Lyndhurst football looks to put it all together this season | State of the Program

Consistency is the watchword for Lyndhurst as the football program approaches a century of varsity play.

The Golden Bears’ 2024 season will be the 99th in school history, going back to (and including) the inaugural 1926 campaign.

Lyndhurst made steady improvements through the first six years of coach Rich Tuero Jr.’s tenure, going from 1-9 to the NJIC and North 1, Group 2 champion in 2019.

Last fall, the team captured its first division title since the ’19 season by starting 4-0. But two key injuries in the fourth game – including one to senior linebacker Isaiah Lopez – factored into an 0-5 finish.

“A couple of injuries last year kind of ruined everything for us,” said Tuero, now in his 11th season.

“Consistency is key. That’s obviously [important] every year, but the reality now is, we have a good team. It’s just a matter of staying healthy and keeping consistent with what we’re doing.”

The tradition

In the Golden Bears’ first 98 seasons, they garnered 14 sectional titles awarded by the NJSIAA. Since the start of the playoff era in 1974, they’ve won two (1983, 2019).

The era that featured the most consistent winning took place from 1948-59 under coaches Joe Kania and Eddie Zak. Lyndhurst took home 10 sectional championships in 12 seasons while fluctuating between Groups 2 and 3.

According to The Record archives, there have been two undefeated seasons in program history: 9-0 under Kania in 1949 and 11-0 with coach Arnie Perrone in 1983.

Tuero (48-47-1 record) ranks fourth on Lyndhurst’s all-time win list after Jim Vuono (82), Zak (69) and Joe Cippola (63), the namesake of the team’s home field.

The challenge

Staying healthy is a universal issue in the small-school North Jersey Interscholastic Conference, where seemingly any team is one injury away from being average rather than great.

“Honestly, a lot of the work has already been done,” Tuero said. “All the workouts that we’ve been doing all offseason and taking care of our bodies – that’s really it. And then, obviously, luck… sometimes bad injuries happen, and there’s nothing you can do about it.”

The Golden Bears must replace Lopez and several other seniors. However, there are some important skill-position players returning.

“My quarterback’s a three-year starter [Shawn Bellenger]. My running back’s a three-year starter [Roddy Morinho],” the coach said. “I feel really good about our program. It’s just a matter of us doing what we need to do on our end.”

Expectations

Consistency in the schedule is not always a given in the NJIC, which realigns divisions every two years. This fall, the Golden Bears move from the Liberty to the Colonial, which will include South Bergen rival Becton.

Cresskill/Emerson makes the same move after placing fourth in the Liberty Division last year.

“We’re a contender. I think we’re playing to win the division again,” Tuero said. “Becton’s going to be good. Cresskill is probably going to be there – Kevin [Quinn]’s a great coach, and I never ever count them out.

“Again, it’s just a matter of staying healthy and doing our jobs, and we’ll be OK.”

Schedule

Aug. 29: vs. Becton, 6 p.m.

Sept. 7: at Lodi, 1 p.m.

Sept. 13: vs. Elmwood Park, 6:30 p.m.

Sept. 27: vs. Cresskill/Emerson, 6:30 p.m.

Oct. 5: at Palisades Park/Leonia, 2 p.m.

Oct. 12: at Garfield, 1 p.m.

Oct. 18: TBD

Oct. 25: TBD