Lights Out: The Loss of a Lifetime

I graduated from Bloomfield High School in 1961. I remember how Montclair would beat us year after year on Thanksgiving Day in the ‘50s and ‘60s under the leadership of coaches Clary Anderson and Butch Fortunato. Most painful memory is the ‘57 game. We were undefeated going in. Montclair had twin brothers Richie and Bobby Haynes. Richie was hurt and didn’t play. Montclair beat us as Bobby ran wild. Ended up 3 way state champions Clifton, Montclair and Bloomfield.

I was at that game in 1990. I was Quarterback for the Randolph 83 State Champs. We beat Linden who was favored and much bigger and faster. Why we won. We executed much better and our passing game was ahead of its time. Montclair lost the game period. No conspiracy. Too bad, BTW, it was just a high school football game. My senior year at Penn (played wide receiver) we were 9-0 and Cornell was 8-1. Last game We lost. It happens.

I was checking the weather out on my iPhone and I find this intense story, I’d never heard of being a lifelong resident of New Jersey, I love it. I shared with family and friends, hope they listen. Thanks for the adventure.

I’m just confused…I graduated from Montclair a few years after this and absolutely no one I knew cared about football at all. It just seems like the importance of this game is completely overblown in the town, per my experience. Montclair has way too much going on for the town to be as invested as this podcast seems to make it. Kinda seems like the people who cared the most were all just other former football players. Found the clips of the reporter talking to people through doors who didn’t want to talk about the game (the coach’s wife, everyone on the search for the former QB) particularly cringey to listen to…if they don’t want to talk about it, maybe don’t play that audio.