Rounding third and heading towards home, week 9 of the high school football season has arrived and it’s here to bring much of the same excitement and drama that we have seen through the first eight weeks. Many teams have solidified their standing as the postseason looms but several teams still have a chance to make a push to place themselves into the playoffs. Who will make it will come down to who prepares and executes the best come Friday night.
Last week we saw road wins from Elder, Hughes, and Goshen while Lakota West got things going with a dominant home win. This week the matchups are even more fun and have the potential to produce some all time great games. This week’s matchups feature many stakes from conference titles to playoff seeding.
#5 Winton Woods at #4 Anderson
The Warriors feature one of the area’s toughest defenses. Winton Woods has only given up 14 points across their last five games and have shutout four opponents this season, including in their last two games. They are holding teams to 6.8 PPG on the season. Jayvion McKinney-Cooper and Christian Colston lead the team with 32 tackles a piece. Offensively Josiiah Jones has thrown for over 1,000 yards and 13 touchdowns but the Warriors success may be driven by tailback Zeke Garrett who has rushed for 737 yards and 12 scores.
Anderson has once again been a scoring machine since a week one loss to a Kentucky power. The Raptors have scored 437 points through eight weeks and have shown no signs of slowing down as they look to make another deep run in division II. Owen Scalf has thrown for 2,267 yards and 27 touchdowns in the air raid attack. Tyson Weaver has hauled in 40 receptions for 912 yards and Jordan Davis paces the rushing attack with 501 yards while also receiving for 499. On defense the Raptors turn to Antwoine Higgins at linebacker with Jerod Lindsey and Ace Alston locking down the secondary.
Offense beats defense in this one. Bet on Anderson to get the win.
#11 Lakota East at #16 Colerain
Nile Knutson has had a great season for East. The GMC leader in passing yards has 2,113 yards in the air with 20 touchdowns. He has thrown to two of the best wideouts in the league as well with Braxton Thurman and Carter Jones ranking second and third respectively in the league in receiving. Thurman as caught for 696 yards with five touchdowns while Jones has 673 yards and seven touchdowns on the season. East will look for their defense to step up and make some plays if they want a crucial win for their playoff chances.
Roman Garr has led the Colerain turnaround this season from the quarterback position. Garr has thrown for 1,968 yards and 21 touchdowns and has many weapons at his disposal in the passing game. Desean Flagg Jr., Chaz Forrester Jr., Aaron Jacob’s, and Tariq Evans Jr. all have the ability to break a game open with big plays down the field. Similar to the Thunderhawks, an improved defensive effort would go along way for Colerain’s chances moving forward.
Bet on Lakota East to pull one out.
#12 Harrison at #18 La Salle
Harrison is enjoying a great season as they sit at 7-1 and are just a three point defeat away from being undefeated. Still they have not loss to an Ohio team and have shown a display of dominance through eight weeks. Brady Lawhon is completing 71% of his passes and has thrown for 1,685 yards and 17 touchdowns on the season while adding 220 rushing yards and another five scores on the ground. Wyatt Dennis however has paced the ground attack with 615 yards and six scores of his own. Colton Rehage and Kyle Davidson have been key cogs at wide receiver for the Wildcats potent offensive attack. Defensively, Issiah Taylor and David Baldock are leading the team as the top two tacklers.
Quarterback Garrett Fraley leads the Lancers in both passing and rushing and has been a big time dual threat in the rugged GCL South. Fraley has passed for over 1,000 yards and rushed for close to 400 while scoring 10 total touchdowns. Jack McLaughlin is the team’s leading receiver and Haden Neff leads the team in tackles. La Salle is scoring a mere 18.5 PPG while giving up close to 28. They will need to step up their games on both sides of the ball if they want to make a run. The Lancers sit at 3-5 and would love to close out the season with back to back wins to secure their spot in the postseason. If they can get there, they will be a team that no one would want to run into.
Bet on Harrison to keep things rolling.
Deer Park at Indian Hill
Deer Park is enjoying an undefeated season through eight weeks for the first time in a long time. They will face their toughest test on the season this week as they will learn a lot about who they really are come Friday night. Junior Morgan Brown is the league’s leading rusher with 978 yards and 10 touchdowns. Being good in the running game will go along way this week in getting a victory. Tink Sellers has been a great dual threat at quarterback as he has over 1200 total yards as a passer and a rusher for the Wildcats.
Indian Hill has been a machine since a heartbreaking loss to rival Wyoming back in week four. The Braves have won four straight since then and have outscored their opponents during that span by a whopping margin of 186-7. This includes three consecutive shutouts as the Braves are playing angry and aggressive football. Jacob Alexander and Devlan Daniel have paced the offense with a potent rushing attack and Topher Wachtel has been a key guy on defense.
Bet on Indian Hill to get the home win.
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GAME OF THE WEEK
Make sure to check out the COMPLETE PREVIEW for this week’s featured game on the Blitz 5 Tour, Walnut Hills at #20 Lebanon.
Here are some other games for teams ranked inside the Blitz 5 Top 25:
OHIO
#21 Oak Hills at #1 Princeton
St. Edward at #3 Moeller
#22 Mason at #10 Middletown
Hughes at #17 Withrow
Bishop Fenwick at #24 McNicholas
INDIANA
Roncalli at #9 East Central
KENTUCKY
Mason County at #8 Highlands
