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I have it on background that GS has been actively recruiting out of state for a new QB1. He probably won't be ready this week, but should be by the time we hit the Mt Vernon/Princeton/Boonville home stretch. The hope is that those three games will get him familiar with the offensive scheme by the time sectionals roll around. Word is that he's not quite the speedy running QB that GS historically has had, but Coach Hart really wanted to get back to that pocket passer type of guy since we had some success with it last couple of years. I did hear something about possibly having some eligibility issues, but I'm sure the GS admin can get that sorted out. #ThinkFastRunFast #FastChad #Homeschooled

I just wanted to give a big congrats to the Cougars of West Side High School for defeating Hammond Morton for the first time in their program's history last Saturday. Just 3 years ago, in 2019, they lost to the Governors 76-0. Last year they lost a close one 20-14. They finally broke through this year for a 38-6 victory. Morton has dominated West Side historically, many times with kids who lived within Gary's borders. A huge victory for West Side in their last year in the Great Lakes Athletic Conference as they transition to the Greater South Shore Conference. If they can take down Hammond Central they'll win what I believe would be their first (and last) conference title in the GLAC. S/o to Eric Schreiber Jr for starting the turnaround and to Alger Boswell for keeping it going.

It's great having the IHSAA.TV app so you can watch multiple teams each week. I've been able to catch a lot of the WRC games to get a feel for the teams and how they are performing. I've already made my picks but here's a little more supporting evidence. Attica at North Vermilion - I find it sad to see the state of the Rambler program. Low numbers and an overall dearth of talent. I know results and roster sizes can be cyclical, but Attica has really fallen since Coach Good left. Did he see this coming and leave? Oh well, I guess I won't be making a trip to Bruce Field this year. The team is struggling and the Short Stop is now a Mexican joint. The Falcons seem to ride the talent cycle pretty well, so maybe a lot can be said for coaching. Covington at The Woofs - did PH really bring in a lot of hired guns under Coach Moore? Did they all move back after he departed to North Put to assist his son? Would Turkey Run be better to open back up? I watched the Trojan-Mustang game and Covington did a few nice things and it will be enough to handle the Wolves. The game I watched PH showed me all I need to see. Fountain Central at Seeger - Seeger has always been a special place for me (except in 2004 when we were robbed!!). My profile pic is an early 1960s Seeger helmet that my dad wore. It sits in my office now. Hard to pick against them being from Warren County. They beat the HOF coach at his former stomping grounds. I don't see the coach retiring. Coaches don't like to leave unfinished business. Don't see it happening here. Riverton Parke at South Vermilion on Saturday - as much as I want to see the little guy step up and whip the big guy, I don't see it happening here, although I do hope I'm wrong. Enjoy the games and keep the kids healthy. Cheer for your side and respect your opponent.

Jets, Starfires to meet in annual Adams County war Andrew Smith GridironDigest.com To find some of the best small-school football in Indiana, look no further than Adams County. Since 2011, the Adams Central Flying Jets and South Adams Starfires have each won six sectional titles. Each has been a state runner-up in the last couple of years - Adams Central advancing to Lucas Oil Stadium, South Adams in 2020. Both are mainstays in the Class A polls, and their regular-season meeting frequently decides the Allen County Athletic Conference title. This week, the two schools again meet on the gridiron at South Adams. Adams Central (5-0) is ranked No. 2 in the Class A IFCA poll, while South Adams (4-1) is No. 5. “It is the best small school rivalry in the state,” South Adams coach Grant Moser said. “The ACAC conference (title) has gone through one of us since 2016. Both teams have small tight-knit communities that love their football programs and show up in droves to support. It is an incredible atmosphere to be able to witness.” The familiarity makes for a great game. It’s 9.6 miles from Adams Central’s campus in Monroe to South Adams in Berne. “It's a big game for both teams,” Adams Central coach Michael Mosser said. “We know each other well. I think it's neat that both programs have had a lot of success which makes the game even more special. The game is always hard-fought - neither team has really been able to dominate the other. AC does have more wins; however, games are usually very close. It is rare that one will dominate the other. This year could see a lot of the same.” A year ago, Adams Central won both meetings - 48-7 in the regular season and 41-0 in the regional. In 2020, South Adams won a 29-9 decision in the regular season. Led by quarterback Ryan Black, Adams Central posted a 25-21 victory over Eastside - a 2A semistate team from a year ago - and has scored 40-plus points each in consecutive wins over Covenant Christian, Jay County and Heritage in the last three weeks. This year’s success is building on a recent history. The Flying Jets are 118-47 in Mosser’s 14 years in Monroe. “I think the reason for our success is the tradition that we have,” Mosser said. “We have a system and a culture that kids believe in. I think this helps us be successful. Kids love playing football at Adams Central. Last year's success is definitely part of it but it really goes deeper than last season. It's built into the kids and lasted long before me.” The same takes place at South Adams, where the Starfares are 62-26 in Moser’s eight years. “We have total buy-in from players, parents and administration along with great community support,” Moser said. “Our kids have set the culture and now know what it takes to be successful.” South Adams won its first three games before falling 28-27 to Heritage in Week 4. The Starfires bounced back with a 35-19 victory over Monroe Central - another team that has spent time in the Top 10 this season - last week. Quarterback Owen Wanner has thrown for 1,046 yards and 12 TDs to lead South Adams. Maverick Summersett is averaging 6.4 yards per carry on the ground. “Wanner is a good passer and runner. We will need to contain him and not let him pass or run all over the field,” Adams Central’s Mosser said. “Offensively we must be able to run the ball. They have always made that hard on us. They like shifting around a lot and blitzing.” Adams Central’s run game, led by Keehan Blum, will be keyed on as well. “They are the favorites in the 1A north once again,” South Adams’ Moser said of the Jets. “We will need to play mistake free football and find some way to slow down their run game.” Sheridan joins the 700 club When one thinks of small-school success in Indiana, the Sheridan Blackhawks have long been the gold standard. The program reached another milestone last Friday with a 42-0 victory at Clinton Prairie, winning its 700th game all-time. Sheridan, which has been playing football since 1898, is the third program in the state to reach the 700-win mark. Indianapolis Cathedral (771) and Evansville Reitz (721) are the only two with more victories. Mishawaka (665) and Hobart (652) are the next-closest to 700. Head coach Larry “Bud” Wright was a part of 24 of those wins as a player from 1955-58. After graduating from Sheridan and Ball State, he returned to his alma mater in 1966 as the head coach after one year at Mt. Ayr High School - which is now part of North Newton. He has been the head coach for 439 of those victories since then. Wright has led the Blackhawks to nine state championships - the first coming in 1980, the latest in 2007. “The first thing is it takes a lot of hard work and dedication to what you’re doing,” Wright told Hoosierland TV after the milestone win. “In the younger days, I went to probably 15 to 20 clinics every year, listened to the best speakers I could, took things from everybody and started putting things together. The pieces started fitting together. “You also have to have a lot of good people around you. I have been blessed down through the years to have some excellent assistant coaches and fine athletes”. This year’s squad is currently unranked in Class A - it’s receiving votes in the AP poll - but is 4-1 and outscoring opponents by an average score of 40-11. After a Week 1 loss to Western Boone - a Top 10 3A team - the Blackhawks have rolled off four straight lopsided wins. This year’s team features a powerful running game led by senior Peyton Cross, who has 729 yards and eight touchdowns, and junior Zach Bales, who has tallied 429 yards and seven scores. Both average more than 10 yards per carry. Sheridan will go for win 701 this week at home against Taylor in a non-conference game. ICC lead up for grabs as No. 1, No. 2 meet The lead in the Indiana Crossroads Conference is up for grabs this week as 1A No. 1 Indianapolis Lutheran meets 2A No. 2 Indianapolis Scecina. The game will be played at Roncalli. Both teams are 5-0 to start the year. “The Lutheran game is very big in it positions the winner to win the conference, which is always a goal,” Scecina coach Ott Hurrle said. “This game will help us get a better understanding of where we are in regards to tournament play.” Lutheran, the defending Class A state champion, is averaging 53 points per game. The Saints’ offense is led by sophomore quarterback Jackson Willis, who leads the state with 1,639 passing yards. He thew for 385 in last week’s 50-12 victory over Cascade and has a season-high of 417 in a 54-41 Week 3 win over Triton Central. Willis has more than capably filled the shoes of now-graduated Montasi Clay, who accounted for 4,579 yards of total offense and 65 touchdowns a year ago and is now at Marian University. Micah MacKay has 640 receiving yards and ranks fourth in the state. The Saints have been a perennial Class A power under coach Dave Pasch, winning seven sectionals, six regionals, two semistates and a state title since 2014. They have won 20 consecutive games dating back to 2021. Scecina has been a defensive stalwart so far through five weeks, posting two shuouts and allowing five touchdowns in five games. The Crusaders are building off a strong season in which they went 10-4 and won a regional. They’ve already avenged two of their regular-season losses from last year, beating Speedway 28-7 in Week 2 and Heritage Christian 27-13 last week. A victory this week would avenge the third. “Senior leadership during the off season in getting players to buy in and be at workouts during the summer,” Hurrle said of a key to the Crusaders’ success this season. “Our defense has played very well and has allowed our offense to come along and its getting better.” Hurrle is in his 31st year at the helm of the Crusaders. He has led them to two state titles in 1990 and 1991. Senior Mason Beriault leads the Crusaders’ defense with 48 tackles, while Tamir Woods has 43 stops and 13 tackles for loss. Defensive tackle Adam Young, another senior, has 11 TFLs. Hurrle also has cited the play of linebacker Calvin Connor, defensive end Jaylen Long and linebacker Keaton Thibo, all seniors, as leaders on defense. Offensively, running back Brandon Fitts-Ramsey has 531 rushing yards, leading a balanced attack. Cougars into the Top 10 After knocking on the door at the end of last season, Greenfield-Central’s Cougars have spent much of the season in the IFCA Class 4A Top 10. The Cougars went 7-4 last season - their third winning season since 2002 - and have started this season 4-1, with the only blemish a 35-28 defeat to defending 4A champion Mt. Vernon. G-C travels to 4A No. 1 New Palestine this week. The Cougars have slowly built from going winless in 2018, the year before coach Travis Nolting took over, to two wins, then three, then seven. Now, they're in the Top 10 for the first time since 2002 and spending multiple weeks there for the first time since the program's heyday in the 1970s - when they won the first Class 2A state title in 1973 and were runners-up two years later. “Four years ago, we established a direction for where we wanted to go as a program. We have committed to that direction and will continue to commit to it,” Nolting said. “Consistency has been a large piece of that direction. I have always believed that program consistency yields the best results. Our seniors have now been in our program for four years and have bought in. I can't say enough about the hard work they have put in over the past four years making Greenfield football relevant once again.” That direction has featured the wishbone offense - a patient, powerful running game that spreads the ball around. It currently features senior fullback Andrew Zellers, who has 655 yards and averages 7.1 yards per carry. Fellow senior Brayden Herrell has tallied 473 yards and 8.0 yards per carry. The Cougars are averaging 348 yards per game on the ground. They rushed for 400 yards in a 35-0 victory over Pendleton Heights Week 4 and 377 yards last week in a 54-7 victory at Shelbyville. Defensively, G-C is allowing 198 yards per game and has shut out two foes - Greensburg and Pendleton Heights. The group is led by senior defensive end Brad Allen, who has four sacks and 11 tackles for loss, as well as junior linebacker Jake Hinton, who has 59 tackles. The Cougars have forced 17 takeaways, led by Kirk Knecht’s four interceptions. This week features a road trip to county and Hoosier Heritage Conference rival New Palestine, with first place in the league on the line. “New Pal is very good. Coach (Kyle) Ralph is one of the best in the state,” Nolting said. “His teams are always well coached and very prepared to play. There are multiple Div. 1 athletes on the field for New Pal which makes them even more dangerous. “In order for us to be successful on Friday Night, we can't make mistakes or turn the ball over and have to battle in the trenches all night.” Other games of note 6A No. 9 Westfield (3-2) at 6A No. 1 Brownsburg (5-0) 6A No. 10 Lawrence Central (3-2) at 6A No. 2 Center Grove (4-1) Zionsville (4-1) at 6A No. 4 Hamilton Southeastern (5-0) Lawrence North (2-3) at 6A No. 5 Ben Davis (3-2) 5A No. 1 Whiteland (5-0) at Martinsville (4-1) 5A No. 2 Mishawaka (5-0) at Warsaw (4-1) Crown Point (5-0) at 5A No. 5 Valparaiso (4-1) 5A No. 6 Castle (4-1) at 4A No. 9 Evansville Reitz (5-0) 5A No. 8 Harrison (4-1) at Lafayette Jeff (4-1) 4A No. 2 Roncalli (5-0) at No. 8 Brebeuf Jesuit (3-1) Franklin (3-2) at 4A No. 3 Mooresville (5-0) 4A No. 5 East Central (4-1) at South Dearborn (5-0) Benton Central (3-2) at 3A No. 1 West Lafayette (5-0) 3A No. 9 Guerin Catholic (3-2) at 3A No. 2 Indianapolis Bishop Chatard (3-2) 3A No. 3 Gibson Southern (5-0) at Heritage Hills (3-2) 3A No. 4 Tri-West (4-1) at Lebanon (3-2) 3A No. 5 Norwell (5-0) at East Noble (3-2) 2A No. 1 Linton (5-0) at North Daviess (4-1) 2A No. 3 Andrean (3-2) at Hobart (3-2) 2A No. 4 LaVille (5-0) at Knox (3-2) Rensselaer (3-2) at 2A No. 9 Lafayette Catholic (3-2)

https://www.tristatehomepage.com/home-team-friday/home-team-friday-off-the-gridiron-9-16-22/ Home Team Friday did an awesome piece on me and the oldest Indiana high school football website, ReitzFootball.com!

The confusion arises because (1) field goal attempts are not all that common … especially in JV games, and (2) under the NF code, a kick try fails and the play is dead when the kick is blocked. That’s why varsity crews remind one another before a field goal attempt that “the ball remains alive.” Not an excuse, just an explanation.

I was in HS when Marshall closed (abruptly in 85 or 86 if I remember correctly). Many of the students were sent to Arlington. There was a lot of violence since they were rivals and most were upset and forced to attend. At Mt. Vernon we received a lot of transfers when the violence broke out at Arlington.

SW Indiana gets plenty of talk the way it is on here. It’s nice reading up on multiple other programs from all around i wouldn’t worry about trying to feature anything in particular…you’re doing great the way it is

5.49 ... Fast Chad!!

Castle's crown is the second highest peak in Indiana...

Always hated playing down at Boonville during the glory days of the Big 8…must be a Warrick County thing that the football fields have a crest in the middle (Castle does as well…never been to Tecumseh though). Seems to have provided some sort of weird advantage that we just struggled down there. Impressive to see the success the Miners had in this series. Always rooting for Linton. Great breakdown as always MP.

The public schools in South Bend have gone from the top to the bottom. Twin Lakes is the worst team in the Hoosier Conference and they beat SB Clay 46-8. Some Home schools could probably beat the SB public schools in football. Is it ever going to get better up there?

This seems to have hit a lot of inner-city public schools - Gary West, the IPS schools, Muncie Central, Anderson, et al, have really struggled as families have moved to the suburbs. Fort Wayne & Evansville schools haven't been hit as hard, but Evansville's school corporation is countywide, so a lot of the Evansville schools' population includes the closer-in suburbs. Not sure if that's as much the case for FWCS, but Northrop/Snider seem to hit the north suburbs. Meanwhile, Mishawaka & Penn (as well as Marian & St. Joe) are top-notch programs. The people living and going to school there were in South Bend two generations ago.

I don't know, I was busy watching my public alma mater at Lucas Oil in the 3A Championship game. And I edited my original comment to the correct year.........I'll give you 2013.

I mean 2012....and I said arguably subjectively my friend. This conversation is all about me...hush about those schools up north! Wasn't Charlestown supposed to be the best 3A public in Indiana in 2012?

New public schools will most likely have a football program. New Private ones-probably not.

I swear to God!

Lighten up spanky, I might be an @ss but I'm no child. Since 2012 we have been the best PUBLIC 3A school in Indiana for at least a handful of years and in the top 3 for the rest, arguably/subjectively. I would estimate our "effective" enrollment somewhere around 500, actual enrollment 704 as compared to Chatards effective enrollment of 667, actual enrollment 667. My oldest son lost to Chatard in Semi-State in 2015. https://www.indystar.com/story/sports/high-school/2015/11/21/semistate-chatard-beats-gibson-southern-war/76203244/ My middle son lost by 1 point to a HH team that went to the State Championship and lost to Chatard 34-3 in 2019. I have a friend who sent his sons to Chatard. My youngest son was the sophomore RB/SLOT on our state championship team last year and does the same thing this year but has an additional role of strong safety. I dedicated 20 years to our youth league, middle school (the cool kids call that feeder) and strength programs in leadership and coaching roles. I was on the search committee who interviewed Coach Hart. I am a professional who works in Evansville, however, we chose to stay in Gibson County and commute, otherwise my kids might have attended Mater Dei or Memorial (not a big fan of the EVSC). Here is an aerial view of the Gibson Southern and nearby communities.

@Donnie BakerWhen the “longtime booster” has nothing positive to add I will call him out. It seems this board is ok with internet bullies. All I’ve done in this thread is ask general questions. Just trying to learn but it seems that a Chatard parent isn’t permitted to ask questions. There are quite a few helpful people in here and I appreciate their feedback. You, like Titan, don’t ow the internet. If you don’t approve of my questions then don’t read them. Take a walk, breathe some fresh air, lose the anger.

There’s Gonzos telling everyone what to post again. I think he misses arguing with D Tees, I swear to God he does

A new guy with 11 posts calling out a longtime booster. That’s kinda funny I swear to God it is

IPS district = the old pre-Unigov Indianapolis city limits. The township schools' districts consist of any land outside of those limits (obviously, except the enclave towns of Speedway and Beech Grove, whose districts correspond with their town boundaries). Why Indy stretched so far along 38th Street was likely because that area was developed and the city annexed it for tax base. It stretches pretty far in a narrow finger (although not quite as far) along 38th Street on the west side into Pike & Wayne Townships, too. There have been multiple proposals to merge the township schools and IPS over the years, since schools, police and fire were excluded from the Unigov city-county unification (police has since consolidated into one department, *some* fire departments have and some, like Pike, have remained independent of IFD), but the schools have steadfastly been able to remain independent. Given the size of all eight of the township districts, I don't think there's any momentum to merge them into IPS.

Lawrence North was a basketball powerhouse almost from the beginning - and won a state title (the first for a Marion County township school) in its 13th year of existence. But if you looked and saw Lawrence North largely upstaging Lawrence Central athletically, and Perry Meridian was probably equal to or better than Southport for a long time (although Southport *did* make a basketball State Finals in 1990), you're thinking "if we split the school, the new school with no history and tradition will be the good one, and the old one with 100 years of alumni will struggle," maybe you step back and say "yeah, let's keep it one school." If any township made sense to split, it was Lawrence, just because of how rapidly the Castleton/Geist areas were growing in the 1970s/80s. North Central would seem like a decent candidate (but a large portion of Washington Township resides in the IPS district), but it's fascinating to note that school didn't even exist until 1955. Before then, Washington Township kids who didn't live in the old city limits, I think, had the option to go to IPS or go to Pike/Lawrence Central (and I assume most went to Broad Ripple).

He was referring to where Mithoeffer T's into Prospect. Creston is just East of that point. Marshall is at 38th and Mitthoefer; 6 miles from Creston There was some conversation about a 2nd school even when I was at WC. I still believe a number of school districts in Indy looked at Lawrence Township schools.....and the struggle of the athletic teams at that time to decide they would not add an additional school.

😂😂😂

Wow. A damning accusation considering the head coaches’ resume.

2025 - those guys are all sophomores, so they're just now seeing the field. They've lost three games - by nine to Center Grove, by two touchdowns to a very good Ben Davis squad and by 12 to a very improved Lawrence Central team. I think more just shows the MIC is a meat-grinder. WC may be (and probably is) one of the top 7-8 teams in 6A but you can be a top team in 6A and still be in the lower half of the MIC because of the difficulty of the conference.

Done with the beefing. Just will continue to laugh at the stupidity displayed by some.

PMs go this personal beef.

(One note - I try to move around the state and hit all classes. This one is a bit more Class A and Central Indiana-heavy. There have been a couple of times, including this week, I've tried to feature big Southwestern Indiana matchups but the coaches have not responded).

At Ohio State......

Then they don't belong in this discussion.

Poll: Should we change the name of this thread to "Chatard's World?"

New Palestine has an opening that weekend.

https://nypost.com/2022/09/21/ny-ag-letitia-james-sues-donald-trump-kids-and-company/ New York Attorney General Letitia James on Wednesday filed a $250 million lawsuit against former President Donald Trump, his kids Eric, Ivanka and Donald Trump Jr., and the Trump Organization — alleging “staggering” fraud in the family real estate business. The 220-page civil suit filed in Manhattan Supreme Court is the culmination of a three-year investigation by the Democrat’s office to determine whether the Trump Organization’s assets were exaggerated for loan, insurance and tax purposes. It seeks to tear away Trump’s ability to run businesses in the Empire State and to prohibit him and his company from buying up commercial real estate for several years. “Donald Trump falsely inflated his net worth by billions of dollars to unjustly enrich himself, and cheat the system, thereby cheating all of us,” James said at a news conference announcing the suit. “Claiming you have money that you do not have does not amount to the art of the deal, it’s the art of the steal,” she said, referring to Trump’s 1987 book. SF would have to think if the charges listed against DJT had any factual basis, he would already be in jail......So the goal is obviously to keep litigating him until he isn't running in 2024.

Sounds like the teacher's labor union has complete and utter control over this school system. If I were a parent living in that district I could be transferring or home school my children, pronto.

I watched this...great story on the work you have done over the years.

Kendall had a hell of a run in SB, local boy, and honestly when he came back from retirement he was the only person that could have held that team together. A final four team with some tremendous talent.

Maybe that Reitz defense was a little better than folks was giving credit for earlier. They are better than I thought they would be this year, so not knocking anyone here.

Agreed. I'm hoping they open up the offense more this weekend. If they do I can completely understand why they went vanilla against the San Fran and GB defenses to develop the run game. This is clearly a rebuilding year from Pace's viewpoint. You have to spend the rest of the season figuring out if Fields is your guy or if you need to target a QB high in the draft. Unfortunately, based on the limited attempts he has thrown the ball, the advanced analytics are completely awful and the all 22 field view is showing he's missing open WR's. The worst was I believe on the flee flicker that was a big gain. Yes, it worked out well and the Bears gained 30'ish yards. But, he completely missed that the WR on the opposite side of the field raised his hand signal that he was abondoning the curl/comeback route because he was behind the DB and was going to run a deep route. I believe it was St. Brown who did that and was behind the secondary for a TD. I heard it discussed yesterday on the radio. Can we all agree now more Packers vs. Bears in prime time? I'm sure Packers fan enjoy the beatdowns on National TV. No mas for me. Not enjoyable to watch.

That kid is tearing it up right now....hope he keeps rolling and stays healthy. Reuniting with Coach DeBoer was absolutely the best for them both. https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/uw-husky-football/uws-michael-penix-jr-enters-heisman-conversation-after-dazzling-start/

Great guy. Totally agree. A few points of contention: Just because many of us coaches are born and raised in JC does not mean we are incapable of adopting winning ideals and plans from the outside. Growing up in a losing football program does not resign you to knowing only failure for the rest of your life. Secondly, JC Football being a perpetually losing program is true, but we do have several other sports that range from solid to more than good. We don't just lose by nature. Our 3 most consistently successful programs right now (GBB, Track, XC) are all coached by insiders. I think outsiders are great, but as a born and raised JC alum and teacher/coach, I like to hope that my career path is not just "continue the losing" by default.

Somebody’s buying a round of double shots!

Miners and Pioneers Light Up Scoreboard in Linton 50-40 Win. In this brief 4-year series between Boonville and Linton, it has been full of excitement with fast pace action, big time hitting, and in some year’s drama. This 2022 game was no different, and in a lot of ways very similar to the Over Time loss 44-42 two years back at Shelton Field in 2020. There is little doubt that Boonville will be glad to see Hunter Gennicks graduate, as he has lit up the Pioneers in his 3 years facing them. Boonville came in after an overtime 13-7 win over North Knox, a game many thought the Pioneers would roll through after beating Heritage Hills the week prior. Linton made their 3rd long road trip, but their first in two weeks after emotionally high wins over Monrovia and Sullivan at the Roy in the last 2 weeks. Could the Miners avoid a slip in intensity facing a team they beat easily in 2021 35-14? The 3-1 Pioneers looked to be excited at the chance to knock of 2A #1 Linton for their first win over the Miners in this series Linton led 3-0. It was a game that produced big numbers. Linton came in averaging 52.2 pig and 443.2 of total offense per game. The Miner Defense had been a bend and not break unit the last two games after excellent showings in weeks 1 and 2. Of course that had something to do with the talent level of Monrovia and Sullivan. Still, Monrovia had 219 rush yards and drove down the field against us. Sullivan had 224 in the air and we held out of the endzone twice inside the Miner 10. In both games the Miners had opened up with big leads early on and could withstand the yardage. Sullivan had pulled to 27-20 but the Miner Offense turned up the jets, and the Defense hunkered down for win #4. One would wonder in a dog fight if the big plays could continue for…as well as against, our Miners. Boonville had proven they could run and throw the ball in game film, and with 6’5 200 Sr QB Clay Conner at the helm of a team that was 6’2” at every position, Linton would indeed be challenged. The Pioneers put themselves in a hole right away with a hold, but a short pass to Sr Carter Wolfe gained 25 to the Miner 41. Another Hold on Boonville pushed them from Linton’s 31 to the 41, and later from the 28 facing 4th and 7, Conner’s Pass to a wide open Marques Ballard at the miner 20 sailed overhead. Pressure was heavy on the QB certainly altering the throw courtesy or Ty Boyd and Wrigley Franklin. Linton would come out firing with runs from both parts of “the Firm” of Hunter & Hunter. Gennicks with 6, Then Johns with 9 up to the Miner 43. Gennicks hit Jess Voigtschild on a 3rd and 8 to convert a 3rd down and cross midfield. Gennicks put Linton at the Boonville 28 on a scramble for 18, then hit Paul Oliver for 18 more into the Red Zone at the 8. 2 plays later Hunter Johns popped in for TD # 9 for the Senior, and Linton was up 6-0 at 5:07 of the 1st. Boonville started from their own 40, and on 3rd and 9 Conner stepped back to find Ballard extremely wide open in stride at the Miner 20. The pass nearly sailed over his head but Ballard made a great leaping catch, keeping his feet and scoring for a 59 yard touchdown pass. Bradyn Cox blocked the PAT and left the score tied 6-6 at 4:41. Linton’s attempt had also failed earlier. Linton looked to answer led by another scramble from Gennicks, this for 21 yards to the Pioneer 40. Penalties both aided and hurt Linton and the Miners got inside the 10. Braden Walters pushed the ball to the 9, but was just overthrown in the back of the endzone on 3rd and goal. This set up a 4th and goal from the 8. Coming into the contest, Linton had been 16 of 17 in the Red Zone, and would have been one better but Logan Webb juggled the pass perhaps trying to get his footing down in the endzone and dropped it to give Boonville a reprieve and the ball. Linton had gone 61 yards in 11 plays to come up empty. The Pioneer offense was also moving the ball well. Conner kept for a 35 yard gain on a 3rd and 4 from their own 14, eluding tacklers and catching Linton asleep on the back side. This play would be used many times successfully through-out the night. Another 3rd and 7 was converted on a pass from Conner to Cooper Aigner, then a Miner offside penalty set up 1st and 5 and the Linton 32. Back to back runs from Reese Wilder pushed to the Linton 23, and Connor repeated the back side play for a slash to the right corner for 6 points and a Boonville lead at 7:35 of the 2nd quarter. This time the PAT was foiled on a bad snap, but it was the 1st time in 2022 that Linton found themselves behind in a ballgame at 12-6. Linton was definitely not on the level of enthusiasm that we had seen in the previous four outings, and were in need of something to jolt them up. It came in the form of #12 Hunter Johns. “Papa” as they call him, took the ball on a tall bounce at the Miner 13 from Josh Biggins. He took a few steps straight down sideline before cutting to the middle where a big hole had been created by the Return team blocking downfield. Hunter put a wicked stiff arm on Ballard at the Miner 40, then out-ran he last Boonville defender 60 yards, a total of 87 to silence the black and gold hometown fans. Big credit goes to the initial blocks from Braydn Cox and Russell Goodman, then to Voigtschild , Michael Auberry and Cody Pigg as Johns cut to the middle. Then is was Jimmie Wright, Linkyn Yarber and Ashton White that sealed off defenders giving Hunter a huge gap to ignite his jets to open field. Of course Colton McKinnon & Eli Scott had to do their part for the play for be successful. And it was much needed. Hunter Gennicks ran in the 2 point conversion and Linton was back up 14-12 15 seconds after falling behind for the first time all year. Things did pick up for the Miner D as they stuffed Wilder for no gain on a 3rd and 1 at the Pioneer 43. Boonville elected to do, and Conner looked to have been stopped short by Christian Shonk and Cox, but a measurement that took a long while for the white hat to call 1st down finally happened. From then on it was meticulous runs by both Wilder and Conner that went double digits per carry to the Miner 12. It would be Wilder who busted through for the final 12 as Boonville marched 689 yards in 10 plays all on the ground save for 9 yards in passing. The Pioneers run for 2 was stopped but Boonville themselves had answered right back at 4:00 in the 2nd with an 18-14 advantage. Then the Miners were caught off guard as Biggins squib kick split through the front line and between the second line and took a huge hop. No Miner got to it before Boonville’s Tyler Rinehart at the Miner 43. Paul Oliver and Hank Gennicks dropped Wolfe for a loss of 3 and Gennicks pressured Conner to scramble where Oliver push him out of bounds forcing a 3rd and 9. This time Conner’s run was thwarted by Gennicks again, and White forcing Boonville to punt which put the Miners at their own 21 with 2:17 before half. It was big that the Defense kept Boonville from expanding their lead and momentum. However, the Miner offense had not been on the field at all in the 2nd quarter. The last offensive play had been at the 0:12 mark of the 1st on the cropped pass in the endzone. It showed. A holding penalty negated a nice run, then two passed for Walters were incomplete and Linton only run 39 seconds off the clock. Oliver booted a 26 yard punt with no return, yet Boonville sat at the Linton 41 with 1:38 yet to run off until halftime. And Boonville struck immediately. They had been able to find open receivers most of the night, and Conner did not miss them. Again it was Marques Ballard the speedy junior who cut inside the defender and found himself wide open at the Miner 33 where Conner drilled the ball. Ballard broke an arm tackle and strode into the end zone easily, and then Conner passed to Wyatt Franz for another 2 points and now the Miners faced serious trouble down 26-14 with 1:29 still left to the break. Perhaps Boonville scored too quickly? Hard to imagine they cared at that point, and honestly Linton had probably played their worst quarter of the year at this point and would be happy to get to the locker-room knowing they’d have the first possession of the 2nd half. Of course, we in Linton know that wasn’t going to happen. And this is where you find out what your team is made up. Linton had not seen much in the way of adversity thus far, although the Miner drive against Sullivan when it was 27-20 was a good sign. However, this was in Boonville, and Boonville’s home base was indeed fired up. On 2nd and 10 Gennicks hit Johns on a swing pass that earned 14 yards, then Johns took a late option pitch another 16 yards to the Boonville 28. It was hard to fathom that as bad as things had been, a miner score would put things in much better light. Linton reached the red zone at the 19 on an Oliver reception, but Boonville Defense stood strong on back to back Gennicks runs. Facing 3rd and 10 Stihl Scott met Gennicks head up at the Line Of Scrimmage leaving a 4th and 4, but in reality with just 8 seconds left, it was 4th and goal from the 8. After time-outs, it was Gennicks to his right keeping the ball and pushing through tacklers for the Miner score! Hunter Johns drew Linton to within 4 at 26-22. Russell Goodman sent the Miners into the half on an even better note as he busted through to sack Conner for a loss of 13 as the horn sounded. It was the type of game many expected. Boonville was showing they had every bit the offense of Linton, and showing that they could expose some areas of concern for Miner Fans. The halftime numbers were an unusual site for Linton as the Pioneers led in total yards 293 to 208, with 154 in the air that accounted for 2 long Pioneer scores. Linton was really saved by the Johns kickoff return TD, and that last scoring drive definitely picking up spirits heading in the half. Again the Time of Possession heavily favored Boonville 14:37 to 9:23 as Linton had the ball just 2:00 of the entire 2nd Quarter. It’s said the first drive of the second half is always one of the most important possessions of a game. This is very true on this night but it looked grim after the 1st two produced 0 yards. Facing a near must-have 3rd and 10, it was the middle screen to Johns that worked earlier, and it worked again for 16 yards to the Pioneer 43. Then a play we’ve been oh so close on all year finally connected; the long ball. It didn’t look pretty as Ballard had a play for Boonville, but Logan Webb stay focused and down 26-14 with 8 seconds to go in the first half to a 28-26 lead just 57 seconds into the 2nd half. The offense had done their job, but what about the defense? Boonville started strong with Wilder getting 11 to move the chains, then 2 plays later for 6 for another 1st down to the Miner 43. Conner hit Aigner for 17 more, then it was Reese Wilder again up the middle for another 20 yards at the Linton 2. 2 plays later Conner got just enough to put the Pioneers back on top with a 9 play 68 yard drive. The lead was 32-28 Boonville with 7:35 in the 3rd. It was beginning to looks as if whomever had the ball last, would win; or, whomever made the first turnover offensively would lose the game. Very much like 2020. Linton began their next drive from their own 23 with Walters gaining 13. 2 plays later Hunter Gennicks busted loose for 30 yards to the Pioneer 30. A Pass Interference call on a downfield pass to Webb moved Linton to the 11. From the 2 Walters culminated the 8 play 74 yard drive on a 2 yard dive at 4:20 to yet again answer the Pioneer score. Gennicks converted the 2 point play for a 36 to 32 lead. The gauntlet laid for the defense to make a stop didn’t help as Boonville would start near mid-field. Once more it was Wilder with back to back runs setting up a 3rd and 1 which Conner converted by just enough at the Miner 40. Miner Linebackers Goodman and Franklin stopped Wilder for no gain, an incompletion left a 3rd and 10. Miner NT Christian got pressure on Conner and Wrigley Franklin leaped to tip the intended screen pass intended for Ballard. This forced the first punt of the night from Boonville’s Ballard who dropped it at the Miner 12 with 1:46 in the 3rd. It was the stop the Miners needed. Linton’s offense had scored on 4 of their 6 possessions, and their last 3 in a row. They would cover 88 yards in the next 8 plays in complete control. Gennicks connected with Webb for 8, then Johns ran for 13 for a 1st down at their own 33. Gennicks ran for 15 to midfield for another chain mover. Boonville’s Stihl Scott and Ethan Parker dropped Jesse Voigtschild for a loss of 7, and on 3rd and 17 Oliver’s catch at the Boonville 43 got 13 of that. On 4th and 3, Linton elected to go and Gennicks popped through and outran everything for a 43 score just into the 4th quarter. Hunter Johns got the 2 point run and you could feel the air come of out the Pioneer balloon as Linton jumped up 44-26 at 10:52 of the final stanza. If the balloon hadn’t burst with that last Linton score, it did as Walter executed a perfect onside kick catching the Pioneers unexpectedly. He ran alongside the kick at it went the 10 required yards, but Boonville’s Elijah Biggins looked to catch the ball at the Pioneer 42, but Walters put a big hit that caused Biggins to lose the ball before securing it, and Russell Goodman wrapped it up on the spot. Still Linton had to convert a 3rd and 3 at the Pioneer 35 with yet another Gennicks run of 10. The play of the drive was a terrific catch from Logan Webb at Boonville’s 9 on a 3rd and 12. Webb had his biggest game of the year and his catch on 3rd and 16 got 9 to the Boonville 5 but left Linton with a 4th and goal. This time it was Hunter Johns who bulled forward to ice the cake. The 2 point pass play was incomplete, but Linton had reached the 50 point plateau for the fifth time in five weeks, and led 50-32 with 6:24 remaining. Boonville was then forced to go to the air game, which had been successful for the most part but Linton was playing the pass and forced three incompletions on plays by Walters, Oliver and Gennicks. Ballard’s punt went out of bounds at the Miner 24. Linton nearly gave the ball away on successive plays as a snap went over Gennicks head but hit the side of Voigtschild who was in motion behind the QB. Conner very nearly fell on it, but Jesse prevailed, although it was a 7 yard loss. The Linton went to the Johns’ middle screen but Pioneer LB Wyatt Franz was right there and the ball bounced off his hands incomplete at the Miner 20. Paul Oliver punted 23 yards giving Boonville the ball at their own 43 with 4:31 still on the clock. Conner connected with Aigner at the Miner 45, but Hayden Feltner and Wrigley Franklin stopped him short of the sticks, then Franklin and Goodman stopped Conner a yard short again. Conner tried to go deep for Ballard at Linton’s 25 but it was incomplete. 4th and 1 saw a big play by Franklin and fellow senior Aiden Giles for a loss of 3 to the disgust of Conner and a turn-over on downs. With 3:19 left in the game, Linton seemed content to run that time off the clock, and punted with 1:59 left. However it appeared Oliver took and extra step executed a rugby style punt and Boonville was able to get to the kick with Parker and Wolfe fell on it at the Miner 31. Conner hit a wide open Nathan Sowder at the 20 before the senior even made his cut. The ball hit him on the numbers and to his credit he caught it, but had clear sailing the final 20 yards to pay dirt. Conner and Aigner combined for 2 point pass ending the scoring at 50-40 with 1:49 to run off. Linton would kneel down the final 3 plays of the game to move on to 5-0 while Boonville fell to 3-2. It was certainly a dogfight. It was certainly good to see Linton answer to the adversity of being down 26-14 late in the 1st half. It was definitely good to see the offense execute when they absolutely had to just to stay in the game and eventually win the game. It was also good to see the Miner defense make plays in the second half that opened the door for the Miners to get some separation on the scoreboard. Not to mention having a Hunter John’s kickoff return, and see a downfield pass connect for a big TD. To anyone present at the game, and certainly those listening, there were still some issue on pass defense that led to three 30+ yard TD Passes, and a couple others that were missed. In the end Conner hit on 12 of 21 for 218 yards, 153 on yards after catch. For the first time this season the opposition had more explosive plays (20+) with 7 to Linton’s 4. Linton still had more big plays over all with 27 plays gaining at least 5 yards to Boonville’s 20. Boonville had more tackles for loss with 7 to Linton’s 3. The Kickoff Return TD, the TD with 8 seconds before the half, the 43 yard TD pass to Webb on the 1st series of 2nd half, the defensive stop forcing a punt late in the 3rd, then the onside kick after Linton had just scored that led to another score were the turning points. As Coach Oliver stated in his post-game interview with me, they are still trying to put kids in the right places, still trying to work out the kinks in a relatively new defense with a lot of guys in different positions, and a lot of starters to replace from 2021. I have to keep telling myself that these are still 15-17 year olds who have to think on their feet and have a lot to digest with decisions that have to be made in the blink of an eye. I need to remember that myself, as well as just watch and NCAA or NFL game on the big screen each weekend because you see blown coverages and confusion at that level just as you do in high school. So as the coaches always say, the regular season is about getting prepared for the post-season, and part of that is the learning process and trying to always get better while addressing the issues that come up during the 9 weeks leading to it. Both teams had 400+ total yards: Linton with 459, Boonville at 409. Both teams were very balanced in their attacks. Led by Hunter Gennicks’ biggest rushing numbers of the year, Linton had 277 on the ground on 51 attempts. Gennicks had 185 yards on 21 carries with 2 scores, giving him 730 yards on the year and 11 rush TDs. Hunter Johns added 65 yards on 13 carries and his 9th and 10th rushing TDs. He is also having a solid year with 451 yards rushing to date. Braden Walters had a score on 8 for 36 while Jesse Voigtschild was the victim of a couple big negative plays and had (-9) on 6 touches. Equally as impressive was the passing game hitting for 182 yards on 13 of 26 passing from Gennicks who threw his 6th TD pass of 2022 while staying at 1 interception. As mentioned Logan Webb had his biggest night of the season with 6 catches and 91 yards and caught his 2nd TD of the year. He was the main target of Gennicks with 10 throws his way. Paul Oliver had 3 catches for 38 yards, Johns 2 for 33, Walters 1-14 and Voigtschild 1 for 6. Boonville’s tandem of Clay Conner (17-92 2TD) and Reece Wilder (16-90 1 TD) were all but 9 yards of the Pioneer total of 191 rushing yards on 37 carries. Carter Wolfe 2-3 and Marques Ballard 2-6 filled the balance. Conner hit on 3 TDs, and 218 yards in the air on 12- of 21 passing. Ballard had a big night with 2 scores on 4 catches for 113 yards. Cooper Aigner had 3 for 32, Wolfe 2 for 31, Sowder 1-31 (td), Parker 1-7 and Wilder 1 for 4. Linton got big play from freshman Russell Goodman. He had 11 tackles, a sack and 2 TFL, plus he returned 3 kickoffs for 48 yards and recovered the on-side kick. Hunter Gennicks had 9 tackles, 6 of those solo. 3 Miners had 7 tackles each-Bradyn Cox, Aiden Giles and Wrigley Franklin. Ashton White had 6, Paul Oliver 5. Boonville got outstanding play from Carter Wolfe with 14 stops and a TFL. Reece Wilder had 11, Cooper Aigner 10, Marques Ballard with 9. Ethan Parker had 2.5 TFL in his 6 total. Linton hits the road again next week at North Daviess where the Cougars have won 4 in a row since losing their opening week to unbeaten Tecumseh. Boonville hits the road to Mt. Vernon to face the Wildcats who are 4-1 themselves. My thoughts are with Pioneer senior Gavin Maxey who had battled back from (2) ACL tears to come back his senior year only to appear to have suffered another knee injury (the other knee) early on in the Linton game. Hopefully it wasn’t as serious as that. Cougar Valley will undoubtedly be rocking with the thoughts of knocking the still #1 2A Miners off their pedestal. Linton has won 13 in a row against ND with the last Cougar win in 2010. It would be great to see Miner Faithful fill the Miner side of the Valley in solid Red for this team to take the field.

All three of those teams have a better defense than North Carolina. I think Pyne will feel less pressure playing away from home. Whatever, I'm normally wrong anyway.

They were shutout in the 2nd half against Ohio State and 70 yards of offense and put together one decent scoring drive against Marshall in the second half. Their last TD was set up on a short field stemming from a block punt. Notre Dame is T-115th in the nation in scoring offense at 18.5. That's terrible. UNC defense is terrible but their offense is elite. They're going to have to score more than 18 points in Chapel Hill to have a chance.

They scored on Ohio State and Marshall also, it just wasn't nearly enough.