Conscientious effort, collaboration behind origins of Red Bank’s middle school football champs
December 27, 2024 at 7:00 a.m.
Red Bank Catholic football coach Mike Lange knows the importance of having a feeder system into his successful program.
Lange hoped to establish a football team at St. James School, Red Bank, which funnels a good number of students to RBC. That proved difficult due to a lack of middle school football programs in the area. Since it was tough to fill out a full schedule, Lange and a solid group of volunteers did the next best thing.
They created the St. James Royals Pop Warner 14U and 11U football teams, which consists of players from St. James School, St. James Parish and other area Monmouth County towns that do not have a football program.
After Lange approached the St. James pastor, Msgr. Joseph N. Rosie, about the idea, he gathered a group of experienced youth football people, and the mission was underway.
“I found good people, and most importantly, [who] really cared about the kids,” Lange said. “Eventually they ran with it, and I was in the background. A bunch of people gave input. It was a collaborative approach of everybody throwing in ideas and it all stuck. They did a phenomenal job, and it worked out very well.”
The St. James Royals players huddle in the tunnel as they await introduction for their opening game at the Pop Warner National Tournament in Orlando, Fla. Thomas Egan photo
It sure did. The 14U team won the Pop Warner National championship while the 11U team won the New Jersey State title and reached the East Region championship game.
The movers behind the scene were Royals President of Football Operations Frank Sinatra, and advisory board members Anthony Cali, Thomas Egan, Frank Kehoe, Mike Krzyzkowski and Jim McDonald.
Sinatra, whose son Frankie plays for RBC and is a Royals student coach, was heavily involved in the Freehold Revolution in the American Youth Football organization. Two years ago, he and Lange began conversations about getting a program affiliated with St. James.
Once it was decided a middle school team would not be viable, they investigated several youth football organizations and eventually decided on Pop Warner.
Because it was under the St. James banner, Msgr. Rosie insisted on certain protocols being met.
“Everything that was done had to be with the monsignor’s permission,” Sinatra said.
Background checks were performed on coaches and the players were screened for both academic and physical standing. The schedule outside of the Shore Conference foes had to be sanctioned by Pop Warner.
“You can’t just go rogue and pick out your teams,” Sinatra said. “You have to make sure everything is on a level playing field. And you can’t just put a team together and throw them out on the field.”
In forming the advisory board and coaching staff, there was a conscientious effort to bring in people who, for the most part, did not have children playing youth football.
“Coach Lange loved the feeling it’s all about kids,” Sinatra said. “Sometimes if a dad is the coach he’s not benefiting a team if his kid is having a bad day, and he doesn’t pull him. We have limited parent involvement in coaching. Not that parent coaches are a bad thing, but it has to be the right guy in a position of authority.
“It’s all good in theory until it becomes all about one kid,” he continued. “Are you in it for the entire organization or are you in it for your kids? We brought in people in it for the organization.”
It eventually fell in place and on Dec. 6, 2023, the first social media announcements were made about the St. James Royals. With limited time to get things rolling, enrollment began in March, 2024. Jake Cipot, whose dad John is a Red Bank Catholic assistant, was the first player to sign up and John quickly became the first coach.
Thomas Egan, who Sinatra knew from the Freehold Revolution, was a “no-question candidate” to be the 14U head coach and Valentine Barnaby was named the 11U coach.
“Tom was the right guy to be at the helm for everything from top to bottom – dealing with parents, dealing with kids on the field,” Sinatra said. “It was just the right mix of coaches and coach Lange signed off on it as well.”
The project was not without its detractors, however.
“We faced criticism from the get-go,” Sinatra said. “People were saying ‘This thing is never gonna take off, you’re never gonna field one team. You’re not gonna have any success. American Youth Football is the gold standard.’”
St. James warms up on the field prior to their opening game with Churchland, Va. in Orlando. Thomas Egan photo
St. James answered the critics in a Week Zero scrimmage game against the Toms River Warriors, which would go on to reach the AYF 14U national championship game this year.
“That team is the gold standard for youth football, and we beat them 18-16,” Sinatra said. “After that game we had some coaches saying ‘Hey, we have something special here.’”
Egan noted that, “the guys we had were scrappy, so I knew right away we had something special.”
“The goal was to coach these kids up and prepare them for the next level – freshman football,” the coach continued. “We wanted to provide structure and get their confidence up. All of these kids have so much potential and bright futures. They are athletes, not just football players.”
And while not all of them will go to Red Bank Catholic, Sinatra and Lange are hoping a good amount will enroll in the neighboring school as freshmen.
“When you have Red Bank Catholic coaches and players as coaches, and you practice on Lou Montanaro Field (where RBC practices), it starts to take on a life of its own,” Sinatra said. “Ultimately, you’d love to see every kid that comes here put on a Caseys uniform. I think coach Lange would be content if we could get 60 percent. But the reality is we’re just here to develop football players no matter where they go.”
Lange summed it up by saying, “Pop Warner was a great supporter for us, and it gave about 45 kids a really good experience. I can only see it growing from this point.”
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Red Bank Catholic football coach Mike Lange knows the importance of having a feeder system into his successful program.
Lange hoped to establish a football team at St. James School, Red Bank, which funnels a good number of students to RBC. That proved difficult due to a lack of middle school football programs in the area. Since it was tough to fill out a full schedule, Lange and a solid group of volunteers did the next best thing.
They created the St. James Royals Pop Warner 14U and 11U football teams, which consists of players from St. James School, St. James Parish and other area Monmouth County towns that do not have a football program.
After Lange approached the St. James pastor, Msgr. Joseph N. Rosie, about the idea, he gathered a group of experienced youth football people, and the mission was underway.
“I found good people, and most importantly, [who] really cared about the kids,” Lange said. “Eventually they ran with it, and I was in the background. A bunch of people gave input. It was a collaborative approach of everybody throwing in ideas and it all stuck. They did a phenomenal job, and it worked out very well.”
The St. James Royals players huddle in the tunnel as they await introduction for their opening game at the Pop Warner National Tournament in Orlando, Fla. Thomas Egan photo
It sure did. The 14U team won the Pop Warner National championship while the 11U team won the New Jersey State title and reached the East Region championship game.
The movers behind the scene were Royals President of Football Operations Frank Sinatra, and advisory board members Anthony Cali, Thomas Egan, Frank Kehoe, Mike Krzyzkowski and Jim McDonald.
Sinatra, whose son Frankie plays for RBC and is a Royals student coach, was heavily involved in the Freehold Revolution in the American Youth Football organization. Two years ago, he and Lange began conversations about getting a program affiliated with St. James.
Once it was decided a middle school team would not be viable, they investigated several youth football organizations and eventually decided on Pop Warner.
Because it was under the St. James banner, Msgr. Rosie insisted on certain protocols being met.
“Everything that was done had to be with the monsignor’s permission,” Sinatra said.
Background checks were performed on coaches and the players were screened for both academic and physical standing. The schedule outside of the Shore Conference foes had to be sanctioned by Pop Warner.
“You can’t just go rogue and pick out your teams,” Sinatra said. “You have to make sure everything is on a level playing field. And you can’t just put a team together and throw them out on the field.”
In forming the advisory board and coaching staff, there was a conscientious effort to bring in people who, for the most part, did not have children playing youth football.
“Coach Lange loved the feeling it’s all about kids,” Sinatra said. “Sometimes if a dad is the coach he’s not benefiting a team if his kid is having a bad day, and he doesn’t pull him. We have limited parent involvement in coaching. Not that parent coaches are a bad thing, but it has to be the right guy in a position of authority.
“It’s all good in theory until it becomes all about one kid,” he continued. “Are you in it for the entire organization or are you in it for your kids? We brought in people in it for the organization.”
It eventually fell in place and on Dec. 6, 2023, the first social media announcements were made about the St. James Royals. With limited time to get things rolling, enrollment began in March, 2024. Jake Cipot, whose dad John is a Red Bank Catholic assistant, was the first player to sign up and John quickly became the first coach.
Thomas Egan, who Sinatra knew from the Freehold Revolution, was a “no-question candidate” to be the 14U head coach and Valentine Barnaby was named the 11U coach.
“Tom was the right guy to be at the helm for everything from top to bottom – dealing with parents, dealing with kids on the field,” Sinatra said. “It was just the right mix of coaches and coach Lange signed off on it as well.”
The project was not without its detractors, however.
“We faced criticism from the get-go,” Sinatra said. “People were saying ‘This thing is never gonna take off, you’re never gonna field one team. You’re not gonna have any success. American Youth Football is the gold standard.’”
St. James warms up on the field prior to their opening game with Churchland, Va. in Orlando. Thomas Egan photo
St. James answered the critics in a Week Zero scrimmage game against the Toms River Warriors, which would go on to reach the AYF 14U national championship game this year.
“That team is the gold standard for youth football, and we beat them 18-16,” Sinatra said. “After that game we had some coaches saying ‘Hey, we have something special here.’”
Egan noted that, “the guys we had were scrappy, so I knew right away we had something special.”
“The goal was to coach these kids up and prepare them for the next level – freshman football,” the coach continued. “We wanted to provide structure and get their confidence up. All of these kids have so much potential and bright futures. They are athletes, not just football players.”
And while not all of them will go to Red Bank Catholic, Sinatra and Lange are hoping a good amount will enroll in the neighboring school as freshmen.
“When you have Red Bank Catholic coaches and players as coaches, and you practice on Lou Montanaro Field (where RBC practices), it starts to take on a life of its own,” Sinatra said. “Ultimately, you’d love to see every kid that comes here put on a Caseys uniform. I think coach Lange would be content if we could get 60 percent. But the reality is we’re just here to develop football players no matter where they go.”
Lange summed it up by saying, “Pop Warner was a great supporter for us, and it gave about 45 kids a really good experience. I can only see it growing from this point.”
The Church needs quality Catholic journalism now more than ever. Please consider supporting this work by signing up for a SUBSCRIPTION (click HERE) or making a DONATION to The Monitor (click HERE). Thank you for your support.