Falcons dealing with move up in division, CJ Group

What a difference a decade makes. The Monroe Township High School football program had to disband in 1994 due to a lack of players. Fast-forward to now, and the Falcons are legitimately among the best in the Greater Middlesex Conference. This was validated last season with a school-record 11 wins and first-ever sectional championship (Central Jersey Group III).

What happened? Start with coaching. An untested assistant coach from Sayreville, Pat Dowling, arrived in 2004 to plug leaks in the sinking ship. Dowling experienced rough waters his first year, finishing 1-9. But armed with a talented assistant staff that came with him from Sayreville, Monroe posted winning records the following four years.

Dowling departed from Monroe after the 2007 season but didn’t exactly leave the program cupboard bare. His top aide, defensive coach Chris Beagan, took over, and Monroe continued to prosper. Led by Beagan, last season’s championship represents the pinnacle of what the Falcons expect to become the norm.

It won’t be easy. They have been thrust into a perfect storm of sorts, being elevated to the largest group — CJ Group IV — and the GMC Red Division. The reward is a schedule that includes games against some of the state’s best: Piscataway and Sayreville. Qualifying for the state playoffs, which Monroe has done the last four years, won’t be a given.

“We knew this day would come,” Beagan said on Sunday during a rare respite from a job that consumes nearly every hour. “We’ve been elevated to a higher group and division because the numbers in our freshman and sophomore classes put us into the bigger classifications. The junior and senior classes will be the ones to bear the brunt of moving up. Our biggest problem now is depth.”

Beagan asserts that weekly games against more-demanding opponents will become battles of attrition. The key will be whether the Falcons can remain healthy, especially in key positions.

Another difference will be evident on the field this year, and that is how the offense is run — or rather, passes. Quarterback Alex Vizcaino (6-2, 182 senior) has started the past two years and has become the leader Beagan envisioned. With his rifle arm, the coach would be wasting valuable ammunition by keeping to the grind-it-up ground game of past seasons. A relatively untested corps of receivers, including Jahree Williams (6-1, 165 senior), Ud Egbutu (6-0, 175 senior), Elias McDowell (5-8, 160 senior), Bakari Malik (5-8, 160 senior) and John Albecker (5-10, 165 junior), will provide Vizcaino with an array of targets, because Beagan believes they will develop nicely. Frank D’Agostino (6-1, 210 junior) will be the starter at tight end.

Perhaps another reason why Monroe will rely more on passing is that All-State running back Blake Bascom has graduated, and nobody can be expected to fill his shoes. Woo Joo Han (5-10, 172 senior) is a spirited runner and will be joined by Williams and Elias McDowell (5-8, 160 senior).

The offensive line is solid but will not be at full strength initially. That’s because George Meyers, a bona fide college prospect, went down with a knee injury the first day of practice and will be out until at least the third game. Meanwhile, the Falcons will make do with the following, who will rotate in different positions: Laird Gardner (5-10, 220 junior), Chris Tirone (5-10, 240 junior), Frank Durante (5-10, 250 senior), Bobby Steffe (6- 2, 215 sophomore), Mike Schrieber (5-11, 205 junior), Jordan Jiminez (6-0, 232 sophomore), Jake O’Brien (6-1, 235 senior), and Kashaun Stoughn (6-0, 201 senior).

Defensively, Williams, Elias, Albecker and Han will be in the secondary, while the linebacking crew will be led by Nick Mariani (5-11, 195 junior), Chris Caccio (5-7, 178 senior), Schreiber, and Sean Sowinski (5-11, 160 sophomore). The ends feature Stoughn and Mike Walp (6-0, 185 senior), while O’Brien, Russo, Steffe and Mike Stryker (5- 9, 290 junior) will occupy positions in the interior.

The kicking duties will likely fall into the hands of an untested freshman, Ryan Schrieber (5-8, 150) who has shown surprising leg strength.

“We’re fortunate that our current seniors have experienced winning,” Beagan said, “and they’ve taken the initiative of showing our newcomers what it takes to maintain that course. But frankly, what we did last year is behind us, and the best attitude to take is to forget about the championship. It’s a new season with new challenges.”

The challenges begin Sept. 11 when the Falcons open their season at home against defending CJ Group IV champion East Brunswick. Kickoff is 7 p.m.