Port Jefferson has seen quite the proverbial storm surge over the past few weeks.
Drama ensued when parents and proud community members learned that Earl L. Vandermeulen High School would not be able to field a varsity football team this fall because of low recruitment — an issue that several small schools across Long Island have struggled with lately.
“It was crushing,” junior lineman Sam Fabian, who played Royals varsity as an underclassman, told The Post. “I have aspirations of playing up in college. Some of the other guys do, too.”
The shocking news that Port Jeff fell below the 16-player minimum initially left Fabian and other 11th graders like him, who already had varsity experience, with a demoralizing option: playing JV with the nearby Rocky Point Eagles.
“It was a little bit of a shock,” Fabian said. “You work your whole life to play varsity football … the [JV] coaches were amazing, but the feeling was definitely down.”
Port Jeff wanted to do right by its kids and find a better solution after the dreaded announcement in late August.
The district had been petitioning Section XI to allow a varsity combination with Rocky Point for the 2026 season, which was initially denied and would have threatened the Eagles’ playoff eligibility.
Nevertheless, PJ kept at it and took an appeal all the way up to the office of New York State Commissioner of Education Betty A. Rosa, who granted the merger last Friday with no postseason implications.
“I’m pretty sure my entire house heard me scream when I heard that news,” smiling senior guard Maklyn “Big Mak” Mejia said at Monday’s practice.
Gonna fly now
The Eagles added five new faces from Port Jeff to their depth and have another six newcomers playing at the JV level.
Coach Anthony DiLorenzo’s varsity group of 22 benefited from some kismet as injuries began taking a toll on the team’s already slim numbers before they brought in the new athletes.
“This happened to go down at the perfect time,” he said.
“This wasn’t a charity case. This was: ‘We need you. You need us.’ Together, we take on the opponent.”
Although the Port Jeff crew stands out with practice pants in a different shade of blue — the only ones the team had left in stock — the boys are all soaring together, senior quarterback Peyton Reisinger said.
“We believe that everybody has the right to play football — especially these guys that worked very hard,” added Reisinger, who is stoked that his offensive line just got more depth.
“We’ve only been with them for a couple of days now, and we just treat them as our own. We see them as family.”
As if the situation needed any more poetic virtue, the new players will soon be getting Philadelphia Eagles-style wings on their helmets to match the rest of the team.
Fabian, who jumped up and screamed on his bus to JV practice when he was told varsity was a go, has no issue playing under another school’s name and throwing on a blue jersey instead of the purple he was used to.
“I think it’s a pretty color,” he joked. “You just adopt the name, and you keep going. I’m looking forward to hitting some people with my new friends.”
Meanwhile, senior lineman Henry Collins is “so excited” to get his wings and take that next bonding step.
No man is a failure who has friends
DiLorenzo is also impressed with the Port Jeff players’ attitudes throughout the transition, as he is with his original bunch, whom he called class acts throughout the process.
Port Jefferson head coach Craig Perrino, who played under DiLorenzo at Rocky Point, has also taken the situation in stride.
Perrino is now an assistant with the Eagles, jumping between varsity and JV.
“He goes wherever we need him,” DiLorenzo said.
“He’s a selfless human being — and that’s been his attitude since day one.”
Now the united squad has one goal: win football games after an 0-1 start to the season.
The message especially hits home for junior wide receiver Kemp Jarrett, who never won a varsity game while playing for Port Jeff.
“It’s been rough,” he confessed.
All eyes are on this weekend’s matchup against Eastport-South Manor as Fabian and the new guys look to establish a fresh, successful culture at Rocky Point in what will be their first game of the year.
“It would be awesome to come out with this new team and this program and start setting that precedent,” he said.
“And really show what we can do.”
