crimsonace1

This is awesome. I've used AlmanacSports as a resource for years, so to have all of this in one spot and easy-to-reference form is great. I've ordered a copy.

When I coached girls hoops, we took our team to Anderson University for a one-day shootout, and one of the teams we played was from Florida (coached by a former New Castle coach who was bringing his team north for some competition). They were a school of 3,000 students and had gone something like 16-5 the year before, but were at about the level of an average 2A/small 3A team here. Their coach told us the coaching is about a decade behind where we are in Florida and basketball just isn't a big deal (soccer is a winter sport there and they lose a lot of girls to that sport).

The thing with the scrimmage is it falls on the 11th day of practice. Players need a minimum of 10 days of practice to play, so if you have *any* injuries that cause a kid to miss, he's missing the first game (you can compete in the scrimmage with 5 practices, and IIRC, the scrimmage *does* count as a practice day) ... I know the summer is largely open now, but two "install weeks" before having to gameplan makes a lot of sense.

Here's the audio version. Any radio station/broadcaster is free to download and use on your broadcasts either in pregame or halftime. It runs five minutes (or DM me and I'll put you on my email list for a direct copy). If you use it, please let me know so I can have an idea of where our content is running (and if you DM me your email address, I'll put you on the list to get a direct file).

There will be a live (PPV) video stream on New Palestine's IHSAAtv.org channel, with yours truly on PXP. If you want the free audio broadcast, you can find it at NewPalRadio.com. Radio pregame begins at 6 p.m.

They're still playing a MIC schedule, but their ouster from the league was effective this summer.

The plan is for this to be a weekly feature as we're coming up with ways to use TGD to drive professional, high-quality content. Thanks for the heads-up - made the edit.

I did a long time ago, but I realized being able to afford to eat was important :).

Of note, any newspaper or website who wishes to use the TGD Indiana Football Report may do so free of charge. Just make sure to credit the writer & website.

Welcome to The Gridiron Digest Indiana Football Report. This weekly feature will run throughout the season and highlight big games and big storylines throughout Indiana. This brings us back to the roots Tim Adams began this site with, as a place to bring together and presenting news from around the state. "Battle of Broadway" a matchup of No. 1 vs. No. 1 By Andrew Smith The Gridiron Digest One and a half miles of Broadway is all that physically separates Merrillville and Andrean High Schools. But when the two meet up in the aptly-named “Battle of Broadway” matchup Friday night at Merrillville’s Demaree Stadium, the matchup won’t just pit neighbors against each other. It will also pit No. 1 vs. No. 1. Merrillville begins the year as the No. 1 team in Class 5A after winning three straight regional titles in Class 6A, while Andrean begins atop the 2A poll as the defending state champion. “There will be a lot of excitement for the ‘Battle of Broadway’ as expectations are high for both programs. It's always a fun physical game where both teams play hard,” Merrillville coach Brad Seiss said. “We both have a lot of respect for each other's football teams.” Andrean ran the table in Class 2A last season, ending with a 21-9 victory over Evansville Mater Dei in the State Finals. But the 59ers have quickly turned the page. “We haven't talked about last year much except maybe in the context of prepping the body for the grind of a season,” Andrean coach Chris Skinner said. “The seniors are motivated to leave their own unique mark on the program. Everyone is stepping into at least a slightly different role compared to last season. It's a new team with a new leadership group.” Merrillville moved to 5A during the summer’s reclassification due to the school’s enrollment. The Pirates have had recent success, going 33-5 over the last three seasons and advancing to the semistate each year, but falling one step short of Lucas Oil Stadium. “Everyone wants to talk about us going into 5A because of the success that we've had over the last few years in 6A,” Merrillville coach Brad Seiss said. “We aren't really concerned about that until we get to the tournament. We've got the same 2 non-conference games in Andrean and Hobart then we get into DAC play. Getting better weeks 1-9 is the most important thing we can do as we prepare for the tournament in October.” Meanwhile, the entirety of Andrean’s schedule consists of teams in the top three classes. Merrillville is a premier opponent to begin the year. “I love competition. It doesn't matter if it's competition within our program or against competitive opponents,” Skinner said. “I believe in the ‘iron sharpens iron’ mantra. There are certainly challenges in playing a schedule like ours in which every opponent is at least two classes higher than us, but our players accept those challenges. We will certainly be exposed in certain areas by playing that level of competition, but it allows us to make adjustments that end up in growth down the road. I have a lot of respect for Merrillville specifically. Coach Seiss has been able to reload year after year. It's a fantastic Week 1 game that typically draws a good crowd and gets the attention of college coaches and scouts as well.” The scouts will have plenty of top players to see - Merrillville sports two of the top seniors in Indiana in Colorado State commit Justin Marshall - who had 1,088 receiving yards a year ago - and safety Phillip Roche. Andrean features Notre Dame commit Drayk Bowen, who had 965 rushing yards, 105 tackles and three interceptions a year ago. Andrean also has junior QB Scott Ballentine returning after completing 68 percent of his passes for 2,860 yards and junior WR Patrick Clacks, who had 753 yards last year. “Drayk is an amazing talent and certainly one that does a lot for us,” Skinner said. “He rarely comes off the field. He's also a great role model for how to train, how to prep, how to take care of the body.” Opening the year in Indy Another cross-town rivalry will kick off 2022 - but 70 miles down the road at Lucas Oil Stadium. For the first time since 2004, Harrison and West Lafayette - two schools less than five miles apart - will meet on the gridiron. The 6 p.m. kickoff will begin the IHSAA football season at the annual Horseshoe Classic. Beginning the season at Lucas Oil Stadium is always a treat, but both programs have designs on finishing it there, too. “We are excited to start the season in Lucas Oil Stadium,” said West Lafayette coach Shane Fry, whose teams are 94-18 in nine seasons. “This is the first time we have played Harrison since 2004. It is a fierce rivalry in other sports, and most of the players know each other. It is a unique situation with our football fields being two miles apart and us traveling 65 miles to play on the big stage and kickoff the 2022 season. This is a great opportunity for our program, both to play at Lucas Oil and to matchup against Harrison.” Fry’s squad won the 2018 state title and was the 2015 3A runner-up. The Red Devils posted a 9-1 record last season and have won at least seven games in each of the last nine years. Harrison is coming off an 8-2 season. The Raiders won sectional titles in 2018 and 2019, but fell to eventual 5A state runner-up Zionsville in the sectional each of the last two years. The second game will be another marquee matchup, as last year’s 3A runner-up Brebeuf Jesuit faces 3A No. 1 Bishop Chatard in a matchup of top teams from the Circle City Conference. Chatard, which has won 15 state championships, returns to 3A after spending a year in Class 4A due to the Tournament Success Factor. The two squads have been frequent sectional foes, but they will not meet in the tourney this year, as Brebeuf has moved to Class 4A and begins the season ranked No. 5 New coach in Columbus One of the most high-profile coaching changes over the offseason came in Columbus, where Tim Bless retired after 22 years at the helm of the Columbus North Bull Dogs. Logan Haston, a former standout quarterback at Avon and Manchester University, takes over. It’s Haston’s first head coaching position, but he had previously been on staff at Hamilton Southeastern, Fishers and his college alma mater, Manchester. “I am very thankful to be taking over such a well-established program,” Haston said. “Coach Bless has built a strong reputation at Columbus North with tough, hard-working athletes who play the game the right way. I am excited to build upon the tradition & success that has come before me, while also implementing my own cultural identity that meshes with the players & coaching staff.” Haston played for two standout coaches at Avon - Dave Shelbourne and Mark Bless - Tim’s brother - before matriculating to Manchester, where he played for Shannon Griffith. “I'm not sure if I'd be where I am today without my experience at Avon,” Haston said. “Between two years with Dave Shelbourne, to my final two years under Mark Bless, I was mentored by some incredible coaches. I learned what the standard of excellence looks like, and how to compete in a first class manner. I will forever be grateful for my time as an Oriole.” Haston takes over a squad that went 6-4 last season and won its second straight Conference Indiana title. It has a strong non-conference schedule, beginning with a Week 1 matchup at Decatur Central. “I'm very pleased with our growth this summer as a team,” Haston said. “Our players have really bought in to what we're trying to accomplish, particularly the seniors. Their leadership has thoroughly impressed me, and we're going to lean on it during the season. Decatur Central is well-coached and will be a very tough Week 1 opponent, but we're excited for the challenge.” Marauders building off a title Another defending champion is Mt. Vernon (Fortville), where first-year coach Vince Lidy led the Marauders to a 14-1 record and the Class 4A title. It was the Marauders’ first football State Finals appearance after advancing to the regional and semistate the two years prior. MV graduated several key players, but has a pair of building blocks in WR George Burhenn - a Purdue commit - and QB/WR Eli Bridenthal to lead the way. The duo combined for 1,064 receiving yards a year ago. Burhenn and senior linebacker Kellen La Belle are the top returning tacklers, each with 44. La Belle also had eight tackles for loss. “The success of last year is a result of great work and weekly improvement from the players and coaches as we worked through each week,” Lidy said, noting the Marauders’ 37 wins over the last three seasons are third-most in the state behind Center Grove and Cathedral. That has built as the Marauders have more than 110 players in four grades on the roster this fall. “A huge benefit of playing so long in the postseason is the amount of reps and practice our younger players were able to experience as we moved through the tournament. The success was also a great springboard into winter training. Excitement has stayed at an elevated level and this next group of players wants to continue to build on the success of the past three seasons and add to their legacy in the MV football program.” The Marauders open the season at Noblesville, which gave them their lone blemish last season, a 57-36 defeat in Week 1. It will be the first game in the Millers’ new stadium. Lidy said the Millers will bring a challenge with their power running game and large offensive line. “We always aim to play the 'perfect' game each Friday, but the most important thing in Indiana high school football is to find ways to get a little better each week and be playing your best football towards the end of the season. “I feel as though you don't win the state championship based on the result of Week 1. Our program lived through that in 2021. Before we can worry about conference championships, sectional and playoff championships, we have to take care of ourselves and focus on week 1 first.” Other key games 6A No. 5 Warren Central at 6A No. 1 Center Grove 6A No. 4 Brownsburg at 6A No. 7 Ben Davis 6A No. 6 Westfield at 4A No. 2 New Palestine 5A No. 8 Mishawaka at 3A No. 5 Mishawaka Marian 4A No. 6 Evansville Memorial at Jasper 3A No. 3 GIbson Southern at Terre Haute South 6A No. 2 Cathedral at Lafayette Jeff 1A No. 1 Lutheran at Beech Grove 2A No. 2 Evansville Mater Dei at Evansville Central Louisville Trinity at 6A No. 3 Carmel Elkhart at 5A No. 9 Concord 3A No. 6 Lawrenceburg at 4A No. 7 East Central

CG is playing a MIC school this week.

Depends. About half of our opponents play JV/frosh on Monday nights (mostly, a few in our conference) and the other half play Saturday mornings. Seems the early part of the schedule is mostly played on Saturdays and the latter half is played on Mondays.

Still listing Carmel with the MIC squads. Love it.

Every school in the state is guaranteed 10 games (which is how it was prior to the all-in playoff). A team that gets to Lucas Oil plays 14 (6A/5A) or 15 (1A-4A) games. The format is just fine. We can't add onto the end of the season because it has to end Thanksgiving weekend to make the State Finals work without pulling kids out of class (as well as the Big Ten championship game is the following week so LOS is not available). Any addition would be at the front end and the season already starts pretty early.

New Pal has 30+ freshmen and has more than 90 in the program, enough for three teams. They'll have V/JV/frosh. The HHC has a few programs that only field a varsity and a "C" team and a couple others who do varsity/JV.

Former East Central coach Justin Roden running the show there. He & New Pal's Kyle Ralph were on the same staff as assistants at Oak Hills before Roden returned as head coach.

Greenfield-Central at Plainfield, 7 p.m.: G-C had a turnaround year last season - winning 7 games last season. They lost QB Rashawn Street and a handful of critical players to the diploma, but return two of their top rushers in Andy Zellers and Brayden Herrell and a really good defender in Brad Allen. Last year's meeting was a one-touchdown game. This will be a good measuring-stick game for G-C. Greensburg at Shelbyville, 7 p.m.: Shelbyville has lost four straight to Greensburg but took some big strides under Brian Glesing last year, including snapping a 26-game losing streak in Week 2. Interestingly, the Golden Bears scored 24 points a game in three non-conference games last year but were scoreless against four conference foes in a COVID-shortened year. Eli Chappalew was solid at QB and Shelby returns its top two rushers, Cael Lux and Axel Conover, as well as top receiver Jackson Parker. Mt. Vernon at Noblesville, 7 p.m.: Noblesville handed the Marauders their only loss last season, as MV then ripped off 14 straight wins and a state title. Mt. Vernon has won back-to-back conference titles and kept the HHC trophy in western Hancock County, where the Marauders and New Palestine have been the lone teams to hold it since 2010. MV was hit hard by graduation, but receivers George Burhenn and Eli Bridenthal are pretty good building blocks. Burhenn is also the top returning tackler. New Castle at Franklin County, 7 p.m.: Injuries decimated the Trojans last year, who went 2-8, but QB Tyson Lewis - who took over after an injury last season and had to learn on the job - returns. He has three of his top four receivers back from the "Air Raid" attack. New Castle was very underclass-heavy last season and three of their losses were by a touchdown or less. One of New Castle's losses was a 44-34 defeat to Franklin County in Week 1. The two teams have played in Week 1 every year but one since 2014, with New Castle's lone win coming in 2018. Pendleton Heights at Lebanon, 7 p.m.: PH was *very* young last year and had a 3-0 start before suffering a couple of close losses to G-C and Yorktown and struggling against Mt. Vernon and New Palestine. This is a new series for the Arabians. PH will have to replace QB Luke Candiano, but I like RBs James Malone and Dresden Roberts. The top three receviers return, led by Caden Sims. Roberts is also the top returning tackler. Three of the top four tacklers for the Arabians were sophomores. This won't be a make-or-break game for PH, but it's a really good matchup for a well-coached team from a community with a good football tradition that's looking to hit its stride. Yorktown at Anderson, 7 p.m.: Yorktown has won 10 consecutive games against non-conference teams in the regular season, with Anderson and Muncie Central their annual tune-ups. The HHC usually fares well against the NCC, and this was a 46-6 win for the Tigers last season. They were *really* young last year and went 5-5, winning three conference games despite being the smallest school in the league. QB Mason Moulton is back after throwing for 1,868 yards last year. The Tigers return all but 13 yards of their rushing offense and top receiver Kolten Nanko, who had 725 yards last season. Westfield at New Palestine, 7 p.m.: This will be one of the marquee Week 1 matchups in Indiana, with the Dragons moving back to 4A and facing a team that has finished the last two seasons playing Center Grove in Lucas Oil Stadium. The Dragons challenge themselves in the non-conference schedule - many of their pre-conference opponents in the Kyle Ralph era have found their way to Lucas Oil Stadium in November, and the Shamrocks are no exception. Dragons are senior-heavy and return nine offensive and eight defensive starters from last year's 5A sectional championship squad. Two-time 1,000-yard rusher Grayson Thomas and top returning receiver Isaiah Thacker, a two-time all-state selection, pace the offense, with two high-level collegiate prospects - Luke Burgess and Ian Moore - anchor the line. The Dragons return their top three tacklers, including senior LB Eli Hook and sophomore DL Michael Thacker. Westfield suffered heavy graduation losses but Jake Gilbert has a tremendous program and a lot of depth that reloads. Delta at Muncie Central, 7:30 p.m.: A young Eagles squad suffered its first sub-.500 season since 1995 last year, going 5-6. Delta downed its county rival 49-6 in the opener and started 3-0 before dropping five of its six conference games. QB Kaiden Bond threw for 1,000+ yards as a sophomore, and Delta returns *all* of its rushing yards, including senior Abram Stitt (844 yards) and sophomore Nolan Carpenter (597 yards). Stitt was also the team's top receiver. Expect the Eagles to get off to another strong start after a rebuilding year.

Remember those days well. My first year in media, I was told of a local coach who apparently had a reputation for ordering uniforms that were intentionally difficult to see on film ... so he started putting his two-deep in with the films, which was apparently uncommon at the time. I see it more in basketball - the same coaches whose uniforms are almost impossible to see on film (usually, because they have the soon-to-be-illegal "outline numbers" where the numbers are the same color as the jersey, with only an outline; but less common, a dark number on a dark jersey - even red/blue combos are hard to see on film) are 99.9999% likely to *not* put their stats on MaxPreps.

There is an expectation from the IHSAA that schools post stats on MaxPreps. Don't post stats to MaxPreps, your players don't get listed in the state leaders, et al. It seems most coaches in our area (Central Indiana) use them. Some schools guard their statistics like state secrets because making them public might aid opponents in scouting (even though *every single opponent* likely has most, if not all, of your games on film, has run them through Hudl Assist and not only do they know your stats, they know all of your formations, tendencies, et al). Prior to a tournament game a few years ago, the visiting coach sent me his stats - likely in part because he trusted me because of a mutual friend in the media (and I did not break that trust - I did not share them with anyone prior to gameday). An hour or so before the game, I had them at my broadcast position in the press box and virtually media member from that team's region came over and started taking photos of them because they had never seen that team's stats and they were useful to help determine all-county/region status.

The benefit of an overnight team camp is the "overnight" part - your team is together basically 24/7 for a couple of days. You have a lot of time to do team-building stuff without a whole lot of outside distractions (and a lot of informal team bonding takes place as players have all their meals together, stay together on a dorm floor, et al). For the college, it's basically a PR pitch and a recruiting tool to try to get kids on campus (and maybe possibly ID a diamond in the rough that nobody else is recruiting) and to develop relationships with the coaches so they have an "in" when you do have a prospect they're interested in.

I'm glad the gyms are still there, because the old HH/Jackson Central gym was one of my favorite ones to coach in when I coached middle school hoops.

Basically, the old HHHS (or Jackson Central HS).

New Pal is hosting Scecina in their annual scrimmage.

Illinois applies the multiplier to what it terms "non-boundaried schools," so charter schools also.

Illinois, which has a multiplier (1.65x) actually has an "anti-success factor" where the multiplier is waived if you haven't won the equivalent of a sectional in something like the last four years. The multiplier is also applied to charter schools, not just p/ps.