Down 21-7 at halftime, the Rye Garnets faced an uphill battle against Staten Island’s highly touted Monsignor Farrell.
Farrell, which plays in the highly competitive Catholic High School Football League, entered Friday’s contest ranked the No. 7 football team in New York state, according to MaxPreps, and fresh off a win over Rhode Island’s state champs Bishop Hendricken.
Despite the odds, the Garnets rattled off 24 unanswered points in the second half to claim a 31-21 victory, their first versus a non-Section 1 catholic school in more than 60 years — adding another milestone to coach Dino Garr’s illustrious career.
“I can honestly tell you this … I’ve been coaching for a long time, I’ve never been more proud of a team and the effort you guys made especially in the second half,” Garr told his players after the game.
With the win, the Garnets have now run off 11 straight victories dating back to last season, and show no signs of slowing down despite losing key starters at quarterback, on the offensive and defensive line, and in their secondary since their 2023 state championship run.
Photo Mike Smith
The Garnets kept it close throughout the first 20 minutes of play Friday, leading 7-6 with four minutes to go in the half following a 40-yard touchdown run by junior quarterback Carson Miller.
Miller, who was named a captain this summer, took the reins from his brother AJ and wasted little time establishing himself as a dual-threat under center.
But the game started to slip away as Farrell scored 15 unanswered points before the break to give the Lions a 21-7 halftime lead.
Miller opened the second half connecting with senior tight end Jake Kessner for several first downs. The momentum started to shift on a Rye specialty — a hook and ladder play on a pass from Miller to senior wide receiver Tucker Hess, who then promptly flipped the ball to senior running back Chris Iuliano as he raced into the end zone — cutting the lead to seven.
After Monsignor Farrell went three and out on their next series, the Garnets again marched down the field with Miller completing all of five of his passes and capping off the drive with a 24-yard touchdown pass to Hess to tie the game at 21.
Hess now has 266 receiving yards over his last three games dating back to last season — more than any other Garnet over that span.
Photo Mike Smith
The Rye defense was able to neutralize the Lions in the second half in large part due to key turnovers and spectacular individual plays.
Kessner and junior Hunter Gillies had key sacks, and after the Garnets took a 24-21 lead on a Henry Shoemaker field goal, junior Gage Sasse came up with an improbable interception.
With five minutes to go in the fourth quarter, Iuliano added to his day with his own interception. He then scored his first rushing touchdown of the season — the 26th of his Garnet career — to give Rye an insurmountable 31-21 lead.
The Garnets join Iona Prep as the only teams over the last two seasons to beat Farrell when trailing at the half.
The upset win sets the tone for a Rye team looking to win back-to-back state championships for the first time since 2006.
Garr reminded his club Friday night that each victory serves as a building block for the next one.
Photo Mike Smith
“This is one hell of a win, but let’s not rest on this, this is what we build on, so we can go on and on and on,” he said.
The Garnets enter Section 1 competition this week when they head to Rockland County to take on Ramapo in their first conference game of the season.
