Pope,Tejada Play Well for Bengals in Football Season Opener, but Team Comes up Short at Newark Central

For a season opener, there were some bright spots.

But unfortunately, a number of injuries put a damper on Bloomfield High's first football game of the 2024 season. Head coach Mike Carter's squad held leads on three different occasions, but Newark Central used a strong fourth quarter to defeat the Bengals, 27-15, on Aug. 29, at Shabazz Stadium, in Newark.

Bloomfield will play its home opener on Sept. 6, when it welcomes arch rival Nutley. Please note, the game starts at 6:30 p.m, That will also be the starting time for all of Bloomfield's four regular season home games in 2024.

Bloomfield had taken the opening kickoff, but just three plays in, lost its starting quarterback, James Fields, a senior, to what appears to be a serious injury. Jeremy Tejada, a junior, replaced Fields, and played well, showing good speed, and a strong arm.

The Bengals led, 2-0, at halftime after Kalu Ukoha sacked a Newark Central runner, in his end zone, in the second quarter.

But the second half took on a more offensive showing, as Newark Central gained its first lead, 6-2, on a touchdown in the third quarter. Tejada answered quickly, however, when he took a snap on the ensuing drive and ran 81 yards for a score, giving Bloomfield an 9-6 lead following Gabe Sanon's point-after kick.

Before the end of the third quarter, Central regained the lead, 14-9, on a 3-yard run by Jahsyn Reid, his second of three touchdowns in the game, followed by a successful 2-point conversion.

Bloomfield would take the lead, again, 15-14, in the fourth quarter on a scoring yard run by Anthony Pope, but Central would take the lead for good on Reid's third touchdown, to make it 20-15, then iced it late in the fourth quarter on a scoring run by Zahir Wilson.

Carter was happy with his team's effort, despite the loss. Injuries were certainly a factor, as a number of starters were banged up, as well as other players battling severe leg cramps. Early season high school games in August can often produce leg cramps, as players get accustomed to playing in full pads on warmer nights. The weather for this opener was rather cool, but the players, on both teams, did have problems with cramping.

"I haven't seen a game like that in a long time," said Carter afterward. "We lost so many guys, and I can only hope most of them will be okay. I was really happy with our effort, we played hard, and that, to me, was important. We've got some young kids who will the get opportunity now to step up and get more playing time, with the injuries we suffered on Thursday. Again, I'm hoping some of the players can return quicker. If I was coaching baseball, I'd tell you we lost our pitcher, second baseman and shortstop in one game."

While injuries were a factor, the coach did note that Bloomfield had plenty of scoring opportunities. Six times, the team was in the 'red zone', threatening to score, but only accounted for two touchdowns.

"We have to take advantage of those situations," said Carter. "It's not like we weren't there, we were. But we have to finish. Again, I really liked our intensity and effort. We can build on that."

Tejada rushed for 118 yards in the game, Pope had 83 yards on the ground and a touchdown. Pope and Chris Guerrero led the way with tackles on defense.

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