Rams aim to keep improving under new coach Fullen
Ryan Fullen has always wanted to be a high school head football coach, which worked out perfectly for Hightstown Athletic Director Jim Peto, who needed just such a man this summer after Ethan Jeros had to step down due to family reasons.
Fullen was hired just prior to training camp and brings a wealth of coaching experience with him. He was a college assistant at SUNY Cortland, Arizona Western, Fordham and, for six years, Wagner. Upon getting a teaching job in 2016, he helped out at Monroe High School last year before arriving on Leshin Lane.
He inherits a team coming off a 5-5 season after going 1-9 a year earlier. Hightstown remains in the WJFL Valley Division.
Because he is getting started so late in the process, Fullen is not setting some insanely high bar for his players, several which feature explosive talents.
“I don’t want us to get ahead of ourselves,” the Toms River native and Monsignor Donovan graduate said. “We’re not sneaking up on anybody after last year. We’re not worried about anybody else but ourselves and how we can be really good. Right now we want to have a good practice in the morning and another in the afternoon. Let’s not look too far ahead.
“I know there’s lofty goals coming from the senior class and hopefully we meet them, but how we’re gonna get there is the oneday-at-a-time approach. Ethan Jeros did a phenomenal job and I inherited his staff and I lucked out, they are great guys and very knowledgeable. We’re just worried about playing Princeton on September 8th, finishing camp the right way and hopefully start the season on the right foot and take it from there.”
Fullen will continue to run the single wing offense that Jeros installed last season and, after a year to learn it, the Rams are ahead of schedule despite a few tweaks. The offensive line will be anchored by senior guards Will McDade and Brendan Defoe. Senior Stephen Rice is at center, while juniors Jayden Drake and Kyle Reiss are tackles. Senior Jefferson Martinez and junior Lucas Trancozo will rotate in.
Senior Liam Monahan returns at quarterback and has a huge weapon in senior running back Michael Quigg, who rushed for 750 yards and 10 touchdowns last year. Junior wingback Jarrett Justice will also get an abundance of carries in the run-heavy offense, while senior Jadyn Childs and senior Ryan Koerner will be receivers. Senior Justin Daley will be a receiver and run the ball.
“Michael Quigg is explosive,” Fullen said. “He’s a hard runner every time he gets the ball. He can turn a four-yard carry into a 40-yard carry just by sheer will sometimes. You definitely gotta bring your feet when you’re coming to tackle Michael Quigg.
“Monahan’s done a good job connecting with Justin Daley in scrimmages. People kind of fall asleep against us because we run the ball and run the ball. Then we’re able to get explosive plays off the play action. The line has been blocking well. So far, so good.”
Defensively, the Rams will run a 4-2-5, with junior end Tayo Isadare considered “probably our best lineman,” but the coach. McDade, Defoe, Rice and Reiss will also see time up front. Inside linebackers will be juniors Pierce Schweitzer and seniors Anthony Stevens and Jeremy Francoeur, while Quigg and junior Alex Stavrou will play a hybrid defensive back/linebacker position.
The secondary features Childs and junior Patrick Margerum at corners with Justice and junior Tairiq Clopton at safeties.
“We want to run to the ball on every snap,” Fullen said. “We want to pursue the ball relentlessly and create turnovers. Before all that we want to be an unbelievable tackling team. We’ve been preaching fundamentals with these guys and running pursuit drills, tackling circuits, turnover circuits, things of that nature to get us to be effectively awesome at fundamentals. We want to tackle well, run to the ball well and then we get there and create some chaos and hopefully be opportunistic and get some turnovers.”
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