Redjackets become first Rochester City School to win a state football championship.
By PAUL GOTHAM
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Less than six minutes remained in the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) Class B championship game when the chant began to rain down on Ernie Davis Legends Field: 585! 585! 585! 585!
Monroe’s Redjackets (12-0) turned a scoreless tie at halftime into a blowout and the countdown to a celebration had started.
The Rochester City School District (RCSD) has known individual state champions in track and field as well as indoor track. There’s been a girls’ basketball team that finished at the top of the state along with boys’ basketball teams from two different schools to end seasons with a win.
But the RCSD had not known a state football champ. There had been teams that had gone to the state quarterfinals and semifinals, but none had advanced to the final weekend of the season.
That is until Saturday.
And Terrell Cunningham’s squad left no doubt in etching its name in history.
“A group of young men, a group of coaches, the administration, principal, athletic director and all these wonderful parents, they have believed in this program going back to when many of them were in seventh and eighth grade,” Cunningham said after Monroe’s 34-0 victory over Sleepy Hollow at the JMA Wireless Dome on the Syracuse University campus. “At the end of the day, I’m glad and thankful that they believed in the program and me as a coach to take their sons and ultimately lead them today and to the state championship.”
After not being able to reach the opposing 20-yard line for the first 24 minutes of the game, the Redjackets took the second-half kickoff and needed six plays to go 61 yards to break a scoreless tie.
Jermaine “Baby J” Montgomery scored from 19 yards to give Monroe all the points needed.
VIEW MORE PHOTOS FROM STEVEN TWARDZIK.
It was the first of three straight touchdowns the Redjackets scored on their first three drives of the quarter.
“We knew the energy had to pick up on both sides and special teams too,” Montgomery said of the mindset coming out of the locker room at halftime. “We were getting every stop on defense. I said once we score on offense one time, I knew it was going to start ascending from there. Energy started raising through the roof.”
Monroe’s defense forced the first of back-to-back three-and-outs. Terrell “Pooty” Cunningham, Jr. then scored from four yards.
Less than two minutes of game time later, Cunningham connected with Messiah Hampton on a 58-yard catch-and-run for another six points.
The clock read 4:44 remaining in the third quarter, and the Flower City chorus that crowded into the bleachers behind the Monroe bench could have started chanting the local area code at that point because any chance of a Sleepy Hollow comeback had been smothered by a swarm of black-clad Redjackets.
Hampton saw the seeds of the second-half sown 24 hours earlier.
“Last night was really emotional for us,” said the University of Oregon commit who finished with six catches for 145 yards to set the Section V single-season mark with 1,230 yards. “It was our last ever high school practice. We’ve all been together since sixth, seventh grade. During halftime, we were just like we got two more quarters to play the game we love together, go out and sacrifice for your brother and lay your life down. It’s the last two quarters we got to give it all we got.”
The Redjackets scored on five of their first six drives in the second half. In all, five different players carried the ball into the end zone with Ray Garcia and Luis Falu adding a touchdown apiece.
Cunningham knew what to expect when a request was made to make a change in the play-calling duties.
“When my quarterback said ‘Dad, I got it. I’m going to call the plays for the rest of the game.’
“He waved me off and at that moment I already knew. When it gets to that point when him, his line, his receivers got that telepathy, I just get out of the way.”
As good as the Monroe offense was in the second half, the Redjackets’ defense was the difference for the entire game.
Having allowed four total touchdowns entering action and less than three points per game, the Redjackets figured to face their stiffest test of the season.
Sleepy Hollow (12-2) came into the game averaging nearly 39 points per game. The Horsemen had topped the 40-point mark three times in the postseason including a 42-20 victory over Glens Falls last week in the state semifinals.
Monroe held the Section I champions to one first down through the first three quarters of play.
“Play physical, play physical,” said junior lineman Alijah Jones who in spearheading the defensive effort earned game MVP honors. “Hit them first, run your feet when you tackle. It’s as simple as that. It’s really not that hard. You just got to be physical.”
Monroe set the tone on the opening kickoff when Deshawn Thomas met Sleepy Hollow’s Brayden Richardson three yards after he received the ball, and a host of Redjackets combined for the stop.
“We know that defensively we have top dawgs at the first, second and third levels,” said Cunningham. “It’s just a matter of them taking pride and feeling up to this opponent.”
Richardson had rushed for 2,418 yards and 36 touchdowns prior to Saturday. In the win over Glens Falls last week, the University of Rhode Island commit gained 466 yards on the ground.
Monroe held the senior tailback to 50 yards (38 net) on 20 carries.
“Richardson’s a great back,” Cunningham said. “He’s going Division I for a reason. At the same time, we got some Division I guys as well. One thing we’re not going to do is allow anybody to dominate our defense.
“Some of the stuff we do is unconventional, but it’s a testament to just being around football and knowing certain things. Taking away their first priority, it forces them to have to go to something else. That’s always our gameplan. Take away their number one option and force them to go with a change-up. That’s what we did today.”
Montgomery led the defense with nine tackles. Christen Franklin had seven tackles and an interception. Zhiere McKnight accounted for eight tackles and two sacks while Anthony Omebe and LJ Brumfield had six and five tackles respectively.
“Pooty” Cunningham completed 13-of-18 passes for 244 yards. The junior signal caller holds Section V’s single-season records for passing yards (3,037) and passing touchdowns (39). He finished with 45 total touchdowns on the year.
VIEW MORE PHOTOS FROM JEROME DAVIS.
Monroe became the first Section V football team to win a state title since Aquinas took the Class AA title in 2018.
The state tournament for football started in 1993.
The last time an RCSD school won a team state championship came in 2012 when the East girls claimed the Class A basketball title.
In 1986, Wilson boys’ basketball won the Class C championship. Charlotte boys won Class C in 1983 and 1984.
And now Monroe is counted among those great teams.
“Early mornings, late nights paying off,” said senior defensive tackle, Jordan Wickham. “We got the best people in the city and the state. It’s bigger than us. It’s for the 585. It’s all real.”
NYS Class B: @FootballJMonroe strikes first. Jermaine “Baby J” Montgomery from 19 yards out. 2-point conversion is no good. Redjackets 6-0. pic.twitter.com/Iul290xh8P
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) December 6, 2025
NYS Class B: After the @RoeFootball_ defense forces a 3 and out, Pooty Cunningham scores from 4 yards out . 2-point conversion is good. 14-0 6:32 to go in third. @SecVFootball pic.twitter.com/z1SKDDnheZ
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) December 6, 2025
NYS Class B: Pooty Cunningham to Messiah Hampton, 58 yards. 4:44 left in the third. @RoeFootball_ 20-0. pic.twitter.com/EvSgeO3uz8
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) December 6, 2025
Ray Garcia from 24 yards out. 2-point conversion is good. @RoeFootball_ 28-0. pic.twitter.com/B1KWG0lYLV
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) December 6, 2025
NYS Class B – Third and goal: Luis Falu bounces to the outside, @RoeFootball_ 34-0. pic.twitter.com/lvfEnIuOJ2
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) December 6, 2025
Well deserved. I might even bet that Monroe would have defeated ANY team in ANY Class this year.
Congrats to all the Coaches, Players and Staff of this awesome Program!!!! To win Sectionals is tough enough, but to be State Champs is something so special!!!!
Great coverage guys, thank you Pickin Splinters