If the matchup seems familiar, that's because it is. The Butler Bulldogs and Weequahic Indians will meet in the NJSIAA sectional semifinals for the second year in a row. Butler advanced past Verona 47-21 in the first round of the NJSIAA North Jersey Section 2, Group 1 Tournament, while Weequahic steamrolled Wood-Ridge 42-0 to advance to the semifinals.
Last year, the Bulldogs and Indians faced off in the in the sectional semifinals in Newark with Weequahic advancing to the sectional championship by a final tally of 45-28.
As the top seed in this year's sectional tournament, Butler hopes to change their fortunes this year on their home, blue turf. That will not be an easy task for the Bulldogs, though.
Scouting Weequahic
The Indian offense comes into their Friday showdown putting up video game-like numbers with both their passing, and rushing, attacks having accrued over 1,000 yards on the season. Additionally, Weequahic averages 52.6 points per game and has been held to under 20 points only once this season, a 16-7 win over Immaculata in their final regular season game.
Individually, Weequahic is led by sophomore QB Paul Jones III and senior running back Rashawn Marshall.
Jones has thrown for 1,220 yards and 20 touchdowns with only four interceptions. While Elijah Motley leads all Indian receivers in receptions, and yards, three receivers have more than 10 receptions and five have over 100 yards receiving up to this point in 2023
While Jones leads Weequahic through the air, Marshall leads the Indians' ground game. So far in this season, Marshall has amassed 1,545 yards on 108 carries for an average of 14.3 yards per carry, and he has found the endzone 28 times.
It has not only been the offense that has gotten the job done for Weequahic. The Indian defense has been stifling surrendering only nine total points all season and forcing 28 turnovers (13 fumbles and 15 interceptions). Furthermore, not only has the Weequahic "D" kept opponents off the score board, but it has also scored itself. Of the 28 turnovers the unit has caused, the Indian defense has returned four fumbles for TDs and to go along with another four pick-sixes.
The Weequahic defense is led individually by Tyheed Simmons' 85 total tackles, 11 of which have been for loss, and four forced fumbles, SaJani Millwood's six sacks, and Motley's five interceptions.
Scouting Butler
The Butler offense starts with Bobby Battipede. A physical runner, the senior quarterback can get things done on the ground, and through the air, when needed.
While his stats are not quite as impressive as those of his Weequahic counterpart, Battipede is a more than capable spinner of the pigskin when called upon to throw. Battipede has accrued 1,032 yards and seven touchdowns through the air. Additionally, the Bulldog quarterback's 63.7 completion percentage is slightly higher than the 57.8 percent of his Weequahic counterpart, and, like Jones, Battipede has also protected the ball well, throwing only five interceptions so far in 2023.
While he's not the Bulldog's top rusher--that honor belongs to senior running back, Kyle Perry--on the ground, Battipede has also gained 784 yards on 124 carries (a, roughly, six yards per carry average) and has scored 10 touchdowns.
Battipede also spreads the ball around fairly well, with five receivers having 10, or more, receptions, but his top receiving target is P.J. Coffey. Coffey has 28 receptions for 438 yards, and five touchdowns on the year.
Defensively, Butler is holding its opponents to a not-so-shabby 14.4 points per game and has caused seven turnovers so far this season. The Bulldog defense is led by Luca Toriello. Toriello is second on the team in total tackles, with 31, but leads the Bulldogs in tackles for loss, with nine, and sacks, with four.
Keys To The Game
For Weequahic, the road to victory is rather simple, continue to put up the video game-like numbers that they have been putting up to this point in the season. While Butler averages a respectable 36.2 points per game this year, and is capable of putting up big scores, the Bulldogs have only eclipsed the 50-point barrier once this year, while the Indians have averaged over 50 points per game this season.
For Butler, while certainly not impossible, the road to victory is seemingly more difficult. The Bulldogs' best defense might just be its offense. Using their physical run game to their advantage to slow the game down and limit Weequahic's offensive possessions may be the key to the Bulldogs' success. However, even if Butler does limit the Indians' possessions, it will also be imperative that they do not come up empty on those drives as the Bulldogs will need all the points that they can get to counteract the counter punches that Weequahic's high scoring offense will surely deliver.
Additionally, from an intangibles standpoint, Butler's strength of schedule may provide them with an edge. The Bulldogs' 2023 schedule included five teams that made it to the NJSIAA sectional playoffs with their only loss to one of those teams being a 14-10 setback to North 1, Group 1 1-seed, Park Ridge. Conversely, Weequahic has only played two teams that have made it to the NJSIAA sectional playoffs. One of those teams, Verona, Butler played in the first round of North 2, Group 1 playoffs and dispatched rather easily, and the other, Immaculata, was the only team to hold the Indians below 20 points.
Prediction
In the end, Butler will probably score the most points that any team has scored on Weequahic up to this point in the season, but ultimately it will be the Indians taming the Bulldogs to advance to the North Jersey Section 2, Group 1 championship game. Look for the final score to be somewhere in the vicinity of last year's score.
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