KENILWORTH, NJ — If you just take a glance at last year’s results, it’s quite apparent that David Brearley High School needs an upgrade offensively for its 2025 campaign.
For the first time in eight years, the Bears were shut out last year, including their final two games.
“Right now, we’re just continuing to work to get better,” said first-year head coach Elliot Platt.
Platt played in high school at Montclair Kimberley Academy and then at Franklin & Marshall College. He is a native of Cedar Grove.
“We want to bring the pride back to Brearley,” Platt said. “We spoke to some alumni that will come out to lend a hand.”
David Brearley had always been one of the winningest Group 1 programs in the state with former head coach Scott Miller. Most recently, from 2013 to 2022, David Brearley did not finish less than .500 any of those seasons.
Senior two-way lineman Kevin Maytidu (6-1, 230) is one of David Brearley’s top returning players and will look to make an impact on both lines.
Last year, junior running back Mathew Resende rushed for nearly 700 yards and led the Bears in touchdowns scored with four. Junior quarterback Joe Squillaro rushed for almost 500 yards and passed for 300.
Squillaro and Resende should be two of David Brearley’s senior leaders along with Maytidu.
This is a rare year that David Brearley is opening on Week Zero. The Bears will host Bergen County Group 1 school Wallington High School on Thursday, Aug. 28, at 6 p.m. at Ward Field in their season-opener.
Wallington went 2-8 last year and also struggled to score in most of its games, so it should be a good opening matchup for both. Right now, Wallington has only a seven-game schedule for 2025.
David Brearley’s other home games include matchups against Highland Park, Roselle Park, South River and Metuchen high schools.
David Brearley’s first road game, at Arthur L. Johnson High School, will feature a battle of new head coaches. Arthur L. Johnson is now guided by Gus Kalikas, who was previously the head coach at Arthur L. Johnson for five seasons, from 2004 to 2008. Kalikas is also the athletic director at the Clark school.
David Brearley’s only regular season loss 20 years ago during an outstanding 10-2 campaign in 2005 was a 21-20 setback at Arthur L. Johnson on a very hot mid-September Saturday in Clark. That was the second season of the first stint Kalikas was the head coach at Arthur L. Johnson, with the Crusaders finishing 7-3 that year.
David Brearley, with just three wins in its past two seasons, will seek to get back to being among the top Group 1 schools in Union County, along with New Providence, Roselle Park and Jonathan Dayton high schools.
David Brearley does not face New Providence this year. The last year David Brearley played New Providence was in 2021, but the Bears do tangle with Jonathan Dayton.
David Brearley’s final regular season game is scheduled to be played at Jonathan Dayton on Saturday, Oct. 25, at 1 p.m., in Springfield. That is the playoff cutoff date weekend. Jonathan Dayton went 4-6 last year and won at David Brearley, 15-6.
David Brearley Bears 2025
Thursday, Aug. 28, Wallington, 6 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 5, at Arthur L. Johnson, 7 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 12, at Spotswood, 7 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 19, Highland Park, 6 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 26, Roselle Park, 6 p.m.
Friday, Oct. 3, at South Hunterdon Regional, 7 p.m.
Friday, Oct. 10, South River, 6 p.m.
Thursday, Oct. 16, Metuchen, 6 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 25, at Jonathan Dayton, 1 p.m.
Photo by JR Parachini
