RECORD FILE PHOTO

Coach Benjie Wimberly says his team "is more prepared to move on in the playoffs.

Merely reaching the playoffs is no longer good enough within the Hackensack football program.

The Comets made the playoffs in each of head coach Benjie Wimberlys first two seasons, but they lost first-round road games by wide margins both times. Wayne Hills handed Hackensack a 35-0 loss two years ago in a North 1, Group 4 game and nemesis Passaic Tech handily defeated Hackensack, 40-6, in a North 1, Group 5 encounter last season.

The fifth-seeded Comets (7-1) will hit the road again Friday night, when theyre scheduled to face fourth-seeded North Bergen (7-2) in another first-round game in North 1, Group 5. Theyll arrive with a different mind-set.

"A couple years ago when we went it was the first time Hackensack had been in the playoffs in four years," Wimberly said. "I know that was very exciting and everything. Last year we had the talent to move on. We were just outplayed by Passaic County Tech. I think now were a little more prepared to move on in the playoffs.

"Were more business-like this year. Even after we lost to Passaic County Tech, nobody put their heads down. They just said, All right, lets just get back to the grind.

Hackensack has won four in a row since losing at Passaic Tech, 35-7, in a Big North, non-division game Oct. 3. The Comets, ranked No. 18 in The Record Top 25, proved to Wimberly by beating Eastside, Fair Lawn, No. 21 Ridgewood and Clifton in the aftermath of another Passaic Tech setback that this team is better equipped to respond to adversity than his first two teams.

"Were tougher mentally than weve been the past two seasons," said Wimberly, whose teams won seven sectional titles while he was Paterson Catholics coach from 1995-2009. "Its not good enough just to be a .500 team or a playoff team. That comes from a lot of the kids who are seniors being in this program for three years.

"Were changing a culture. This is Hackensack. Were supposed to win. The expectations have to be there. The first couple years I was here I think they were excited to be winning games. These kids dont think thats enough. Theyre saying, Weve got to raise the bar. Weve got to take it to where it belongs.

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Seasoned Hackensack poised for playoff run