RAHWAY – There wasn’t much of anything that Rahway couldn’t do offensively vs. Scotch Plains last Saturday afternoon.
The Indians, led by junior quarterback Jeff Bost and junior running back Gabril Gross, scored on their first four drives, averaging 74 yards.
It was text book offense.Rahway received the necessary blocking, with running backs Gross, senior Michael Stradford and senior Justin Becker gaining chunks of yardage.
Then when a pass was called to either side of the field, Bost completed them to Becker, senior tight end Colin Quinn, junior split end Thorne Roberts, Stradford and sophomore Majid Abdur-Rahman.
Bost was outstanding, completing 11-of-13 passes for 146 yards and one touchdown and carrying the ball eight times for a game-high 124 yards and one TD, which was an electrifying 69-yard sprint.
Gross carried 19 times for 117 yards, including two first-half touchdowns where he blitzed his way up the middle for runs of 14 and 34 yards.
Rahway’s defense allowed only one touchdown.
From the second quarter on the game was more like a scrimmage for Rahway as the home team Indians cruised to a dominating 39-14 Mid-State 38 Conference-Mountain Division triumph at Veterans Field.
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Rahway vs. Scotch Plains last four years:
2012: Rahway 39, Scotch Plains 14 – at Rahway
2011: Rahway 24, Scotch Plains 17 – at Scotch Plains
2010: Rahway 19, Scotch Plains 7 – at Rahway
2009: Rahway 34, Scotch Plains 0 – at Rahway
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Rahway, which defeated Scotch Plains for the fourth straight season, improved to 2-1 overall and 2-0 in the Mountain Division, while underdog Scotch Plains slipped to 2-1 overall and also 2-1 in the Mountain.
“Our line really played well, with Stephan Watkis-Davis, Ruben Pierre and Austin Jackson providing the pancakes (blocks),” Bost said. “They just kept pushing.”
After scoring on their first three drives and then defeating division rival Hillside 39-6 at home two weeks ago, Rahway traveled to non-division foe Delaware Valley last week and was upended 27-20.
Determined to bounce back immediately, Rahway was too quick and physical for a Scotch Plains team – which is trying to improve – to handle.
“Our play action was working and we were getting guys open on the flats,” Bost said.
“Their corners were bailing and we took advantage.”
Pierre, a 6-1, 250-pound senior tackle, was also all over the field defensively, bottling up Scotch Plains running backs all day.
At one point late in the first half, Rahway had more points, 26, than Scotch Plains had yardage, 20, which all came on the ground. Scotch Plains only completed one pass in the game, which was for exactly no yardage.
“I think we could have played better,” Pierre said. “They didn’t see us coming.
“We should have wrapped up more.”
Rahway held Scotch Plains to just 113 yards of total offense – all on the ground. Scotch Plains had 39 in the first half and 74 in the second. “We lost to DV, so we had to come out here ready to go again,” Pierre said.
Watkis-Davis came out of the game in the second half with an injury to his left knee.