After losing to Rutherford the previous week, the varsity football team faced an uphill battle when they traveled to Hawthorne to take on the 13^th ranked Cubs. After allowing a touchdown five minutes into the game and finding itself down 7-0, how Glen Rock responded said a lot about its team.

“After losing week one, and then down by a touchdown just minutes into the game, we easily could have quit. But we didn’t,” senior lineman Zach Mulcahy said.

One of the biggest improvements from week one to week two was seen in quarterback Matt Schlett (’17).

Schlett, who completed 41% of his passes in week 1, came out more poised this week as he completed 61% of his passes. But it was what Schlett and running back Ryan Dooner (’17) did on the ground that truly led Glen Rock to its 41-18 victory.

Schlett and Dooner combined for 293 rushing yards and six touchdowns, including a 92-yard run by Dooner late in the fourth quarter that sealed the victory for Glen Rock. Schlett had touchdown rushes of one yard, 28 yards, three yards, and then 12 yards en route to a victory.

Glen Rock’s defense performed better as well, limiting the big play potential of Hawthorne’s dual-threat quarterback, Nick Foschini. This was a key vocal point leading up to the game. Many Panthers were comparing him to Michael Vick, without the passing proficiency.

“We knew all he really did was run the ball, so we put all our energy into stopping the run which was really key to our victory,” Mulcahy said.

Senior linebacker Dylan Tarleton took control of the defense against Hawthorne. Tarleton recorded five tackles as well as two sacks, which aided in keeping Hawthorne’s high powered offense under control.

This is the third straight year that Glen Rock has beaten Hawthorne, but no win could’ve been more vital than this one. Glen Rock hasn’t started 0-2 since before 2007.  It won’t this year, either.

Looking ahead to next week, Glen Rock will take on Pompton Lakes (2-0) at home. Pompton Lakes has averaged 51.5 points per game over the last two weeks and they look to continue their offensive efficiency against a Glen Rock defense that lacks depth.