. But that was really nice to see that. That made it a little easier, to know that my staff and I were able to impact some of the young men we came in contact with. That’s really what you’re doing it for. If you’re doing it for the Xs and Os and winning, it’s a pretty shallow experience. It’s about the relationships
and helping those young people grow who you’re privileged to work with,” Watson said. “I saw some really nice tweets, and in a way that let me know I’ve been doing the right thing. It put me back in tune with what my values are, and I always tried to coach with those values. And it would have been very difficult to hold those values and sort of be turning my back on places where those values were needed — probable the most — and that’s with my family. I’m glad the players and staff understood. I’m sure some people were disappointed, but they understood the decision was made for the right reason, and so many people reaching out sort of cemented the fact that it was probably time. It made me feel good that I was able to play a part in shaping young men’s lives the past 10 years.” “(Watson stepping down) was a shock to a lot of these kids, and it was hard not being able to tell them faceto-face,” said McGhee, referring to the social distancing and quarantine due to the coronavirus pandemic. “Tim and I, and Scott (Parker), we really tried to transition this through. Tim called every kid on the team and talked to them, man-to-man, we did Zoom meetings. And even all the interviews we’ve been doing have been through Zoom meetings, I didn’t see any of the candidates face-to-face. So, it’s been interesting.” Taking over for Watson will be James Melody, a former player at Montclair State and an assistant for Union High School the past several years. He helped
lead that program to a state championship last fall. Melody said he plans to keep most of the Pirates’ coaching staff intact when he officially starts his career as the second head football coach in Cedar Creek history, which presumably will be sometime this summer. “Tim is a guy who I really put a lot of trust in, and he talked glowingly of his staff, so it’s been easy for me to say, ‘OK, let’s get to work,’” Melody said in a recent phone interview. “Tim has been huge and I don’t think he even understands how important that has been for me. Guys can go different ways when they step down, but he’s been completely supporting me and I appreciate that.” Now that his head coaching career at Cedar Creek is over, Watson — who remains a teacher at the high school — said he’ll remember plenty from the last 10 years. Not only the wins and the unique traditions that the Pirates were able to build, but also the lifelong relationships he fostered with players, assistant coaches, administration and fans. “I think the thing I’ll remember most are the kids and the coaches, their faces when we were able to win that first championship. There have been some epic moments. This year, when we were able to do that ‘All the way turned up’ (fourth quarter) song against Camden, at home, the cheerleaders were all in — it was awesome. That became a really cool tradition. I think that was one of the more unique fourth-quarter traditions in South Jersey, and to have that home game for a championship, and to have it be Camden — to be beating them going into the fourth quarter, that was awesome,” he said. “But it’s more just the relationships with the kids and coaches, and seeing them in those moments so you have snapshots in your mind of celebrating after hoisting that trophy. Those moments capture all the hard work and preparation that went into it. It’s been a fun ride. We’ve had some tough losses through the years, but, man, we had some great kids, great coaches, great relationships with the community, and we had some awesome wins.” Contact Dave O’Sullivan: sully@acglorydays.com; on Twitter @GDsullysays
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FOOTBALL Melody, Cedar Creek a perfect ‘Union’ Former Union High assistant ready to take on first head coaching job By DAVE O’SULLIVAN Staff Writer ames Melody recently took a 107mile trip down the Garden State Parkway to get a first-hand look at Cedar Creek High School. The prospective new head football coach for the Pirates quickly realized he was in a whole different world. Egg Harbor City is nothing like his hometown of Union, where he was a star quarterback for the Farmers before heading on to Montclair State. But Melody, who recently was hired to replace Tim Watson — Cedar Creek’s first, and only, head football coach in the school’s 10-year history — is hoping that once football practice begins sometime this summer things won’t be so different. After all, both Union and Cedar Creek have similar programs in terms of success, as each is coming off a sectional championship this past fall. Melody, who spent some time as an assistant coach at Montclair State after his playing days and has been an assistant under Lou Grasso the past six years, said he thought the time was right to venture out on his own as a head coach, and Cedar Creek provides a great opportunity as one of the premier football programs in South Jersey. “It was great. I graduated from Union, so I was familiar with everything we did, and I learned from a great man. Lou Grasso is a great head coach and has done an unbelievable job there. He built a foundation of winning and we’ve had some really good success there the past couple of years,” he said
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James Melody, a former player at Union High School and Montclair State, was an assistant coach at Union for six years before being named the second head coach in Cedar Creek history. He’ll replace Tim Watson, who recently stepped down after 10 years with the Pirates. in a recent phone interview. “After winning the state championship this past year, I felt good about what we accomplished and I felt Lou was in a really good place to continue to coach. I just felt I was ready to branch out and be a head coach and run my own program.”
Mike McGhee, athletic director at Cedar Creek, was charged with the task of hiring a new coach during difficult circumstances after Watson announced he was stepping down to spend more time with his family. The coronavirus pandemic and subsequent lockdown of the state meant McGhee and Principal
Scott Parker, as well as the rest of the administration, had to find a new football coach through Zoom meetings and phone calls. “(Watson stepping down) was a shock to a lot of these kids, and it was hard not being able to tell them faceto-face. Tim and I, and Scott, we really tried to transition this through. Tim called every kid on the team and talked to them, man-to-man, we did Zoom meetings,” McGhee said. “And even all the interviews we’ve been doing have been through zoom meetings, I didn’t see any of the candidates faceto-face. So, it’s been interesting.” “It’s been different. To be honest, though, over the past couple of months this has become the new normal. As a teacher, this is what you do, you’re doing everything online. But the interview process was really good and they made me feel very comfortable with everything they did. Scott Parker and Mike McGhee did a great job presenting the school to me, and I feel like I did a good job (in the interview). It seems like it’s such a great place,” Melody said. “It was different. You try to tell yourself it’s not while you’re sitting on your couch, but I felt comfortable talking to them and I think that was the biggest thing. We got to let loose a little bit and just talk football.” Melody said he understands just how difficult it will be to replace Watson, a coach who led the Pirates to 74 wins and a pair of South Jersey championships during his nine seasons, but he’s ready to carry on the winning tradition at Cedar Creek and is eager to get to work with basically the same staff of assistants that Watson had. “When you look at that, and when I first applied I read the articles about Tim and what kind of man he is and what he built there, and you think to
See Melody, page 15
May 20, 2020 w Glory Days Magazine w Page 15 Cedar Creek has some outstanding players returning in 2020, including JoJo Bermudez, one of the top slot receivers in the state.
Melody, from page 14 yourself, ‘man, it’s going to be tough to replace him.’ But at the same time — and I say it all the time — he built such an unbelievable foundation, and it’s my job now to just continue that success. There’s such a consistency of winning there. Pressure is something you’re always going to have, but my expectations are the same as his so I was always going to put pressure on myself. I come through a program where the expectation is to win, so you better do your job the right way. And that’s what I anticipate doing. Tim has made the transition very easy and has helped me in the process, which I’m extremely grateful for, but it’s also about making the transition easy for the kids as well. I think the biggest thing for me is our beliefs and values are very similar,” Melody said. “It’s different down here, but it’s something I like. It’s a change for me, but I’m excited about that. It’s a beautiful school and that was a big selling point for me. When I got to see the building and the facilities they have, there’s a lot of land there, it just seems like a good fit for me.” Melody also said he realizes that Cedar Creek is anything but a traditional football program. The Pirates wear flashy, multi-colored uniforms, they play on Saturday afternoons and have a tradition of playing a homemade rap song prior to the fourth quarter at home games. He said he’s not planning on restraining the players in any way, but rather will look to continue to guide the Pirates as a team with swaggar, but one that also has discipline on and off the field. He’ll also get the chance to test himself in South or Central Jersey Group 2 — whichever playoff category the Pirates fall into in 2020. Either division is very difficult to navigate in November. “I think that’s important, especially today, to let kids be loose and be themselves. Obviously, you’re going to have to police the things they do sometimes and make sure they are doing things the right way, but at the same time these are the best years of their lives. I want to make this as enjoyable for them as it is
Glory Days photo/ Dave O’Sullivan
for me. I love doing this. And it’s important for these kids to have their own identity,” he said. “That’s exciting for me. I come from North Jersey Group 5 and that’s one of the best sections in the state, so we enjoy that kind of competition. And it’s obviously Cedar Creek is the same way.” Melody said he also likes the community involvement Cedar Creek boasts, and McGhee and Parker making him feel comfortable right off the bat went a long way toward him deciding to uproot his life in Union and move south. “The community involvement in the program and how much they love their football here was big, and also the administration and the way they presented themselves. That was a huge selling point for me,” Melody said. “They made me feel comfortable, and that’s not easy in times like these when you can’t shake somebody’s hand and meet them face-to-face. But at the same time, I got to see what kind of men
they are, and I’m excited to work with them.” For now, Melody and the rest of the staff are in wait-and-see mode as to when the preseason will actually begin, but they are preparing the best they can given the circumstances. “That’s out of my hands and out of the school’s hands at this point, so what we’re doing is making a schedule based on different starting dates so we’re not caught off guard when the time comes. But it’s something you just have to take it day by day. I have the guys in a Google classroom right now doing workouts, so we’re trying to make due the best we can given the situation we’re in, as I’m sure other programs are as well. We’re trying to stay ahead of the curve as much as possible,” he said. “It will be different, but it’s a change that I welcome. I’m excited to meet the kids and go to battle with them.” Contact Dave O’Sullivan: sully@acglorydays.com; on Twitter @GDsullysays
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SENIOR SPOTLIGHT: STEPHEN BYARD, ATLANTIC CITY BASKETBALL
Senior forward Stephen Byard averaged better than 26 points per game during Atlantic City’s playoff run, including a 38-point performance against Lenape in the sectional semifinals. Glory Days photo/ Dave O’Sullivan
Big time in crunch time Byard came through when it mattered most to help lead Atlantic City to title By DAVE O’SULLIVAN Staff Writer he Atlantic City boys basketball team finished strong after a turbulent 2018-2019 year, making the state playoffs and beating Egg Harbor Township in the opening round. There was a lot of hope and excitement surrounding the Vikings coming into this past season, but when the calendar flipped to Jan. 1, 2020, Atlantic City was just 1-3 and had lost three straight after a solid season-opening win over St. Joseph. But once head coach Gene Allen and his staff got things right, and began to lean more on senior forward Stephen Byard, the season turned around in a hurry.
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Starting with a 72-56 blowout win over Bridgeton on Jan. 2, the Vikings ripped off 12 straight wins and nearly finished out an unbeaten January before a loss to St. Augustine Prep on Jan. 31. Atlantic City was just as good down the stretch, going 8-2 to finish the year with a 21-6 record. The Vikings also went 4-0 in the state playoffs, capturing the South Jersey Group 4 championship, and may have won a state championship had the season not been halted due to the coronavirus pandemic. “My expectation this year was to make it to the state championship. I felt like we had a lot of talent coming in this year, we just had to find our experience as a team, and learn how to play as a team. I feel like we had every piece we needed to win a state championship. We just had to figure out a way to play together,” said Byard, who built on a very good junior year to become one of the best players in the Cape-Atlantic League as a senior. “I felt like leadership was something big that I had to overcome. Last year I was the only junior starting around a bunch of
seniors, so it was tough to be a leader then. As a junior, I was ready (to start on varsity) because I knew what was expected, but it’s still a challenge playing under coach Allen because he has such a high standard for you. He wants perfection and the best for us. He’s a tough coach, but he’s also a funny coach. He understands us a lot more than people think.” Allen is known for his ‘tough love’ approach and believes it is a necessary tactic to take in order to get the best out of his Atlantic City teams. Some players simply can’t handle it, but the ones who can stick it out and respond to his style of coaching often find themselves achieving their dream of playing basketball and furthering their education at the collegiate level. That’s where Byard is now, as he said he plans to play junior college basketball this winter. “I was very impressed with him. He’s only been
See Byard, page 19
May 20, 2020 w Glory Days Magazine w Page 19 Byard, from page 16 playing with us since the second half of his sophomore year. He played some JV, then played varsity last year, but he really blossomed this year into one of the better players in our league. I think the best part of his game is still ahead of him. He’s just going to get better and better,” Allen said. “The way he played during our playoff run was really something special. He averaged about 26 points and 14 rebounds per game. He basically said, ‘hop on my back.’ Give our kids credit, too, because they realized he was going good so they made it their business to get him the ball. To see him grow like that as a basketball player was really special.” While Byard was good throughout the regular season, he turned it up a notch once the state playoffs rolled around, and was sensational. In the opening round, he scored a game-high 26 points as Atlantic City dispatched Kingsway, 77-52. He then scored 18 points in a win over Cherokee and followed that up with perhaps the best game of his career, pouring in 38 of Atlantic City’s 61 points in a 61-58 win over Lenape in the sectional semifinals. In the South Jersey Group 4 championship game, Byard led his team back from a halftime deficit, finishing with 23 points, 12 rebounds, four blocks and two steals as the Vikings rallied for a 6144 victory over Cherry Hill East. “I definitely felt like I had to take over; my alter ego took over in the playoffs. That was ‘playoff Stephen.’ I feel like I play a lot better under pressure. It’s just the way I play, I feel like I’m much more aggressive, and I play smarter, when I’m under pressure,” Byard said. “We knew what we had to do and coach Allen was a hundred percent correct with the game plan (against East). He knew they were going to try to take me away and make other people score, so we knew what we had to do. During the season, we were a lot better in the second half of games. In the first half of that game we knew what they were going to do — and they shot the ball great — so we had find a way to stop that. Coach Allen is really big on defense, so we made a lot of defensive adjustments in the
locker room (at halftime). I feel like Sharon Watson brought a lot of energy. We all knew our roles and what we had to do to win. We all had the same goal, we wanted to win a state championship.” Byard and his teammates never got the chance to see if they were good enough to win a state title, and that was gut-wrenching, he said. “It was kind of unreal at first. I couldn’t believe it because we worked for three years to be in that position, and to have that taken away sucked,” he said. “But I loved my time at Atlantic City High School, especially playing basketball under coach Allen. He was a great mentor and he helped me a lot along the way.” “Anytime you get an opportunity like that to see a kid grow — and I’ve been fortunate enough to see a lot of kids grow the past several years — but to see a kid put a team on his back like that. The expectations of this team probably weren’t what they normally are for an Atlantic City team, but he put (his teammates) on his back and we reached some really lofty goals. It was special to see that,” Allen said. “We went as he went. If you look at our losses, he didn’t play well in the games we lost. But come playoff time, we really relied on him, and he came through for us. He’s a really good kid on and off the court, and I think he’s just starting to realize that he can be pretty good at this sport. To see and be a part of his development is definitely something special.” Byard said he doesn’t yet know what his future might hold in terms of a career. Who knows, perhaps he can make a career out of playing the game he loves. That’s certainly high up on his wish list. “I just want to be the best basketball player I can be,” he said. “Obviously, everyone’s dream is to go to the NBA. It would be great to be able to make money doing the thing that I love. I feel like I need to work on everything — getting stronger, faster, my dribbling. I don’t really know what to expect at the next level, but I know everyone else is good, so I have to bring my best every game.” Contact Dave O’Sullivan: sully@acglorydays.com; on Twitter @GDsullysays
snapshots The 2019-2020 athletic year, before being shut down in March, featured some outstanding moments, including the Ocean City girls soccer team celebrating their win over rival Mainland Regional in the South Jersey Group 3 championship game in November. Glory Days photos/Dave O’Sullivan