Frank J. Verducci

Frank Verducci of West Caldwell and formerly of Millburn, Chatham Township and Florham Park, entered into eternal rest surrounded by family on March 3, 2025.

Born in Newark, New Jersey, Frank attended Newark Public Schools and graduated from Barringer High School in 1952 where he excelled in football, and baseball. In 1951 Frank made All-Newark and All-Essex County football as halfback. In baseball he made All State as an outfielder. He was recruited to play football at Maryland University, but a knee injury forced him to return home where he majored in Physical Education and Recreation at Panzer College (now Montclair State University). While at Panzer he started on the baseball team for four years and was offered a spot on the Boston Braves (now Atlanta Braves) minor league team, which he declined.

After honorably serving his country at Fort Dix, New Jersey, “Coach V” began his coaching career at Newark Central High school as an assistant with stops at Newark West Side, Oratory Prep and Rutherford High School. In 1966, Verducci was appointed the Head Men’s Basketball Coach, and in his second year his team broke Weequahic’s 40 game winning streak on the way to an 18-7 record, at the time the best in the school’s history.

In the spring of 1968, Verducci relinquished his basketball job to accept the Head Football position at Barringer where he coached through 1980. During these thirteen years, Verducci, amassed a 99-21-1 record including three undefeated teams, Newark City League Championships eight times, held the longest winning streak of 21 games by a Newark football team, qualified for the State football playoffs four times between 1975 – 1980 and won the school’s first State Championship in 1975. His 1977 team would play in the State Championship at Giants Stadium before a record crowd of 33,000 fans earning Verducci the Star-Ledger Coach of the Year award. After his retirement, Verducci served as assistant coach and mentor at West Side and Weequahic High Schools, who both won State Championships.

Coach Verducci successfully sued the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) in 1979 when his undefeated football team was excluded from the playoffs because of its “strength of schedule” criteria. An Administrative law Judge ruled that Verducci’s claim was credible and ruled in his favor, calling the NJSIAA’s method of computing power points “inherently discriminatory”. In 1988 the high school football landscape would forever change, as the Newark City League was disbanded and Newark schools were now mandated to play in suburban leagues beginning in the fall of 1989.

Frank was a devoted husband and father and believed in “Family First”. He revered his mother and father and especially enjoyed quoting his mother, often times in Italian.

He is survived by his son, Frank Jr. (Josephine), his daughters Maria Florio (Perry), Joan Seery (Christopher) and Lynn Kowalskie (Robert), 10 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren.

Family and friends are invited to gather on March 7 from 4-7pm at Leonardis Memorial Home, 210 Ridgedale Ave, Florham Park. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on March 8 at 10:00a.m. at Holy Family Church, 35 Orchard Road, Florham Park. Interment will follow at Gate of Heaven Cemetery, East Hanover.

 In lieu of flowers, the family kindly requests donations in Frank’s memory to a charity of your choice.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Frank J. Verducci, please visit our floral store.