Tag: Kaj Sanders

Preview: Can No. 1 Bergen Catholic win NJ’s Non-Public A Playoff Bracket?

NJ’s Non-Public Group A section playoffs begin on Friday. Can the Crusaders capture their third consecutive section title?

New Jersey’s Non-Public Group A section playoffs begin on Friday, with No. 1 Bergen Catholic getting a first-round bye.

Rutgers football has three 2024 recruits within New Jersey’s Non-Public A Playoff Bracket, with Kaj Sanders (Running back / Defensive back) playing for Bergen Catholic (Oradell, New Jersey) and Gabriel Winowich (Running back) and AJ Surace (Quarterback) playing for Notre Dame (Lawrenceville, NJ).

Heading into the Non-Public A Section Playoffs, the Crusaders (8-1) have beaten five out of 13 schools in the bracket (St. Joseph Regional (Montvale), Don Bosco Prep, Seton Hall Prep, St. Peter’s Prep, and Paramus Catholic). Bergen Catholic is seeking its third consecutive Non-Public A Section Title and will have a high chance of capturing this season’s title.

When the playoffs kick off on Friday, No. 8 Paul VI (Haddonfield, New Jersey) will face off against No. 9 Notre Dame, with the winner playing No. 1 Bergen Catholic in the second round.

 

Notre Dame is 10-0 and is led by Rutgers’ top recruits, quarterback AJ Surace and running back Gabriel Winowich. Winowich is ranked No. 3, and Surace is the No. 9 prospect in New Jersey, according to 247Sports.

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On the other hand, Paul VI is 7-1 and is led by wide receiver Tyree Roane, who has nine touchdowns on the season. Roanne is ranked No. 88 in New Jersey with his nine recorded touchdowns.

NJ Division Non-Public Group A High School Football Rankings

Power Rankings are according to MaxPrep Sports

No. School Record Power Rating Strength of Schedule Rating
1 Bergen Catholic 8-1 59.90 40.8
2 Delbarton (Morristown) 8-1 54.00 29.0
3 St. Joseph Regional (Montvale) 6-3 48.70 37.3
4 Donovan Catholic (Toms River) 7-2 40.10 26.1
5 St. Augustine Prep (Richland) 7-2 39.90 22.0
6 Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey) 4-5 39.60 41.3
7 Pope John XXIII (Sparta) 7-3 35.50 22.6
8 Seton Hall Prep (West Orange) 3-6 30.90 39.8
9 St. Joseph (Metuchen) 7-2 25.90 8.4
10 St. Peter’s Prep (Jersey City) 1-8 24.20 45.6
11 Paramus Catholic (Paramus) 3-7 23.40 32.4
12 Paul VI (Haddonfield) 7-1 23.30 1.5
13 Notre Dame (Lawrenceville) 9-0 16.60 -10.7
14 St. John-Vianney (Holmdel) 3-7 3.40 11.4
15 Hudson Catholic (Jersey City) 0-6 -3.80 8.1
16 Camden Catholic (Cherry Hill) 2-6 -15.60 1.2

 

Rutgers 2024 recruit Kaj Sanders recorded two touchdowns in Week 8

Rutgers 2024 recruit Kaj Sanders recorded seven carries for 116 yards and two touchdowns, lifting the Crusaders past the Marauders in Week 8. 

On Friday, Rutgers football recruit Kaj Sanders recorded two more rushing touchdowns, totaling nine touchdowns on the season. The four-star prospect totaled seven carries for 116 yards and two rushing touchdowns, lifting Bergen Catholic  (7-1, 4-0) past St. Peters Prep (1-7, 0-4) 37-7 to improve their record to 7-1.

Sanders averaged 16.6 yards per carry and ripped off a 42-yard rushing touchdown in the first quarter to give the Crusaders a 7-0 lead. Also, the future Scarlet Knight registered a 39-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter to extend the Crusaders’ lead to 28-0.

On the defensive side of the ball, the defensive back added one solo tackle on Friday, totaling 31 tackles on the season.

The Oradell, New Jersey, native has recorded a touchdown in seven of eight games this season. Through Week 8, Sanders has registered 77 carries for 645 yards and nine rushing touchdowns, averaging 8.4 yards per attempt.

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The 2024 prospect is ranked No. 8 in New Jersey and No. 59 in the nation among his recruiting class, according to 247Sports.

Sanders and the Crusaders will finish their regular season schedule against the Paramus Catholic Paladins (3-6, 1-3) on Friday before the state playoffs.

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How did Rutgers’ four-star recruit Kaj Sanders perform in Week 7?

Kaj Sanders and the Bergen Catholic Crusaders defeated St. Joseph Regional 28-23 to take over first place in their conference standings.

On Sunday, the Bergen Catholic Crusaders (6-1, 3-0) defeated the St. Joseph Regional Green Knights (5-2, 2-1) 28-23 to take over first place in New Jersey’s Super-United Red Football standings. Rutgers’ four-star 2024 recruit Kaj Sanders led the way for the Crusaders in Week 7, guiding Bergen Catholic to their sixth victory in the 2023 season.

While playing against the Green Knights, Sanders recorded 21 carries for 168 rushing yards and one touchdown, averaging eight yards per carry. The Oradell, New Jersey, native logged season-highs in carries and rushing yards in his Week 7 matchup against St. Joes. Also, Sanders registered the game-winning touchdown, recording a 26-yard touchdown rush, giving the Crusaders their final points.

After Week 7, Sanders has logged 70 carries with 529 rushing yards and seven touchdowns, averaging 7.6 yards per attempt. The 6-foot-1, 185-pound athletic prospect has logged 42 points, scoring a touchdown in Bergen Catholic’s first seven games. The future Scarlet Knight has averaged 75.6 rushing yards per game, leading the Crusaders in rushing yards.

On defense, the highly recruited defensive back recorded four tackles in Week 7 (three solo and one assist), improving his total tackles to 30 on the season. According to 247Sports, Sanders is ranked the No. 8 prospect in New Jersey and No. 59 among safeties in his 2024 recruiting class.

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Sanders and the Crusaders will head to Jersey City, New Jersey, to take on St. Peters Prep (1-6, 0-3) in a conference showdown on Friday.

 

Rutgers recruit Kaj Sanders lifted the Crusaders past the Spartans

Rutgers football 2025 recruit Kaj Sanders led the rushing attack for Bergen Catholic, defeating DePaul Catholic 31-13 in a Week 5 victory.

On Saturday, the Bergen Catholic Crusaders defeated the DePaul Catholic Spartans 31-13 in a Week 5 victory. The Crusaders, led by Rutgers 2025 recruit Kaj Sanders, jumped out to a 10-0 lead in the first quarter and didn’t look back.

Rutgers four-star recruit led the team in rushing, recording ten carries for 125 yards and a touchdown. He averaged 12.5 yards per carry, logging a 72-yard carry, his longest of the game.

Heading into Week 6, the senior running back has recorded 49 carries for 361 yards and six touchdowns, averaging 7.4 yards per carry. Also, Sanders has added two receptions, recording 18 receiving yards. According to MaxPreps Sports, Sanders is ranked No. 95 in New Jersey after recording his sixth touchdown in Week 5.

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Sanders’s 361 rushing yards rank him No. 99 in New Jersey and No. 9 in the Non-Public Group A Division heading into his matchup against St. Joseph Regional (Montvale, New Jersey).

On Saturday, Bergen Catholic’s (5-1, 2-0) matchup against the Green Knights (5-1, 2-0) would be for first place in the Super-United Red League.

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Sanders is ranked No. 3 in his league for rushing yards, with St. Joe’s running backs Terrance Sumter (No. 2 – 373 yards) and Yasin Willis (No. 1 – 486 yards) sitting in front of him. Sumter has 12 more rushing yards than Sanders, and the future Scarlet Knight will look to pass Sumter with a solid Week 6 performance.

Sports physicist breaks down four-star Kaj Sanders speed as ‘an elite level on the high school gridiron’

Dr. John Eric Goff analyzes the top speed shown by four-star Kaj Sanders.

Kaj Sanders is fast. According to a sports physicist, the Rutgers football commit could develop truly elite speed in college

John Eric Goff, PhD, is a professor of physics at Lynchburg and one of the top experts in the world on motion in sports. He is the author of Gold Medal Physics, which tackles the subjects of motion and physics and sports.

So when Dr. Goff was asked to calculate Sanders in motion on the football field, he not only came up with a pretty clear conclusion (the four-star athlete is pretty, pretty fast) but that there is even more upside to his game.

Using a video posted over the weekend of Sanders in action and hitting his top speed in the open field, Dr. Goff came up with some interesting numbers.

First, he looked at what speed Sanders achieved in this weekend’s game. Then, he gave a window for how that speed can develop.

“Hitting a top speed of about 20.8 mph, Kaj Sanders has reached an elite level on the high-school gridiron,” Dr. Goff said.

“As he develops over the next couple of years into his college playing career, he could reach speeds in the 21 mph – 23 mph range that is reserved for the best of the best in college and in the NFL.”

 

Sanders picked the Scarlet Knights from a final five that also included North Carolina, South Carolina and Wisconsin,

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He is a consensus top 10-player in New Jersey and is a four-star according to On3 and Rivals.

Where does Rutgers’ 2024 recruit Kaj Sanders rank among New Jersey’s 2023 stat leaders?

Rutgers football’s four-star recruit Kaj Sanders is performing well this season. Where does Sanders rank among New Jersey’s stat leaders?

Rutgers football’s four-star recruit Kaj Sanders is putting together a solid senior season through Week 4 of the 2023 season. The Bergen Catholic Crusader has recorded four rushing touchdowns with 175 yards on 29 carries. Sanders is averaging 6.03 yards per carry after his Week 4 38-0 victory over Seton Hall Prep (N.J.) (0-4, 0-1).

Where does the future Scarlet Knight rank among New Jersey’s stat leaders?

According to Max Prep Sports, Sanders is ranked No. 81 among the touchdown leaders in New Jersey with four touchdowns through Week 4. Within his division, NJ Non-Public Group A, Sanders is ranked No. 11, averaging 43.8 rushing yards a game.

In total rushing yards, the 2024 recruit is ranked No. 145 throughout the state with 175 rushing yards and is No. 97 in total points with 24. Within his league, Super-United Red, Sanders is ranked No. 5 for rushing yards and total points.

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Sanders is not ranked among the defensive stat categories on the state level, recording 18 total tackles. His 18 tackles put him at No. 28 inside the NJ Non-Public Group A division and No. 10 inside the Super-United Red conference.

After Week 4, the Crusaders (3-1, 1-0) are tied with St. Joesph Regional (3-1, 1-0) for first place within the Super-United Red. Sanders and the Crusaders will travel to Ramsey (N.J.) to take on their rivals, the Don Bosco Prep Ironmen (1-3, 0-1) for their Week 5 matchup.

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Rutgers football: A pair of four-star commits visit for game against Temple

Rutgers football hosted several prominent recruits on Saturday night.

PISCATAWAY, N.J. — There was a healthy turnout of recruits for Saturday night’s game against Temple, this despite massive and violent thunderstorms that struck the area two hours before the game.

Rutgers football currently has the No. 34 recruiting class in the nation. It features several four-star recruits, including defensive back Kaj Sanders and tight end K.J. Duff.

Sanders and Duff were in attendance on Saturday night.

Bold denotes a player committed to Rutgers. Below are the recruits who were att Rutgers football for the game:

Kory Brown

Eidan Buchanan

Renick Dorilas

[autotag]K.J. Duff[/autotag]

[autotag]Kaj Sanders[/autotag]

[autotag]A.J. Surace[/autotag]

[autotag]Gabriel Winowich[/autotag]

Last week, a huge contingent of players were at SHI Stadium for Rutgers to see the win over Northwestern. Miss the list last week? Here it is.

Interesting that Duff, Sanders, Surace and Winowich have been att both games this year.

Bold denotes a Rutgers football commit:

 

Rutgers four-star recruit Kaj Sanders performed well in Week 2

Rutgers’ 2024 recruit Kaj Sanders performed well in his week two matchup against Iona Prep (NY), adding his third touchdown of the season.

Rutgers football’s 2024 recruit Kaj Sanders performed well in his Week 1 matchup against Iona Prep (NY), showing once again why he is one of the top recruits in the nation.

Sanders and the Bergen Catholic Crusaders (2-0) defeated the Iona Prep Gaels (0-1) on Saturday.

The future Scarlet Knight recorded a two-yard touchdown run in the second quarter to put the Crusaders ahead 24-0. Throughout week one and two, Sanders has recorded 14 carriers for 93 yards and three touchdowns. The four-star recruit has averaged 6.6 yards per carry in the young season to go along with 18 points.

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On the defensive end, Sanders recorded five tackles in Bergen Catholic’s blow-out win. The defensive back now has nine tackles (two solo and seven assists) in the first two weeks of the 2023 season.

According to Rivals, Sanders is the No.4 prospect in New Jersey and nationally is the No. 34 defensive back in the 2024 class  Sanders and several other 2024 recruits attended Rutgers on Sunday to see a 24-7 win over Northwestern.

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On Friday, Sanders and the Crusaders will head to Hollywood, Florida, to face the Chaminade-Madonna Lions (2-0) for their week three matchup. The Lions are coming off a week two victory against Cardinal Gibbons (Fort Lauderdale, Florida).

 

Rutgers football: A big recruiting weekend and a possible sell-out for the season opener

Rutgers football is hosting some bigtime recruits on Sunday.

PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Rutgers football will be hosting a number of top-tier recruits and commits this weekend for their season opener. It is an impressive haul for the Big Ten program.

The tturnout is especially impressive given that Rutgers is playing on Labor Day weekend and on a Sunday afternoon, not exacttly the usual time slot for college football. But Sunday’s impressive number of commits and recruits will give Rutgers a chance to showcase their development and growth under head coach Greg Schiano.

Sunday’s game against Norhtwestern (12:00 PM ET, CBS) is trending towards a sell-out. 

Here is an updated list of the recruits who are expected to attend Sunday’s season opener for Rutgers football. Each player is linked to either their recruiting profile or more pertainent information.

Bold denotes a Rutgers football committ:

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How did Rutgers 2024 recruit Kaj Sanders do in his week one matchup against Red Bank Catholic?

How did Rutgers four-star recruit Kaj Sanders perform in Bergen Catholic’s week one 24-6 victory over Red Bank Catholic?

On Friday, No. 1 ranked Bergen Catholic defeated No. 9 Red Bank Catholic 24-6 to capture their first victory of the 2023 season. Rutgers’ 2024 recruit Kaj Sanders led the way for the Crusaders, scoring two touchdowns.

Sanders, a four-star recruit and senior running back, recorded nine carries for a team-high 81 yards and two rushing touchdowns. The Rutgers commit scored on runs of 39 and 11 yards to help give the Crusader a 24-6 victory.

Sanders’s first touchdown came in the second quarter (7:15), where he broke a 39-yard touchdown down the left sideline to give Bergen Catholic a 10-0 lead. His second touchdown came in the third quarter, where he scored an 11-yard rushing touchdown to give the Crusaders their final points of the day (24-0). The future Scarlet Knight brought some electricity to the running game, leading the way for an easy victory.

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Sanders showcased his talents in week one, breaking several would-be-tacklers in the open field. After contact, the 2024 prospect kept his legs moving, showing off his game-breaking speed and strength.

On defense, the Crusaders gave up six points on the day, shutting out the Caseys and holding them to just two first downs in the first half.

Sanders and the Crusaders will prepare for their week two matchup on Saturday, September 2, as they host Iona Prep (New York) at 1 p.m.

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