West Deptford's Owens Ranked Tops in South Jersey Football

West Deptford will start its quest for a third straight Group 2 football title this fall with the consensus best player in South Jersey on the roster.

Running back Gerald Owens, who’s already verbally committed to Michigan State, is among the top 15 players statewide, going by the rankings at both NJ.com and Scout.com.

Ranked No. 13 by Scout.com and No. 10 by NJ.com, Owens has put the Eagles on his back in the past two seasons, accounting for a total of eight touchdowns in championship victories against Haddonfield and Cedar Creek. He ended last season with 1,701 yards and 26 touchdowns.

Scout.com rates Owens, who was All-South Jersey last year and the Touchdown Club’s top running back, as a three-star recruit and the best running back of his class in New Jersey.

Only one other Gloucester County player—Kingsway running back Raw Lawry—appears on both lists.

The majority of South Jersey’s representation on both comes from Camden County, which includes Adonis Jenkins of Timber Creek (No. 12 in NJ.com, No. 22 in Scout.com), Sean Chandler of Camden (No. 28 in NJ.com, No. 39 in Scout.com) and Cherry Hill West’s Rodney Williams (No. 39 in NJ.com, No. 29 in Scout.com).