Alumni Update: ‘Shore Five’ Lead Penn State in Upset, Freshnock Honored

In case you recently woke up from a coma or were rescued from a cave in the Philippines, the big news this weekend was unranked Penn State stunning No. 2 Ohio State in Happy Valley in a game in which five former Shore stars played key roles for the Nittany Lions.

They were the obvious headliners, but strong performances by Bucknell's Chad Freshnock and Montclair State's John DiStefano also highlighted another great week for Shore grads.

If I missed anyone, you can email me at stump@allshoremedia.com. Just fyi, I am only including players who saw time, not just ones on the roster at a given school.

NFL

---Outside linebacker Shilique Calhoun (Middletown North) had one tackle and a quarterback hit for the Raiders in a 33-16 win over tight end Neal Sterling (Manasquan/Monmouth Univ.) and the Jaguars. Sterling did not play due to a foot injury, missing his second straight game.

---Defensive end Vinny Curry (Neptune) did not register a tackle, but the Philadelphia Eagles did hand the Vikings their first loss of the season with a 21-10 win over the NFL's last unbeaten team.

---Long-snapper Clark Harris (Southern/Rutgers) and the Bengals picked up a 31-17 victory over the winless Browns.

COLLEGE

FBS

---You can read here about the key contributions of defensive end Garrett Sickels (Red Bank); linebacker Manny Bowen (Barnegat); tight end Mike Gesicki (Southern); wide receiver Saeed Blacknall (Manalapan) and punter Chris Gulla (Toms River North) in Penn State's 24-21 stunner over No. 2 Ohio State on Saturday night.

---Wide receiver Keith Kirkwood (Neptune) had 2 catches for 48 yards and linebacker Chapelle Russell (Lakewood) had 2 tackles as Temple improved to 5-3 with a 46-30 win over South Florida.

---Senior Frank Gabriel (Red Bank Catholic) is the starting long-snapper at Miami, which lost 37-16 to Virginia Tech.

---Safety Otis Kearney (Toms River South) had 2 tackles, including one for a loss, in Central Michigan's 31-17 loss to Toledo.

---Defensive lineman Pat Toal (Raritan) saw time but did not register a tackle as Old Dominion suffered a 59-24 loss to Western Kentucky.

---Defensive back Ikie Calderon (Neptune) had 8 tackles, including one for a loss, as Eastern Michigan fell 45-31 to No. 20 Western Michigan.

---Mike Caggiano (Manalapan) went 4-for-4 on extra points as UMass lost 34-28 to South Carolina. Wide receiver Sadiq Palmer (Red Bank) did not finish with a catch.

FCS

---Junior defensive lineman Tayler Hendrickson (Middletown South) had 2 tackles to help the University of Pennsylvania pick up a 42-7 win over Yale. Defensive lineman Kyle Mullen (Manalapan) had 4 tackles and a sack for Yale in the loss.

---Defensive back Darrius Hart (Toms River South) had 4 tackles, including one for a loss, and an interception he returned 25 yards in Maine's 28-21 win over Rhode Island. Hart's three interceptions this season are tied for first in the Colonial Athletic Association. Starting defensive tackle Monte Sinisi (Manasquan) had one tackle in the loss for URI.

---Defensive lineman Shawn McCord (Red Bank Catholic) had 2 tackles and a quarterback hit as St. Francis (Pa.) picked up a 14-10 win over Duquesne.

---Starting cornerback Josh Taylor (St. John Vianney) tied for second on the team with 5 tackles in Marist's 31-10 win over Davidson. Wide receiver Joe Petro (St. John Vianney) and safety Mike Corcione (Red Bank Catholic), the older brother of Manalapan quarterback Luke Corcione, also saw time in the win.

---Tim O'Hara (Red Bank Catholic) started at left tackle and defensive lineman Justin Gille (St. John Vianney) had a tackle as Lehigh rolled up 517 yards of offense in a 46-14 win over Holy Cross for its sixth straight win.

---Running back Chad Freshnock (Middletown North) continued a great freshman season by being named the Patriot League Rookie of the Week for the second time this season after running for 76 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries in Bucknell's 42-17 win over Lafayette. Defensive lineman Doug Whitlock (Red Bank Catholic) added 2 tackles and a sack and long-snapper Dillon Paprota (Donovan Catholic) and tight end Marcus Ademilola (Jackson Memorial) also saw time in the win for the Bison. Tim Vangelas (Colts Neck) started at wide receiver but did not have a catch in the loss for Lafayette.

---Wide receiver Robbie Cantelli (Holmdel) now has 4 touchdown catches in the last two weeks after catching two passes for 40 yards and a pair of scores in Fordham's 17-14 win over Georgetown that improved the Rams to 5-2. Isaiah Searight (Monmouth) also started at tight end for the Rams, and linebacker Brett Lambert (Holmdel) added 4 tackles in the win.

---Quarterback Alex Thomson (Keyport) went 17-for-37 for 230 yards and a touchdown and also caught a 32-yard pass and defensive back Jesse Flaherty (Red Bank Catholic) had 9 tackles as Wagner fell 27-17 to Bryant.

---Starting cornerback Shawn Ramcheran (Matawan) had 5 tackles and a pass break-up for Sacred Heart in a 16-10 win over Robert Morris.

---Defensive backs Tyrice Beverette (Lakewood) and Jaheem Woods (Neptune) continue to star for Stony Brook, which improved to 5-2 with a 28-3 win over Delaware. Beverette had a team-high 13 tackles, including one for a loss, while Woods had 7 tackles, including one for a loss, and also returned a fumble 55 yards for a touchdown.

---H-back Anthony Firkser (Manalapan) had 3 catches for 22 yards and a touchdown as Harvard pulled out a 23-20 overtime win over Princeton. Harvard also spoke with Firkser, who is now seventh all time in school history with 13 touchdown catches, about his first true love, basketball, and how he became a football star. Running back Charlie Volker (Rumson-FH) had 9 carries for 27 yards and Reily Radosevich (Manalapan) saw time on the offensive line in the loss for the Tigers.

---Defensive lineman Nick Tomkins (Matawan) had 2 tackles and was in on a tackle for a loss in Dartmouth's 9-7 loss to Columbia.

---Wide receiver Joey Fields (Donovan Catholic) had 5 catches for 88 yards and a touchdown in Central Connecticut State's 33-25 loss to Coastal Carolina.

---Running back Matt Gudzak (Toms River East) had 5 carries for 43 yards and a touchdown and also had 2 catches for 9 yards in Villanova's 24-13 win over Albany to improve to 6-2. Simon Bingelis (Brick) and Ryan Morris (Barnegat) also saw time at tight end in the win.

---Defensive end Manny Maragoto (Freehold Twp.) had 6 tackles, including 2.5 for a loss and a sack, and safety Mike Basile (Brick Memorial) had 6 tackles and a sack as Monmouth University fell 52-28 to Liberty. Defensive lineman Dimitrius Smith (Jackson Memorial) added 2 tackles, Matt Castronuova (Jackson Memorial) had a fumble recovery, Vinny Grasso (Donovan Catholic) returned a punt for six yards, Adam Kakar (Toms River North) saw time on the defensive line, Ryan Wetzel (Colts Neck) started at left guard and Peter Righi (Rumson-FH) started at right guard for the Hawks.

---Tight end Jordan Powell (Lacey) had a team-high 4 catches for 42 yards and safety Nick Lubischer (Red Bank Catholic) also saw time as New Hampshire picked up a 21-7 win over Towson. Lubischer's old RBC teammate, Pat Toomey, handles the kickoffs for Towson. He had two for 118 yards in the loss.

DIVISION II/III

---Wide receiver Kyle Morris (Barnegat) had 2 catches for 16 yards and his first career touchdown as Johns Hopkins, the No. 7 team in Division III, improved to 7-0 with a 54-14 win over Gettysburg. The team set a Centennial Conference record with its 34th straight league victory. Linebacker Frank Olmo (Red Bank Catholic) had 6 tackles and a pass break-up in the loss for Gettysburg.

---Running back John DiStefano (Red Bank Catholic) continued his brilliant season for Montclair State with 121 yards rushing and a touchdown on 33 carries in a 21-7 win over The College of New Jersey. Wide receiver Julanee Prince (St. John Vianney) continued a strong season of his own with 3 catches for 74 yards and a touchdown, wideout Jaedon Stephens (Asbury Park) added one catch for 12 yards, Matt Kemp (Colts Neck) started at center and Anthony Dorsi (Red Bank Catholic) started at fullback in the win. Defensive lineman Jake Weber (Matawan) chipped in with two tackles and defensive lineman Nick Volpe (Colts Neck) had a 22-yard fumble return for a touchdown for the Red Hawks. In the loss for TCNJ, Khani Glover (Jackson Memorial) had 8 carries for 48 yards, Matt Gliddon (Pt. Boro) started at left guard, defensive lineman Erik Graham (Shore Regional) had 3 tackles, and Connor Owen (Brick Memorial) also saw time.

---Defensive lineman Nick Pydeski (Raritan) had 3 tackles in Springfield's 12-7 loss to Hobart.

---Running back Nick Cella (Red Bank Catholic) had 9 carries for 33 yards in Renssalaer's 19-7 loss to Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

---Defensive lineman Richie Curran (Red Bank Catholic) had 2 tackles and a fumble recovery and Neil Horenburg (Red Bank Catholic) started at center in St. Anselm's 42-7 win over Pace for its first win of the season. Offensive lineman Ricky Wild (Red Bank Regional) also saw time in the win. Defensive back Tommy Leech (Brick) had 7 tackles and defensive lineman Robert Planter (Manchester) added a tackle in the loss for Pace.

---Linebacker Drew Scott (Brick) was second on the team with 8 tackles, 1.5 sacks and 2 tackles for a loss and Matt Cathey (Brick Memorial) and Dan Finelli (Brick) each added a tackle to help McDaniel beat Dickinson 14-7.

---Running back Matt Pine (Freehold Twp.) had 4 carries for 17 yards, linebacker Jack Fitzsimmons (Pt. Boro) had 7 tackles, defensive back Nate Corvil (Freehold Twp.) added 5 tackles and Gerard Grimes (Pinelands) had a tackle on special teams as Muhlenberg improved to 6-1 with a 56-17 win over Juniata.

---Wide receiver Nick Pasquin (Raritan) saw time in Susquehanna's 31-24 loss to Ursinus, which features his old Rockets teammate, Jared Collins.

---Running back Danny Tighe (Pt. Beach) had 7 carries for 21 yards and defensive lineman Rich Kuhn (Brick Memorial) had 5 tackles, 1.5 for a loss, as Albright rolled to a 69-13 win over Wilkes to improve to 5-2.

---Defensive back Liam Casey (St. John Vianney) had 10 tackles and an interception and kicker/punter Nick Maciejewski (Wall) averaged 33 yards on 6 punts and was 1-for-2 on extra points with one being blocked in FDU-Florham's 52-13 loss to King's (Pa.) College.

---Wide receiver Jordan Smith (Raritan) had 4 catches for 56 yards, tight end Kyle Rooney (Holmdel) had one catch for 13 yards, Steve Ferlisi (Brick) averaged 41.3 yards on six punts with three inside the opposing 20, linebacker Marquis Oliver (Lakewood) had 6 tackles, defensive back Austin Davis (Matawan) had 5 tackles, linebacker Liam Christensen (Central) had 2 tackles, Dave Jimerson (Howell) started at cornerback, Chris Vurchio (Raritan) started at right tackle, and Joe Bick (Manchester) started at left tackle in Kean University's 36-14 loss to Salisbury.

---Tight end Tory Robinson (Howell) had 3 catches for 38 yards as Wesley knocked off Rowan with a 24-17 win. Linebacker Chris Noesges (Manalapan) saw time for Rowan but did not register a tackle.

---Defensive back Pat Moran (Barnegat) continued a standout season with 10 tackles, including 2.5 for a loss, Connor Thomson (Keyport) started at center, Tyler Alvarez (Keyport) started at right tackle, and Tyler Vivian (Shore Regional) had 2 catches for 26 yards in William Paterson's 26-17 loss to Southern Virginia.

---Running back Dahmiere Willis (Long Branch) had 10 carries for 12 yards and Hunter Baillie (Long Branch) saw time on the defensive line in American International's 22-7 loss to LIU Post.

---Quarterback Ajee Patterson (Neptune) finished 20-for-46 for 213 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions and defensive lineman Ari Nwobi (Jackson Liberty) added a tackle in New Haven's 38-24 loss to Assumption. Patterson leads the Northeast-10 Conference with 256.3 passing yards per game and is third with 17 touchdown passes.

---Defensive lineman Xavier Young (Barnegat) had a tackle in Stonehill's 27-7 loss to Bentley.

---Ithaca notched its first shutout since 2013 thanks to the linebacker tandem of Dan Loizos (Ocean) and Ken Bradley (Jackson Memorial). Loizos had 8 tackles and a fumble recovery, and Bradley had 8 tackles, a tackle for a loss, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery in a 34-0 win over Morrisville State. Loizos is second in the Empire 8 Conference with 79 tackles and Bradley is seventh with 69.

---Chris Kimbiz (Brick) had 2 tackles and was in on a tackle for a loss as Kutztown won its fifth straight with a 35-29 win over Lock Haven.

---Defensive lineman Joe Odebode (Toms River South) had 2 tackles, including a sack for an 11-yard loss, in East Stroudsburg's 35-14 loss to Bloomsburg.

---Linebacker David Gutzmore (Neptune) had 4 tackles in Seton Hill's 55-45 win over Mercyhurst.