NRRaider2001

For those who can't make it out to Middlebury Friday night, WHME TV 46 has announced this as their game of the week and will be streaming.

Northridge held Leo to 1 for 3 on conversions prior to that decision, its possible that the coach saw the same kicker I did before the game booting 30+ yard field goals with ease.

A little history about Northridge football to those unfamiliar. Northridge had never had much success in football, in 2013 Tom Wogomon took over as head coach and the culture changed quickly. Wogomon was head coach at Wawasee (where Chad Eppley played for him) before coming to Middlebury. In 2014 Northridge won their first sectional and regional titles before losing to New Prairie at semi state. After the 2020 season Wog retired and Northridge promoted then assistant coach Chad Eppley. Eppley turned 27 last Friday night and won Northridge's 2nd ever sectional title on that night. Since Wogomon and Eppley took over, the Raiders have a reputation of playing disciplined, hard hitting football. This year has been no different, and you can't really point to just one player that has been the difference, it has been a team effort. Eppleys first assistant job came after playing for the university of university of Indianapolis. He was an assistant on Westfield when they won a state championship.

Hope they make the trip up to Middlebury, would hate to win by forfeit.

Appreciate the insight, my ex mother in law is buried at Marion National Cemetery and we went through Gas City/ ate at Cracker Barrel usually when we came from 69 to visit. Usually Sirloin Stockade if we came down through Marion. You're right on the long drive, and 5-7pm on a Friday night at Essenhaus is likely to be a long wait time. If anyone gets out of work and heads up early it's still a cool place to check out for those that haven't been, even if you just walk through the shops and bakery. Northridge runs the ball decently and can pass as well, but we lost a lot of the passing production after our starting qb was injured for the season. One of our top rbs/a top sprinter in the state is also out for the season along with a few other key guys. That being said, we struggled at the end of the regular season to figure things out with all the guys dropping like flies, but seem to have figured things out now with moving a guy from rb to qb now, he has given us a more mobile qb that seems to find a way to win.

For the record, it isn't a Northridge fan making excuses or complaining about a call. I saw some of that on Twitter after this last Friday night's game from the other side, but rather than engage I just let it go lol.

Should be another great game, Harrell has Northridge by 1, but the s19 final reiterated that these games aren't played on paper. Any insight on Ole Miss, as far as I know these two teams have never played in football. For those making the trip from Gas City, you'll want to show up plenty early and visit Das Dutchmen Essenhaus (Indianas Largest Restaurant).

So proud of how our kids have responded since facing tons of adversity this year. Wogomon changed our culture and I truly believe Eppley will take us to that next level for years to come.

Raiders win 27 to 26!!!

Heading to overtime

Shigs n Pit is always a favorite of mine when I'm downtown.

Fair enough, someone Leo didn't see last year was Tagg Gott. He was playing in Michigan last year, and has been playing at a high level for Northridge in recent weeks after being moved to qb due to necessity. This game has potential to surprise a lot of people.

Gonna be that guy today and predict an NLC sweep tonight. Call me a homer, maybe, but I've been called worse. Warsaw by 4 Mishawaka by 18 Northridge by 3

Still do!

I second flat top

I think it's close

I think Harrells 7 point spread is going to be a lot closer than the Ft Wayne media predictions I've seen of 18,24, and up margin of victory for Leo. We are still missing some difference making dudes, but we've been a different team with Gott at QB. We will have to play mistake free football to have a chance, and I think we will for the most part.

I should know better, I drive for the Amish in Middlebury/Shipshewana and routinely make trips to Grabill and that area 🤷🏻‍♂️

Great kid and player, his older brother was a baller for us too, before finishing his hs career back at Schoolcraft. Also as a side note, I was disappointed to learn that Ink Free News will no longer be having a sports section, they were a big source of my Warsaw news for all sports.

Right, I get it. I know there's a smaller community over there, should've worded it a little differently lol. My main takeaway is that Essenhaus is our tourist spot where everyone goes to spend a fortune on over priced Amish looking stuff. The food is decent but pricey, yet people still flock there. We have some truly authentic Amish places that have amazing food and people, but not nearly as flashy. Im sure they have those types of places over their way as well. I second Evil Czech if you're looking for beer at a place you can't find everywhere else

Leo fans coming to Northridge tomorrow before the game, for the Amish experience at Indianas largest restaurant, you'll want to get here early and visit Das Dutchman Essenhaus. If you can't make it before the game, 41 degrees north, Wedgewood Brewing Company, and Rullis Italian are all great options post game.

Give me a couple of ideas on what type of food you're looking for, lots to choose from in Mishawaka!

From Austin Hough of The Goshen News MIDDLEBURY — A year ago, Tagg Gott was a sophomore at Schoolcraft High School in Michigan, playing as a running back and linebacker on the school’s football team. Fast forward to today, and Gott is now leading the Northridge Raiders at quarterback into the IHSAA Class 4A Sectional 19 championship game this Friday against No. 2 Leo. What makes the journey for Gott almost more improbable is the fact he didn’t start at quarterback for the Raiders until the final weekend of the regular season. He’s only played at the position for three full games, but he has sparked his team to two sectional victories the last two weeks and a chance to host the undefeated Lions Friday night in Middlebury. “I was kind of scared at first, but once I got the reps through the week and stuff, I kind of settled in to it,” said Gott of transitioning to quarterback. “I talked to my dad (Chip) about it, and I just had to go out there and play my game. … We were just talking and he said, ‘You’ve just got to go out there and play football.’” Gott said he played some quarterback his freshman year at Schoolcraft, but moved into a running back/linebacker role his sophomore year. That’s the positions Gott played this season as well before the injury bug bit Northridge. Senior Micah Hochstetler was the starting quarterback for the Raiders to begin the season, getting off to a sensational start. Northridge was 3-0 through three weeks, with double-digit wins over South Bend Adams, South Bend St. Joseph and Wawasee. They were cruising in their week four game against Plymouth as well before Hochstetler’s season was cut abruptly short. An ankle injury sidelined the star player after three-and-a-half games, and surgery was chosen for the senior. While the Raiders went on to beat the Rockies and improve to 4-0, Hochstetler's year was done with 351 passing yards and seven touchdown passes to go along with 140 rushing yards and two rushing scores. “He wants to play some sort of sport in college, and if he would’ve kept going on the injury, he wouldn’t have been able to do anything in the future," said Northridge coach Chad Eppley on Sept. 17 following a 36-3 loss to Warsaw in week five. Not only did Hochstetler get injured against Plymouth, but in the lead-up to the game against Warsaw, backup quarterback Qade Carrington was sidelined as part of COVID-19 contact tracing. This meant third-string QB Conner Roth was put in the signal caller position, limiting what Northridge could do on offense at the time. To make matters worse, Carrington was still out in week six when Northridge face off with NorthWood. During that game against the Panthers, Roth was injured, meaning there were no true quarterbacks available on the roster for the Raiders. Given Gott played the position as freshman at Schoolcraft, he was thrust into the role as an emergency option. NorthWood beat up on Northridge, 42-8, that night to send the Raiders to a 3-2 record. Carrington returned in week seven against Goshen and led Northridge to a win, but then struggled in week eight against Concord. The junior went 4-of-12 passing for 47 yards and an interception in a 40-7 loss to the Minutemen in Dunlap. Gott actually threw five passes in the game as well, completing one for a 57-yard touchdown to senior Clint Walker that would prove to be the only points for Northridge in the contest. With his team sitting a 5-3 and no chance at winning the Northern Lakes Conference going into the regular season finale against Mishawaka, Eppley decided to try Gott out at quarterback full-time to see what they had with him at that position. “Once Micah went down, we repped him more at quarterback a little bit just to make sure we had a backup,” Eppley said. “He was doing a good job, and really, we just wanted to put the ball in a playmaker’s hands.” After a full week of practice at the position, Gott started against the highly-touted Cavemen. Northridge would lose the game 58-14, but Gott put up solid numbers in his performance. He went 8-of-15 passing for 129 yards, a touchdown pass and an interception. He also ran the ball four times for 20 yards. “I felt like I played well in the first half,” said Gott of the Mishawaka game. “It was a close game in the first half, and then we kind of came out (in the second half) and things didn’t go quite the way we wanted.” The first week of the playoffs brought a rematch for Northridge against NorthWood, the game where Gott had to play quarterback in an emergency. That was not the case this time around, as the junior had a full week to prepare for the Panthers’ defense. That preparation paid off, as Gott had the best performance of any Northridge quarterback so far this season. He threw for 260 yards and a touchdown, then added 27 carries for 87 yards and three rushing scores to lead the Raiders to a 28-7 win over the Panthers. It was a 55-point turnaround from the regular season matchup between the teams just four weeks prior. “I was way more comfortable,” said Gott of the second NorthWood game. “That Mishawaka game really prepared me, and like I said, that full week of practice just made me comfortable out there. I was playing football and having fun.” Gott continued that high level of play in the sectional semifinal win over Columbia City last week. He passed for 149 yards and two touchdowns while also rushing for 114 yards and three scores to lead the Raiders to a 35-21 victory over the Eagles. For the season, Gott is 40-of-78 passing for 695 yards and five touchdowns. On the ground, he has 156 carries for 801 yards and 10 rushing touchdowns. “I just don’t overthink it,” Gott said. “I try not to overthink it and I just go out there and have fun; play football, really.” Gott and the Raiders will face their biggest challenge this Friday when they play No. 2 Leo. The Lions have only allowed 13.2 points per game this season and have an average margin of victory of 29 points. Northridge was the underdogs two weeks ago against NorthWood as well, so this is a position Gott and the Raiders are comfortable being in. “I kind of look at it like the NorthWood game,” said Gott of this week’s game. “Everyone had us losing, and we just went out there and played football. I’m kind of treating it the same way: I’m going out there, playing football and having fun. I’m going to go out there Friday and do my best to help this team win.”

Northridge 35 Columbia City 21 final