Governor Livingston travels out to Glen Gardner in Hunterdon County to take on Voorhees in a BCC Crossover and 10th meeting all-time between the two schools on Saturday night.
Vikings and Highlanders Play in BCC Crossover on Saturday Night.
GLEN GARDNER, NJ – On Saturday evening, Big Central Gridiron will be taking a trip out to Voorhees High School in Hunterdon County to see the Vikings of the BCC’s Patriot Gold Division take on Governor Livingston of the BCC’s United Silver Division. This will be BCG’s second-ever trip to Viking Country. The first time was as GMC Gridiron back in 2018 when the Vikings defeated Carteret.
These two schools didn’t play each other until 2012. Then, the Vikings and Highlanders played every year until 2019. Tonight will be the first meeting between the two schools since 2021. Voorhees won the first meeting played at Frey Field in Berkeley Heights (35-0). The Vikings and Highlanders have played each other 8 times since. Voorhees has won 8 of the 9 meetings all-time between the schools. The schools have only played once since the Big Central Conference formed. The Vikings won that 2021 meeting 27-14.
Over the ten meetings between these two schools, Voorhees has outscored Governor Livingston by a margin of 226 to 102, or by an average of 25 to 11. Only three of the contests have been decided by 8 points or less, and there have been two shutouts. The first shutout came in the original 2012 meeting, and the 2nd was in 2017.
Governor Livingston didn’t win their first game in this brief series until 2016. In that meeting eight years ago, the Highlanders edged the Vikings 21-13. The Highlanders also defeated arch-rival New Providence that year as well but finished 4-6 overall. Voorhees has averaged 25.1 points per game in its eight victories while only scoring 13 in its lone loss. The most points scored by either team in this series was 42 by Voorhees in 2014. It was also the highest-scoring game by both teams (66 points).
This contest may end up being a high-scoring and very close game. Both schools played J.F. Kennedy earlier in the season. Voorhees won at home in Glen Gardner, 39-27 in Week 1 while Governor Livingston lost to the Mustangs (28-27) in a United Silver Division clash at Frey Field the following week. Both teams also played North Plainfield earlier in the season as well.
The Highlanders rolled past the Canucks (41-12) under the Friday Night Lights at Frey Field back on September 20th. The Vikings cruised the Canucks (47-22) at Krausche Field in North Plainfield last Friday night. Both schools are competing for a playoff spot in the South Jersey Group 2 Supersection. Voorhees and Governor Livingston have some work to do to qualify this season.
Currently, Voorhees is in a little bit better shape in South Group 2. The Vikings, are ranked 21st in the Supersection and need to overtake Raritan, Haddon Heights, Manasquan, Spotswood, and Middle Township. Voorhees and Governor Livingston are two of 9 teams from the Big Central Conference in this region. A.L. Johnson is the highest-ranked BCC team in this group. Metuchen, Delaware Valley, and Hillside all have a good chance of getting in. Spotswood is presently 17th despite being 6-1.
Voorhees currently ranks 40th in the BCC in UPR, 42nd in Strength Index, 40th in OSI, and 31st in Power Points. Meanwhile, Governor Livingston is ranked 25th behind Camden Eastside, Overbrook, Bordentown, and Voorhees. A win here would help the Highlanders leapfrog over those teams. Governor Livingston still has a chance to win the United Silver Crown. GL currently ranks 48th in the BCC in UPR, 41st in Strength Index, 46th in OSI, and 41st in Power Points.
Entering Friday’s contest, Voorhees is 3-3 overall and in conference. Meanwhile, Governor Livingston is 2-4 overall and 2-3 in conference play. The Vikings finished third in the BCC’s Patriot Silver Division at 1-2. The Highlanders are 2-1 in the United Silver. A win at New Brunswick on October 25th plus a South Plainfield win at J.F. Kennedy on October 26th would put the Highlanders, Mustangs, and Tigers in a three-way tie for the division title at 3-1.
The Vikings come into tonight with the 16th-ranked scoring offense in the BCC with a 25.5 points per game average. Governor Livingston is currently ranked 30th in scoring offense with a 21.7 points per game average. The Highlanders are the better defensive team. GL is currently ranked 36th in the BCC in terms of scoring defense. The Highlanders have given up an average of 23.8 points per game.
Meanwhile, Voorhees is much further down at 51st in the BCC. The Vikings have yielded an average of exactly 30 points per game, but they have pitched a shutout. Voorhees defeated J.P. Stevens, 33-0 back on September 13th in Glen Gardner. Governor Livingston has not registered a shutout yet on defense this season.
Both teams are very close in terms of point differential. Governor Livingston is ranked higher at 34th in the Big Central Conference. The Highlanders have been outscored by an average of 2.2 points per game this season. Meanwhile, Voorhees ranked 36th in the BCC. The Vikings have been outscored by their foes by an average of 4.5 points per contest..
Voorhees has played a tougher schedule with the likes of Rahway, Bernards, and Delaware Valley on its slate. Entering Saturday, those three schools have a combined record of 16-3. The Vikings lost all three of those games, by an average margin of 44 to 11. Governor Livingston played North 2 Group 2 finalist Lakeland out of conference in their season opener, and New Providence in Week 1.
Governor Livingston is led by QB Lucciano Santamaria and RB/LB Jack Dally. Dally played a superb game in the loss against New Providence in Week 1. Dally is a hard hitter on defense and runs for tough yards on offense. Santamaria is a dual-threat QB that can make plays with his arm and his legs.
Voorhees is led on offense by Junior QB Sam Meekings and Junior RB Matteo Tramutola. Jackson Trevaskiss is the Vikings’ leading receiver with a 22 yards-per-catch average. Tramutola is 2nd on the Vikings with 8 catches for an average of 16.5 yards per reception. Tramutola teams up with senior linebacker, Luke Barnett to anchor the defense.
Expect this to be a bit of an up and down game offensively. Both teams are capable of putting up big numbers at times on offense. Voorhees may have a slightly better passing game with Meekings. Both the Vikings and Highlanders are very close in terms of scoring defense and point differential. Voorhees is a bit better though, beat a common opponent in J.F. Kennedy, and is playing at home.
Prediction: Voorhees wins, 35-28.
