Ryan Greig was in the middle of baseball season when Al-Majid Hutchins was hired as Ewing High School’s new football coach.
Soon after, Hutchins met with the team to outline his vision for the Blue Devils — one that featured a more aggressive, pass-oriented offense for Greig’s senior year.
“It was hard not to smile, just knowing that I was going to have this opportunity this year, something I’ve been kind of itching for definitely since I started playing varsity,” Greig said. “It just feels different this year for sure.”
Through a 5–2 start, Greig had thrown for 1,279 yards — more than 100 yards more than his previous two seasons combined — with 12 touchdown passes and five rushing scores. The Ewing offense had scored at least 25 points in seven of its first eight games and topped 40 points three times.
“Our offense, I think, is as explosive an offense as you can want,” Hutchins said. “And probably one of the most explosive offenses in this area down here.”
Running back Josh Missick had already surpassed his previous rushing best by more than 200 yards, and wide receiver Kristian Thomas led the team with 22 catches for 413 yards and four touchdowns through seven games.
Greig said none of that success would be possible without the offensive line.
“This has been the best offensive line I’ve ever played with,” he said. “Hutchins always says we have the best offensive line. It’s the base of our team, and they’re the best players on our team.
“They’ve played so well this year, and they’re all so close. It’s kind of crazy to think it’s the same group of guys, just coached differently, and they’ve come together and done a great job.”
Hutchins credited the team’s buy-in and hunger after years of frustration. The players, he said, were determined to turn things around.
“They went through these last three years with some tough losses,” Hutchins said. “One of my main focal points coming in was that we’re going to send our seniors out the right way. The kids are buying in. We’ve got a great culture here, a tremendous coaching staff, and good mentors who our kids can relate to. I think they’re picking up on that energy.”
Ewing needed that leadership after an 0-2 start. The Blue Devils dropped a 30-25 opener to Burlington City and fell to Delran the following week, a game that saw several players sidelined by injuries.
Instead of folding, they responded with a one-point win over Princeton and then reeled off victories against Robbinsville, Trenton, KIPP Cooper Norcross Academy, Allentown, and West Windsor-Plainsboro to move to 6-2 and 4-0 in the West Jersey Football League Valley Division.
“I credit a lot of that to the coaching staff because they never counted us out,” Greig said. “They knew the kind of players we had and the mindset we needed to win. They just pulled us all together and told us what we needed to do — practice harder, bring more energy. That’s what changed the trajectory of our season.”
The team has fed off Hutchins’ confidence and discipline. Greig said the belief the coach has shown in every player helped them finally play to their potential.
“We always knew we had the athletes,” Greig said. “We just needed somebody to believe in us. He believes in every single person he puts out on that field, and that’s what makes us so special.”
Greig has worked to improve his mechanics and command of the offense. He said his timing, anticipation, and pocket presence have all improved, along with his ability to make plays with his legs.
“My timing on routes, my anticipation, I think I’ve gotten much better,” he said. “My footwork and my ability to move in the pocket have gotten better. I worked incredibly hard in the offseason to lose weight and get faster, so to be able to run the ball this year also kind of helps.”
For Greig, it’s been rewarding to see the team finally realize its potential. “It definitely feels great,” he said. “Since I’ve gotten here, all we’ve done is lose. It kind of took a toll, so now to be able to win, it’s changed everybody’s mindset. It’s like we’re winners now — we know how to win, and we’re going to continue to do that.”
Hutchins said he knew Ewing had talent but needed belief. “We were losing a lot of kids to different parochial schools and nearby schools because kids didn’t believe in the program,” he said. “So it was very important for me to get this rolling as quickly as possible and to bring back that culture and that football-savvy school that it was in the past.”
That transformation began in the spring and grew over the summer during camps and workouts. A strong showing at a 7-on-7 tournament in West Orange, where Ewing reached the championship game, gave the players even more confidence.
“We played really well against a bunch of schools up north that had some really good athletes,” Greig said. “I saw the way we competed, the way our offense was moving the ball and defense was making stops. We were playing with a different type of energy. You could tell we were kind of a different team after that.”
The fall has confirmed it. The Blue Devils have become one of the toughest teams in the Valley Division, thriving on their chemistry and belief in each other.
“It means the world,” Greig said. “We’ve gotten so close since Hutchins got here. We’re just a brotherhood. To win is something special. Once we got that one against Princeton, there’s no looking back.”
