December 2, 2009
Hansen, Voorhees find success
Secaucus coach Charlie Voorhees (left) was an assistant under Rich Hansen (right).
Click Here for photos from the Patriots' 2009 season.
Click Here for photos from the Marauders' 2009 season.
By Jason Bernstein
Editorial Director
On the surface, there couldn’t be two teams more different than Secaucus and St. Peter’s Prep. One is a small Group I public school in the suburbs, while the other is one the state’s largest non-public programs located in the heart of Jersey City.
Giants Stadium is a familiar site for a Marauder squad that will play there with a state title on the line for the fourth time in five years. For the Patriots, it will be the first opportunity playing in the stadium that’s visible from their high school.
Despite these differences, the two remaining Hudson County teams are connected through coaching. Back in 1991 current Secaucus head coach Charlie Voorhees was an assistant for Rich Hansen and the Marauders.
Plenty of assistants have left St. Peter’s Prep for promotions elsewhere and have found success, but Hansen can’t recall any of them coaching for a New Jersey state title like Voorhees will on Friday night.
“It’s fun (watching them),” Hansen said. “I’ve got guys in upstate New York, out in Arizona and guys in New Jersey that are all over and doing well. It makes me feel a little old, but it’s fun to watch them go out and do it. We root for everybody.”
Voorhees was brought in to the Grand and Warren school by then offensive coordinator and current Secaucus assistant Bruce Naszimento.
| Finals Week |
|---|
Secaucus vs Cedar Grove Friday 12/4 5 p.m. |
| Egan steps up in a pinch |
| Where's Betim? Everywhere |
| Voorhees, Hansen on the big stage |
| What you need to know about Cedar Grove (Courtesy of sidelinechatter.com) |
| Staff Picks: Secaucus vs Cedar Grove |
St. Peter's Prep vs Don Bosco Prep Saturday 12/5 1:30 p.m. |
| Ortiz shows leadership on, off the field |
| Meet Prep's little big man |
| Voorhees, Hansen on the big stage |
| Mission Impossible? Stopping Don Bosco |
| Staff Picks: St. Peter's Prep vs Don Bosco Prep |
“We were trying to build this at that point,” Hansen said. “In my second year (1989) we won a state championship and Bruce was my offensive coordinator.”
Voorhees coached the wide receivers and defensive backs, was one of just four assistants on Hansen’s staff at the time. The stint would be just one year as Voorhees would depart for a job on the staff at Jersey City State (now NJCU) before going back to Secaucus, where he played, as an assistant.
While he only spent one season at St. Peter’s Prep, some of the lessons learned there have become a part of his program with the Patriots.
“There were hard-nosed practices down at Prep,” Voorhees said. “The kids really competed amongst each other which led to a lot of real good development. It took us a while, but we have that now. Our practices are very competitive now. I learned that there. There was high intensity there.”
That intensity has paid off for Voorhees and his teams. Now in his 11th season as the head man at Secaucus, Voorhees has gone 87-26. Over the past four seasons, the Patriots have been a staggering 32-4 and are playing in the title game for the second time in history. The other occasion was in 1996 when Voorhees as an assistant coach at Secaucus.
Both coaches keep a friendly relationship though contact is usually limited to offseason clinics and wishing each other luck during the season.
This weekend, these two teams, seemingly so different will finish their seasons at the same venue in Giants Stadium. It has provided an opportunity for both coaches to look back into their pasts and for Voorhees, what he wants his program to eventually become.
“It’s definitely a special place down there (at Prep),” Voorhees said. “And hopefully our’s is getting there.”