Football: No. 7 St. Joseph (Mont.) downs No. 13 DePaul in emotion-filled season finale

It was a sad night in Wayne for both St. Joseph (Mont.), No. 7 in the NJ.com Top 20, and No. 13 DePaul.

The two sides laid it all on the line once more to conclude an unprecedented 2020 season, and it culminated with a 20-9 Green Knights (6-2) victory.

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“We expected the best from DePaul,” St. Joseph head coach Dan Marangi said. “When you watch them on tape, they’re explosive. I was really nervous especially because [No. 9] Cherokee just threw the ball all over us on Saturday. I’m just proud of this defense for not allowing a touchdown and all the credit goes to our coaching staff. Coming out after only three days rest like we did was exciting.”

On the opposing sideline, it was the final game at the helm for Spartans (3-3) head coach John McKenna, along with his huge senior class.

The 24-year coach (16 as head coach) will go down as one of the most accomplished men in the history of the program, winning five state titles from 2013-19.

It wasn’t the result he wanted, and it wasn’t an easy day, but McKenna will always be able to look back at the mark he made and the people he had the chance to work with.

“Today sucked,” he said. “It just sucked. It’s hard to say goodbye. Every player on this team is special to me and I’ve coached with so many great coaches over the years. Now I’m going to be cheering on the underclassmen because they mean a lot to me too.

“There are so many special teams I’ve coached. The 2013 team got it all started for us when we beat Don Bosco Prep and Bergen Catholic in our first year in the league. Beating St. Joseph in that crazy state championship game in 2017 was also awesome. I was this young kid who took over here. I’m just so blessed.”

McKenna and company emptied the tank under the lights on Wednesday, but it was St. Joseph that stuck to its run-first offense and did what it had to do defensively to win.

Senior running back Audric Estime was bottled up for most of the first half, although he would break the touchdown scoring open late in the second quarter and give the Green Knights a 10-3 advantage with a 71-yard scamper.

For a kid who won a state championship as a sophomore, racked up over 2,000 all-purpose yards this fall, scored 40 touchdowns in the last two seasons combined and made a strong case as the best player in New Jersey, one would think Estime would have trouble coming up with a favorite memory in his time in Montvale.

Think again.

“Honestly, this was it,” the Michigan State commit said. “Seeing the smiles on my teammates’ faces and knowing we closed the season how we wanted to means a lot to me. For Coach Marangi to win the final game in his first year as a head coach means a lot to us as well. The seniors have been together for four years and all those double sessions and dog days in the summer together were paid off tonight. We’re going to be bonding for life.”


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Estime’s workload proved to be a difference-maker yet again, and St. Joseph also saw a dominant performance from one of its prized sophomores in Jimmy Mullen.

A known state champion wrestler and stud defensive lineman, Mullen made his biggest play on offense as he capped off a 12-play drive with an eight-yard score on a play-action fake from senior quarterback Dorian Nowell. On the ensuing drive, he would come away with a 10-yard sack to force an eventual punt, handing the keys back to the offense for the knockout punch.

“The seniors knew what was at stake, but the sophomores and juniors wanted to send this group out with a special win,” Marangi said. “They played their tails off.”

The Green Knights would go down the field once more, this time on a 13-play drive that ended with a Sebastien Tasko 31-yard field goal to deliver the 20-9 cushion with just over three minutes remaining.

As the seniors spent their final downs on the field together, they waited until the clock hit zeroes to have their moment.

Estime, offensive lineman Geno VanDeMark and linebacker Frankie Monte, three of the team’s most impactful players and a large part of the program’s backbone, hugged their fellow seniors and couldn’t help but ball their eyes out.

They will all go on to play Division-I football, Estime and VanDeMark together in East Lansing (MI), and they won’t forget their roots.

“This game was so emotional,” Monte, a Holy Cross pledge, said. “This was the last time game planning together as seniors. We have been together since freshman year and we love each other so much. This felt like a state championship for us.

“I wake up every morning and I love coming to school because I know that when I leave, it will have been a great day with my boys,” VanDeMark said. “It’s a special place and I’m going to send my son here when that time comes. There are no bad days on 40 Chestnut Ridge Rd.”

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Ryan Patti may be reached at rpatti@njadvancemedia.com.

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