FlyingHigh

Shots fired! We'll see if any of the Judson crazies take this bait...

Sweet 16 week! Time for the sectional finals and I'm curious about what the GID has to say about a couple of these matchups. For the most part, I think the favorites are pretty clear, but anything can happen in November... Sectional 41: Culver @ North Judson (JH prediction NJ 49-7) - I think this one is pretty straight forward. I expect NJ to score a lot of points to try and prove that the Triton matchup was a one-time thing. Did Triton figure out a defensive formula to limit the high-flying NJ offense? Time will tell. The final score was misleading in that one, as the Blue Jays scored a couple of late TDs after some late-game desperation with a Shuh-less Triton. Sectional 42: Traders Point @ Park Tudor (JH prediction PT 45-28) - This is an interesting one. Both teams are spread, pass first teams and will present an interesting challenge for North Judson next week. PT edged TP by 5 earlier in the season. I think the Blue Jays handle whoever comes out of Section 42. Sectional 43: West Central @ Carroll Flora (JH prediction Carroll 35-21) - I expect Carroll Flora to take care of business in this one to set up a road trip to the Landing Strip in Monroe for a regional championship. Does West Central have any chance here? Honest question. I know Carroll is big, but what does WC do well? Sectional 44: Adams Central @ Northfield ( JH prediction AC 49-14) - The AC offense looks like a machine right now. They have 4 guys who can hurt you on the ground at any point and they equally distribute the carries. AC's strength on D is their front 7 and I expect that to show on Friday against the Northfield option attack. AC has not faced many non-spread teams this year, so I'm curious to see how their guys adjust, as they'll need to defend the run well the next few weeks if they want a chance to make it back to LOS. Sectional 45: Sheridan @ Hagerstown (JH prediction Sheridan 42-14) - I don't know much about the South this year, so I'll need to rely on other GID posters for these matchups. Sectional 46: Knightstown @ North Decatur (JH prediction ND 42-0) - I expect North Decatur to advance and will be surprised if they aren't Lutheran's semistate opponent. Sectional 47: Lutheran @ Covenant Christian (JH prediction Lutheran 49-21) - This is the matchup I'm most curious about, as AC pulled off a 42-19 win against CC in week 3. As an AC fan, this will be the only chance for me to compare the Jets to Lutheran if we make it back to state. The AC game easily could've been a much larger deficit. Sectional 48: Tecumseh @ Providence (JH prediction Providence 31-30) - Congrats to the winners of sectional 48, but whoever comes out on top will only play 1 more week.

Have you watched Eastside at all this year? I don't think they're as far from 2021 as you think. Obviously they don't have Laban Davis, but they are just as physical. Their loss against West Noble is an issue, but Dax Holman didn't play and I believe they had another 2-3 year starter out that game. Holman is a beast on both sides of the ball. I'd argue, though, that Bishop Luers took a bigger step back from last year's version of themselves than Eastside did. Luers won 4 games in the SAC, which I understand is difficult to do for a 2A school, but they won 8 SAC games in 2021. That's a big step back.

I agree that Luers is generally better than their record shows due to playing in the SAC, but Luers won a share of the SAC last year and still lost to Eastside on their own field. IF Luers makes it past Busco (which I believe they will, but it's not a guarantee against Sade's crew), they'll have their hands full against the Blazers at Eastside. I'm not saying Luers can't beat Eastside, but we can't assume Luers is better than Eastside because they play in the SAC. Eastside would have the same, if not better, record as Luers has this year if they played the same schedule.

I'm paying close attention to the Madison-Grant at Northfield game since AC will play the winner if they take care of business on Friday against SA. John Harrell has MG 35-24 and I agree that they should win the game, but Northfield is a difficult team to prepare for. Their offense can cause teams problems if they don't have the proper defensive scheme to handle the option. This may be a mistake, but I'm sort of rooting for MG. Northfield has given AC issues in the past even when they were clearly the better team.

The NE8 doubt against the SAC is warranted due to Wayne taking CC to the wire, but Concordia barely beat Woodlan who is a bottom-half ACAC team. Norwell will roll the Cadets. Running clock in the 3rd quarter.

Half of the 1A field has been eliminated and will soon start basketball and wrestling. What are the best 1A matchups as we’ve made our way to the sectional semifinal week? AC hosts SA in a rematch from week 6 that resulted in a 49-20 AC win. The game was dominated physically by AC. SA will play hard, as they always do for Coach Moser and the rest of that coaching staff, but I doubt this is a good game. AC would have to get burnt several times in coverage as well as turn it over a bunch offensively. Central seems to be playing really good ball right now. I think they’ll roll in a decisive victory.

North Decatur looks like they’ve had a great season for sure, but who have they played? Their strength of schedule rating on John Harrell is pretty bad. I think they’d definitely compete in the north, but North Judson and Adams Central would be big hurdles for them.

Does anyone pose a real threat to Carroll Flora in sectional 43? I see West Central is 7-1 and is only 10 points behind in Sagarin. Similar strengths of schedule.

I don't disagree. Last year's Churubusco team deserved to play in a sectional final. They were the 2nd best team in the north.

Some brutal first round draws... 8-0 North Decatur at 7-1 Tri in sectional 46. 7-1 South Putnam at 8-0 Lutheran in sectional 47.

There seems to be a little confusion between speed option and veer. Those 2 plays are not defended the same. No matter what the play, DEs can't step across the line and sit. So the DE's technique is basically the same regardless of the type of option. They need to close the gap created by the downblock by the OT. Closing that gap will take care of the DE's responsibility. Speed option? DE destroys the QB. Veer? DE destroys the fullback. Essentially the DE just tackles the player that runs to the gap that he should have closed into. I can assure you that if any team that plays North Judson tells their DE to step across and sit and wait for the QB, they will give up close to 200 yards to Benson. Gotta trust OLBs to take QB on veer and secondary to take pitchman.

Agreed on how to play a running scheme like North Judson's. Problem is AC hasn't played a team that runs that style of offense and likely won't until the postseason. I'd put Eastside's physicality with about any 1A & 2A team, but their running game was not like North Judson's will be. Totally different schemes. Maybe a matchup against Madison Grant in sectional could somewhat prepare them, but MG's offense likely isn't anywhere close to as dangerous as NJ's.

Benson did look like a stud. I expected Allen to be the feature player, but it seems NJ runs their offense through the young fullback. I think assuming that players "forget" their assignment/job is dangerous for people who aren't on the coaching staff. Since I don't think either of us are on the staff, I'd consider the possibility that you're missing something. We don't know the game plan or what the players are being told to do. I don't think any team has taken advantage of our upperclassmen DEs being undisciplined and I think they're decently disciplined. If the two teams face off against each other again this year, I highly doubt it will be a running clock right out of halftime - or at all for that matter. We can definitely agree on that. I think it would be a fun semistate matchup if it happens. A lot of football has to be played to get there, though.

I bet if you talked to most ACAC coaches - football as well as other sports - they’d be fine with getting rid of Southern Wells. I could be wrong, but I doubt I am.

Serious question - What would need to happen to remove Southern Wells from the conference?

Possibly, but I'm curious to hear your explanation as to why? AC's defensive strength is its front 7. Teams haven't been able to run on them at all. North Judson is a run-heavy team. If anything, I'd say that plays into the AC defense's strength. I'm not sure how personnel would matchup - maybe North Judson's boys up front are that much tougher than AC's front 7 (although I'd put AC's front 7 against anyone's in 1A)- but AC's defense is better set up to stop what North Judson wants to do than they would be against a passing team.

North Judson put the north on notice tonight, blowing out top 10 Triton. Great win for them as they roll into a HUGE matchup against Laville. The Tri Titans also won a big one against Park Tudor. Some fun matchups around the state and some clear front-runners are established as sectional favorites. Is there any sectional out there that’s truly up for grabs? Seems like the north will go Park Tudor, North Judson, Carroll Flora and Adams Central. I think AC and NJSP are on a collision course for a rematch from last year. I would enjoy watching that, but would appreciate it being played in Monroe this time!

I’m really curious in the North Judson - Triton matchup as a fan of a fellow 1A team from the north. So far, North Judson has looked the part of one of the favorites in the north. I’d say Triton has as well if you can forget about the 2nd half against Laville. The first half was tight and Laville is a legit 2A team, so I’ll be curious to see the North Judson - Laville matchup as well. I may need to tune into the NJ - Triton game on YouTube instead of the Adams Central - Southern Wells game this week! If North Judson dominates this game, no one can really question their legitimate chances of making it to state. I know I’ve been critical of what seems like overconfidence in the NJ fanbase, but a convincing win would certainly put some weight behind their confidence. If it’s a tight game, then NJ is still a legit team, but that would mean Triton has arrived as a contender as well. I expect/hope for a close one.

It’s one of, if not the top small school rivalries in the state, so it’ll be a challenge. SA has a solid passing game and an aggressive defense. They always play AC tough, but the Jets are much better up front on both sides of the ball. I see AC pulling away by the 4th quarter.

I agree that Triton is a much better overall team, but it's still a mental hurdle for the Triton program. Maybe this game isn't as much about Triton winning, but HOW they win. Do they look sharp and take care of business early? Getting the monkey off their backs will feel good whether they are the better team on paper or not.

The top 3 teams in the standings are pretty well-established - AC Heritage SA I would actually argue that SA may be better than Heritage, but it can't really be justified in the overall standings in the conference. I do think SA would win if they played Heritage again. That being said, here goes the 2nd half of the season... AC @ SA - This will be a close game in the first half. Grant Moser usually gets his guys up for these games. Even in regional last year, the Stars only had a 14-0 deficit at half and nearly scored right before half. I think AC's physicality will wear down SA in the 2nd half. Opponents will actually need to account for the passing game against AC this year, which makes their offense difficult to stop assuming the Jets are willing to pass against a 9-man box. AC by 28 Bluffton @ Southern Wells - Bluffton by 40+ Heritage @ Lapel - I see Heritage bouncing back against an average Lapel team, but don't count out the Bulldogs. Two of their losses have come from Indy Lutheran and North Decatur, possibly the top 2 teams in 1A South. Heritage by 7 Woodlan @ Jay County - Does anyone on GID know what's going on with Woodlan's Head Coach? He has been suspended by administration the last two games. Either way, I think Jay County wins by 2.

I disagree on them not being a snub, but I understand your reasoning since they are next in line. Having seen some of Triton's games so far on YouTube, they are 100% a top 10 team, if not higher (I'd place them at 6). The polls ultimately don't mean anything, I understand that. They'll get their chance to in the next few weeks in matchups against Pioneer and North Judson to show whether or not I'm right. SA will have a couple of pretty solid athletes to stop if they want to win. Does anyone know if MC is strong up front like they usually are? They always have some big dudes.

I feel like it’s better to respond to your SA/Heritage comment from the 1A thread here because my thoughts have more to do with the ACAC. I don’t really care about whether or not SA deserves to be #6 after the loss. I don’t think Heritage is a great team by any means but I do think they’re getting better which is good for the conference. I don’t think the other teams are moving in the right direction. Bluffton will be decent again at some point because Kunkel has a decent, established culture. Woodlan, Jay County and Southern Wells are still far away from being competitive with the top 2-3 teams in the conference.

New IFCA poll - I think we're getting to the point that it's more accurate. SA dropped (rightfully so) after their loss to Heritage. I think they're still worthy of #6, though, and see them beating #10 Monroe Central this week. The biggest snub is Triton. Their only loss is against a stout 2A opponent in Laville (game was 21-14 at half). Triton has averaged about 50 ppg and is giving up around 5 ppg in their wins. They have one of the best run games in 1A and, in my opinion, they should be top 5 by the time sectional comes around. Sectional 41 will be a fun one! CLASS 1A Lutheran (9) Adams Central (1) Park Tudor North Judson North Decatur South Adams Carroll (Flora) Tri South Putnam Monroe Central Others receiving votes: Triton, Covenant Christian, Edinburgh, Sheridan, Clinton Prairie, Madison-Grant, Pioneer.