WALDWICK – Bill Jaeger shut down the question entirely.
Retirement? Yes, he’s made peace with that decision no matter how much Tenafly keeps winning. But under no circumstances will he bleach his hair blond like his players.
“No,” Jaeger said. “No, no, no. I'm just happy that I have hair.”
The longtime coach has better things to do after a thrilling win on Saturday.
Sixth-seeded Tenafly rallied from a halftime deficit and punched its ticket to the Bergen County boys soccer final with a 3-2 victory over No. 7 Ridgewood.
As players danced to "Freed From Desire" blaring from a boombox at midfield, Jaeger stood nearby soaking in a moment 11 years in the making.
“Almost each game, somebody else has been stepping up,” Jaeger said. “It's been a real joy.”
Tenafly (13-2-1) will face Big North Patriot rival Demarest in the championship at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at Indian Hills. The Tigers and Norsemen were scheduled to meet Tuesday in a league game, but Jaeger said that contest will be canceled.
For Jaeger, this opportunity is a fitting final chapter.
The Tenafly alumnus and former athletic director is in his third stint as the program's head coach after starting out in 1990. He guided the Tigers to their only county title two years later and returned to his post this summer after time as an assistant.
Currently, he ranks No. 5 on the Bergen County wins list with a career record of 351-153-29.
“I am positive that I am retiring,” Jaeger said when asked whether Saturday’s win changed his mind. “This is such a great group of kids, and it's a great way for me to end with such a nice group. Regardless of what happens.”
How Tenafly advanced
Tenafly's path to the final was anything but straightforward.
Ridgewood carried a 1-0 lead into halftime, but the Tigers came out of the break with renewed urgency. Senior Josh Santosh tied the game in the 48th minute, and senior defender Ishaan Juthani put Tenafly ahead four minutes later, racing into the box to finish a rebound after Ridgewood’s goalie made a diving save on Diego Aldeco Ortiz.
It was only the second varsity goal for Juthani.
“Every practice Coach Jaeger tells me, go for that second ball,” Juthani said. "I saw it coming and attacked it."
“That was off Jaeger's play,” Santosh said. “We practiced that multiple times. Before we came here, we practiced it yesterday. To see it from the textbook to the actual field was amazing.”
Ridgewood refused to go away. Jaden Lee converted a penalty kick with 13 minutes remaining, beating his club teammate Jason Baer to the right side to make it 2-2.
Then Santosh struck again with the winner with a little under eight minutes left.
Moments after scoring, Santosh collapsed behind the bench, one of several exhausted players slowed by cramps in the second half. Tenafly midfielder Oriel Steinberg left the game with blood dripping down his left eye with a cut that may require stitches.
“I give credit to Ridgewood,” Jaeger said. “Everybody gave their all out there. That's why they were on the ground. We were on the ground. That's high school soccer.”
Beating the odds
What makes this run especially satisfying is how unexpected it seemed just a few months ago.
Tenafly graduated most of the lineup from a team that reached county and sectional semifinals a year ago. The Tigers lost their entire defense along with leading scorer Ori Oelsner. Questions quickly followed.
"Everyone doubted us," Santosh said. "Last year was a bunch of seniors. But we're showing people what we're capable of. We've clearly worked over summer. We've clearly worked last year."
That depth has been especially important with injuries forcing lineup changes throughout the season.
Santosh himself missed about five games after suffering a third-degree ankle sprain against Old Tappan in the second game of the season. When healthy, Jaeger said, the senior's speed and connection with Matthew Seigerman have made for a strong duo up top.
Of course, another symbol of the team's bond is its bright new look. Aldeco Ortiz and Sebastian Mendez suggested the bleached look before the county tournament, and the rest of the group quickly embraced it. Tenafly has now won 11 straight games, including all five since its stop at Bellibone Salon in Maywood.
“The next day, everyone just felt like a family,” Santosh said. “It wasn't a team anymore, it was a family.”
Jaeger has noticed that same togetherness throughout the roster. He kept 19 seniors this season, including 10 who rarely see the field. Still, not one player has complained about his role.
Now the Tigers are in the final for the first time since 2015 with a chance to give their coach with one more championship. It's a rematch from earlier this season when Tenafly beat Demarest 1-0 on the road.
Just don't expect Jaeger to show up with blond hair.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Before retiring, North Jersey soccer legend gets one last county final