#1: Carroll
Record: 8-1
Last Week: #2
Sectional: vs Homestead
There is an argument to be made for all 3 co-champions to take the top spot. But there’s no team that’s playing better than Carroll right now. Sure, Snider has looked like a different team since losing to Carroll. We’d argue that Carroll has also looked like a different team since their early season loss to Luers. In fact, Carroll hasn’t surrendered 30 or more points since that loss. Meanwhile, the offense has taken flight and is averaging 44.4 points per game, just better than Luers’ 44.0 points per game. The Chargers have found a running game this year to balance the passing game, led by Luke Carmody who has rushed for 672 yards and 6 touchdowns this year. The Carroll offense has been better than both Snider and Luers’ this year and the defense has been just as good, if not better than Snider’s. Snider gave up an average of 17.9 points per game, while Carroll allowed 14.1, including 3 shutouts whereas the Panthers have none. It’s a close call, but Carroll was the best team in the SAC this year.
#2: Snider
Record: 7-1
Last Week: #3
Sectional: vs Northrop
The reasons as to why we put Snider below Carroll are included in the paragraph above, not to mention that they lost head-to-head against the Chargers earlier this year. But there are some things that you could point out that Snider has been better than Carroll at, such as their running game. Tyrese Brown ran for 1,346 yards this year, along with 18 rushing touchdowns. Brown ran for over 100 yards all but once this year and scored in every game. The offensive line has also been incredible this year, anchored by guys like DJ Moore who helped pave the way for Snider to have a great year on the ground. The defense had great numbers, only allowing over 30 points once and holding Luers to what was by far their lowest point total of the season. Officially, the Panthers are co-champions with Carroll and Luers this year and their 7-1 record is their best in the regular season since an undefeated 2017 campaign. Snider will be a tough out this year in class 5A.
#3: Bishop Luers
Record: 8-1
Last Week: #1
Sectional: vs Fairfield
Wait, what about Luers? They beat Carroll in Week 1, entered Week 9 unbeaten, and would have fared much better against Snider had it not been for the field conditions. The Knights had an incredible year and Carson Clark finally blossomed into the game-changing quarterback that this team knew he could be. In fact, he ranks sixth in the state of Indiana in terms of yardage through the air with 2,242 in all. And coming off another 100 yard game, Sir Hale broke the 1,000 yard mark on the ground and had 16 rushing touchdowns. While the offense has put up great numbers, the Knights had an opportunity to lock up the SAC title outright on Friday, but couldn’t find ways to score against Snider, while also turning the ball over too often. Regardless, the Knights have more important things in their future and you could argue that this loss will give them a chip on their shoulder as they enter the 2A postseason. After what happened in last year’s state championship, you know there’s nothing that Luers would like more than to finish the season with a win at Lucas Oil Stadium.
#4: Homestead
Record: 6-3
Last Week: #4
Sectional: at Carroll
Though they were unable to win their third straight SAC title, the Spartans had a solid season and saw improvement each week. Peyton Slaven looked more comfortable at quarterback as the season went on, finishing with 1,832 yards and 19 touchdowns. The Spartan defense also deserves a lot of credit, as they only allowed more than 20 points twice this year. Homestead is a sneaky good team and will likely play Carroll close again, this time in sectionals.
#5: Bishop Dwenger
Record: 5-4
Last Week: #5
Sectional: vs North Side
There was not a team that faced a more tumultuous stretch in their season than when Dwenger fell to Homestead and Carroll by double-digits in back-to-back weeks at Shields Field. Those games caused a stir in the Dwenger fanbase and, ironically, it wasn’t until a close loss to Bishop Luers that things began to settle down. However, there was no team that had a more disappointing season than Bishop Dwenger. Unlike Homestead, whose losses only came by one possession, Dwenger suffered 3 double-digit defeats this year. There were plenty of reasons to be critical of this team, but now it feels like the Saints are beginning to find themselves and quarterback Bohde Dickerson has looked good of late. The Saints will face North Side first, before a possible rematch with Snider the week after.
#6: Northrop
Record: 3-6
Last Week: #6
Sectional: at Snider
Northrop showed a little bit of everything this season. From a gritty 13-12 win over Wayne to a 56-0 blowout loss to Luers, the Bruins saw the highs and lows of football better than anyone else in the SAC. This team showed a lot of fight this year, and made things a lot more difficult for Homestead and Dwenger than they were supposed to be. They’ll try to hang with Snider in hopes of pulling a major upset in sectionals.
#7: North Side
Record: 2-6
Last Week: #7
Sectional: at Bishop Dwenger
Due to the amount of players in quarantine, North Side was forced to cancel their game with Concordia. This gives the Legends an extra week to prepare for Dwenger, who they lost to 39-13 in Week 2. In seven games of action, tailback Jontae Lambert gained 703 yards and 7 touchdowns, including four games in which he went over 100 yards. He’ll likely be a big part of this offense as they’ll try to navigate through a tough sectional that includes Dwenger, Snider, and Northrop, three teams that the Legends lost to in the regular season.
#8: Wayne
Record: 2-7
Last Week: #8
Sectional: vs Marion
It felt like every week the Generals had an opportunity to steal a win. They played Dwenger and Luers much closer than other teams did and nearly beat Northrop and North Side. This team could easily be at 4-5 right now, especially with the way Lamarion Nelson played this year. Nelson ran for 1,378 yards this year, which is actually more than Snider’s Tyrese Brown, while also averaging an even 6 yards per carry. If he continues to produce, they’ll be in every game this postseason.
#9: Concordia
Record: 1-7
Last Week: #9
Sectional: vs Northwestern
Concordia was unable to play this week due to quarantine issues at North Side. Instead they’ll finish the season with a 1-7 record, their lowest win total in the regular season since 2011. After beginning their season with a blowout win over South Side, the Cadets lost their last 7 games with all but one of their losses coming by double-digits. The Cadets will be back in action next week as they host a winless Northwestern team in their 3A sectional.
#10: South Side
Record: 1-7
Last Week: #10
Sectional: at Delta
The Archers didn’t see much improvement in the win column this year, but they did manage to make a few of their losses very close. They were in games against Wayne and North Side all the way to the end and beat Northrop 26-14 earlier this year. South Side is talented enough to get a couple more wins in sectionals, starting with 4-5 Delta this week.
