By Scott Stump - Senior Editor
E-mail: stump@digitalsports.com

     With the scrimmage portion of the preseason kicking off the past few days, I have some reports on a few teams, as well as a few more camp reports.
     Before I get to that, I can't get over this story about this 9-year-old baseball kid. That's old news. They used to call that the "Scott Stump rule'' back in Shrewsbury Little League in the 1980s. All joking aside, where are we going as a society when stuff like this happens? Thank God that kind of stuff didn't catch on a few years ago, or Knowshon Moreno would've been banned from the Shore Conference after his 420-yard rushing game against Neptune as a junior.
     Secondly, I am beyond happy that the Jets decided that there will be no personal seat licenses for fans with season tickets in the upper tier, of which I am one. That means no $4,000 fee, just the usual high prices  to go watch a team that inevitably has me considering leaping off that same upper tier after the game, but I still love it.
     I need the NFL and college seasons to start because the Mets' bullpen is going to put me in an early grave. Yet I keep watching, because it's like a Backstreet Boys video or a Dane Cook movie - it's such a train wreck that I'm almost fascinated, and I can't avert my eyes.
     Here are a few other quick links:

• Here is a story that certainly is a dose of reality in the way times are changing for high school sports.
• While star tight end Travis Beckum has received a lot of attention at Wisconsin, former Brick Memorial star Garrett Graham could end up forming a formidable tight end tandem with him for the Badgers.
  
• The New York Times weighed in with its Knowshon Moreno piece.
  

     Now, on to the camp stuff, which I've broken into a bunch of quick-hit segments. This stuff is either from what I witnessed or from senior staff writer Bob Badders, as well as reports from coaches. Since I am getting ready for the season as well with the camera, I even got you a few video highlights from the Raritan-Monmouth scrimmage to whet your appetite for the upcoming season. Check out the one-handed grab by Monmouth wideout Devaughn Norfleet.

     ---Lacey edged Toms River North in a scrimmage on Monday between two of the top returning teams in the Shore. First off, when it comes to scores of scrimmages, I really don't care that much. Two years ago, Toms River North blasted Lacey in a scrimmage and Lacey went 12-0. Last year, Lacey beat Toms River North, and the Mariners went 12-0. The year Andrew Mandeville and Raritan went 12-0, they lost to Middletown North in a scrimmage. So that's all you need to know about that.
        Toms River North had some top players nicked up with minor injuries who were kept out for precautionary reasons. The monstrous running tandem of Lacey's Tom Rickmers and Justin Pandorf looked as formidable as ever, and the new group of offensive linemen looked solid. There just seems to be an endless assembly line of quality offensive linemen at Lacey. Two quarterbacks rotated for Lacey and still have more to refine, but it's still early.
        One player whose speed stood out was Lacey senior wideout/defensive back Andrew Burt. He ran down speedy Toms River North wideout Pat Szukics from behind after Szukics took a pass over the middle and appeared to be on his way to the end zone before Burt caught him. New Toms River North quarterback Nick Zaza showed off a strong arm and should have some good wideouts, including Szukics, to hit the longball with this year.
        A scrimmage you want to check out on Friday is Toms River North at Middletown South at 10 a.m., which is between potentially the top two teams in the preseason rankings. The Mariners are still a little banged up, but that is a scrimamge with a lot of star power in it. I also have more on Toms River North's camp below.

     ---Wall topped Middletown North in a scrimmage on Tuesday, and Wall tailback Blaze Caponegro looked great. He broke about a 75-yard touchdown and had a few other long runs. As for Middletown North, the Lions have changed offensive philosophies, moving away from the flexbone to more of an I-formation attack to get the ball more in the hands of senior tailback Uly Gibson. Also, quarterback Joe Dickey showed good arm strength and touch on his passes, as the Lions look to get the ball downfield a little more vertically than in the run-heavy flexbone they have run the past few years.
        A scrimmage you may want to check out on Thursday is Middletown North at St. John Vianney at 11 a.m. It is expected to be played under regular game conditions rather than 10 plays for each side and then rotating, so it's a good chance to get a glimpse of the Lions' new-look offense and St. John Vianney's strong backfield of Chris Mayo and Charles Davis.

    ---I watched the Monmouth-Raritan scrimmage on Tuesday that was won by Monmouth because I wanted to check out a Raritan team ready to come back from a 2-8 season and a Monmouth team I've heard some buzz about.
      Monmouth coach Sal Spampanato has raided the basketball team for some additional good athletes. That #4 who raced into the end zone for a 5-yard run and one of Monmouth's two touchdowns against the Rockets was none other than one of the top returning point guards in the Shore, Anthony Gibson, who will be playing at tailback. Also, senior Austin Whitehurst, another top basketball player and a good all-around athlete, will be at wideout and defensive back. Brent Shelton, another basketball player, is back for his second season on the football team. Part of me wonders how this will affect Monmouth on the hardwood, where the Falcons are expected to be one of the Shore's top teams in the winter.
      Spampanato even said the team tried to bring in Joe Willman, a 6-foot-6, 220-pound senior center who has basketball offers from several Division I-A programs. Spampanato figured his QBs could just put the ball up there down the field and Willman could go up and get it, but Willman is staying put on the hardwood, which is easily understandable considering that's where his future lies.
     The Falcons rotated quarterbacks Justin Arglyan, a junior, and last year's starter, senior Anthony Fruncillo. Fruncillo is probably the biggest quarterback in the Shore, as he is about 6-4 and 215 pounds, and he also was split wide on plays when Arglyan was at QB. One player to definitely watch for Monmouth is wideout Devaughn Norfleet, who was a starter last year and scored one touchdown on a long play early on and also made a great one-handed catch on a deep throw by Arglyan that set up the other touchdown.
     As for Raritan, the Rockets' offense looks improved. Junior tailback Jesse Raymond was getting some hard yards up the middle against a big Monmouth front that includes promising defensive end Joey Ramirez, while junior wideout Bennett Jackson caught a few passes and looks to be a playmaker down the field. Quarterback Mark Stancati showed flashes of playmaking ability and just needs to be more consistent.
     Defensively, it was great to see the return of junior safety T.J. Murray, a returning starter who is back after having reconstructive ACL surgery that ended his sophomore season. He had two interceptions on the day, including one he returned about 70 yards for Raritan's lone touchdown. Junior defensive tackle Carlo Caponetta also had a few nice plays in the backfield (that's him greeting Fruncillo in the backfield in the teaser photo for this blog).

    ---Bob Badders stopped by the tri-scrimmage featuring Southern, Nottingham and Toms River South on Tuesday in time to watch Southern star Glenn Carson rip off a 70-yard touchdown run against Nottingham.
      The Rams defense looked outstanding against both teams, getting into the backfield repeatedly, and neither opponent could move the ball at all against it.
       Toms River South looks to be way more aggressive defensively under new coach Bill Hill with its Buddy Ryan-style 46 defense that blitzed the line of scrimmage repeatedly on Tuesday. Offensively, Indians quarterback Kevin Gilmore showed a strong arm on some deep seams and corner routes.

    ---I stopped by Toms River North camp on Tuesday to check out the Mariners, and they still look awfully impressive despite losing some big names to graduation.
       The right side of their offensive line looks to be enormous. Mike Henry (6-4, 230), a first-team DigitalSports Legends of the Fall selection on the defensive line last year, has slid into now-graduated Austin Kugler's spot as the tight end. Next to him is right tackle Evan Regas, who is 6-5, 330 pounds and committed to Temple, and next to Regas is new right guard John Klebacher, who is 6-4 and 260. Good luck stopping that on 4th-and-1.
       Jon Daniels moves from fullback to tailback, and also seeing time should be the tailback of the future, elusive sophomore Demetrius Davis. Helping Nick Zaza in the passing game will be another sophomore to watch, wideout Anthony Carrington, who has good speed and elusiveness. Carrington plus Pat Szukics and other athletes like Drew Kollman and Matt Sura gives the Mariners more at the skill positions than people might think. Speedy senior Pedro Valentin should also be a threat as a third-down, scatback type who also can make plays as a receiver.
        The big question for the Mariners is the offensive line, which has four new starters. Defensively, they should be lights-out again. It also doesn't hurt that they got senior transfer Dalton Dudash, a big body at defensive tackle who is the younger brother of former Toms River South standout QB Josh Dudash. His family moved back to Toms River from Maryland.
       The Mariners also have another promising tranfer, this one from Toms River East, sophomore linebacker Cody Groves, the younger brother of last year's Toms River East standout 'backer, Tyler Groves. TR North is set with a strong linebacking and secondary group this year, so Groves is probably a year away or so from making an impact unless injuries hit, but more depth can never hurt. Senior Vinny Papa and Chris Pizzola are the replacements for the tandem of Zach Kane and Nick Foukarakis at linebacker, and Pizzola played well in the South Jersey Group IV final after having to go into the game when Kane was ejected in the first half.
        Kane was originally headed to the University of Miami but an off-the-field incident this summer resulted in him now being at Milford Academy in New Berlin, N.Y. The plan right now is for Kane to be there for one semester and then hopefully on to begin his career at Miami. There is some experience with Shore players at Milford, as former Howell star Ryan McGuinness attended Milford Academy and is now at the University of New Hampshire.

    ---Bob Badders stopped camps at Pinelands and Neptune recently, and these are his reports:

    ---Pinelands has a big sophomore class and about 40 players in all. A player to keep an eye on is sophomore safety Mike Michaelson (awesome name by the way), who missed last season with a broken leg but would have started as a freshman. He has impressed the coaching staff in the early going.
       The Wildcats also return a pair of All-Division players from the Federal Division (they are now in the National Division) in tight end Jason Appleby and linebacker/fullback Charlie Thomas. They have seven starters back on offense and nine on defense who started or saw significant time. Another player to look out for is senior Bill McGuire, who is 6-3 and 285 and should be a lot to handle at defensive tackle.

    --On paper, Neptune is stacked. It returns 10 starters on offense (only losing talented wideout Brian Stepney) and seven starters on defense. Senior Roderick Tillery, who already has an offer from Akron, is moving from defensive tackle to defensive end in order to terrorize opposing backfields with his athletic, 6-5 frame. He also will play at tight end this year, giving the Scarlet Fliers another tough blocker and presenting a big target to quarterback Lem Walker.
      Walker looks to be taking a bigger role in the offense to help deal with teams focusing on senior tailback Michael Peavy, who looks poised for a huge season. Also, like Monmouth Regional, Neptune coach John Fiore has gotten some basketball players to come out for the team who can help. Senior D.J. Gutridge, one of the Shore's top point guards, will be in the secondary, and senior Thomas Jones, one of the Shore's top shooting guards, is a good all-around athlete who they are trying to find a place for because of his athleticism.
        Sophomore Matt Gannon is one to watch at linebacker after playing in three varsity games as a freshman in Neptune's 3-5 defense, and the Fliers also have a three-year starter next to Tillery in noseguard Camall Wright.
        One interesting wrinkle is that Peavy is going to be the team's placekicker on kickoffs this season. They figure with his speed that he can chase down any returner who might break away.
        Neptune is scrimmaging Raritan at home on Friday at 10 am. if you want to check out the Fliers.

     That's it for now, and make sure to check back tomorrow for the National Division previews. I'll leave you with a quick quote and a quick story.

     "Coach, no more carries. I'm really liking my yards-per-carry average right now.'' - Southern's Glenn Carson, joking with Rams coach Chuck Donohue after he ran for a 70-yard touchdown on his first carry in Tuesday's tri-scrimmage with Nottingham and Toms River South.

     As for the story, I told you about the story about how Holmdel defensive coordinator Frank Papalia was messing with his brother Jim, an assistant at Mon Don, about a possible bear attack during the Griffins' trip to camp in Sussex County last week. Well, it actually almost happened. The coaches were in their rooms only to hear the players yelling, "Bear! Bear!'' as a bear circled a truck that a team father was sleeping in. Someone had left a sandwich in a cooler in the truck and the bear was prowling around. Luckily, the bear lost interest and left.