Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Mishawaka (2-1, 1-0 NLC) at Warsaw (3-0, 1-0 NLC)
When: Friday, 7 p.m., Fisher Field, Warsaw.
Series (last 40 years): Tied, 3-3.
John Harrell’s prediction: Warsaw, 31-24.
Last meeting: Oct. 3, 2025, Mishawaka, 42-21.
About Mishawaka: Keith Kinder’s IFCA 4A No. 10 Cavemen beat visiting Plymouth 20-13 in Week 3 … Mishawaka opened 2026 with a convincing 40-14 win over Mishawaka Marian, lost 49-7 to Penn then topped Plymouth.
then lost to Penn in The Backyard Brawl 49-7 … The Cavemen are Landon Snyder, who has rushed for over 3,000 yards and passed for 900 yards in his career … Mishawaka holds an offensive average of 22.3 and defensive average of 25.3.
About Warsaw: Bart Curtis’ Indiana Football Coaches Association 5A No. 4 Tigers rallied for a 27-22 win at NorthWood in Week 3 … Warsaw scored on a Michael Schenck 2-yard TD run with 27 seconds to go and — after the kickoff — iced the victory with a Jack Bradford interception … Tucker Reed ran for three TD’s in the first quarter … Rushing yardage leaders were Brady Sauer (94), Reed (88) and Schenck (79) … The game featured nine turnovers — five by NorthWood … Season rushing yardage leaders are Reed (437 with seven TD’s), Sauer (230 with one TD), Schenck (350 with three TD’s) and Wyatt Harman (131 with one TD) … John Conley is 7-of-8 on extra points … Tackle point leaders are Nathan Vila (42), Ty Martin (33), Matthew Flores-Ortega (30), Andrew Robertson (27), Mark Haynes (24) and Bradford (22) … Martin and Quinton Wilson have one fumble recovery each … Bradford (2) and Martin (1) have interceptions … The Tigers have now won by three, one and five points … Warsaw holds an offensive average of 29.7 and defensive average of 26.7.
Per Coach Bart Curtis:
On Mishawaka — They manhandled us physically and mentally last year and they are of the same DNA. You know they're going to be physical … We’ve played them six times (since I went to Warsaw from Mishawaka). It’s 3 to 3, so this is Game 7 of the World Series … But no kids on that team even know there has been a coach other than Keith Kinder at Mishawaka, so there’s no nostalgia. It’s just two wishbone teams and we'll see who can operate the offense better and who can defend the offense better … They’ve got three-year starters at quarterback (Landon Snyder) and fullback (Kadyn O’Neal) and center (Coley Rosenberg). So right up the middle. Their defensive line is quick, aggressive and their movement causes a lot of issues.
Improvement — I'm not as concerned about the results as I am with how we're getting to that point. Are we getting better? This team has an opportunity if they improve in some areas to be pretty competitive the rest of the way through.
On NorthWood game — I say we don't handle prosperity well, but you know a lot of that had to do with Northwood’s hard play and resiliency as well. So I think both teams showed a lot of that Friday night … I think we played three different linebackers. We played three different quarterbacks (against NorthWood). We played three different halfbacks, two fullbacks and nine offensive linemen, I believe. It was a war of attrition for sure … I think anybody that paid their seven bucks and walked out of there and said that was not entertaining shouldn't be shouldn't be allowed at any high school events.
Tippecanoe Valley (2-1) at Knox (0-3)
When: Friday, 7 p.m. ET, Community Field, Knox
Series: Tied 2-2
Last Outing: Tippecanoe Valley lost 33-12 to Adams Central, Knox lost 35-6 to Culver Community
John Harrell’s prediction: Tippecanoe Valley 49-0
Last Meeting: Sep. 12, 2025, Knox 36-21
About Tippecanoe Valley: The Vikings are coming into their Indiana Northern State Conference opener after suffering their first loss of the season last week, 33-12 to powerhouse Adams Central. The game was closer for much longer than the final score indicated, as the teams went into halftime tied at 6-6. However, it was four turnovers that doomed the Vikings in their final of three straight at home. Valley only managed 86 rushing yards in the loss, but on the bright side, the team was finally able to see some life out of its passing game. Hunter Randall threw for 128 yards, but the lone passing touchdown came on a flea-flicker thrown by Hunter Paxton to Owen Omondi. Paxton also led the team with 43 rushing yards and a score. Omondi bounced back from a negative-yardage game against Rochester with 24 yards on the ground and 76 more receiving. Tyran Kiser led the defense for the second straight week, totalling 14 tackles.
About Knox: With the state’s all time leading rusher and last year’s Mr. Football Myles McLaughlin having graduated in the spring, it’s been quite a different start to the season than the Redskins were hoping for. Knox comes into its conference opener winless at 0-3, having been outscored 111-32 during that stretch. The reigning INSC champions will have their work cut out for them this week as they look to pick up that elusive first win. Junior Jaydin Fisher and senior Ashton Walker make up a good chunk of the running game, averaging 100 yards a game combined. Walker, the quarterback, has completed just 6/22 passes over three games for 132 yards, no touchdowns and two picks. His top receiver is Bryson Venice, who has caught four of those passes for 99 yards.
Tippecanoe Valley head coach Steve Moriarty:
On last week – I thought we played well enough to win, but you can’t turn the ball over against a team like that. They are a team that doesn’t make mistakes, and we committed a fumble on our first drive out of halftime, and another one going into the end zone later in the game. But I was happy with how we responded to the adversity, and I think if we got another shot at these guys, we might see a different result.
On his team’s progress this season – The effort and attitude of this bunch has been outstanding. We’re starting to develop some continuity on the offensive line, which is vital to success late in the year. We’re understanding our roles, creating our own luck. I’m very pleased with the way things are going, but we need to continue growing so that we’re peaking at the right time.
On Knox – We’re not overlooking them, it’s a Knox week like any other. You need to reinvent your defense when you play them in order to defend it. It’s like they put their entire offense into a phone booth. It’s difficult to see who has the ball. Coach Radtke will have those boys prepared, they’re going to get better each week, and we have to be prepared for them as well.
Wawasee (0-3, 0-1 NLC) at Northridge (3-0, 1-0 NLC)
When: Friday, 7 p.m., Interra Field, Middlebury.
Series (last 40 years): Northridge, 25-19.
John Harrell’s prediction: Northridge, 42-3.
Last meeting: Oct. 24, 2025, Northridge, 35-26 (sectional).
About Wawasee: Mark Osmialowki’s Warriors lost 48-10 to visiting Concord in Week 3 … Johnny Zachary was 12-of-26 passing for 124 yards and one interception and ran 16 times for 11 yards and one TD … Mason McKibben (75) was the yardage rushing leader ... Luke Nettrouer caught five passes for 58 yards, Luke Lehman two for 43 and Hayden Mervine one for 20 … The Warriors committed six turnovers including five lost fumbles … Total tackle leaders were Aidan Beer (5), Max Pena (5), Lehman (4) and Westen Haab (4) … Keny’n Burney recovered a fumble … Wawasee holds an offensive average of 15.7 and defensive average of 38.3.
About Northridge: Luke Amstutz’s IFCA 4A vote-getting Raiders won 55-10 at Goshen in Week 3 … Jake Scholl has completed 37-of-55 passes for 758 yards and 10 touchdowns with four interceptions in three games … Keivontre Copeland has 12 receptions for 334 yards and five TD’s, Karsyn Rumfelt 11 catches for 145 yards and two TD’s … Rushing leaders are Scholl with 39 carries for 329 yards and seven TD’s and Adam Sloop 26 totes for 165 yards and three TD’s … Eli Stec is 19-of-21 on extra points … Total tackle leaders are Colt Granberg (43), Chapman Brinks (25), Rumfelt (23), Malachi Graber (21) and Braedynn Rolston (19) … Jack Smith (2), Graber (1) and Rumfelt (1) have fumble recoveries … Mhyles Norman has one interception ... Northridge holds an offensive average of 50.7 and defensive average of 25.3.
Per Coach Mark Osmialowski:
On Northridge — They’re definitely going to be a challenge. They like to get the ball downfield to their playmakers. They have a quarterback (Jake Scholl) who's only a sophomore, but he's skilled. He's big. He's powerful. He not only scares you with his arm, but he scares you with his legs, too. We’ve got to be able to contain him in the pocket and be able to take away his downfield throws.
Improvement — Our defensive secondary (Aidan Beer and Luke Lehman at safety and Keny’n Burney and J’Ceon Evans at cornerback) has done pretty well the last couple weeks. Concord had a whole bunch of receivers that are very skilled on the field at all times, and we were able to take that away for the most part. We've done a pretty good job in coverage … We got to do a better job at rushing and getting after the quarterback to help force some more bad throws.
On Concord game — That Concord team is very fast, very physical. We didn't do our part in protecting the football. I said it to the boys afterwards — I feel like I'm a broken record — but we're 0-3 because of ourselves, not just because somebody beat us, so we gotta have more of an emphasis on protecting the football, ball security, making right decisions, and do that moving forward … It means you bring that extra hand over and locking the wrist at the point of contact, and not worry about switching the ball over to the other hand and things like that when you're in the middle of the field.
Lewis Cass (1-2, 1-1 TRC) at Manchester (1-2, 0-1 TRC)
When: Friday, 7 p.m., Burk Field, North Manchester
Series: Lewis Cass 4-2
Last Outing: Cass lost 19-0 to Peru, Manchester defeated Benton Central 35-14
John Harrell’s prediction: Lewis Cass 45-3
Last Meeting: Sep. 12, 2025, Cass 18-14
About Lewis Cass: The Kings come into Friday night’s matchup having split their first two Three Rivers Conference games of the season, defeating Northfield 37-8 a couple of weeks ago before being shut out 19-0 by Peru last Friday. Cass wasn’t able to get much offense going at all in that one, finishing the night with just 149 total yards. 69 came through the air, as quarterback Cole Rush completed 33% of his passes. Connyr Mack led all ball carriers with 33 yards. Since joining the TRC in 2023, the Kings have averaged a little over six wins a season. They are 2-1 against the Squires.
About Manchester: The Squires finally got into the win column on Friday night, defeating Benton Central 35-14 in a neutral site game at Wabash. The game was a last-minute scheduling with the Apaches moving down to eight-man football. It was a great day for the Manchester offense, as the team put up over 300 total yards, 286 on the ground. Three different rushers had at least 50 yards, led by quarterback Cody Carroll’s 123. The QB connected on just one pass, but it was a 61-yard touchdown to Maddux Greer, who finished with over 100 total yards thanks to 58 on the ground. Sophomore Hunter Hamilton finished with six carries for 66 yards. Jackson Anguilm came up with two sacks on defense.
Manchester head coach Brian Enyeart:
On last week – It’s always good to get a victory. We executed better. I thought Cody read plays a lot more efficiently and it opened up the run for himself and others. He hit Maddux with that big pass up the middle after we had kind of lulled them to sleep with the running game.
On his team’s progression – We still have a lot of work to do. This is the hardest team I’ve ever had to get a feel for. It’s hard to tell if they’re up or down, it’s the same either way. We need to get better at doing everything at an A+ level. Right now we’re okay with being okay, and you can’t do that in football. We need some kids to step up and demand more out of their teammates.
On Lewis Cass – They’re a great team. They do things the right way. They’ll be disappointed after the loss last week so we’ve got to be ready for them to want to come in and make a statement. We have to build off of our win and keep getting things right. We want to prove we can do it against a good team. We have to have the mindset of being able to beat them if we play our best game.
Maconaquah (3-0, 1-0 Three Rivers Conference) at Whitko (0-3, 0-2 TRC)
When: 7 p.m. Friday, Huff Stadium
Series last 40 years: Maconaquah 10-2
Last meeting: Maconaquah 62-0, Sept. 12, 2025
John Harrell prediction: Maconaquah 56-7
About Maconaquah: The Class 3A Braves enter Friday night’s game ranked 10th in the USA Today poll and 11th in the coaches poll. The offense revolves around senior quarterback Aiden Robinson, who has completed a touch under 60 percent of his passes for 946 yards and 10 touchdowns, including a 93-yard strike to classmate Noah Tarrh. He leads the team with 30 catches for 487 yards. Tarrh, Senior Marcell Sims Jr. and sophomore Tre Rader have three touchdown receptions each, with Rader adding a 63-yard reception and Sims’ longest catch going for 35 yards. Maconaquah rush the ball about 40 percent of the time, with Robinson the leading ball carrier with 122 yards and five scores. Twice the Brave defense has allowed at least 24 points.
About Whitko: The Wildcats have fallen short of double-digit scoring in eight of their last 13 games and the offense struggled at Rochester last week. Quarterback Chase Miller, in his second week ever at the position, managed to complete half of his 20 passes for 136 yards and a touchdown to Crew Ebbinghouse, but Ebbinghouse was injured on the play and missed the rest of the game. Whitko struggled mightily with its rushing game, with Mason Hersha managing just seven yards on 10 carries and the team finishing with minus one yard on the ground.
Head coach Thomas Tyree:
On the Whitko offense: “There were some things that we could do running-the-ball wise. We had some injuries though. We were missing one of our offensive linemen, which kind of made it a little rough for us Outside of that, I just felt like we didn't compete to our best ability.”
On the Wildcat defense: “We took some steps defensively. I know the score may not necessarily (reflect) that but we were able to get (Rochester) to 4th down a few times actually. I think it was like, two or three times and they end up converting. We were able to get them off the field late in the game. So there were some positives.
On Maconaquah: “Well, I've seen a couple teams defend them. I think as long as we show up and can compete and take away their big plays, because that's really where they get you is the big plays. They don't really drive down the field. They want to take shots. They want to have the big plays. They want to score fast. So if we can keep everything in front of us and make them have to matriculate down the field. I think that that is in our best interest.
Triton (0-3, 0-1 HNAC) at South Central (0-3, 0-1 HNAC)
When: Friday, 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time/6:30 p.m. Central Time, Union Mills.
Series (last 40 years): Triton, 10-4.
John Harrell’s prediction: South Central, 35-24.
Last meeting: Sept. 12, 2025, Triton, 63-0.
About Triton: Andy Barker’s Trojans lost 34-0 to visiting South Central (Union Mills) in Week 3 … Ryder Gayheart had a team-best 85 yards rushing on 18 carries … On the season, Gayheart has 67 carries for 281 yards … Total tackle leaders are Christian McIntosh (23), Blake Ousley (15), Brayden Gunnels (14), Channing Heckaman (14), Noah Mondy (14), Logan Collins (13), Gayheart (12), Cayden Bradley (12), Lukas Nicely (11) and Ashton Jacobs (10) … Gayheart and Chris Fenton have recovered one fumble each … Triton holds an offensive average of 2.0 and defensive average of 41.3.
About South Central: Steve Forker’s Satellites lost 63-6 to visiting North Judson-San Pierre in Week 3 … Isaiah Forker is 22-of-56 passing for 192 yards with four interceptions in three games … Rushing yardage leaders are Gavin Herzog with 52 carries for 171 yards and two TD’s and Jackson Arnett with 13 carries for 148 yards and one TD … Logan Keist has six receptions for 53 yards … South Central holds an offensive average of 7.3 and defensive average of 55.0.
Per Coach Andy Barker:
On South Central — A lot of focus just on us. But we’ve got a game plan. They're struggling a little bit this year as well, but so is Culver. I'm not going to say that too much this week … They run a 4-4 on defense. That's what they ran against North Judson … (South Central is) a heavy run team as we are. I assume they'll run against us. Offensively, they actually look a little bit like us.
Improvement — Knowing our assignment really is the biggest thing. There's a difference between knowing and doing. If you don't even know what you're doing, then you can't go do it appropriately. Knowledge of the game — especially both lines — we’re starting to understand at least where they need to be now. It's more about can we execute once we get there.
On Culver Community game — That was a tough game because the boys’ mindset was a little bit different. I think they took past history for granted and weren't as ready as they needed to be. You can chalk that up to a learning experience and just the fact that we’ve got to do the little things in order to get this done correctly … We had a lot of mistakes in the first half. We gave them all of their points in the first half on four turnovers (three fumbles and a pick-six).
