In a world dominated by sports, high school recruiting is the catalyst for how the cycle begins. This most notably occurs when it comes to scouting football recruits. Some of you may know there are a few states that seem to consistently produce talented athletes year after year. New Jersey happens to be one of those states, especially when it comes to football. We often hear about schools like Paramus Catholic, Don Bosco, and a few others when talking NJ football. However, be prepared to add a new powerhouse team to that list. The Peddie School Falcons are vying for a spot on this list.
Peddie School is a college prep school located in Hightstown, New Jersey and has been around since 1874. Although its athletics have struggled in the past, that doesn’t seem to be the case anymore with new Head Coach, Chris Malleo.
Malleo is 32 years old and has an extensive background in football. He played football with Wall for four years, graduated and then continued his career at the Hun School (NJ). He proved his worth at Hun and received several college scholarship offers.
“I went on to play quarterback and linebacker over at Northwestern from 2003-2007,” said Malleo. “After that I played in camp for the Giants but I didn’t make. So I decided to play a year in Canada with the Toronto Argonauts.”
After various stints in football, as listed above, Malleo called it quits with playing and jumped into coaching. He started out coaching at Cheshire Academy (CT), then the Hun School (NJ) and then Lawrenceville HS. Ultimately, he landed at Peddie School in the role of Head Coach, unlike his previous titles of Assistant Coach.
In his new position as HC, Malleo is just scratching the surface of turning this team into a powerhouse. It all started with a kid named Daniel Dawkins out of Staten Island. Two years ago, Dawkins played offensive center at St. Joseph by the Sea, but then his favorite coach was fired and he decided to look for a new school.
“The summer of 2015, I decided it was in best interest to transfer and reclassify,” said Dawkins. “I was looking for a new place to call home. My mom was searching schools and found Peddie online, we visited, and now I’m here.”
After being at Peddie for the past two years, Dawkins is starting to see some of the perks of reclassifying and playing an extra year of high school.
“The school is pretty different from my old school, it has more of a college vibe. The MAPL conference is more competitive than my old conference. Being at Peddie will make it an easier transition from HS to college for me. We are living away from our families, waking up for 5:30AM workouts, and doing daily things more like college athletes,” said Dawkins.
Since transferring to Peddie, Dawkins is the #1 rated center in the class of 2018 and he claims scholarship offers from Boston College, Duke, Missouri, North Carolina, and Temple.
Another superb offensive lineman who Coach Malleo was able to snag, is Evan Lovell from Waterbury, Connecticut. He is listed at 6-foot-5 315lbs. and still growing. His presence, along with Dawkins on the O-Line, is creating havoc for opposing defenses.
“I originally transferred to Peddie to get some more college exposure and I knew Coach Malleo could help me with that,” said Lovell. “Unlike my old school I’m going against D1 caliber athletes in practice every day. It’s a very humbling experience.”
Lovell is currently hearing from Rutgers, UConn, Temple, and more. With another strong showing this season, expect the offers to roll in for Mr. Lovell.
Now last but not least is one of the “leaders” as Coach Malleo would claim behind his team’s stellar defense. LB, Javar Garrett, formerly from Penns Grove HS, is another athlete who decided it would be best to reclassify and gain that extra year to get more college exposure. Garrett took some time to talk to us about Peddie after a huge win over the Hill School (PA).
“It was a heck of a game,” said Garrett. “I’m not even sure what exact stats were tonight, but I feel like they were pretty good. The Hill School had some trouble trying to run or pass my way most of the game.”
The Peddie School won this game by a final score of 48-7 for their third win of the season. It should be noted that it was their second win of the year by 39 or more points.
Prior to Malleo’s reign as HC, Peddie School had few D1 players on their roster. Since Malleo, there are 7 or more. This is a direct result of Malleo’s efforts to turn Peddie into a different type of program.
Malleo explained, “It’s a process. It took a lot of changing the culture, kids buying into that culture, a strong strength and conditioning program to get on the right track. It wasn’t just me, it took the effort of a strong administration at the school. Together we are turning it around.”
