ROSELLE PARK, NJ — While the tradition of Roselle’s Abraham Clark High School playing Roselle Park High School on Thanksgiving came to an end at Roselle Park’s Herm Shaw Field on Thursday morning, Nov. 27, the maturation of Roselle Park junior running back-defensive back Maxwell Griffin may have begun.
Maxwell scored a game-leading three touchdowns, all in the second half, to help lead the host Panthers to a convincing 41-19 win against their neighborhood rival Rams.
Roselle Park now leads the series 53-45-8, with game No. 107 scheduled to be competed at Roselle’s E. Ralph Arminio Field on Week 8 next October. The series began in 1915.
Roselle Park now has a 28-24-2 record against Roselle in games played at Roselle Park’s Herm Shaw Field.
There were touchdowns scored on the game’s first five possessions, three by Roselle Park and two by Roselle, which set the tone for a high-scoring affair that concluded with nine touchdowns total.
Griffin made his presence felt mightily in the game’s final 24 minutes, rushing for touchdowns on runs of 39 and 25 yards in the third quarter and returning an interception 45 yards for a fourth quarter pick-6.
“Maxwell made the most of his opportunities,” Roselle Park head coach Greg Dunkerton said.
After a heavy dose of senior Anthony Cianfrocca up the middle and junior Nick Salas to the sidelines in the first half, Dunkerton inserted a rested Griffin following halftime. Griffin’s first carry was his 39-yard score. Both of his touchdowns came through big holes provided at left.
Griffin, all in the second half, carried the ball nine times for 88 yards and his two rushing scores.
In the first half, Cianfrocca had 128 yards on 14 carries, including touchdown runs of 21 and one yards for Roselle Park’s first two scores.
“There was a lot of pressure, this being the final game on Thanksgiving,” Cianfrocca said. “We had to just keep running over them and try to get them tired.”
Cianfrocca finished with a game-leading 155 yards on 18 carries, including his two touchdowns.
“I run angry, that’s the way I like to,” Cianfrocca said. “We had to dig deep and run hard. This is a team sport and we all had to play our parts in order to get this win.”
Salas, who rushed for 100 yards on 12 carries, including a 41-yard gain, scored on a four-yard dash in the second quarter to give Roselle Park the lead for good at 19-13.
Salas finished the season with 946 yards on 146 carries and a team-leading 14 touchdowns. In his first three varsity campaigns, Salas has rushed for 2,237 yards on 301 carries and scored 25 touchdowns.
Cianfrocca gained 735 yards on 114 carries this year and finished his career at Roselle Park with 1,637 yards on 279 carries and 14 touchdowns.
Roselle Park rushed for just less than 2,400 yards this season.
Lost a bit in all of the pomp and circumstance of Roselle Park and Roselle alumni being honored pre-game and at halftime was the fact that, for the second time in three years, a Roselle Park victory at home on Thanksgiving against Roselle propelled the Panthers to a winning season.
Roselle Park finished 6-4, while Roselle closed at 2-9.
In 2023, Roselle Park defeated Roselle, 20-14, at home to finish 6-5, which was the first winning season of present head coach Greg Dunkerton’s tenure that began in 2020.
“To have our guys know that they are winners, for them to be able to walk on this field and know that they were able to have a winning season is big,” Dunkerton said. “They drive me crazy at times, but I love them all.”
Registering quarterback sacks for Roselle Park that came to a total of minus-33 yards of offense for Roselle were Cianfrocca two, one of them combined with senior lineman Lorby Castelly, one for a 12-yard loss by big junior lineman Enoch Adisa, and one by senior linebacker Anthony Damiano.
Showing no quit at all, Roselle twice came back to tie the game with touchdowns in the first half and, in the second half, pulled to within seven with its final score, before Roselle Park pulled away.
Throwing touchdown passes in the first half to Raekwon Anderson and Shymir Burgess was Roselle senior quarterback Deion Nelson. His pass to Burgess was a perfect throw that Burgess caught in stride over his shoulder. Burgess beat single coverage on the reception and then raced, untouched, down the right sideline for a 59-yard score.
Sideline ref Young played in 1973 and 1974 games for Roselle Park
One of the sideline referees was Bill Young, 68, who is Roselle Park Class of 1975. Young played guard and linebacker on the varsity at Roselle Park his junior and senior seasons of 1973 and 1974 for head coach Bob Lilly.
“We beat Roselle 10-7 my senior year,” Young said. “There are a lot of good memories.”
Roselle defeated Roselle Park, 26-10, Young’s junior year in 1973.
Young has been a football official since 1986 and, in 1981, coached freshman football at Roselle Park, which was the year John Wagner succeeded Geoff Hill as head coach.
“Hill brought in the Delaware Wing-T and Wagner, after going to several coaches’ clinics to learn about it, continued it at Roselle Park,” Young said.
Wagner and former longtime Roselle head coach Lou Grasso Sr. were honored pre-game.
Both led their teams in 25 games each. Wagner, 74, is Roselle Park Class of 1969 and Grasso Sr., 75, is Roselle Class of 1968.
Wagner, the head coach at Roselle Park from 1981 to 2005, had a 14-10-1 record in the game. Grasso Sr., the head coach at Roselle from 1979 to 2003, was 11-13-1. The lone tie was the last one in the series, a 0-0 deadlock at Roselle in 1985.
Wagner is the winningest football coach at Roselle Park with a record there of 150-92-2 (.620). He surpassed Shaw as No. 1 in victories.
Wagner attended 51 of the Roselle vs. Roselle Park games, beginning at age 10, when he was a student at Aldene Elementary School. Wagner was also an assistant coach on Hill’s staff for five seasons, from 1976 to 1980.
Like Wagner, Grasso Sr. was also an assistant at Roselle before he became the head coach. He was an assistant in 1976, 1977 and 1978, before succeeding Kenny Holmes.
Final Roselle vs. Roselle Park football game on Thanksgiving
Roselle Rams (2-9) 07 06 06 00 – 19
Roselle Park Panthers (6-4) 07 13 13 08 – 41
First Quarter:
Roselle Park – Anthony Cianfrocca 21 run, Adrian Caraballo kick (RP 7-0)
12 plays, 65 yards, 6:34 used
Roselle – Raekwon Anderson 5 pass from Deion Nelson, Brandon Gonzalez-Canelo kick (7-7)
6 plays, 69 yards, 3:00 used
Second Quarter:
Roselle Park – Anthony Cianfrocca 1 run, kick failed (RP 13-7)
9 plays, 85 yards, 4:09 used
Roselle – Shymir Burgess 59 pass from Deion Nelson, kick failed (13-13)
Roselle Park – Nick Salas 4 run, Adrian Caraballo kick (RP 20-13)
Third Quarter:
Roselle Park – Maxwell Griffin 39 run, kick failed (RP 26-13)
3 plays, 51 yards, 1:30 used
Roselle – Tyrone Smalls Jr. 3 run, run failed (RP 26-19)
8 plays, 60 yards, 2:44 used
Roselle Park – Maxwell Griffin 25 run, Adrian Caraballo kick (RP 33-19)
3 plays, 29 yards, 1:34 used
Fourth Quarter:
Roselle Park – Maxwell Griffin 45 interception return, Jose Candelaria pass from Anthony Damiano (RP 41-19)
Roselle Park Panthers (6-4)
Sept. 5 (H) Roselle Park 45, Middlesex 13
Sept. 12 (H) Roselle Park 42, South River 0
Sept. 19 (A) Jonathan Dayton 37, Roselle Park 20
Sept. 26 (A) David Brearley 17, Roselle Park 7
Oct. 3 (H) Roselle Park 50, Dunellen 8
Oct. 10 (A) Roselle Park 35, Highland Park 12
Oct. 17 (H) Roselle Park 52, John P. Stevens 6
Oct. 24 (A) Spotswood 26, Roselle Park 16
Nov. 5 (H) Boonton 29, Roselle Park 12
Nov. 27 (H) Roselle Park 41, Roselle 19
Roselle Rams (2-9)
Sept. 5 (A) Spotswood 31, Roselle 8
Sept. 13 (A) Roselle 18, Metuchen 12
Sept. 19 (H) Arthur L. Johnson 34, Roselle 8
Sept. 26 (A) New Providence 41, Roselle 6
Oct. 4 (H) Hillside 20, Roselle 18
Oct. 11 (A) Newark Collegiate 32, Roselle 8
Oct. 17 (A) Delaware Valley 21, Roselle 18
Oct. 24 (A) Roselle 40, John P. Stevens 6
Oct. 29 (A) Millburn 51, Roselle 14
Nov. 13 (H) Henry Snyder 28, Roselle 16
Nov. 27 (A) Roselle Park 41, Roselle 19
Photos by JR Parachini
