FlyingHigh

6 hours ago, GV5 said:

It is like the Simison guy on here spewinghis Eastbrook stuff.

Not really sure what I said that was incorrect. I figured fans in Grant County didn’t know much about the resolve of the kids and staff at Eastside. Just thought I’d inform people that they wouldn’t let the win against Luers get to their heads as was suggested. 

I get the feeling from the 2A threads that the Eastbrook fans are somewhat sensitive to any sort of criticism or any thought outside of their own. 

4 minutes ago, Purdue Pete said:

I heard SA has been Practicing on that game field all week. Keeping it nice and “broke in”.  30% chance of rain Friday.  

I have a hard time believing they’d risk any more injuries to their players than they’ve already had by being on that field all week. 

3 hours ago, XStar said:

The performance of Eastside last night was as impressed as I've been with a 2A team in the tournament since 1998.  They dominated that game until the last few minutes when Luers were in desperation mode and got a little bit going.

I picked Eastside as my 2A sleeper (see link below) and last night showed why.  

https://gridirondigest.net/topic/4896-tournament-upsetsdarkhorses/?tab=comments#elControls_116970_menu

That said, I think that game was their Super Bowl.  They have been targeting that game for the past year.  Now they've won it.  I don't think they can keep that level of focus, intensity, and performance next week.  They'll have people telling them how great they are this upcoming week and it will go to their head and they'll lose that chip on their shoulder.

I think Eastbrook wins by 2 or 3 touchdowns as a result and sets up a rematch of the 2019 semistate game with Andrean.  

I don’t think you know very much about Eastside and Coach Mason if you think they’ll lose the chip on their shoulder. If they lose this game, it won’t be due to lack of focus or intensity. Coach Mason and his leaders on that team won’t let it happen. I think Eastside pulls it off in a tight one. 

According to John Harrell, below is how the Sectional Championships will shake out. Any thoughts?

North Judson over Culver 28-17

Carroll (Flora) over Clinton Prairie 24-21

South Adams over Union City 38-17

Adams Central over Triton 42-10

Parke Heritage over Riverton Parke 42-21

Indy Lutheran over Covenant Christian 42-21

North Decatur over Tri 31-28

Spring Valley over North Central (Farmersburg) 35-17

I think we'll see NJ vs. Carroll and SA vs. AC in the North, but I don't think AC wins by a 32-point margin. Triton has played a much tougher schedule and their young team is playing really well. 

2 hours ago, Basementbias said:

2015 I saw an AC team lose a week before they should. 2016 almost lost 2 weeks before they should have (luckily they got to SS). 2017 saw Southwood not just upset but dominate them. 2018 & 2019 did what they were supposed. 2020 they lost a week before they should as well. I want this team to get to LOS, but I just listed why I want to take it one week at a time.

I agree with the "one week at a time" approach. It would be easy to look ahead to a likely regional matchup at South Adams. If that happens, I still think AC advances but they need to continue getting better each week and that won't happen if they don't focus on this week's opponent.

Side note - the 2017 loss to Southwood wasn't an upset. SW had the better roster by far. Blair, Trexler and Lloyd were studs. I do agree that 2020 against SW was a letdown. Those teams were more evenly matched than in 17.

On 10/30/2021 at 1:02 PM, Purdue Pete said:

Luers would be foolish to play on grass if there is rain in the forecast.

Wouldn't Eastside have to agree with moving the game? I have a hard time believing they’d want to move the game to turf. 

Any thoughts on Triton @ Northfield? Seems to be 2 evenly matched teams on paper. Sagarin has Northfield as about 10-point favorites and JH has Northfield winning 28-21. @WalterSobchak How did Triton look against Winamac? 

1 hour ago, Basementbias said:

I don't like moving the game to Bluffton. I'd rather AC play in a slop with their ground & pound game at home. This playoff draw has not been what I hoped. Only 3 regular season home games already and now moving the home playoff game to a close neutral site that helps the opponent.

The last neutral site game AC played on turf was in week 3 against a talented and athletic spread team in Parke Heritage and the Jets looked fast and explosive. This isn’t a Jet team that is solely built on the Rick Minnich mold of “3 yards and a cloud of dust.” They can do that (and since your comments in another thread suggest you don’t believe this, I think you need to watch film from last week), but they’re more dangerous when they can utilize speed while getting to the edge. The wings will make cuts much easier on the turf. Whatever potential advantage Southwood gains from this move is definitely balanced (if not outweighed) by the advantage that AC gains. 
The sidelines of Minnich Field were submerged in flooded waters this weekend. Another inch or so of rain between tonight and kickoff would have made for ridiculous conditions - not to mention potentially making the field nearly unplayable for future games this postseason if they’re able to move on. This was the right move. We need to move past the fact that “we’ve never had to do this before.” It hasn’t been an option until recently and weather hasn’t prompted this situation in recent history. 

7 hours ago, WalterSobchak said:

When did you see Winamac play? 

Winamac's team this season reminds me a lot of the 2013 Tri Central squad that won state. 

They are big upfront, pretty athletic up there too. They have a balanced running attack with QB, FB and both wings getting touches. Their QB can throw it too (threw for 1k as a freshman and sophomore) and threw all over CC last season but Winamac has the type of offense that if they can just keep it simple and beat you they will.  That's why they don't drop 60 on teams. Coach John Hendryx doesn't like doing that and does a great job at rotating his 2nd string kids. They could have beat WC 70-0 tonight or Caston a few weeks ago but didn't. 

Winamac doesn't have the "stars" that the 2013 or 2014 teams did but they are better coached, have more depth and instead of having 3/4 studs, they have 4 really talented kids and 7 or 8 pretty solid kids. 

 

North Judson's defense is really good. Their offense can be a bit shaky but their main studs Cheyanne Allen and Aldric Harper are very good...along with Owen and Quinton Frasure on D. They got Brennen Benson up front and he's a solid OL/DL.  Their passing game isn't super strong but if Harper gets the time, he can throw it. Allen and Senior Kason Sanchez are both capable receivers. 

I saw the Culver game, but I will admit that a single game sample size isn’t enough to judge how they’d stack up against Busco. I think I was coming off the high of the win last night! Winamac looked huge in that game and that size/physicality will be tough for anyone to deal with. The Winamac vs. North Judson matchup should be a fun one! 

1 hour ago, Basementbias said:

Busco was good & physical, but they too were predictable on offense. If both teams are going to be that predictable, then you better be sure that you can impose your will. This has been the problem for AC's offense for years. I had to use some other plays & formations at the lower levels as teams were prepared for the same plays we run in HS. The size & physicality MC has on the lines is a threat along with their skill players being able to run or pass. AC's pads game was non existing last night and that's a problem. 

Is Blake Heyerly for 137 yards on 28 carries against that tough defense not imposing their will? They knew he was getting the ball the entire 2nd half and couldn’t stop it. In terms of “predictability”, every team has tendencies. You can use tendencies to your advantage if you are aware of them (see the QB keepers where Black ran free for big yards after pounding Heyerly up the middle). I do agree the passing game needs to improve, but the Jets won’t pass more than 3 times if the fullback is getting 5 yards a carry regardless  

The community appreciates your support of the youth program, but with all due respect, your experience in play calling at that level can’t be assumed to be the same experience at the HS level. 

13 minutes ago, WalterSobchak said:

I think in your post you are also underestimating Monroe Central, Winamac and North Judson. All three of those teams are very very good. 

You may be right. I’ve seen MC and Winamac play. Not NJ. I’d still stand by my statement based on what I’ve seen. 

40 minutes ago, Basementbias said:

AC survives Churubusco. Busco exposed AC weaknesses. I'd have MC as a favorite at this point. Hope I'm wrong, but AC has work to do against tough opponents. 

This statement completely underestimates how good Busco is. May not have been your intention, but that’s how it seems. That team was as tough as Eastside physically. Busco would likely win every sectional in the north outside of #44. To downgrade AC after beating an extremely tough team - a team that took Eastside to the wire - seems like an overreaction. 

Are there things that need to be worked on? Of course. But I’d venture to say every team in the win column tonight would say the same thing. 

3 hours ago, Purdue Pete said:

Lutheran v AC is pretty much a done deal.  Busco or Monroe Central will be the best game AC gets in the North and they’re still -21 in both game.  SA and Southwood are way down from last year and no LCC to worry about.  

Deep thought: had the classes not been frozen this year AC would be up in 2A with a sectional date with Luers.

I don’t think anyone should say it’s a done deal for AC to make it to LOS. We have a really good team with a lot of speed, but the ACAC point differentials prove nothing. The conference is incredibly down, so it’s hard to say how good this team really is. The only legit team we played beat us (Eastside in week 2 21-19).

Busco presents a legit challenge in round 1. They’re physical and have experience in the skill positions. I’d like to see how the Jets perform against a good out-of-conference team before saying LOS is at all likely.  

On 6/27/2021 at 8:21 AM, DT said:

1. Covenant Christian

2. Indianapolis Lutheran

3. South Adams

4. Southwood

5. Adams Central

6. Lafayette Central Catholic

7. West Washington

8. South Putnam

9. Monroe Central

10. Parke Heritage

11. Winamac

12. North Judson

 

I don't have enough info on most of these teams to provide an informed top 12 list but here are some thoughts...

Teams that should probably be higher:

-Monroe Central: I think they return most of their team from last year and they have a fantastic program. They played South Adams competitively early last season. They lost bigger in the sectional matchup.

-Churubusco: They're off this list, but I think they return about everyone from last year as well.

Team that could be higher, but I won't put them there based on the fact that they have a lot to prove:

-Adams Central: They lose 1 stud (Joe Collier - DE/OT), but all offensive production is back. Very strong senior and sophomore classes with more speed than AC has had for awhile. The Jets play Parke Heritage at Pendleton Hts in week 3, so that will be a good test as to how they match up with teams from the south. I wouldn't be able to bump AC above Southwood at this point based solely on the fact that they outplayed AC in basically every part of their sectional matchup (hit harder, played faster, etc.). I know Southwood loses the Farr to Rich connection, but you have to think that Coach Snyder will reload like he has the past several years. I don't think I'll bump AC above SA until they prove they can get it done in week 6 at home against their county rivals.

I don't know anything about several of these teams, but I've heard good things about North Judson. I think they have played sophomores and juniors the last couple of years, which translates to a lot of juniors and seniors this year.

On 6/14/2021 at 12:32 PM, FarmerFran said:

Adams Central has one of the nicest grass fields regardless of class (do 4a and above have grass anymore??) in the state. We played there in the 2016 1A Semistate and after 14 weeks of games it was still beautiful. I would take a nice grass field over turf any day.

The great monsoon semistate of 2016! Most miserable weather conditions I've ever experienced for a sporting event!

I'm biased, but Adams Central's Minnich Field is the best natural grass field I've been on. We have a fantastic maintenance crew at AC that takes care of the field. There's no better example than the regional championship game against South Adams in 2019. We had just got 6+" of snow and the crew spent hours clearing the field and getting it in relatively fantastic shape for us to play on.

In terms of other ACAC schools, I think Bluffton and Heritage have the best facilities. The locker rooms are fairly new and right next to the field and the turf fields look fantastic. Home and away stands are really nice and are good sizes.

One of the more unique settings I've seen is at Tri High. We travelled there last year and their football field and athletic facilities were really nice (all turf softball field). The unique part is that it seemed like the football field was a quarter mile+ away from the locker rooms/school. I'm sure it wasn't that far, but it was definitely a walk and neither team messed with walking back to the locker rooms at halftime.

Topic on turf football fields (legit topic) --> Student-athlete safety debate (legit topic) --> School funding debate (beginning to veer off-course) --> Covid/Vaccination debate (Why????) --> Political debate (Why again???)...

When did this forum become Twitter?

2 hours ago, 1st and Goal said:

Make Endzone cameras illegal

Care to explain this one @1st and Goal? I don't agree with banning endzone cameras at all. I'm curious if the argument is simply that it's an unfair advantage for those who have it vs. those who don't? If that's the case, then you'd have to outlaw Hudl Sidelines even if they're just using the press box view.

24 minutes ago, RegionFBFan said:

Boys:  it has all been in football. Football - its called Kiser for 4 years (D1 talent at 1A level makes a big difference) and Llewelyn brothers for 3 years, 1A for most of that and very good coaching.

Girls: Real question is girls sports? They have been good across multiple sports.

Pioneer's football success is historic and dates well beyond Jack Kiser and the Llewelyn brothers. To attribute the dominance of that program to those 3 players is misinformed. Below are some of the past years before Jack Kiser came in as a freshman.

2015 - 12-1, sectional champs, lost to LCC 31-14

2014 - 13-2, state runners-up

2013 - 10-3, sectional champs

2009-2012 - 38-6, no sectional championships due to running into the meat grinder that was LCC who won 4 straight state championships

Their most recent state championship teams can definitely thank Kiser and the Llewelyns, but those teams would've likely won those games without them. The entire team was fantastic and just physically beat people up. If the success factor was in place from 2009-2012, Pioneer likely would have 4 state championships in 10 years.

22 hours ago, DT said:

I see Jay competing for a conference championship in Year 3 and in the Regional mix in Year 5.  Coach Z, Like Coach Buzea moving from Homewood Flossmoor to Crown Point, is interested in winning championships.  No other reason to make the move.  Crown Point is a 6A competing in a 6A conference.  Jay is a 4A competing in a 1A/2A conference.  No where to go but up   JC has the easier path.  

I agree that JC could compete for a conference championship in a few years under Coach Zgunda. My only disagreement was with the previous statement that was made about JC being ready to move to a larger conference in that time frame due to their potential dominance of the ACAC in football. I think it will take awhile for that to happen, if it ever happens.

It'll be interesting to see what happens with realignment because as it stands right now, Jay County is in a tough 4A sectional with Delta, Marion and Mississinewa I believe.

11 hours ago, DT said:

JC is a 4A and should quickly be feasting on the much smaller competition in the ACAC.  Coach Z should have this program ready for a promotion to a bigger conference within 3 years.  

I don't think I'd go that far. Jay County will be far more competitive in the ACAC within a couple of years, but to go from 3 wins per year since joining the ACAC (1 in the past two years) to being too strong for the conference in 3 years is an exaggeration. The potential might be there eventually, but the conference is usually top heavy with strong teams recently from SA, AC and, a few years ago, Woodlan. Those 3 teams have had stretches of consistently winning lop-sided games in the conference.

Since Jay County joined the ACAC, here's how their 3 wins per season stack up with the top 4 teams in those years:

• AC - 10 wins per year, 3 regional championships, 4 sectional championships
• SA - Just under 8 wins per year, 1 state runner up, 2 regional championships, 5 sectional championships
• Woodlan - 7 wins per year, 1 state runner up, 2 regional championships, 2 sectional championships
• Bluffton - 5 wins per year, 7-8 wins per year the last 3 years

Jay County has the numbers, assuming Coach Zgunda can get them to come out, to eventually make its way to the top of couple teams in the conference, but it will take more than a great coach to get them to the point where they need to be promoted to a larger conference in 3 years.

Adams Central had to drop Monroe Central due to a schedule change in MC's conference. They picked up Parke Heritage and the game will be played at Pendleton Heights. The AC/Monroe Central matchup has been a good one over the years, especially in the postseason, but the matchup with Parke Heritage will give AC a way to compare itself to southern 1A schools (assuming AC doesn't jump up to 2A). Regardless of reclassification possibilities, this will be a good matchup for both schools.

This is huge for Jay County. Coach Zgunda should be able to turn them into a solid program. A school the size of Jay County should be much more competitive in football in the ACAC against schools around half its size. I'm assuming the primary hurdle will be to get kids to come out and to get the community to buy in to what it takes to build a winning program. 

Has there been legitimate discussion within the SAC to create 2 divisions and allow schools to play a few non-conference games? I'd like to think this would help programs like NS and SS have a better shot at winning some more games, or at least be more competitive. 

1 hour ago, Haines2010 said:

We have some great people that does our broadcasts who are all local and alumni of Triton. As the guy who sends all of the film off, I always try to make sure that you get at least halfway decent film and make sure my people are going to do a decent job. One of things that bugs me as a coach when I am trying to watch is when teams send the lower quality film using the iPad instead and they do not pan in just the slightest bit so it looks like little specs. I get it though, some teams have great fields, but that is ultimately not what I am looking for. 

If a program feels like they need to do this to get the upper hand in a matchup, it speaks pretty loudly to the confidence in their team and in their staff to prepare for an opponent. I've never understood this and would rather give up our entire library of film - sideline and end zone - than purposely give a secondary, lower quality film.

Like you said, some fields aren't set up well to have great film quality so you can't fault people for that. There have been several times, though, that teams are clearly using an iPad.