Millville is the South Jersey Football Team of the Year, plus final Mean 15 rankings
Humberto Ayala admits he had some nervous moments.
Worry crept into the Millville High School football coach’s mind as the Thunderbolts faced tense situations in the final minutes of its sectional final against Hammonton, state semi against Mainland and the Group 4 title game against Northern Highlands.
“But at the same time, you have a confidence in what you have from a player standpoint,” Ayala said.
Millville started the season No. 1 in the South Jersey Mean 15 rankings because of its individual talent. It finished on top because of heart, toughness and its will to win.
More:All-South Jersey High School Football Teams for the 2022 season
The Thunderbolts (12-2), the first-ever Group 4 state champions, are the Courier-Post South Jersey Football Team of the Year.
“The mentality, the mindset of what our city is, the OBG (Orange and Blue Gang) brand, our kids lived up to that,” Ayala said. “The kids lived up to that, that resiliency, in the playoffs.”
Millville’s expectations were sky high entering the campaign with the bulk of the 2021 team back, a group that averaged 45 points and rolled to a Group 4 regional championship.
It looked like it might go on cruise control after pasting Thomas Jefferson (Pa.) 41-10 at the Battle at the Beach in Ocean City on Aug. 28.
Then, the Thunderbolts dropped a hard-fought battle with Irvington at Rutgers. They needed a late score to beat rival St. Augustine two weeks later. And on Sept. 30, they blew a 17-point lead in a 21-17 setback to Lenape.
More:Hammonton High School's Kenny Smith is South Jersey Offensive Football Player of the Year
“Film session was brutal,” Ayala said. “Our conversations to them was tough, a reality check. You have talent, and when you have talent, sometimes you have to make sure that talent stays humble. They need to stay hungry and humble. I told ’em at the beginning of the season they had a target on their backs, everyone knew what Millville was and they’d prepared like it was championship week because they want to beat the best teams.”
That proved true.
The Thunderbolts played nine games after the loss to Lenape. They won two blowouts, led by two points at halftime in one, were tied in another and trailed at the break in their final five contests.
Yet, they prevailed in each showdown because of how they competed in the most trying circumstances.
They outscored their opponents 137-34 in the second half of those matchups. They gave up just 13 fourth-quarter points during that stretch, and seven came with a 41-0 lead.
“I told my coaches, I told my defensive coaches I can’t guarantee 40 points a game. Too many intangibles, too many moving pieces,” Ayala said. “We need to have the No. 1 defense in the state and perform at a high level to keep us balanced, and I think they did that.”
There was plenty of offense to celebrate too.
More:Woodbury High School's Anthony Reagan is the South Jersey Football Coach of the Year
The unit finished the year with more than 5,000 yards from scrimmage.
First-year junior quarterback Jacob Zamot was 213-of-353 for a school-record 3,158 yards, as well as 27 touchdowns to just five interceptions.
Na’eem Sharp rushed for 1,252 yards and 14 scores, including last-minute game-winners in the sectional final and state semis.
Sophomore wideout Lotzeir Brooks had 69 grabs for 1,089 yards and a South Jersey-best 14 scores. He’s the first sophomore in state history with 100 catches and 2,000 receiving yards. Zamot, Sharp and Brooks are just the fourth trio of South Jersey teammates to go 3,000-1,000-1,000 in a season, per South Jersey historian Chuck Langerman.
However, those numbers aren’t what made the team special.
Talent kept the Thunderbolts in every game. The resiliency Millville players grew up with, the OBG mentality of hard work and fighting for each other former coach Dennis Thomas instilled and Ayala continued are what pushed them to the finish line.
No game showed that more than the Bolts’ 12-point, fourth-quarter comeback against Hammonton in the South Jersey 4 final.
More:Camden High School's James Heard Jr. is South Jersey Defensive Football Player of the Year
“That was beautiful,” Ayala said.
So was the final moment of the season, a police escort into town following the team’s heart-stopping Group 4 championship win over Northern Highlands, a game decided by a red-zone sack by freshman Jayden Jones with 16 seconds left.
“It makes it really special,” Jones said afterward. “No other team could do what we do, in my opinion. No team is going to be out there losing like that and come back to win.”
The heart of a champion.
Final Mean 15 rankings
Millville (12-2)
Delsea (12-1)
Woodbury (12-2)
Camden (10-3)
Holy Spirit (9-2)
Mainland (10-2)
Hammonton (9-3)
Kingsway (7-4)
St. Augustine (6-5)
St. Joseph (6-4)
Lenape (6-5)
Seneca (10-2)
Salem (8-5)
Pennsauken (8-1)
Atlantic City (7-3)
Josh Friedman has produced award-winning South Jersey sports coverage for the Courier Post, The Daily Journal and the Burlington County Times for more than a decade. If you have or know of an interesting story to tell, reach out on Twitter at @JFriedman57 or via email at jfriedman2@gannettnj.com. You can also contact him at 856-486-2431. Help support local journalism with a subscription.
This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Millville is South Jersey High School Football Team of the Year
