A Dominant Season For Washington Township Football
Washington Township had the best season in school history in earning its first NJSIAA state football championship. The Minutemen capped a 14-0 season by beating a talented Passaic Tech team, 31-12 in the state Group 5 championship at MetLife Stadium.
It was the third unbeaten season in school history. This was only the fourth season that public schools competed for a state championship.
The seeds were planted for this season a year ago when the Minutemen went 10-3 and won the Central Jersey Group 5 championship. The season ended the following week with a 27-10 loss to a Toms River North team that would win its third straight state title.
Washington Township had an experienced team returning this year and it showed on the football field for coach Mike Schatzman’s Minutemen.
What was more impressive is how the Minutemen steamrolled opponents. All but two of the games were won by 11 or more points.
The exceptions were both against Kingsway. Washington Township earned a comeback 39-36 regular season victory over Kingsway.
Later in the season, Washington Township would advance to the state championship game with a 35-27 victory over Kingsway in the state Group 5 semifinal.
What made the Minutemen so difficult to beat was that they were as tough to stop on the ground as they were in the air.
All-Conference quarterback Cole Aquino threw for 1,546 yards and 23 touchdowns.
Fellow all-conference running back Colin Beeler rushed for 1,194 yards and 16 scores.
A third all-conference performer, wide receiver Paris Pratt, caught 47 passes for 519 yards and six touchdowns.
Washington Township was the winner of the WJFL Classic Division, and the other all-conference performers were offensive linemen Stephen Davidson and Gunnar McFall, defensive lineman Gabe Palaganas, linebackers Jaylen Robinson and Andrew Osborn, defensive back Isaac Parra and Parker Reese and punter Luke Sheets, who was also an accomplished place kicker.
Robinson and Osborn were also part of the dangerous ground attack. Limited on offense because of all the energy he expended on defense, Robinson rushed for 587 yards and 12 touchdowns. He got more carries later in the season, and responded with 80-yard and 12-yard touchdown runs in the playoff win over Kingsway, and then carried the ball six times for 122 yards and two scores in the state championship.
In addition, Robinson was among the top linebackers in South Jersey. He recorded 105 tackles, including 22.5 tackles for loss. Osborn, in addition to his dominating work at linebacker, added 404 rushing yards and eight touchdowns.
One of Washington Township’s most impressive wins came in the state final. The Minutemen trailed Passaic Tech, 6-3 at halftime and then scored 28 unanswered points, led by Robinson, who scored on runs of 26 and 65 yards.
That showed the explosiveness of this team, which set a single-season school record with 535 points. This came against a challenging schedule.
Based on the 2024 season, Washington Township was expected to have a big year, and the Minutemen might have slightly exceeded the high expectations during their best campaign in school history.
No. 9 Andrew Osborn running the ball for Washington Township in the state championship game / Marc Narducci
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