Miguel Betancourt had never played organized football before when he was approached by Kearny head coach John Policano about playing. It turned out, Policano didn’t have to give much of a recruiting pitch to Betancourt, then a freshman.
“I really wanted to play football my freshman year, but I couldn’t because I was new to the registration process,” said Betancourt. “I’ve always wanted to play, but I never got the chance to. When sophomore year came around, I signed up and tried it out.”
Roughly 18 months later, it’s a decision that has paid off in a big way both for Betancourt and the Kardinals.
In his first season on varsity and second of organized football, Betancourt, now a junior, has emerged as Kearny’s leading rusher. Friday night at Cliffside Park, Betancourt rushed 11 times for a career-high 186 yards and three touchdowns in a 28-14 victory.
It marked the fourth 100-plus yard performance in a span of five games for Betancourt, who was selected as The Observer Athlete of the Week.
For the season, Betancourt is averaging an eye-popping 13.3 yards per carry, rushing for 587 yards and eight touchdowns on just 44 carries.
“He was in one of my classes and he told me he was a runner and I asked if he would think about playing football. Sure enough, he came out last year and played JV,” Policano said. “This year, he’s really improved as a running back. He’s now running so hard and so fast that it’s impressive to see.”
Both Policano and Betancourt cited Kearny’s second game this season, a loss against Memorial on Sept. 12 as a turning point for the running back. On that night, Betancourt ran for 164 yards and two touchdowns on just nine carries.
Two weeks later, Betancourt ran the ball eight times for 110 yards and three touchdowns in the Kardinals’ 35-8 win over Ferris. Then on Oct. 3 against Fort Lee, Betancourt ran for 101 yards on nine carries.
“The Memorial game woke me up,” said Betancourt. “That’s where the confidence really started to grow for me.
“The more reps I get, the more confidence I have. I get more confidence in practice, practicing the plays.Then, just using that on game day and trusting the offensive line that those holes are going to be open.”
“Miguel’s strength is hole recognition and being able to cut on a dime,” said Policano. “I think his greatest strength right now and what he’s really developed in the last couple of games is his ability to get to the hole and then make a quick cut and break to the outside or break to the inside. His cutting ability and ability to read the holes has really been great.”
Those skills were on display on Friday night. Betancourt’s breakout game started with a 67-yard rushing touchdown in the first quarter.
Leading 14-6 in the second half, Betancourt again used that sprinter’s speed to help Kearny pull away, first breaking free for a 40-yard TD run, followed by a 27-yard touchdown to make it 28-6.
Performances like Friday show how far Betancourt has come and with more than a year left in his high school career, the belief is there that Betancourt is just scratching the surface of what he’s capable of on the field.
“There definitely is another level for him to go to. I truly believe that,” Policano said. “He’s gotten a taste of success and he wants to do better. I think we are just kind of scratching the surface with him because his confidence level is there.”
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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.)