It is going to be a dog fight on Friday in Rutherford as a pair of undefeated bulldogs clash for the 2025 North Jersey Interscholastic Conference (NJIC) football crown.
NJIC Meadowlands Division champion, Butler, and NJIC Liberty Division champion, Rutherford, enter Friday’s contest with identical 7-0 records and will look to keep their unblemished seasons alive as they fight not only for a conference championship, but NJSIAA playoff seeding as well.
For Butler, offensively, everything comes down to David Smith. Smith, Butler’s versatile quarterback, leads his team in both passing and rushing, having amassed 952 yards and 13 touchdowns through the air and 778 yards and an additional 13 TDs on the ground so far this season. Additionally, as a passer, Smith is smart with the ball in his hands, as is evidenced by his 13 to four touchdown touchdown-to-interception ratio.
However, Smith is not the only offensive weapon that Butler brings to the gridiron. When Smith is not churning up yards on the ground, Yadi Perez adds an additional option in the run game that opposing defenses have to keep an eye on. So far this season, Perez has carried the pigskin 110 times for 633 yards and six touchdowns. C.J. Bentley, Evan Croker, and Nick Parkinson are Smith’s favorite targets, accounting for 52 receptions, 872 yards, and 12 touchdowns between them.
Defensively, Bentley and Ryder Higbie lead the way for Butler. Bentley and Higbie are turnover machines for Butler. Bentley has two interceptions, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery to his credit, while Higbie has recorded three forced fumbles over the course of the season. Additionally, Higbie is Butler’s leading tackler, with 42 on the season, and has also recorded four sacks.
On the other side of the field, the Rutherford offense is also led by their quarterback, Myles Balchan. Balchan has completed 92 of his 134 pass attempts for 1,246 yards and 12 TDs on the season, indicating that he is more of a passer than his Butler counterpart (Smith has a total of 94 attempts). However, with 80 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns on the year, Balchan can run when needed. Furthermore, much like Smith, Balchan is a smart decision maker, having only thrown three interceptions so far in 2025.
Balchan spreads the wealth when it comes to his receivers. Five different receivers have double-digit catches on the season, but A.J. Nunziato has the most receiving yards this season for Rutherford with 286, and Quinn Weber has the most receptions, with 23, and touchdowns, with five. John Gioia is leading the way on the ground for Rutherford. He has 618 yards on 94 carries and four TDs rushing in 2025.
Defensively, John Kozlik and Jo Jo Marullo lead the way for Rutherford. Kozlik leads Rutherford with 64 tackles, including two for a loss and one sack, while Marullo leads Rutherford with four interceptions. Additionally, Nunziato has eight TFLs so far this season, which leads Rutherford.
Butler claimed the 2024 NJIC Championship and will kick off their title defense at 6 p.m. at Rutherford’s Tryon Field.
