RFH Football Looks to End With One Last Win in Gridiron Classic

After a season that no Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School (RFH) football fan will soon forget, three Bulldogs and the coaching staff hope to cap a magical year with one more victory.

Head coach Shane Fallon and his staff will lead the senior all-stars from Monmouth County into their annual showdown with their counterparts from Ocean County in Thursday’s U.S. Army All-Shore Gridiron Classic at 7 p.m. at Toms River High School North. Three RFH players will suit up for Monmouth County, as offensive lineman Sam Waters, quarterback Mike Villapiano and defensive back Andrew Giannotto will each play their final high school game together. Linebacker Mike Huttner also was selected but has been sidelined by illness.

"I'm honored to get a chance to coach these guys one last time as well as coach the rest of these great players from Monmouth County,'' Fallon said. "After accomplishing something so special for this program this year, this is something that I will never forget.''

Monmouth County will run RFH’s zone read offense out of the shotgun, with Villapiano serving as one of the team’s two quarterbacks along with Freehold’s Sterry Codrington. Both of them won state championships in the fall, as Freehold took the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III crown, and Villiapiano and the Bulldogs won the Central Jersey Group II title for their first sectional championship in school history.

“We’ll get our chemistry down, and we’ll be all right,’’ Villapiano said about meshing all the different all-stars from different systems into a cohesive unit. “We’re going to have a great time.’’

Being able to participate is especially gratifying for Waters, who wasn’t initially selected to the team but got a last-minute invite when Red Bank Catholic offensive lineman Mike Russell could not play.

“I was definitely honored,’’ Waters said. “It’s a really special game, and playing for Fallon and the rest of the coaching staff is really special after the season we had.’’

The RFH and coaching staff from this past season will always have the special bond because they made school history in thrilling fashion, stunning previously unbeaten Matawan, 13-7, in the state championship game. It was one of the biggest upsets in a state final in at least a decade, especially considering Matawan had already beaten Rumson 48-21 during the regular-season.

“I will remember that day forever,’’ Waters said. “It was just so special.’’

“We always talk about it,’’ Villapiano said. “I always get ripped on because I missed a tackle after I punted the ball to (Matawan’s Jared) Allison, and we still laugh about it. It will always be a great thing that we accomplished.’’

The interesting part is that four Matawan players are part of the Monmouth County team that has been practicing all week on the artificial turf at Borden Stadium in Rumson. Enemies have become friends.

“I’m surprised at how we’ve all gotten along,’’ Giannotto said. “We’re all friends. The rivalries have kind of stopped, and we’re forming a good team. Hopefully we can pull out one last victory for Monmouth County.’’

Certainly part of that will fall on the shoulders of Villapiano, who will most likely start at quarterback. He knows the offense better than anyone, and he engineered a 9-3 season this past fall. He threw for 1,812 yards and 17 touchdowns while also running for 675 yards and 9 touchdowns.

It helped him continue to carve his own identity out of the shadow of his father, former Oakland Raiders linebacker Phil Villapiano. Villapiano originally played linebacker at the youth levels before he said his mother wanted him to switch positions because of the injuries his father suffered playing linebacker.

“I've had to live up to expectations, especially when I played linebacker, to try and make every tackle,’’ Villapiano said. “I still think having him there helps because he can share his knowledge.’’