5A North Semi-State - #3 Merrillville (11-1) @ #10 Warsaw (9-3)

[NLCTigerFan07]

A big time matchup in the Lake City on Friday night. I expect it to be one of the best environments Fisher Field has ever seen. The Tigers are making their 1st ever Semi-State appearance, while the Pirates are making their 10th Semi-State appearance, including 5 of the last 6 seasons. Merrillville has gone 0-9 in those previous games.

• This will be Coach Bart Curtis' 3rd trip to the Semi-State round, previously going 1-1, each with New Prairie (3A loss 2004) and Mishawaka (4A win 2012).
• This will be Coach Brad Seiss' 5th trip to the Semi-State round, previously going 0-4, all with Merrillville (6A losses 2019, 2020, 2021 and 5A loss 2023).
• The teams have 1 common foe, Michigan City, whom both defeated this season. Warsaw won 20-7 in Week 1; Merrillville won 14-12 in Week 5.
• Both teams have defeated a fellow Semi-State team. Warsaw beat 4A Mishawaka 21-13 in Week 7; Merrillville beat 2A Andrean 27-0 in Week 1.

I mentioned this in the 5A thread last week before the Regional games were played, but what an amazing story line this Friday night. Arguably the best Warsaw Tiger football player in the history of their school is Brad Seiss. In order for Merrillville to finally get over the Semi-State hump and make it to Indianapolis on Thanksgiving weekend, Coach Seiss will have to make a homecoming visit to Warsaw and defeat his alma mater. You can't write a better script!

As well, with no disrespect to Bloomington South, the story line for Warsaw is this. They have defeated unbeaten #1 Concord in the Sectional Championship. They then defeated unbeaten #2 Lafayette Jefferson in the Regional Championship. This week? They have #3 Merrillville for the Semi-State Championship. Should they defeat the Pirates on Friday night, and Decatur Central win, they would then face off against the #4 ranked Hawks. What a postseason run that would be!

All information below from the great John Harrell's website:

[adambetz]

Last week, Warsaw and Lafayette Jeff had one shared opponent. Warsaw beat Michigan City by more than Lafayette Jeff did. Warsaw beat Jeff.

This week, Warsaw and Merrillville have one shared opponent. Warsaw beat Michigan City by more than Merrillville did...

[NLCTigerFan07]

I'm not sure I hold a lot of weight in that - but I won't be mad if it holds true! I believe Merrillville will be, by far, the best team Warsaw has played against since Week 2's Warren Central matchup. The Warriors completely dominated the line of scrimmage, and the Tigers could not get anything going offensively. Turnovers and offensive penalties didn't help.

For the most part, Warsaw has played fairly disciplined "Bart Ball" over the last 2 months. That will be the key to keep them in the game against Merrillville. It's the same game plan as the last 2 weeks. Long, sustained drives that eat up clock and put points on the board. When these teams last met in the 2019 6A Regional, the Pirates size and athleticism was too much for the Tigers. It was a respectable final score, but at no point did it feel like Merrillville wasn't in control of that game. Obviously, that was 2019 and this is 2024.

[adambetz]

1 hour ago, NLCTigerFan07 said:

I'm not sure I hold a lot of weight in that - but I won't be mad if it holds true! I believe Merrillville will be, by far, the best team Warsaw has played against since Week 2's Warren Central matchup. The Warriors completely dominated the line of scrimmage, and the Tigers could not get anything going offensively. Turnovers and offensive penalties didn't help.

For the most part, Warsaw has played fairly disciplined "Bart Ball" over the last 2 months. That will be the key to keep them in the game against Merrillville. It's the same game plan as the last 2 weeks. Long, sustained drives that eat up clock and put points on the board. When these teams last met in the 2019 6A Regional, the Pirates size and athleticism was too much for the Tigers. It was a respectable final score, but at no point did it feel like Merrillville wasn't in control of that game. Obviously, that was 2019 and this is 2024.

I won't lie, I was being a bit facetious in the above post. I do think the Pirates are a much tougher team than Jeff was for Warsaw. In the same vein though, Mville is like a bigger, more physical version of Jeff who has been tested a bit better all year than Jeff was.

Either Merrillville runs away with it, or the Tigers keep it close and punch their ticket to da Oil.

[Jetackow]

Common opponent scores can be misleading, especially when comparing Week 1 to Week 5. Michigan City, for example, was still finding their rhythm early in the season but was playing significantly better by Week 5, even if their record didn’t fully show it. Looking at additional opponents both teams have faced is also important, as there’s a mix of strong and weaker teams that can influence perceptions. Look at Goshen and Crown Point.

For Warsaw, the focus shouldn’t be on comparing scores but on preparing for Merrillville. And Merrillville on Warsaw. If Merrillville can overcome their semi-state challenges, they’ll be a serious contender. Merrillville has faced teams much tougher than them before, so this isn’t uncharted territory, it will be a matter of playing smart. This should be a great game!

[NLCTigerFan07]

2 hours ago, Jetackow said:

Common opponent scores can be misleading, especially when comparing Week 1 to Week 5. Michigan City, for example, was still finding their rhythm early in the season but was playing significantly better by Week 5, even if their record didn’t fully show it. Looking at additional opponents both teams have faced is also important, as there’s a mix of strong and weaker teams that can influence perceptions. Look at Goshen and Crown Point.

For Warsaw, the focus shouldn’t be on comparing scores but on preparing for Merrillville. And Merrillville on Warsaw. If Merrillville can overcome their semi-state challenges, they’ll be a serious contender. Merrillville has faced teams much tougher than them before, so this isn’t uncharted territory, it will be a matter of playing smart. This should be a great game!

I don't think anyone was seriously focused on comparing scores...

[Jetackow]

10 minutes ago, NLCTigerFan07 said:

I don't think anyone was seriously focused on comparing scores...

After re-reading, I realized that. Just to clarify, I’m not rooting for one team over the other. It should be a great game! Both teams have the talent and potential to make some noise and leave their mark. Can’t wait to see the how it all unfolds.

[CoachMack219]

The matchup of the Merrillville D-Line against the Warsaw Offensive Line and their "Bart Ball" style will be a fun one to watch. If Warsaw can control the line of scrimmage and execute their offense, then this is going to be a heck of a ball game. If not, and Merrillville's D-line and LB's cause havoc like they have all season, it could be a long night for the Tigers. Going to be a fun Semi-State matchup between two teams with differing offensive styles. 

[Jetackow]

8 minutes ago, CoachMack219 said:

Going to be a fun Semi-State matchup between two teams with differing offensive styles

Couldn’t agree more with your assessment. This year’s semi-state matchups are packed with intrigue and excitement, and Friday night lights across Indiana should not disappoint. Wish I could catch more than one game, but it’s not in the cards this week.

[Donnie Baker]

That boy named Cody says Maryvilles will win in a blowout. 

[FastpacedO]

31 minutes ago, Donnie Baker said:

That boy named Cody says Maryvilles will win in a blowout. 

When you typed that up, did you have the Bud Light real men of genius jingle playing in the background? 🤣😂

[Donnie Baker]

12 minutes ago, FastpacedO said:

When you typed that up, did you have the Bud Light real men of genius jingle playing in the background? 🤣😂

Bud light is for…. well you know! Zimas rule!

[FastpacedO]

19 minutes ago, Donnie Baker said:

Bud light is for…. well you know! Zimas rule!

what flovor Jolly Rancher do you prefer to add?

[Donnie Baker]

51 minutes ago, FastpacedO said:

what flovor Jolly Rancher do you prefer to add?

Always grape!

[MikeTyson15]

Warsaw by 3

[BTF]

I find it very difficult to predict games involving Warsaw and Mishawaka. Sitting this one out. 

[Komets2727]

All those D1 players at Merrillville against Bart ball. This is either going to be a blowout win for Merrillville or a close win by Warsaw. Athletes and speed vs. execution and ball control.

Warsaw 28 - Merrillville 27
 

 

[Yuccaguy]

44 minutes ago, BTF said:

I find it very difficult to predict games involving Warsaw and Mishawaka. Sitting this one out. 

"SLOBBER KNOCKER" coming 

[NLCTigerFan07]

I admittedly have not watched any Merrillville games this year. What do they like to do offensively? Warsaw has faced two teams with impressive offensive skill players each of the last two weeks against Concord and Lafayette Jeff, so it is not as if the Pirate offense is truly my biggest concern as a fan.

Instead, I truly believe it comes down to the Tigers continuing their impressive ability in recent weeks to run "Bart Ball" to near perfection. That is what won their games the last two weeks. Sustaining long drives that end in points on the board. If Merrillville is able to force at least 2 punts this game, they will win the game.

As others have predicted, I see either a Pirate blowout victory, or a low-ish scoring game that comes down to the final possession.

[Bobref]

53 minutes ago, NLCTigerFan07 said:

I admittedly have not watched any Merrillville games this year. What do they like to do offensively?

I’ve seen them in person twice. On offense, they are big and fast. A couple of good running backs, not overly large, but fast and they break tackles. Both legitimate home run threats. QB is pretty good and can stretch the field with his arm + big, fast receivers. They will run outside zone, jet sweep, bubble screens, and they will go deep. They have something of a propensity to shoot themselves in the foot with penalties and turnovers. Hard to stop them unless they help by stopping themselves.

[CoachMack219]

22 hours ago, NLCTigerFan07 said:

I admittedly have not watched any Merrillville games this year. What do they like to do offensively? Warsaw has faced two teams with impressive offensive skill players each of the last two weeks against Concord and Lafayette Jeff, so it is not as if the Pirate offense is truly my biggest concern as a fan.

Instead, I truly believe it comes down to the Tigers continuing their impressive ability in recent weeks to run "Bart Ball" to near perfection. That is what won their games the last two weeks. Sustaining long drives that end in points on the board. If Merrillville is able to force at least 2 punts this game, they will win the game.

As others have predicted, I see either a Pirate blowout victory, or a low-ish scoring game that comes down to the final possession.

I think BoBref's assessment is a really good one. To add on, I think they're pretty good up front on offense and do a nice job of attacking teams based on what the other team lacks on defense. With Valpo being smaller than them, Merrillville stayed in their Heavy look for most of the ball game and mixed in the run and pass well in that set. If Warsaw is deemed or proves to be "too small" up front, Merrillville will live in that Heavy look. If not, they're gonna spread ya out and run/ throw it out of that look. Their 1/2 punch at RB mixed with the Play Action passing attack off of it makes the Merrillville offense a dangerous one. I think this will be a good game for sure. Real excited to tune in. 

[BTF]

I also have to agree with Bobref's assessment. His description of Merrillville is exactly what I saw last year at semi-state. I want to say the offense was young, so many of those players are probably seniors.....going off memory here. I have a hard time believing that Concord and Jeff have the kind of speed Merrillville does...........speculation. Again, sitting this one out. I just know Merrillville has their hands full. 

[NLCTigerFan07]

3 hours ago, BTF said:

I have a hard time believing that Concord and Jeff have the kind of speed Merrillville does...........speculation.

Across the board? Probably. However, as a counterpoint, I'm pretty sure Concord has two kids who expected to make it to state in the 100M this year. But again, I would probably agree that as an entire team, Merrillville is by far the fastest, biggest, and most athletic team Warsaw has faced since Week 2 when the Tigers played at Warren Central.

[Justasportsfan]

4 hours ago, NLCTigerFan07 said:

Across the board? Probably. However, as a counterpoint, I'm pretty sure Concord has two kids who expected to make it to state in the 100M this year. 

Just 1..other guy graduated..I think

[adambetz]

Call me crazy if you want, but I think Warsaw is going to do this to Decatur Central too.