New Documentary Highlights Toms River South Football, 1969 Epic Game

TOMS RIVER, NJ — In the mid-1960s, high school football at the Jersey Shore was just starting to take root.

State champions were named by the NJSIAA — there were no state football playoffs — and the town populations were still so small that none had two schools, and many of the high schools that exist today were still 10 years away from being built.

This is the era where Coach Ron Signorino Sr. stepped in and took control of the football program at Toms River South, then simply Toms River High School, and turned it into a power house that earned the No. 1 ranking.

Filmmaker Sandra Levine, who previously has produced films on the effects of Superstorm Sandy on Toms River, and one on Toms River South baseball coach Ken Frank, has compiled this documentary on the rise of the Toms River South football program under Signorino.

Titled "South Football’s Impossible Dream," the one-hour documentary explores how Signorino changed the losing high school football program into one known for winning. It includes rare footage of “The Greatest Game Ever Played,” an epic battle between Toms River and Middletown that helped put Shore Conference football on the map.

The documentary is set to make its debut on Sunday, Jan. 22 at the Grunin Center at Ocean County College in Toms River. The film premiere is set for 2 p.m. and tickets, which are $8, can be purchased online.

On a bitter cold day in November 1969, No. 1-ranked Toms River High School faced No. 2-ranked Middletown High School before thousands of fans for a mythical state championship. Rare film footage from the game will be shown publicly for the first time.

Signorino is a local legend known for his deep understanding of the game, his ability to motivate his players, and his knack for analyzing game films to better understand his opponents.

The film also looks at the Signorino family's passion for the sport; Ron Signorino Jr., became head coach at South years later, following in his father's footsteps.

Archival photographs and film footage combine with interviews with coaches, former players, and sports insiders telling stories about Signorino Sr. and Hitting Indians Football, and alumni speak about the influence he had on their lives, and how their relationships continue more than 50 years later.