On The Gridiron
September 20, 2018 at 4:55 p.m.
By Staff Report-
Kickoff: 7 p.m. Friday in Warsaw
Coaches: Kyle Park (Goshen), Bart Curtis (Warsaw)
Records: Goshen 1-4 (0-3 NLC), Warsaw 4-1 (2-1 NLC)
Last Game: Concord 34, Goshen 9; Warsaw 37, Northridge 14
Last Year: Warsaw 21, Goshen 0
Matchup: Warsaw and Goshen first met on the gridiron in 1922 and have played every year since 1976. Friday night they'll clash at Fisher Field for the Tigers' homecoming and the 65th meeting in the series. The Tigers have won 10 in a row against Goshen and 16 of 20, but trail in the overall series with a record of 28-34-2. In last week's 37-14 win at Northridge, Warsaw was down 14-0 before scoring 37 unanswered points. The 37 points was the Tigers' most this season. They enter Friday's contest averaging 21 points per game, while the defense gives up 14 points per game. Only one team this season has scored more than 14 points on the Tigers – Plymouth in a 32-29 overtime win over Warsaw in the Northern Lakes Conference opener. Class 4A No. 2 NorthWood, who will host Warsaw on Oct. 5, is 3-0 in the NLC, while Concord is 3-1, and Warsaw, Northridge and Plymouth are all 2-1. Elkhart Memorial, Goshen and Wawasee all have three losses in NLC play. Goshen beat Fairfield 49-0 in the season opener, but the RedHawks bring a four-game losing streak to Fisher Field. Goshen gave up an average of 45 points in those four games.
Curtis: "Goshen's record is deceiving for sure. Their inside zone running game concerns me greatly, along with their ability to throw the ball and make big plays. (Daveyon Sandford) is a huge concern. He's athletic, fast and will catch nearly everything. They have changed up their lineup a bit and I'm not sure what we will see. Goshen has good team speed on offense and is very deceiving on defense. Don't let their record fool you."
TIPPECANOE VALLEY AT MANCHESTER (TRC)
Kickoff: 7 p.m. Friday in North Manchester
Coaches: Steve Moriarty (T. Valley), Greg Miller (Manchester)
Records: T. Valley 2-3 (1-1 TRC North), Manchester 2-3 (0-1 TRC North)
Last Game: T. Valley 48, Whitko 14; Northfield 42, Manchester 21
Last Year: T. Valley 20, Manchester 14
Matchup: This Three Rivers Conference North Division battle features a pair of standout senior running backs in Tippecanoe Valley's Cameron Parker and Manchester's Delton Moore. Parker is coming off performance against Whitko that saw him carry the ball 20 times for 175 yards and two touchdowns. He also caught two passes for 60 yards, including a 52-yard touchdown catch from Noah Miller, and completed 1 of 2 pass attempts for 39 yards. Through five games, Parker has 453 yards and three scores rushing TDs on 89 attempts. Moore was held to 30 yards on 12 carries in the season opener, and to 70 yards on 17 carries last week. Moore had huge games in Weeks 2, 3 and 4, however. In those three games he carried the ball 71 times for 723 yards and seven touchdowns. Through five games, he's carried the ball 110 times for 823 yards and eight TDs, averaging nearly eight yards per carry. Valley has won the last three meetings in the series and 16 of the last 18. Manchester's wins in that span were in 2009 and 2014.
Moriarty: "Both of the running backs (Parker and Moore) have a great quality of breaking tackles. They both have a good line in front of them and have the ability to make people miss, that makes for a good combination. Manchester does a good job of a run/pass balance. You must prepare for both. They run a lot of different formations and try to see how you are going to adjust. They're a very well-balanced team. Offensively, we tried a couple different things to get our outside game going last week. We made sure that we tried to get everyone some touches in different formations just to see what was more effective. We spent a lot of time this week in practice knowing our blocking assignments, but we still have a lot of work to do. We just need to keep getting better each week."
Miller: "Each week is as important as any other. We are looking to correct the critical mistakes that cost us the game last week. If we want to be a top team in our conference and sectional then we have to eliminate those errors. Delton is a competitor and wants the ball any chance he can. The game dictated the number of touches he got Friday. He is, we are, wanting to get back to that magic formula for success. We have to run our offense and be multi-dimensional to make teams play us honest. We need to get the ball to all our playmakers. Valley is huge up front and plays a physical game on both sides of the ball. There is no doubt that they are going to want to control the tempo of the game. We have to control the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball and meet that aggression head on. We will take what they give us."
SOUTHWOOD AT WHITKO
Kickoff: 7 p.m. Friday in South Whitley
Coaches: Dave Snyder (Southwood), Jeff Sprunger (Whitko)
Records: Southwood 5-0, Whitko 0-5
Last Game: Southwood 31, Wabash 6; T. Valley 48, Whitko 14
Last Year: Southwood 56, Whitko 6
Matchup: Friday's game at Ryan Huff Memorial Field in South Whitley features a pair of teams on opposite ends of the spectrum as the Whitko Wildcats come in at 0-5 and the Southwood Knights are 5-0. The Knights have given up just 19 points this season – seven to Oak Hill and six each to North Miami and Wabash. Conversely, Whitko has scored 30 points this season, all of which has come in the past two weeks. Freshman Cade Berg leads Whitko's ground game with 236 yards and two touchdowns on 59 carries, while senior Zakk Neer has rushed for 151 yards on 36 attempts. Southwood has won the last three meetings with Whitko and is led offensively by junior Gabe Lloyd, who has carried the ball 130 times for 789 yards and seven TDs. Lloyd averages 158 yards per game, while the Knights average 266 rushing yards per game as a team. Seven different players have scored a rushing touchdown this season for Southwood.
Sprunger: "It seems like we make progress in one area but take a step back in other areas. Our offense seems to be figuring things out, but defensively we have been struggling the last couple weeks. In the past, we would say that it was the passing game for Southwood that makes them a very tough team to defend. However, this year they have some big boys up front that can block very well and they have a very shifty and patient running back that finds holes and makes teams pay for being overly aggressive and playing assignment football. We have one goal in mind, and that is learning how to finish a game. We seem to be able to either start a game or come out in the second half and play well, but for some reason we can't put those two things together. We are focusing on getting to a fast start and then carrying that momentum into the second half of ballgames."
1A NO. 1 PIONEER AT TRITON (HNAC)
Kickoff: 7 p.m. Friday in Bourbon
Coaches: Ron Brown (Triton); Adam Berry (Pioneer)
Records: Triton 3-2 (2-1 HNAC); Pioneer 5-0 (3-0 HNAC)
Last Game: Triton 35, Culver 21; Pioneer 78, North White 0
Last Meeting: Pioneer 62, Triton 8
Matchup: The Trojans will face their toughest opponent of the season in Class 1A No. 1 Pioneer. The Panthers are on a 20-game winning streak and have outscored their opponents 342-19 this season. However, Triton coach Ron Brown said his team is relishing the opportunity to face the best. Though the Trojans will key in on quarterback/safety, Jack Kiser, who is committed to Notre Dame, Triton is going to stick to its scheme. Brown said the Trojans will judge themselves on clean play, including lining up correctly, eliminating mistakes and exerting great effort.
Brown: "I already told the kids, we should be excited for this week. We should step up to the opportunity to play, and everything we do should be positive."
WAWASEE AT PLYMOUTH (NLC)
Kickoff: 7 p.m. Friday in Plymouth
Coaches: Mike Eshbach (Wawasee); John Barron (Plymouth)
Records: Wawasee 0-5 (0-3 NLC); Plymouth 3-2 (2-1 NLC)
Last Game: NorthWood 57, Wawasee 13; Plymouth 29, Elkhart Memorial 28 (OT)
Last Meeting: Plymouth 34, Wawasee 6
Matchup: Wawasee faced Class 4A No. 2 NorthWood last week in its toughest loss of the season. However, the Warriors have a short-memory mentality as they head into this week. Plymouth runs the spread offense, and Wawasee coach Mike Eshbach credited the Rockies as being "fast" and "physical." He said that for the Warriors to win, they'll have to fly to the ball and prevent big plays on defense. Getting their first win of the season would take some pressure off Wawasee.
Eshbach: "I think our guys are resilient group, and you just gotta move on. It's the same way (when) you have a big win, at some points you gotta put it behind you. If we can do the little things and not make mistakes, I think we can absolutely compete with them."
Kickoff: 7 p.m. Friday in Warsaw
Coaches: Kyle Park (Goshen), Bart Curtis (Warsaw)
Records: Goshen 1-4 (0-3 NLC), Warsaw 4-1 (2-1 NLC)
Last Game: Concord 34, Goshen 9; Warsaw 37, Northridge 14
Last Year: Warsaw 21, Goshen 0
Matchup: Warsaw and Goshen first met on the gridiron in 1922 and have played every year since 1976. Friday night they'll clash at Fisher Field for the Tigers' homecoming and the 65th meeting in the series. The Tigers have won 10 in a row against Goshen and 16 of 20, but trail in the overall series with a record of 28-34-2. In last week's 37-14 win at Northridge, Warsaw was down 14-0 before scoring 37 unanswered points. The 37 points was the Tigers' most this season. They enter Friday's contest averaging 21 points per game, while the defense gives up 14 points per game. Only one team this season has scored more than 14 points on the Tigers – Plymouth in a 32-29 overtime win over Warsaw in the Northern Lakes Conference opener. Class 4A No. 2 NorthWood, who will host Warsaw on Oct. 5, is 3-0 in the NLC, while Concord is 3-1, and Warsaw, Northridge and Plymouth are all 2-1. Elkhart Memorial, Goshen and Wawasee all have three losses in NLC play. Goshen beat Fairfield 49-0 in the season opener, but the RedHawks bring a four-game losing streak to Fisher Field. Goshen gave up an average of 45 points in those four games.
Curtis: "Goshen's record is deceiving for sure. Their inside zone running game concerns me greatly, along with their ability to throw the ball and make big plays. (Daveyon Sandford) is a huge concern. He's athletic, fast and will catch nearly everything. They have changed up their lineup a bit and I'm not sure what we will see. Goshen has good team speed on offense and is very deceiving on defense. Don't let their record fool you."
TIPPECANOE VALLEY AT MANCHESTER (TRC)
Kickoff: 7 p.m. Friday in North Manchester
Coaches: Steve Moriarty (T. Valley), Greg Miller (Manchester)
Records: T. Valley 2-3 (1-1 TRC North), Manchester 2-3 (0-1 TRC North)
Last Game: T. Valley 48, Whitko 14; Northfield 42, Manchester 21
Last Year: T. Valley 20, Manchester 14
Matchup: This Three Rivers Conference North Division battle features a pair of standout senior running backs in Tippecanoe Valley's Cameron Parker and Manchester's Delton Moore. Parker is coming off performance against Whitko that saw him carry the ball 20 times for 175 yards and two touchdowns. He also caught two passes for 60 yards, including a 52-yard touchdown catch from Noah Miller, and completed 1 of 2 pass attempts for 39 yards. Through five games, Parker has 453 yards and three scores rushing TDs on 89 attempts. Moore was held to 30 yards on 12 carries in the season opener, and to 70 yards on 17 carries last week. Moore had huge games in Weeks 2, 3 and 4, however. In those three games he carried the ball 71 times for 723 yards and seven touchdowns. Through five games, he's carried the ball 110 times for 823 yards and eight TDs, averaging nearly eight yards per carry. Valley has won the last three meetings in the series and 16 of the last 18. Manchester's wins in that span were in 2009 and 2014.
Moriarty: "Both of the running backs (Parker and Moore) have a great quality of breaking tackles. They both have a good line in front of them and have the ability to make people miss, that makes for a good combination. Manchester does a good job of a run/pass balance. You must prepare for both. They run a lot of different formations and try to see how you are going to adjust. They're a very well-balanced team. Offensively, we tried a couple different things to get our outside game going last week. We made sure that we tried to get everyone some touches in different formations just to see what was more effective. We spent a lot of time this week in practice knowing our blocking assignments, but we still have a lot of work to do. We just need to keep getting better each week."
Miller: "Each week is as important as any other. We are looking to correct the critical mistakes that cost us the game last week. If we want to be a top team in our conference and sectional then we have to eliminate those errors. Delton is a competitor and wants the ball any chance he can. The game dictated the number of touches he got Friday. He is, we are, wanting to get back to that magic formula for success. We have to run our offense and be multi-dimensional to make teams play us honest. We need to get the ball to all our playmakers. Valley is huge up front and plays a physical game on both sides of the ball. There is no doubt that they are going to want to control the tempo of the game. We have to control the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball and meet that aggression head on. We will take what they give us."
SOUTHWOOD AT WHITKO
Kickoff: 7 p.m. Friday in South Whitley
Coaches: Dave Snyder (Southwood), Jeff Sprunger (Whitko)
Records: Southwood 5-0, Whitko 0-5
Last Game: Southwood 31, Wabash 6; T. Valley 48, Whitko 14
Last Year: Southwood 56, Whitko 6
Matchup: Friday's game at Ryan Huff Memorial Field in South Whitley features a pair of teams on opposite ends of the spectrum as the Whitko Wildcats come in at 0-5 and the Southwood Knights are 5-0. The Knights have given up just 19 points this season – seven to Oak Hill and six each to North Miami and Wabash. Conversely, Whitko has scored 30 points this season, all of which has come in the past two weeks. Freshman Cade Berg leads Whitko's ground game with 236 yards and two touchdowns on 59 carries, while senior Zakk Neer has rushed for 151 yards on 36 attempts. Southwood has won the last three meetings with Whitko and is led offensively by junior Gabe Lloyd, who has carried the ball 130 times for 789 yards and seven TDs. Lloyd averages 158 yards per game, while the Knights average 266 rushing yards per game as a team. Seven different players have scored a rushing touchdown this season for Southwood.
Sprunger: "It seems like we make progress in one area but take a step back in other areas. Our offense seems to be figuring things out, but defensively we have been struggling the last couple weeks. In the past, we would say that it was the passing game for Southwood that makes them a very tough team to defend. However, this year they have some big boys up front that can block very well and they have a very shifty and patient running back that finds holes and makes teams pay for being overly aggressive and playing assignment football. We have one goal in mind, and that is learning how to finish a game. We seem to be able to either start a game or come out in the second half and play well, but for some reason we can't put those two things together. We are focusing on getting to a fast start and then carrying that momentum into the second half of ballgames."
1A NO. 1 PIONEER AT TRITON (HNAC)
Kickoff: 7 p.m. Friday in Bourbon
Coaches: Ron Brown (Triton); Adam Berry (Pioneer)
Records: Triton 3-2 (2-1 HNAC); Pioneer 5-0 (3-0 HNAC)
Last Game: Triton 35, Culver 21; Pioneer 78, North White 0
Last Meeting: Pioneer 62, Triton 8
Matchup: The Trojans will face their toughest opponent of the season in Class 1A No. 1 Pioneer. The Panthers are on a 20-game winning streak and have outscored their opponents 342-19 this season. However, Triton coach Ron Brown said his team is relishing the opportunity to face the best. Though the Trojans will key in on quarterback/safety, Jack Kiser, who is committed to Notre Dame, Triton is going to stick to its scheme. Brown said the Trojans will judge themselves on clean play, including lining up correctly, eliminating mistakes and exerting great effort.
Brown: "I already told the kids, we should be excited for this week. We should step up to the opportunity to play, and everything we do should be positive."
WAWASEE AT PLYMOUTH (NLC)
Kickoff: 7 p.m. Friday in Plymouth
Coaches: Mike Eshbach (Wawasee); John Barron (Plymouth)
Records: Wawasee 0-5 (0-3 NLC); Plymouth 3-2 (2-1 NLC)
Last Game: NorthWood 57, Wawasee 13; Plymouth 29, Elkhart Memorial 28 (OT)
Last Meeting: Plymouth 34, Wawasee 6
Matchup: Wawasee faced Class 4A No. 2 NorthWood last week in its toughest loss of the season. However, the Warriors have a short-memory mentality as they head into this week. Plymouth runs the spread offense, and Wawasee coach Mike Eshbach credited the Rockies as being "fast" and "physical." He said that for the Warriors to win, they'll have to fly to the ball and prevent big plays on defense. Getting their first win of the season would take some pressure off Wawasee.
Eshbach: "I think our guys are resilient group, and you just gotta move on. It's the same way (when) you have a big win, at some points you gotta put it behind you. If we can do the little things and not make mistakes, I think we can absolutely compete with them."
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