6A
Homestead
Opponent: vs Carmel
Homestead beat Carroll convincingly for the second time this year. They’ll now have their sights set on a team that’s always tough to beat, Carmel. The Greyhounds have been playing a few different quarterbacks this year with Christian Williams (631 yds, 52% comp, 4 TD), Zachary Thomas Osborne (387 yds, 48% comp, 7 INT), and Gabe Quigley (160 yds, 48% comp, 1 TD) all contributing, but struggling at the same time. Still, Williams has emerged as the main QB and is joined in the backfield by RB Dylan Downing (784 yds, 6.4 yds/car, 8 TD) and RB John David Rogers (447 yds, 6.7 yds/car, 5 TD). This should be a hard-fought game and Homestead will need it’s playmakers, QB Luke Goode (2,642 yds, 62% comp, 26 TD) and WR Jared Kistler (30 rec, 651 yds, 6 TD), to help them as they prepare to move on with a victory behind the highest-scoring offense in the SAC.
5A
Bishop Dwenger
Opponent: at Harrison
From this point on, every team that the Saints face will be just as talented as they are. Dwenger was here last season, so they shouldn’t be surprised by this, but they are in 5A now. Harrison is led by QB Tyler Knoy (1,250 yds, 50% comp, 20 TD) and WR Jake Smith (30 rec, 426 yds, 8 TD) has caught the bulk of those passes. Their offense averages 38.3 points/game and has outscored opponents 427-168, a complement to their great defense as well. We do know that Dwenger is just as capable of scoring, putting up 42 points against Northrop last week, and QB Brenden Lytle will be coming off a very efficient game in which he went 14-of-17 for 144 yds and 3 TD. We also know that RB Louie Tippmann (514 yds, 5.5 yds/car, 3 TD) is more than capable of carrying the load on offense. We’ll see if Dwenger continues to build off their last few performances as they eye another state title.
3A
Concordia
Opponent: vs Bishop Chatard
The Cadets march on after dismantling Peru in their 56-6 win on the road. Next up is the Chatard Trojans from the Circle City conference who’ve been outstanding this year and are now 11-1 overall. With them comes a terrific QB in Kyle Cheek, who’s 1,850 yds, 66% comp, and 27 TD lead the conference as he’s been on a tear this season. And when you have a great quarterback you tend to have great play makers around him. As is the case with the Trojans, with WR Andrew Sowinski (51 rec, 868 yds, 20 TD) and RB Daylen Taylor (1,786 yds, 9.1 yds/car, 23 TD) carving up defenses all year long. Concordia head coach Tim Mannigel will need to prepare his team well to handle these weapons, in what should be an offensive showcase on Friday.
