BTF

At this point, I will just take Sagarin's word for it. It's kind of hard to rank these teams when you haven't seen each one play.

1.   Carmel

2.   Warren Central

3.   Center Grove

4.   Ben Davis

5.   Homestead

6.   Merrillville

7.   Zionsville

8.   Warsaw

13 minutes ago, dmizers3 said:

Agree, it's a coin flip game.  Only shock would be if it's a blow out either way.

I've seen a lot of football. Nothing would shock me more. 

8 minutes ago, dmizers3 said:

That 2015 title game was fun but weird, we were terrible in the 1st quarter,  Snider was terrible in the 3rd and in the end a blocked XP was the difference.  And yeah played in 5A since 2015 and haven't really missed a beat.  Consistently close to 100% attendance in off season participation.  Typically only stuff missed is cause kids are in other sports which Coach Ralph encourages. 

That's great, much respect for the New Pal program. Nothing against Cathedral, but I hope New Pal pulls this one off. Looks like a 50/50 game to me. 

8 minutes ago, INHSFootball said:

well they blow out every team so they do not play much. Easy schedule

Lol, good point. But they did go four quarters against Snider, a team that has no players playing both ways, in the 2015 championship game. Surprisingly, they were more competitive in the second half than the first. Should have been the other way around. 

9 minutes ago, dmizers3 said:

A big part of it yes.  My kid was a senior on the 2014 4A title team so he saw pre Coach Ralph as well as the changes Coach Ralph implemented and the biggest difference is the off season participation in conditioning and weight room.  When at best you have 50-60 kids(including a lot of freshmen) on the sidelines on Friday night you've got to be strong  in incredible shape. It's not really an option to not have quite a few 2 way guys.  I still remember that 1st parents meeting with Coach Ralph and him saying if you buy in we will compete for state championships consistently.  I kinda thought "sounds great but we shall see, we were just 3-7". Well here we are 7 years in and Coach Ralph is 85-4 with 3 finals appearances and 2 titles and a legit shot again.  

I've always been curious how a school with an enrollment of 1400 competes year in and year out with much larger schools. Makes sense now. 

1 hour ago, Robert said:

This week will probably be Concordia, Dwenger, and Homestead.  Not sure if RIver Bend Pizza, Lexy's Grinders, or Mama Mia's. 

River Bend huh? Wow Robert, I think we might have something in common!

4 minutes ago, dmizers3 said:

Quite a few that play both ways.  We have a very physical group.  I don't see it being a big issue.   And I'm not saying we will out physical Cathedral by any stretch.  But don't look for New Pal to wear down, as I don't expect the Irish will either.  I was honestly very surprised that we wore down Center Grove in the 4th quarter.  But then again I'd hate to be a DL or LB and have to tackle Spegal for 4 quarters.  I know its cliche but I very much believe whoever controls the line of scrimmage better wins.  I expect an instant classic. 

Has that been the ingredient to New Pal's success over the years? Playing the best athletes on both sides of the ball and hoping they are in better physical condition than their opponents? 

2 hours ago, Robert said:

where I'd never miss a game.  Now, thinking about staying home and watching youtube on the TV on Friday.  What's wrong with me?

Watching a football game on a 55" tv, in the comfort of your family room, with the fireplace on and a pizza sitting on the end table? Nothing is wrong with you Bob. I'm guilty as well. It's hurting attendance in a big way. Does the athletic department of the school who's game is being streamed get any kind of a cut from the website that is streaming it? 

16 minutes ago, Lysander said:

I expect a good game.

BTW, that 2016 Concordia team was a monster and doesn’t get enough credit historically.  It embarrassed a lot of quality 3A teams.

I can remember a time when they were the punching bag of the SAC. That seemed to turn around somewhere around 2000. They've had some pretty competitive teams since then. It was nice to see them get it done in 2016. 

Being part of the SAC, they are used to being the underdog. They will come out Friday night and give Chatard their best shot. 

I'm debating whether to take a drive down the street to see if Concordia can pull off the upset or make the 25 minute drive south to see how the SAC stacks up against Indy. Dwenger has a monster of a game in Lafayette. I can't remember when the SAC didn't at least have one team playing at semi-state. I'm hoping this isn't that year. 

19 minutes ago, Lysander said:

I may have to put this up for a car vote on the way.  Either way, I am appreciative of all the recommendations.

You're coming a long way. I hope the Cadets don't mercy rule you guys after two quarters. 

7 hours ago, kdets89 said:

Great pregame dinner option is The Acme Bar & Grill on East State St., minutes from Concordia.  Smoked wings are terrific, and they have the best breaded tenderloin in the state.

Have you had the tenderloin at Mitchell's? I'll try one at the Acme and let you know. 

4 hours ago, FWfootball10 said:

I’ve heard a lot of people say that could be the best team in Fort Wayne history. Certainly could make the case for Snider in 92 when they beat Ben Davis in 5a and some other years as well for Snider.

The Dwenger teams of the early 90's were good, but I'm going to go with Snider 2004.

I'm going with the home team. New Pal 28, Cathedral 24

21 minutes ago, FWfootball10 said:

Pretty even game I’m thinking. John Harrell has Dwenger by 4. Might help Harrison that they are at home and BD goes on a long bus ride for the first time all year. I really have no idea what to expect besides the fact I think it will be close. Patrick Finley didn’t play last week against Northrop. They are already without their best defensive player for the year, I don’t know if they can win without their best offensive and defensive players in the lineup. Will be close either way imo but Finley might give them that extra spark that they need to win if he plays. 

It's a long bus ride for sure. This may be a game that favors the home team. However, Dwenger is a resilient bunch. Never doubt them. 

10 minutes ago, Lysander said:

Any recommendation for good eats pregame?   It’s been a few years but I ate at a great place downtown called “Club Soda”.  Might be too nice for some of the rowdies I may have tagging along, though (if it’s still around).

I’m trying to get my priorities straight.

Mitchell's Sports Bar & Grill...................... amazing food! Off 24 and about 20 minutes from the stadium.

BJ's Brewhouse.............off Coliseum.  6-7 minutes from stadium. 

I feel like Dwenger used to have trouble with long road games. New coach, new team. 

Dwenger 17, Harrison 14

The game should be at Zollner, it's Concordia's home field. 

1 hour ago, psaboy said:

Yeah, Snider is a 5A forced to play 6A for four years 😞

It's still fun though to watch them knock heads with schools 2 and 3 times their size. Deep runs are fun, but so are contests against Carmel and Penn. 

4 minutes ago, Coach Hanson said:

That 2016 Concordia team was truly something special in 3A. I think that Chatard’s playoff run this year from now to the state finals will be similar when it comes to having lopsided wins over good 3A teams. Will be interesting to watch though!

I agree. I like Concordia, but they are no match for Chatard this year. 

8 minutes ago, Warren Central Warrior said:

I think Ben Davis and Warren Central will have their State Final in the 6A South Semifinal.

Wait a minute. Isn't there another mega school in the north bracket? Carmel? But you are correct. It will come down the the three largest enrollment schools in the state. 

9 minutes ago, INHSFootball said:

I went to this game last night. Cathedral is 100% the team to beat. Their defense is the best in the state by far. Their offense is top notch as well. I could see cathedral running away with this by 21 points or more

One hundred percent? If you look at Cathedral's games against Brebeuf, Chatard, and Center Grove, isn't safe to say New Pal has a chance? They had one common opponent and New Pal beat them by a wider margin than Cathedral did. Sagarin has this as a 50/50 game. I'm going with New Pal at home.

Have you seen Dwenger play? They have a pretty good defense. Saying Cathedral's is the best by far is a pretty bold statement.  

1 hour ago, jakone said:

Concordia will show up this ain't their first rodeo. They won state by 42 pts. a few years back. Having said that Sagarin favors Chatard by 29.

Yeah, unfortunately though this isn't 2016. If it was, Chatard would be in for a rude awakening. 

For what it's worth, Sagarin has New Prarie as a 1pt favorite. 

35 minutes ago, Grover said:

Franklin Central 2800

Center Grove 2500 

Center Grove, arguably the best program in the state pound for pound. 

1 hour ago, Route2andholtz said:

I guess we will see how good Homestead is this week.  Carmel just routed Westfield.  Seems to me the train is rolling for Carmel. 

Sagarin has Carmel as a 7 point favorite, and rightfully so. Which Homestead team will show up? The one who beat Snider, Dwenger, and Carroll? Or the one that almost bowed out to Noblesville? No excuses this week. No long bus ride and no thinking we are going to roll over our 1-9 opponent. Is Homestead satisfied with their first ever SAC title? How bad do they want Carmel? Beating Snider was like winning the Super Bowl for them. But beating a good Carmel team will give them more cred than defeating an average Snider team. Good luck to both.

Carmel 31, Homestead 17

22 minutes ago, TrojanDad said:

That’s all you really needed to say. Brine and a nice marinade may help. 

http://www.thejaygravesreport.com/the-m-i-c-is-putting-everybody-in-class-6a-on-notice-never-doubt-whats-real/

 

Jay....................I know you are reading this. The MIC is a great conference for sure. But isn't Carmel, with an enrollment of 5000 supposed to beat Westfield 2100? Warren Central 3700 probably should beat Lawrence Central 2300. It's one thing to be proud of your conference, but thumping your chest after beating up on smaller schools is kind of ridiculous. 

3 hours ago, Staxawax said:

I think you are delusional.

Of course you would think that, you are from Indy.