Special guest at Rumson-Fair Haven’s football practice/camp tidbits/story links

An NBA standout grabs a glimpse of Rumson’s practice, camp tidbits

While taking in my first football practice of the preseason over at Rumson-Fair Haven, which is expected to challenge for a second straight Patriot Division title, I was also there to do a story on a new Rumson resident who is working out at the school.
He also took a seat in the stands for a little bit to check out the action. Minnesota Timberwolves guard Randy Foye, the former Newark East Side and Villanova star, was in the house. He said he also used to play quarterback while in high school and asked who was good on the Rumson squad. He lives in Rumson, where his business manager also lives, and has been training at the high school during the offseason. I’ll have a full story up on that later.

Alas, Foye declined to discuss the Timberwolves’ recent mega-trade of franchise forward Kevin Garnett
to the Celtics that pretty much put Minnesota into rebuilding mode.
Before moving to the Shore, Foye’s other connection to the Shore
Conference was that in 2002 his Newark East Side team ran into one of
the best Shore Conference boys hoops teams in history, the Neptune
squad that featured Taquan Dean (Louisville), Terrance Todd (Fairfield)
and Marques Alston (Monmouth U). Foye had a strong game from what I remember, scoring over 30 in a lop-sided loss to
the Scarlet Fliers in the NJSIAA Group III playoffs at Rutgers.

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Randy Foye, a former star at Newark East Side and Villanova and a new Rumson resident, takes in part of Rumson-Fair Haven’s football practice on Tuesday.

     I
covered that game, and all I remember was Foye just being outnumbered,
as he played well, but Neptune had too much overall talent. From what I
recall, Alston had a dunkfest in the second half when the Fliers blew
the game open.
     As for Rumson’s season outlook, the full preview will be out on Aug. 17, but for now a few quick-hitters. The Bulldogs will be using a tight end a little more this year after predominantly going to three-wide receiver sets the past few seasons, and return QB Matt Wassel and top WR Ryan Kirchner. John Corneliusen, the former Mater Dei head coach who stepped down after this past season because he is getting ready to go to graduate school, is now the quarterbacks coach for the Bulldogs.
    They have an entirely new secondary, but it appears that they are good athletes who were all stuck behind a good, senior-laden secondary last year. Tailback Ryan Korn, who grew up in Rumson, moved to Tennessee early in high school and moved back before last season, appears to be healthy after a badly torn hamstring hampered him throughout last season. He could be a game-breaker for Rumson, in addition to being one of the top lacrosse players in the area.
     Every year, Rumson coach Shane Fallon seems to scavenge a tall player from the basketball team who he puts at wide receiver to just go up and catch jumpballs on fade routes. This year’s version is 6-foot-5 and over 200 pounds – he’ll be in the preview on Friday along with plenty of other info. I’ll also be going on a whirlwind tour of some camps in the next few days, as will our two staff writers, Bob Badders and Scott Clayton, so check back here for more camp info.

One quick baseball note, tomorrow is the deadline for drafted players to sign with their teams or go to college under the new MLB rules. The three locals – St. Rose pitcher Anthony Ranaudo (LSU, Texas Rangers), Christian Brothers Academy pitcher Kyle Slate (Maine, Phillies) and Red Bank Catholic shortstop J.C. Menna (James Madison, Pirates) have all elected not to sign and to attend college, barring a last-second play by the Rangers for Ranaudo, who turned down a lucrative offer from the Brewers before the draft and subsequently fired his advisor for passing on the offer.

Looks like former Keyport star Ken Cattouse, who ranks No. 2 on the all-time state rushing list in New Jersey, will be more of a factor in the passing game this season for Troy University.
Football is getting cranked up everywhere, including in South Jersey, among some teams that the Shore could run into in the playoffs.
It can’t be good when your season preview story is on your kicker.
Lindenwold, a South Jersey Group I school, just picked up a Division I-A prospect and one of the top 15 running backs in the state, a transfer from Camden Catholic.
Seton Hall Prep pitcher Rick Porcello, the state’s best baseball player from this past spring, is about to get PAID by the Tigers.
I guess steroid testing has done some good in bringing baseball back to earth.
Is anybody really ever an “innocent bystander” when they’re hanging out in a strip club in the middle of the night?
Jorge Posada in a Mets uniform next year? That would be a little weird.