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Best Bets: Week 14

Week 13 saw a lot of casualties in the playoffs for Greater Cincinnati area teams, particularly in Northern Kentucky. Highlands and Covington Catholic are among those not advancing to the Elite 8. The teams remaining, however, are bluebloods who you expect to be here.

Will one of our local bluebloods end their season this week? Here are this week’s Best Bets.

OHIO DIVISION III, REGION 12
#1 BADIN vs. #3 TIPPECANOE (To Be Played At Trotwood-Madison)

Don’t we love a good playoff re-match? The Badin Rams and Tippecanoe Red Devils have some playoff history, most recently playing in the Year of the COVID, 2020, which saw the Rams end the Red Devils title hopes. Due to COVID however, teams were allowed to play games after elimination from the playoffs so the loss to Badin in 2020 was not the last game of the season for Tippecanoe. The team ended their season on a high note a week later by beating Butler.

In 2022, however, both teams are coming in with something to prove. The Rams are striving to get back to the state championship in two weeks and come out with a win, while Tippecanoe is looking to get over that regional hurdle and get to the state games.

It won’t be easy for the Red Devils though as Badin boasts one of the best defenses in the state, only giving up 105 points all season. The unit has disrupted opposing offenses so far in the playoffs, forcing seven turnovers through three games. On offense, the Rams run a balanced attack, being able to penetrate with the arm of quarterback Alex Ritzie and a run game that can give defensive lines fits. The 417 points scored in 2022 is no fluke. If the Rams get ahead early, it will be tough for the Red Devils to come back.

Tippecanoe, however, also may present the best opportunity for a Badin upset. In fact, it can be argued that the Red Devils are perhaps even more explosive on offense, scoring over 500 points on the season, thanks to star quarterback Liam Poronsky, who can get it done with his arm and his legs. In the regional semifinals against Western Brown, Poronsky accounted for 400 yards of offense on his own, throwing for 163 yards and a touchdown and rushing for 237 yards and three touchdowns. The Red Devils defense is nothing to sneeze at either. While they have given up more points than Badin’s defense, the unit held Western Brown out of the end zone several times, only giving up 30 points to one of the best quarterbacks in the state. The Broncos gained 626 yards of total offense against the Red Devils defense, but it’s the scoreboard that counts.

This may be the most underrated regional final matchup in the state this weekend. Especially since we are in the rounds of neutral sites, this game could go either way. For now, bank on whichever team has the ball last will win the game. Expect it to be close with not a lot of points scored.

OHIO DIVISION IV, REGION 16
#1 WYOMING vs. #2 TAFT (To Be Played SATURDAY At Lakota West)

OHSAA doesn’t have the record listed for least amount of points given up in a season by a team. But if it did, the 2022 Wyoming Cowboys have to be on the list somewhere. The stout Cowboys defense has only given up 35 points through 13 games, an astounding average of 2.7 points per game. The unit has notched nine shutouts this season, which is tied for second in state history with nine other teams.

As if the defense was not dominating enough, the offense is clicking, thanks to the legs of CJ Hester. Just when you thought he couldn’t possibly top a performance from earlier in his career, he has another career game. In the regional semifinal win over defending state champions Clinton-Massie last week, Hester rushed for 369 yards and five touchdowns. To put that in perspective, Hester had more rushing yards alone than Clinton-Massie had total offensive yards. Of those 369 rushing yards, 166 of them came from two touchdown rushes – an 80-yard run and an 86-yard run. Per carry, he averaged an outstanding 14.2 yards per carry.

With all of that being said, the Cowboys will be taking on the team that held them to their lowest point total of the season in the Taft Senators, who Wyoming beat 20-0 in Week 2 of the season. In that game, Hester was limited to only 188 yards rushing, with 96 of those coming on one run in the fourth quarter. Taft has the playmakers to put up points on the Cowboys too. Running back Charles Hawkins had a career day last week in the regional semifinals, rushing for 304 yards and two touchdowns.

These two teams have played each other several times over the past few years. While Wyoming is perhaps too powerful on paper, these two teams have had some good battles. In 2018, the Senator nearly beat the Evan Prater-led Wyoming Cowboys, who snuck out a tough 14-12 win. The Cowboys went on to go undefeated and win the state title. All of that to say, don’t count out Taft. Anything is possible.

KENTUCKY CLASS 2A
SHELBY VALLEY AT BEECHWOOD

Good teams win with their star players. Great teams win with and without their star players. The Beechwood Tigers have overcome incredible adversity this season after losing star running back Mitch Berger to a season-ending injury to not only thrive, but demolish teams on their schedule. The Tigers are outscoring their opponents 117-14 through the first two games of the Class 2A playoffs.

In Berger’s absence, quarterback Clay Hayden has stepped up in a huge way. So far in the playoffs, Hayden has thrown for 510 yards and seven touchdowns on only 25 pass attempts. The run game still exists too, with several Tigers collectively rushing for 430 yards in the playoffs. As with Noel Rash offenses for years, once the Tigers get rolling, they are hard to stop. And if you don’t go tit-for-tat with their offense with your offense, you’re out of luck. Better luck next season.

Now, if there’s one team in Class 2A who can do that, it’s Shelby Valley. The Wildcats are the leaders in the class in points scored with 559, exactly 60 points more than the Tigers. Making it worse for opposing defenses is the number of weapons the Wildcats boast. Quarterback Russ Osborne has thrown for 2,787 yards and 27 touchdowns this season. As a team, the Wildcats have thrown for 3,052 yards, compared to a near-equal 2,909 yards rushing. The ground game is run by Jayden Newsome, who has rushed for 1,576 yards and 28 touchdowns. This may be the most powerful offense Beechwood has faced all year. This will be a good test for a Tigers defense that has only given up 92 points all season.

Beechwood will have its hands full in this one. Can Beechwood’s offensive firepower outperform Shelby Valley’s firepower? Expect fireworks and points from kickoff to final knee. Consider this one a toss-up.

KENTUCKY CLASS 1A
NEWPORT CENTRAL CATHOLIC AT KENTUCKY COUNTRY DAY

After a slow-go on offense the first few games of the season, the NewCath Thoroughbreds have begun to find a groove, putting up at least 40 points in seven of their last eight games. The Breds have a run game that can really wear down a defense. Collectively, the team has rushed for 2,357 yards and 42 touchdowns on the season. Demetrick Welch leads the attack with 1,255 of those rushing yards.

On the other sideline, The Kentucky Country Day Bearcats are bringing a more balanced offensive attack. The passing yards and rushing yards are nearly identical and the Bearcats defense has only given up eight less points than the Thoroughbreds.

Over the last few weeks, NewCath has not played in many close games. The Breds have blown out teams 102-13 through two playoff games and 55 and 60 points respectively in their last two regular season wins against Dayton and Ludlow. Kentucky Country Day should be considered an evenly-matched team to NewCath and a team that could deny a Final Four trip for the Breds. NewCath will be looking for their first trip to the state semifinals since 2020.

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