North Babylon's Nathaniel Griffith runs for Long Island-record 489 yards
North Babylon's Nathaniel Griffith broke the Long Island rushing record on Saturday, Oct. 1, 2022. Credit: Francisco Nieves
North Babylon halfback Nathaniel Griffith ran his way into the Long Island record books on Saturday.
The senior set the all-time Long Island single-game rushing record with 489 yards in North Babylon’s 75-49 win over Smithtown West in a Suffolk Division II football game.
Griffith carried 38 times and scored seven touchdowns. The previous record of 485 yards was set by Davien Kuinlan of Plainedge in the 2015 Nassau Conference III final.
“What makes his accomplishment all the more impressive is that he’s played through a painful shoulder injury,” North Babylon coach John Rowland said. “His shoulder hurts every play, yet he plays through it and wears a protective brace. He is about as tough a kid as you’ll find.”
The 6-foot, 180-pound Griffith opened the game with an 18-yard gain on his first carry. He ran the ball on all five plays of North Babylon’s scoring drive.
The ground-and-pound offensive line of North Babylon helped lead Griffith to the record book. His longest touchdown runs were 51 and 50 yards as North Babylon set the program record for points scored in a single game, according to Newsday records.
Halfback Joel Lomax added 15 carries for 197 yards, as the Bulldogs rushed 57 times for a total of 703 yards. The Bulldogs threw one pass (it was incomplete).
“This is a team record because without those seven guys this would not have been possible,” Griffith said. “Those guys up front open big holes that I can walk through. They’re awesome guys on and off the field and we all share this record. We scored on every drive.”
Jim Mango, in his 32nd season, earned his 200th win as the offensive line coach at North Babylon. It was an especially proud day for him as guards Jake Miele and Dominick DiFazio, tackles Alex Seger and Jarell Fowler and center Anthony Cervino, tight ends Warren Toney and sophomore Alexander Griffith, Nathaniel's brother, cleared the way for the LI record.
“It really makes it even more special that my little brother helped me get this record,” Nathaniel said of Alexander, the youngest player on the O-line. “This was just an incredible day.”
Added Rowland, “Our front seven and our blocking backs did a great job. They got him the first 10 yards and the rest of it was all him dragging guys and making instinctive cuts. He had so many yards after contact.”
Gregg Sarra is Newsday's high school sports editor and has been on the beat since the mid-1980s.
