A Look at a Few of the Top South Jersey Football Coaching Jobs

There were many great high school football coaching jobs done this past season. Here is a look at some of the top performances by South Jersey coaches.

Frank DeLano, Haddonfield (13-0). DeLano guided Haddonfield to a 13-0 record. The Bulldogs were champion of the Colonial Conference, in addition to earning the South Jersey Group 2 crown with a 23-12 win over Camden. It was the only game Camden lost this season to a South Jersey team. Haddonfield finished its season with a 17-7 win over Hillside in the first year of the NJSIAA bowl games where the South Jersey champions met the Central Jersey champions. Haddonfield earned 12 of its 13 games against teams that qualified for the playoffs. Since 2010, DeLano has guided Haddonfield to five South Jersey titles.

Tom Maderia, Burlington Township (10-1). The Falcons won the WJFL Liberty Division and advanced to the South Jersey Group 3 championship before falling to Woodrow Wilson, 22-14. Maderia, who before arriving at Burlington Township, was the head coach of South Jersey power Holy Cross, always has had high powered offenses and this year was no different. The Falcons averaged 32.8 points per game. Falcons senior Danny Grozozski threw 30 TD passes while Burlignton Township also rushed for 12 TDs. A 14-13 win over Highland was the key victory in earning the Falcons the division title.

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John Emel, Penns Grove (13-0). The Red Devils joined Haddonfield as the only unbeaten South Jersey teams. Penns Grove won the WJFL Diamond Division, along with the South Jersey Group 1 championship. The Red Devils then beat Willingboro, 35-26, in the NJSIAA South-Central bowl game. Willingboro had to covercome a 20-point deficit to defeat Willingboro. The Red Devils two best wins were over rival Salem, 26-20 in the regular season and then 14-7 in the South Jersey championship game. While Penns Grove was known for its explosive offense, the score in the sectional final against Salem, showed that Emel had the Red Devils playing good football on the defensive side of the ball as well.

Josh Mason, Gateway (9-1). The Gators won the WJFL Memorial title, beating out favored Paulsboro and Woodbury in the process. It was the most wins in the history of the program, which began on the varsity level in 1967. The signature win was a 27-20 victory over Paulsboro, while the division was clinched with a 41-7 Thanksgiving Day win over Woodbury. It was the first Thanksgiving win over Woodbury since 2006. Mason has guided the Gators to a 17-4 record the past two years. This is amazing for a program that was 0-10 as recently as 2013.

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Author: Marc Narducci; Photo by Marc Narducci