One great season Emerson football team given proclamation by city

This has been a year of firsts for the Bulldogs, the Emerson High School football team in Union City. The team took home what was the school’s first Hudson County Interscholastic Athletic Association American Conference title since 1987. They also won the first-ever state playoff and were the first team to advance to a state championship game, the first state game to be played in Union City.

Although the team was not able to bring home the state championship this year, Mayor Brian Stack and the Board of Commissioners could not overlook the team’s accomplishments this season. The team was given a proclamation by the city at the Jan. 7 Board of Commissioners meeting.

“The people of the City of Union City are proud of our champions and the coaches and school officials who helped this team distinguish itself in the legendary sports history of Hudson County,” reads the proclamation.

During the meeting, Stack and Commissioners Tina Yandolino and Michael Leggiero, all Emerson alumni, reiterated this pride.

“We have kids that are meshing together. There is good chemistry there,” said Emerson Athletic Director Leonard Introna.

“These are very respectful kids,” added Head Coach Eddie Marinez. “We all treat each other like family.”

Three members of the team also received trophies for their achievements during the longstanding rivalry game against Union Hill on Thanksgiving, where the team officially won the HCIAA American Conference Championship.

These players were Junior Manauris Arias, who was named Defensive Most Valuable Player for the game, Senior Carlos Castillo, named Offensive MVP, and Senior Miguel Merrick, who was named the game’s MVP.

One great season

Although the Bulldogs had a rough start, losing their first two games to Memorial and St. Peter’s Prep, the team managed to turn the season around and make Union City history.

Perhaps the season’s first milestone was when the Bulldogs defeated Hoboken in October, marking Hoboken’s first Hudson County loss since 1993 and the first time Emerson beat Hoboken since 1987.

However, Marinez was not surprised about this win.

“All week long, we were calling the game ‘closing the gap,'” said Marinez to Reporter columnist Jim Hague after that game. “A few years ago Emerson lost 66-0 to Hoboken, my first year as coach we lost 32-13. Then last year we lost in overtime. So we were closing the gap.”

The teams next great win came when they defeated Teaneck in the first round of the NJSIAA Northern New Jersey Section I Group IV.

“We’ve made the playoffs maybe seven or eight times,” said Introna. “But we’ve never been successful. We’ve never won a game.”

This team then went on to win the next round advancing them into the championship game being played in Roosevelt Stadium. However, despite the home field advantage, the team lost to Passaic County Tech 40-8. “We have never been able to go as deep as this team did,” said Introna. “This team set a lot of records this year.”

Looking ahead

Although the 2001 Bulldog team was heavily dominated by senior players, including standout running back Miguel Merrick and quarterback Joan “J.Q.” Quezada, Marinez is confident about the 2002 season.

“We took everyone by surprise,” said Marinez about the team since he took over three years ago. “We went from being the hunters to being the hunted. We are one of the top five teams in the county and next season isn’t going to be any different.”

“Marinez works with the kids,” said Introna. “He has them believing in themselves. I think we are in a pretty good spot [for next season].”

Marinez said that many of the team’s seniors are looking to continue to play ball in college.

“These are not just kids that want to continue to play football, these are kids who want to continue to win at football. They want to go on to schools with good programs,” said Marinez.

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