New Jersey Tournament of ChampionsDefending champion: St. Anthony (Jersey City)2011-12 contenders: Gill St. Bernard's (Gladstone),
Hudson Catholic (Jersey City),
Linden,
Plainfield,
Roselle Catholic, St. Anthony,
St. Patrick (Elizabeth)The chase: New Jersey crowns group champions, but the TOC has become the ultimate prize for the state's elite since it was introduced in 1989. The event encompasses every NJSIAA-affiliated school, regardless of enrollment, and pits group winners against one another in a single-elimination tournament.
While the Garden State is always loaded with talented teams and players, the presence of one program in particular has made capturing the Tournament of Champions a nearly impossible task. St. Anthony has taken home the hardware 11 times under legendary head coach Bob Hurley and will be favored to do it once again in 2012.
The landscape has changed a bit with Kevin Boyle's departure from St. Patrick. Boyle led the Celtics to five TOC titles but left during the offseason for
Montverde Academy (Fla.), perhaps opening the door for somebody else to enter the picture.
The presence of Bob Hurley (center, kneeling) and St. Anthony has made winning the Tournament of Champions a tall task for other programs in New Jersey.
Photo by Lonnie Webb
