Not a whole lot went according to plan a year ago for North Arlington’s football team as it suffered a mind-numbing 11 season-ending injuries while losing its first eight games.
But in what was a dark cloud of a season, which ended with a promising 27-0 victory over Roselle Park, came a silver lining.With many underclassmen forced into prominent varsity action a year earlier than anticipated, a still-young Vikings team enters 2025 having gained valuable experience and an understanding of what it takes to succeed.
“A lot of people say it could have been a downfall, but it’s also a beauty because a lot of these guys had to play early, right?” said second year head coach Ali Beh. “The good thing is that those guys got playing experience so now they understand the sense of urgency. For us right now, the biggest thing is just really how we can be more consistent in the little things.”
Of all the injuries from a year ago, perhaps the toughest was when North Arlington lost junior quarterback Shane Crudele (5-9, 165) for seven games before returning for the season finale. The dual-threat signal caller is back at starter and ready to prove himself to be one of the NJIC’s better quarterbacks.
“This is his team from Day One,” Beh said. “He has the keys to be able to lead this offense and to be able to give us hope.
“He’s faster, he’s stronger, he’s more confident, he’s taking charge and I have all the confidence in Shane to lead this team.”
Sophomore Jason Arocho, who started several games in Crudele’s place before suffering a season-ending injury himself, is once again the backup.
Junior Ethan Martinez (6-1, 180), who led the team in receptions a year ago with 17, is a returning starter at wide receiver and primed for a big season after finishing strong a year ago. Junior Aidan Rafferty (6-3, 170) is also set to start at receiver with Arocho also set to see time out of the slot.
At running back, North Arlington welcomes back Eli Gonzalez (5-7, 170), who ran for 112 yards before suffering a torn ACL in the second game of last season. He’ll be joined by junior Julian Castanheira, who will take on more of a traditional halfback role after starting last season as a fullback before taking a large role in the running game late.
“We expect Eli and Julian to be that one-two punch,” said Beh.”The two of them are going to be able to make our offense run.”
Whoever is carrying the ball, they’ll be looking to follow the lead of senior left tackle Jacob Soler (6-3, 265). Next to Soler are two more returning starters, junior Ryan Kropp (5-10, 200) at left guard and senior James Kyratzis at center.
On the right side of the line, Adrian Rivera, is a promising sophomore at 6-foot-5, 280 pounds at tackle and senior Dominick Ginet (6-2, 240) is expected to start at guard.
Senior Jake Rodrigues is the starting tight end.
On defense, the back seven looks to be the strength for the Vikings with Castanheira serving as the leader of that unit at middle linebacker. Senior Brady Kolano is a returning starter at one outside linebacker spot with Rafferty set to start on the opposite side. Sophomore Damien Valentine and freshman Silas Perez will also see time at linebacker
The secondary received a big boost with the return of junior Ronald Rosario, who transferred home from DePaul, set to start at one safety, while senior Andre Rincon is set to start at the other safety spot.
“The style of play that Rosario brings, the toughness and the grittiness that he brings is the type of defense that we want,” said Beh. “Having him just bring that experience and bring that toughness elevates the defense a lot.”
Senior Josh Montero and junior Hunter Mansfield are set to start at the corners with Martinez poised to see extensive time as well on passing downs.
On the defensive line Soler, who had 40 tackles, including a team-best 14 for loss anchors the front along with fellow returning starters Kropp and Kryatzis. Freshmen Michael Osborne and Jonathan Paulino are also vying for time on the defensive line.
Rodrigues will serve as the team’s kicker and punter.
North Arlington, which is celebrating its 90th season of football, opens up at home on Thursday, August 28 against Manchester Regional with road games at Pompton Lakes and Glen Rock the following two weeks.
After going 1-8 overall and winless in the NJIC a year ago, Beh knows that plenty of people are likely overlooking the Vikings. Now it’s up to this group to prove them wrong.
“We’re expecting everybody to write us off and that’s fine,” said Beh. “We’re really just focused on us. I strongly believe enthusiasm and effort can go a long way, and if the guys are consistent, we may be able to surprise some teams.”
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Jason Bernstein | Observer Sports Writer
Jason Bernstein joined The Observer as its sports writer in March 2022, following the retirement of Jim Hague. He has a wealth of sports-writing experience, including for NJ Advance Media (nj.com, The Jersey Journal, The Star-Ledger.)