Egg Harbor Township Football Showing Great Improvement

 Egg Harbor Township has been among the early season surprises in South Jersey high school football. The Eagles usually have a competitive program, as evidenced by last year’s 3-3 edition.

Yet for a team that won consecutive South Jersey Group 3 titles in 1992 and 1993 and has been to finals four total times since the advent of the program in 1983, EHT has struggled recently.

The last winning season was 2010 when the Eagles went 6-5, won a first round South Jersey Group 4 playoff game against Shawnee before being eliminated in the sectional semifinal by eventual champion Cherokee.

Now to the present, where after Friday’s 21-13 win at Absegami, EHT is 3-2 on the season and has won three in a row for the first time since beginning 2015 with three consecutive victories.

According to Gridironewjersey.com, EHT is 12^th in the SJ Group 5 power rankings, where the top 16 teams will qualify.

Yes, the Eagles will be a decided underdog during this week’s game against a 5-0 Ocean City squad, but regardless of the outcome, a playoff berth and a winning season for the first time in more than a decade are well within reach.

Last week’s win over Absegami was a true gut check, since the Eagles were playing without some injured players.

Rondell Vaughan Jr. a 5-foot-6, 152-pound senior, had a career game with three touchdowns. He opened the game with an 80-yard kickoff return for a score. Vaughan rushed for 113 yards on 21 carries and scored on runs of 8 and 5 yards.

For the season, Vaughan has rushed for 499 yards (6.4 avg.) and 5 touchdowns.

Senior Mohamed Soumaworo has rushed for 249 yards (5.0 avg.) and 2 touchdowns.

Junior quarterback Christian Rando has done a good job running the offense. He has thrown for 417 yards and five touchdowns.

Junior Xavier Bullock has been a big-play receiver with 12 receptions for 272 yards (22.2 avg.) and 4 touchdowns.

Due to the injuries, Vaughan had to play more defensive than usual against Absegami. He was also a standout on defense, breaking up a key two-point conversion and intercepting a pass.

If the Eagles don’t beat Ocean City, coach Kevin Stetser’s team still could be a playoff and a winning team. After facing Ocean City, EHT plays Atlantic City (2-1), Seneca (1-2), Pemberton (0-2) before ending the regular season against Vineland (1-4).

Nothing will be easy for EHT, but with a veteran group, this has a chance to be a special season.

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Author: Marc Narducci