WJFL Week Three: ND’s Winowich eligible for matchup with Ewing
When the Notre Dame High School football team hosts Ewing on Thursday evening, the Irish will officially have a Big Ten backfield.
Michigan transfer running back/defensive end Gabe Winowich, who along with quarterback AJ Surace is committed to Rutgers, is eligible to play after a 22day waiting period, per NJSIAA rules.
Winowich starred at Detroit County Day last season and decided to transfer to a New Jersey school before enrolling at Rutgers next spring. Surace will also enroll early, so it was the perfect opportunity for them to get a head start together.
There are four Mercer County matchups on Thursday because Rosh Hashanah starts Friday evening.
Meanwhile, Trenton will host Nottingham in its first Friday night football game after adding lights to its turf field, and Princeton is the only local team playing on Saturday.
Here is a look at what to watch for this weekend.
Thursday EWING (1-2) AT NOTRE DAME (3-0), 6 P.M.
After surviving its first three games with shootouts (138 total points), Notre Dame should have an easier time pulling away early against a Ewing team that has struggled offensively. The Blue Devils had no first downs last Saturday against Hopewell until the fourth quarter. The addition of Winowich should also take a load off of Surace, who leads the team in rushing with 444 yards and eight touchdowns along with his 542 yards and six touchdowns through the air.
HAMILTON WEST (0-3) AT HOPEWELL VALLEY (2-0), 6 P.M.
Hopewell has won this matchup two years in a row and is the favorite again thanks to a hot start combined with Hamilton suffering losses to Central Regional, West Windsor and Trenton. Hopewell’s defense has been outstanding as it didn’t allow a point until the fourth quarter in wins over Lawrence and Ewing. The passing attack with new quarterback Milan Desai is a work in progress, but the Bulldogs have been balanced. Ben DeCore leads the team in rushing (234 yards, three touchdowns).
STEINERT (1-1) AT WW-P (2-1), 6 P.M.
Steinert has won all five matchups between these teams in the last decade, but West Windsor has a good chance to buck that trend. WW-P dropped 76 points in two wins over Hamilton and Lawrence, showing it can air it out with 521 yards and six touchdowns from quarterback Conor Sattiraju. Steinert shut out Ewing but couldn’t get anything going last week against Allentown in a 40-6 loss, despite the fact the Redbirds allowed 106 points in their first two games.
ROBBINSVILLE (1-2) AT ALLENTOWN (1-2), 7 P.M.
These teams have developed a rivalry in the last four years. Allentown won a state tournament play-in game over Robbinsville in 2019, the Ravens got revenge in 2020 with a 49-point second half, and then the Redbirds won again in 2022. Robbinsville is fresh off a big win over Hightstown, while Allentown took care of Steinert. This should be an entertaining game between good quarterbacks in Robbinsville’s Luke Hanuscin and Allentown’s Luke Wiedau, and both are surrounded by good skill players.
LAWRENCE (0-3) AT HIGHTSTOWN (1-2), 7 P.M.
Lawrence is reeling with three straight losses, although the Cardinals did put up 20 points last week against West Windsor. But Hightstown should have the upper hand as the Rams return home fresh off their only loss, a 20-9 setback at Robbinsville. Hightstown has been superior to Lawrence in the trenches and has talented skill players such as Devron Lewis (131 rushing yards, 110 receiving yards).
Friday NOTTINGHAM (0-2) AT TRENTON (2-1), 5:30 P.M.
The records here are deceiving more than any other matchup, because Nottingham has played two very good teams so far and was tied in the fourth quarter last week before succumbing to Notre Dame. The Northstars rushed for 260 yards and four touchdowns in that game (Saemeni Faeflen had 127 yards and two scores), and they’ll likely be problematic up front for Trenton. Still, the Tornadoes did win two of three on the road over New Brunswick and Hamilton, and they’ll be fired up for their home opener. This should be a more physical game than most.
Saturday FLORENCE (2-0) AT PRINCETON (2-1), 11 A.M.
Princeton has been the underdog story of the season so far with two shutout wins against Lawrence and Haddon Township. That matches the most wins the Tigers have had in any season since 2015. This will likely be a stiffer challenge for the defense as Florence dropped 66 points in wins versus New Egypt and Cherry Hill East. The offense starts with Tyler Goldberg, who has 44 rushes for 202 yards and a touchdown.