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Best Bets: Week 12

We have entered the second round of the Ohio high school football playoffs and every team that was fortunate enough to advance is even hungrier to make the next step. Gameplans and style of play can go along way this week as every team is feeling good coming off of a first round win. There are a plethora of coaches with deep playoff experience that are still alive and will be looking to use their wealth of knowledge to put their teams in positions to win. The favorites are still there and will look to continue their path to a championship while the underdogs hope to wreck things and create their own magical run. It is the second round and It is still win or go home but a win is a touch more sweeter while a loss stings a bit more after tasting victory in round one.

 

This week the matchups are fabulous and the level of play that it will take to win is only intensified. These are the types of games that can produce moments that go down in a program’s history. This Friday night the slate is once again full. Kings travels to take on La Salle on the westside. Mount Healthy collides with Badin. Hamilton makes the trip to Sharonville to take on Princeton and in Indiana, Lawrenceburg visits Batesville. Winners will move one step closer to the ultimate goal and live to fight another week.

 

There is a ton to take in. Can the Owls take down Badin? Will Hamilton dominate Princeton for a second time this season? Four quarters of football will tell us all we need to know. Here are the Best Bets for week 12.

 

DIVISION II, REGION 8

 

#7 KINGS AT #2 LA SALLE

 

Kings finished third in the Eastern Cincinnati conference in the regular season and is coming off of a tough victory over Withrow in round one. The Knights boast a great trio of skill players that have made an impact all season long. Quarterback Grant Nurre has passed for 1,687 yards and 8 touchdowns on the season and has also been a threat in the running game with 383 yards and 6 scores on 134 attempts. His partner in the backfield is tailback Carson Lindholm who has scored 17 touchdowns and amassed 1,047 yards. On the perimeter the Knights look to wide receiver Nate Lyman. He has 59 catches for 809 yards and 6 scores.

Kings has been solid on the defensive side of the ball as they only give up 10 PPG as a unit and have been particularly strong against the run. The Knights only allow 29 rushing yards per game and are effective in making teams one dimensional. Zach Hoying has led the defensive charge with a team-high 53 tackles. Caden Walker has 48 stops, and Trent Hogan has 3 interceptions in the secondary.

 

La Salle was also a third-place finisher in their conference standings. The GCL South has prepared them to do battle in almost any situation. The Lancers smashed an undermatched Monroe team last week and looked the part of the number two seed. Quarterback Patrick McLaughlin has been the engine to the La Salle offense this season as both a passer and a runner. McLaughlin has thrown for 1,255 yards and 7 TD on the season. He is also the team’s leading rusher with 620 yards with another four touchdowns. The senior play caller has been the vocal leader of a team trying to get back to its state championship form. Isaac Goldschmidt has 455 rushing yards, and Max Welter leads the team in receiving with 547 yards.

The Lancers allow around 15 PPG on defense and have held five opponents to 14 points or less on the season. Brady O’Conner has a league leading 86 tackles for the defense and Walter Berry finished fifth with 68 takedowns. Fergus Kreider has four sacks, and Colin Daniels has two interceptions. The Lancers have been stronger in defending the pass than the run this season so that is something to keep an eye on.

 

This one is hard to call but the rigors of the GCL South may just give La Salle an edge in a tight ball game. Lancers win at home.

 

#5 MOUNT HEALTHY AT #4 BADIN

 

Mount Healthy has had a resurgence this season reminiscent of the days of David Montgomery ad Bryan Cook. The Owls have a 9-2 record and are on a four-game winning streak entering Friday night. The name to watch is quarterback Jahmeir Spain who has lit up the stat sheet this season. Spain has thrown for a staggering 3,289 yards and 37 touchdowns against only 7 interceptions. He has a wealth of targets with Ace Cooper (1,238 yds, 18 TD), Jai’mier Scott (738 yds, 8 TD), and Larry Fannon (569 yds, 3 TD). Jayson Kauffman-Stewart paces the running game with 577 yards and 4 touchdowns. Defensively, the Owls look to Raishawn Cotton (156 tkls) and Tyshawn Spain (119 tkls) to get players on the ground.

Badin RB Lem Grayson (photo from: rogerbaconsthletics.org)

Badin once again won the GCL co-ed division this season and after an 0-2 start, have rattled off nine straight wins to reach the second round. The Rams have leaned on their defense to put them in position for a state run in division II this season. Badin is allowing a mere 3.7 PPG on the year and have held all of their opponents to 17 points or less including two shutouts. Trent Owens leads the defense with 86 tackles and Royce Rachel has 8 sacks. Xander Arnold has 3 interceptions, and Declan Brown has two. On offense the Rams lean on experienced runner Lem Grayson (820 yds, 10 TD) to wear opponents down. James Brink has 387 receiving yards, and Colt Emerson has been a great facilitator at quarterback.

 

Badin has been special on defense and Mount Healthy has been spectacular on offense. They say defense wins championships and the Rams have one for it. Badin marches on against the Owls

DIVISION I, REGION 4

 

#5 HAMILTON AT #4 PRINCETON

 

The Hamilton Big Blue have put together one of their best seasons in school history and look to continue on that path with a second win over Princeton this season. Hamilton has been spearheaded by the physical rushing presence of Gracen Goldsmith. Goldsmith is the conference’s leading rusher with 1,550 yards and 24 touchdowns. He has had seven games of over 150 yards with two of those being 200 plus yard performances. Goldsmith has proved to be a difficult player to stop for opposing defenses. Speaking of defense, Hamilton has upped their productivity on that side of the ball. They give up only 9 PPG. CJ Bryant has been a constant all season long with 104 tackles. Trey Verdon leads the team with 10 sacks and Jailen Morris has four interceptions in the secondary. Many others have stepped up to make plays on both sides of the ball, putting the Big Blue back into the second round for the second straight season.

Princeton has been great for the majority of the season and consistent. The Vikings were dominant on both sides of the ball in four straight games after an opening season loss to top-seeded Moeller. The Vikings then were blown out at Hamilton in a game in which they did not score a point. They’ve once again been on a dominant winning streak this time of five games. They’ve put up a ton of points but have been paced by their defense. The Vikings give up a shade over 14 PPG and have game wreckers all over the field. Players like Paul Nelson, Shelvon Hibbett, and Andre Parker have all been big defensive playmakers. Speed is a big part of the offense and quarterback De’angelo Birch has plenty of speedy weapons. Landon Miree, Antonio Hunter, and Teryntino Brown-Freeman all have the ability to break one at any time.

Princeton LB P.J. Nelson (photo courtesy of ScoutingOhio.com)

Hamilton used the motivation of last season’s playoff loss to pummel Princeton earlier this season. Count on the Vikings to use that embarrassing loss as motivation in this one. Vikings will take care of business at home.

 

IHSAA CLASS 3A, SECTIONAL 30 CHAMPIONSHIP

 

LAWRENCEBURG AT BATESVILLE

 

For the fifth time in the last six years (sixth in eight years), Lawrenceburg has won 10 games in a row after losing the opener to East Central. The Tigers have once again gotten their footing and look to make a trip back to the state championship game as they did two seasons ago. The Tigers have relied on their passing game to beat opponents. Crue Gilmour has passed for 1,125 yards and 8 TD. He has also rushed for 730 yards and 12 touchdowns to lead his team. His favorite target is Keaton McGrath who has 40 receptions for 607 yards. Defensively the Tigers are led by Noah Knigga who has 93 tackles and 7 sacks. Lawrenceburg is looking for its seventh sectional crown in the last nine years.

Lawrenceburg LB Noah Knigga (photo by Sandy Mahoney / X: @InMotionBysandy)

Batesville won the sectional title a year ago and look to repeat here in 2024. Will Jaisle has been a big-time performer for the Bulldogs. Jaisle has thrown for 1,631 yards and 16 touchdowns on the season. Gage Pohlman has led the rushing attack with 945 yards and 8 scores. Damien Dance has 49 receptions for 789 yards and 10 big touchdowns. Defensive the Bulldogs have gotten a big season out of Judd Renck who has 73 tackles.

 

Batesville is coming off a sectional championship a season ago, but Lawrenceburg is hungry to get back to Indianapolis. The Tigers get the win in a close game.

 

GAME OF THE WEEK

Make sure to check out the COMPLETE PREVIEW for this week’s featured game, St. Xavier at Winton Woods.

 

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