When Jorge Portorreal had to make the decision on what high school he would attend almost four years ago, the Union, N.J. native selected St. Peter’s Prep in Jersey City for two reasons.
“I wanted to go to a good school and I wanted to play basketball,” said the recent Prep graduate. “I had been playing basketball since third grade for the Boys and Girls Club in Union. One guy, Clarence Gordon, inspired me and encouraged me to play basketball.”
When Portorreal went to middle school, he played on a basketball team with Hudson Catholic standouts Jahvon Quinerly and Luther Muhammad.
“We were all on the same team,” Portorreal said of the two Hawks, who are two of the top basketball recruits in the country. “We didn’t lose a game all that time. My love of basketball grew.”
When Portorreal began the process to go to high school, his mother, Joi Smith, stepped in.
“She applied to Prep,” Portorreal said. “I didn’t even have a say. I was forced into it.”
After Portorreal enrolled in St. Peter’s, the idea of football was sort of introduced to him.
“[Assistant coach Ed] Roselle talked me into it,” Portorreal said. “He talked me into it. He met with my mother and they decided that I should play.”
So Portorreal became a basketball player who reluctantly played football.
“I had a lot of friends who were already playing football,” Portorreal said. “I tried it and then stuck with it. Once I started, I knew I was going to give my all.”
As it turned out, Portorreal would eventually become one of the best two-sport athletes in the school’s history.
Portorreal’s incredible speed made him a natural on the football field.
“At first, Jorge was a basketball player who thought he could play football,” said Prep veteran head football coach and athletic director Rich Hansen. “He was a tough kid and was willing to do things that we asked of him. I thought he had a chance to be a pretty good player.”
Portorreal was a member of the varsity team when he was a freshman, but didn’t play.
“I had to adjust to the speed of the game,” Portorreal said. “I had to learn by repetition.”
It also helped that Prep already had a player who was extremely similar in athletic skills and football ability named Corey Caddle.
Caddle was a slot receiver and running back on the Prep team in 2014 that won the NJSIAA Non-Public Group 4 state championship and the No. 1 overall ranking in New Jersey.
Portorreal was a friend and student of Caddle’s.
“He definitely was the type of guy that I had to look up to,” Portorreal said. “He had a big heart and played with a lot of heart. I learned so much from him. I had to watch him and learn. I stole a lot of my moves from him.”
When Caddle, who earned the 2014-2015 Hudson Reporter Male Athlete of the Year award, moved on to play football at Fordham University, it left the big-play role to Portorreal, who embraced it.
“We kept a lot of the same stuff we used with Corey and planned to use Jorge the same way,” Hansen said. “Corey was a good guy to learn from. It paid itself forward. The two have very similar personalities and abilities. Corey came to us as a football player who played baseball. Jorge had to prove to us that he was a football player. It took him a little while to believe he was a football player.”
In basketball, Portorreal was as consistent as could be. A three-year varsity player at point guard, Portorreal averaged a little better than 10 points per game in all three seasons. He led the Marauders to two consecutive Hudson County Tournament final games against his buddies at Hudson Catholic.
“They’re fun guys to go against,” Portorreal said. “They are really down-to-earth kids. Luther and I talk all the time. We talk the most smack.”
Prep head basketball coach Alex Mirabel knew that Portorreal was a special kid and special player.
“Jorge is the most competitive player I ever coached,” Mirabel said. “His sophomore year, he was our best player. His junior year, he got bigger, faster and stronger. He came from football and right away wanted to be at a high standard for basketball. He brought so much intensity. His mentality was always there. He was always tough. He was everything we needed.
Added Mirabel, “He was a great leader. He was everything for us. I saw it all happen over his four years. I watched how he matured and became a better leader. I watched him grow into a man. He was a pleasure to coach.”
During his senior year, Portorreal carried the ball 18 times for 154 yards, but caught 58 passes for 753 yards and eight touchdowns. He returned two interceptions for touchdowns and had one punt return for a score, leading the Marauders to an 8-4 record and a trip to the NJSIAA Non-Public Group 4 championship game at MetLife Stadium.
In basketball, Portorreal averaged 10.7 points, three rebounds, three assists and three steals per game for the 19-8 Marauders who lost to Hudson Catholic in the county final and fell by one point in the NJSIAA Non-Public A North semifinals to Bergen Catholic.
For his efforts, Portorreal has been selected as the recipient of the 2016-2017 Hudson Reporter Male Athlete of the Year, given to the top athlete who excels in more than one varsity sport.
It marks the 25th year that the Hudson Reporter newspapers chain has presented the year-end award of excellence.
Portorreal becomes the fourth Prep athlete to receive the honor, joining Mike Brown (2004-2005), Kevin Innis (2009-2010) and friend and mentor Caddle two years ago.
“This means a lot to me,” Portorreal said in receiving the award. “There are a lot of great guys that I was picked over. And to be in the same class with Corey and Mr. Innis means so much. I’m glad I’m impacted Prep the way they did. Those guys, they were the best, so getting this means a lot.”
Portorreal has already left to begin freshman orientation at Lehigh University, where he will play football this fall.
“He’s a mature kid who can carry himself well,” Hansen said. “It took him a while to realize that football would be his ticket to college. He made the commitment to football and I’m just happy that he did. He was willing to work hard at it and became a good football player.”
Portorreal is also a good student and a fine young man, receiving the John McGovern Memorial Award at Prep graduation last month, given to the grad “who embodies leadership and dedication to the spirit of teamwork.”
“I think he has that impact, even on strangers,” Hansen said. “The way he’s grown and developed over four years is incredible. He and I bumped heads a few times about what to do and how to carry himself. He pushed the envelope a few times on celebrations. It took him a while to realize that. We joke about it now. Jorge responded well to the challenge. He came to Prep with ideas of what his experience would be like and it wound up taking another path. He allowed himself to become a product of the program.”
“He was our leader, our captain, our heart and soul,” Mirabel said. “He’s a man of his word. That’s who he is. I think I’ll always remember last year after we lost to Hudson Catholic, Jorge went down the bench and shook everyone’s hand. He said, ‘Remember this, because we’re going to be back here.’ He made that promise and lived up to it. We lived off those words. That’s how much of a competitor he was.”
Portorreal will attend the Lehigh Arts and Sciences School, but plans to transfer to business next year. He will get a chance to see Caddle face-to-face Oct. 28, when Lehigh travels to the Bronx to face Fordham.
“That will be fun,” Portorreal said. “I know I’ll be rooting for Corey when he’s not facing us and I know he’ll be rooting for Lehigh. I feel like I’ve left a positive legacy for the younger kids to follow.”
Jim Hague can be reached at OGSMAR@aol.com. You can also read Jim’s blog at www.jimhaguesports.blogspot.com.
