BREAKING THROUGH: Princeton High football player Liam Cooley, center, looks to bull past defenders in recent action. Last Saturday, senior receiver Cooley produced a breakout game, making three catches for 92 yards and two touchdowns as PHS defeated Hightstown 41-22. The Tigers, now 3-1, host Ewing High (2-2) on September 26. (Photo by Frank Jacobs III)
By Bill Alden
Liam Cooley sensed that he was going to come up big for the Princeton High football team when it hosted Hightstown last Saturday in its home opener.
“I felt like I was in a good place 100 percent,” said senior wide receiver Cooley. “One of my coaches said in practice that this is going to be your breakout week and
I said, ‘Yes sir.’”
PHS got off to a very good start against the Rams as Chase Gallagher returned the opening kickoff 92 yards for a touchdown.
“It definitely set the tone for our team,” said Cooley of Gallagher’s TD jaunt. “I think we put the foot on the pedal.”
Cooley put his foot to the pedal on the first possession for the Tigers, hauling in a 30-yard catch to get PHS down to the Hightstown 10-yard line.
“On that play, it broke down a little bit so I ran away from the defender and my quarterback (Quinton de Faria) totally hooked me up with a great throw,” said Cooley, reflecting on his first catch.
On the next play, Cooley scored his first career touchdown as he gathered in a pass from de Faria in the flat and raced five yards into the
end zone.
“I have really got to thank my line on the touchdown and I have to thank my other receiver Langsdon Hinds for laying the block for me so I could get in,” said Cooley.
With PHS clinging to a 28-15 lead early in the fourth quarter, Cooley struck again as he got open on the sideline and snagged a pass from de Faria and sprinted into the end zone.
“We have been working on that play all week,” said Cooley of the 57-yard TD. “I caught the ball and I saw him coming at me. I cut and did a little move and went the other way and took it to the house.”
PHS added a one-yard TD run by Gallagher as it pulled away to a 41-22 victory, posting its third straight win as it improved to 3-1.
“As a team, we had a very great effort,” said Cooley. “We haven’t beat Hightstown in 10 years.”
Having focused on basketball before joining the PHS football team as a junior, it was a great day for Cooley as ended up with three catches for 92 yards and the two TDs.
“It is my second year playing, this is definitely my best game of all time,” said Cooley. “I played one year of flag in eighth grade and then last year I started playing tackle. I got a little bigger and I gained a little weight.”
Cooley’s hoops background has played a role in his emergence as a star receiver.
“Playing basketball helps with jumping high and knowing different situations in a game,” said Cooley, who scored 31 points last winter for the Tiger boys’ basketball team.
PHS head coach Charlie Gallagher knew that his squad would be facing some difficult situations in the matchup with the Rams.
“I felt that even though Hightstown was 0-3, they posed a challenge,” said Gallagher. “We have to play good, fundamental football and not turn the ball over and not commit as many penalties as we did today and control the clock. We did a little bit of that but we didn’t do enough of it.”
The Tigers seized control early against the Rams, jumping out to a 21-0 first quarter lead as running back Al’Bree Green scored the third TD of the period on a five-yard run with 35 seconds left.
Gallagher pointed to Cooley’s play as a spark for the Tigers. “Cooley had two catches for 10 yards last week and we told him we need to get you the ball more,” said Gallagher. “We have two really dynamic players on the outside with Liam and Langsdon and either one of them can go the distance. They are nice easy pitches and catches but at the same time and if we don’t like that, we can still run the ball and put it together. I am super happy about that.”
Gallagher was very happy to see Kyle Carr flash his sprinter’s speed as he made an 82-yard kickoff return for a TD in the third quarter to help PHS go up 28-8.
“It was good for special teams,” said Gallagher. “We want to have good special teams, it is a third of the game.”
Gallagher’s son, sophomore star running back/defensive back Chase, had another big game, rushing for 59 yards and making a game-high eight tackles with an interception.
“I am real proud of him,” said Gallagher. “He also had the interception. He is very active, he is excited to be out here. I think there are a lot of other players just like him that can make plays. We need more of that.”
Junior QB de Faria made some big plays, connecting on 8 of 15 passes for 138 yards and two TDs
and rushing for a game-high 61 yards.
“Quinton had a good game too, he is up and down but he made some nice connections,” said Gallagher. “He is a dual threat. I want to see him run on the field and slide or get out of bounds so he doesn’t take a big hit. Any time a defense sees a quarterback running around, they want to unload on him. I thought he did a nice job.”
The PHS defense was a bit shaky down the stretch with Hightstown quarterback Trevor Thompson passing for 326 yards and three touchdowns as the Rams fought to get back into the contest.
“I think we should have played a little bit better,” said Gallagher, whose team lost star linebacker Nathan Christopher to a leg injury early in the contest. “Ajay [Coulianidis] and Rio [Giamarese] were getting after it on the line. I thought our corners, Ty’Shawn [James] and Koby [Smith], played pretty well. We have really been harping on those guys. I think they had a couple of pass breakups which is great. They had a couple of nice tackles.”
In Gallagher’s view, getting the victory outweighed any disappointment over the defensive effort.
“Our No. 1 goal is to win the game and we did that, the way we got there might have been a little challenging and a little rocky but nothing is perfect,” said Gallagher. “Despite what took place at the end you can’t be upset where you win the game.”
The Tigers will face a big challenge in getting a win as it hosts Ewing (2-2) in a Colonial Valley Conference (CVC) Capitol Division showdown on September 26.
“We are going to watch the film of this game and find a way to get better,” said Gallagher. “We will watch some Ewing tape and see what they are really good at and what we might be able to take advantage of and then have a great week of practice. They have some team speed. They have a defense that is really aggressive. There is a lot to plan for.”
Cooley is planning to keep stepping up as he plays his final season of football.
“You have to make it count when it is your senior year,” said Cooley. “I am very happy that I have continued with football. I am looking forward to the rest of the season.”