Northern Highlands and Clifton get lesson in football history

story courtesy of NorthJersey.com

Clifton and Northern Highlands football players got a lesson in football lore Thursday.

Both teams practiced at Tom Benson Stadium and toured the Pro Football Hall of Fame, marveling at the bronze busts, dirty jerseys and grainy videos that tell the game’s history.

Friday, they’ll become a part of North Jersey football legend by being the first two area teams to play at the Hall of Fame with kickoff scheduled for 12:30 p.m.

“It was amazing,” Clifton coach Ralph Cinque said. “Every kid waking around here I would grab, I would say, how awesome is this? Would you ever in your wildest imagination think you’d be playing at the Hall of Fame? It’s such a surreal experience.”

The Mustangs arrived late Wednesday night and went through a quick practice Thursday at the 23,000 seat stadium tucked just behind the Hall of Fame. Cinque described the practice as ‘crisp’ and said his team went through game-day situations.

Northern Highlands practiced Wednesday morning in North Jersey at 6 a.m. then got on the bus to come to Ohio. Senior cornerback Liam Roy said the bus ride was long, but enjoyable and that much of the ride was spent playing the game “flats,” among teammates.

But nothing compared to the Hall of Fame itself.

“I thought it was awesome, we did a locker room tour, where they have holograms of coaches, like Vince Lombardi give halftime speeches and that just gave me chills,” Roy said. “I have been to the baseball Hall of Fame and that has stuck with me, so I think being here will definitely stick with me since we’re also playing here.”

The game is certainly important to both teams, but both programs wanted to build in time for the players and coaches to enjoy what the Hall of Fame has to offer.

After touring the museum and its deep treasure trove of exhibits, the teams met at the Events Center and had dinner together (Italian food, natch) and heard from Mike Munoz, the Hall’s Vice President of Youth Football and Character Development, and Eric Bechtel, the founder of IdeaQuest.

Munoz is the son of NFL Hall of Famer Anthony Munoz (Mike actually gave his father’s enshrinement speech) and was a standout at the University of Tennessee. Injuries derailed his pro aspirations.

Munoz talked about the joys playing football gave him, and how the players in the room should enjoy this opportunity presented before them.

“I hope they don’t take it for granted, but I know they’ve already had an unbelievable experience and will have an unbelievable experience when they play,” said Munoz.

As part of Munoz’ speech, he had private messages recorded by NFL Hall of Famers John Randle, Steve Largent and his father Anthony detailing their memories about high school football for both teams.

“When Eric told me about the opportunity for these teams, I just kind of laughed,” he said. “What an unbelievable opportunity for these guys to come to Canton, because I know what it meant for me to come here and to just experience what we have here.”

The Hall of Fame is undergoing what is trumpeted as a nearly 900-million dollar renovation plan set to coincide with the NFL’s centennial season in 2020. Some have described it as NFL Disney, with a hotel and interactive exhibits planned.

North Jersey football teams have frequently traveled out of state to find suitable competition, most notably (and successfully) the large non-public schools. Just last week, Bergen Catholic and St. Joseph Regional played in Georgia. However, this is not just something limited to those schools. Public schools with the desire to raise funds and plan can also make this happen. Wayne Hills has traveled out of state three years in a row (including a trip to Canton last year). NV/Demarest has played in Virginia. River Dell played in Pennsylvania last year.

There is a balance on these trips – the schools want to succeed – but also provide an educational opportunity if possible. The Hall of Fame might be wise to try to position itself more as a destination in that regard. (How many youth baseball teams play in Cooperstown every summer?)

This is a first for Northern Highlands and Clifton in many ways. First trip to Ohio. First time playing each other. Only one team can win Friday, but both are expected to carry the memories of this trip for a lifetime.