JP Stevens football makes history, upsets Bound Brook in season opener

By Sushanth Balaraman
Sports
JP Stevens football makes history, upsets Bound Brook in season opener

Hawks quarterback Marquise Webb scores the final touchdown that J.P. Stevens needed to defeat Bound Brook and end its losing streak. MARCUS A. BORDEN/X (https://x.com/bordenfb4ever/status/1832223256859857184)

EDISON, N.J., Sept. 21 (ZFJ) — Call it a miracle, or maybe even divine intervention.

On Friday, Sept. 6, the John P. Stevens High School (Edison, NJ) varsity football team defeated cross-county rival Bound Brook by a score of 22-21, putting an end to an infamous losing streak that had extended back to November of the 2018-2019 season.

“I’m feeling great, man,” said JPS senior quarterback Marquise Webb to Central Jersey Sports Radio after the game. “We finally broke the streak!”

JP’s last win was on Oct. 26, 2018, against Monroe. The team then lost 42 games during that span, suffering multiple winless seasons as a result. During that span, cross-town rivals Edison High School had four winning seasons, including a 2022-2023 run to a sectional finals victory against Lenape.

This time, second-year Head Coach Jason George knew something would be different.

While the start of the game was anything but a change for Hawks fans (a scoreless first period quickly turned into a two-touchdown deficit midway in the third quarter), it was the team’s competitive play during its first touchdown drive, down fourteen, that set its tone for the ultimate comeback victory against the Crusaders.

Beginning the drive from their own 25-yard line, JP was able to cross into Bound Brook territory after a 39-yard catch-and-run from Webb to senior receiver Aryan Patel. A few players later, JP senior running back Quadir Johnson was able to punch in a score on a 30-yard run through the heart of the Crusader defense. JP was not able to convert the two-point pass attempt, but pulled within scoring range of the upset.

In the 4th, it was Webb who took the call to deliver with his legs, scoring on a two-yard scramble early in the fourth quarter to pull JP within two points of the tie. A completed pass during the conversion attempt gave JP a tied ball game, a luxury its defense never relinquished for the rest of the game.

Going into overtime, it was Bound Brook that began with the ball and a score, driving down the field for an 11-yard rushing touchdown. But it was Webb who ultimately handed Bound Brook a punch in response, reaching the endzone on a keeper from the three-yard line for his second touchdown of the night.

The decision to go for two came almost instantly from the Hawks sideline. And with a successful rush from Johnson on the next play, it was history written into the record books.

“It’s all about the people who are here now,” George said to his team during the postgame huddle. “And that’s what we’re feeling right now: joy and pride for all of you guys.”

Ultimately, it may be George’s decision to go for a risky two-point-conversion, or the slim margin of the final score, or the sheer elation of breaking a dreaded curse that may ensure the retelling of the tale for years to come. We won’t know for certain.

What we do know is that J.P. Stevens, after five long years, is winningless no more.

Since playing Bound Brook on Sept. 6, JP has played two other matches: against Voorhees, a loss by a score of 33-0, and against Delaware Valley, a loss by a score of 17-0. George’s squad will look to score a second victory for the season when they host Bernards on September 27.

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