As the carries and yards began to pile up for running back Ali Lee Jr., so did the records.
The Woodbridge junior rushed for 1,873 yards and 21 touchdowns while becoming the high school’s single-season and career leader in both departments, which were among seven school marks Lee set this year.
He was the catalyst for a team that reached a sectional final for the first time in 22 seasons, ended a 28-year division title drought and established a single-season school record with 10 victories.
Lee, who scored a Greater Middlesex Conference-leading 26 touchdowns, is the Home News Tribune’s 2019 Offensive Football Player of the Year.
The rushing numbers, however, only tell part of Lee’s overall offensive productivity, and they shed no light whatsoever on his contributions to the team as a defensive back and special teams performer.
Lee also caught 14 passes for 229 yards and three scores and returned 10 kickoffs and punts for 246 yards, giving him a whopping total of 2,348 all-purpose yards.
He contributed to a defense that limited its first eight opponents to two scores or less with a team-high five interceptions and blocked an extra point that preserved a 14-13 victory over Ridge in the sectional semifinals.
Lee, who rarely took off a down, also served as the team’s punter, helping the Barrons win the field position battle throughout the season with booming kicks.
“What people don’t see is how hard he worked to get to this point,” Woodbridge head coach Joe LaSala said of Lee, whose father, also named Ali, was a star running back on the 1997 Barrons squad that was the school’s last to win a sectional championship.
“He made a commitment to himself last December that he was going to go ahead and be special. He started getting it done in the classroom and then in the offseason. It was a trickle effect that took him to the summer and into the season. I’m just extremely happy for him because he deserved to have this kind of a year.”
LaSala entered the campaign knowing Woodbridge was going to ride Lee often, but could not have predicted his gifted running back would have carried the Barrons to a sectional final, an accomplishment that was the result of a complete team effort.
The workhorse back, who rushed 296 times on the year, peaked with a 47-carry performance in a thrilling 21-20 comeback victory over New Brunswick in which the Barrons erased a 13-point halftime deficit. Lee finished the game with 220 yards and two touchdowns.
“He was the backbone of the team for the entire season,” LaSala said. “As he went, we went. I’m glad he’s on my side and I’m not playing against him.”
At 5-foot-9 and 170 pounds, Lee is deceptively strong, running with a power that belies his diminutive frame.
“He’s a downhill runner,” LaSala said, “and once he gets going North-South, he has true track speed where he can run by you, around you or through you.”
Lee didn’t just break records this season. He essentially rewrote the record book, setting the following marks.
- 2,767 career rushing yards
- 1,873 single-season rushing yards
- 30 career rushing touchdowns
- 21 single-season rushing touchdowns
- 2,348 single-season all-purpose yards
- 26 single-season touchdowns
- 36 career touchdowns
“Really good players find ways to make big plays and Ali is one of those guys,” LaSala said. “He’s dangerous wherever he is on the field. The kid loves being on the football field and loves competing on every down. His impact is greater than any wins or losses or any rushing yards. I don’t think that he realizes the impact he made on our football team, the school building and the community.”
Lee, who currently holds a scholarship offer from Central Michigan, has generated interest from Northern Illinois, Monmouth, Stony Brook, Towson and others.
"Coming in the month of December," LaSala said, “I expect him to get a couple more (offers)."
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