USA-365's Week-12 NW Indiana High School Football Poll

MERRILLVILLE (11-7-2005) The mood changed as championship trophies were given out for the first time in the Indiana State High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) state football tournament. The first REAL round of the playoffs produced some good games and surprising results. In 4A, No. 4 Plymouth had to go without star QB Chad Clinton who suffered a concussion on Oct. 28 and had to sit out a 42-28 upset loss at Concord. The state class Indianapolis city matchup of superpowers found three-time state champ Roncalli staying alive for an unprecedented fourth consecutive 4A crown with a 16-12 win over rival Cathedral.

In 3A the big dogs continued to walk late as No. 1 Griffith, No. 2 Heritage Hills and No. 3 Bishop Chatard advanced to the state quarterfinals. Barring any upsets, state dominators Heritage and Chatard, the top two 3A teams in the state in the last 10 years, will meet again in Indianapolis the night of Nov. 18.

In 2A, it's judgment day for No. 4 Rensselaer as they line up to take their whipping from No. 3 Jimtown, which is on an intimidating run. The Jimmies (11-1) from the Elkhart area, have shut out the last five teams they have faced. No one has scored on Jimtown (not so much as one point) since they lost 24-10 to Class 4A (remember Jimtown is 2A) Sectional 10 champion Concord (9-3) on September 24. Rensselaer averages 37 points a game, but the question isn't so much will they win at Jimtown, but rather, "Will they score?"

In Class 1A, is it ever an upset when Lafayette Catholic beats someone? Catholic took out No. 1 Pioneer 35-28 in overtime, leaving almost any of the final eight teams with a chance for the title. And in 5A, the major leagues of Indiana prep football, seven schools are wondering what are they going to do when they step in against two-time defending state champion Warren Central? After losing to Lawrence North 33-14 on a night when they were shorthanded, Warren Central won the rematch 55-3 last Friday. Warren Central averages 53 points a game against a 100% Class Class 5A schedule and nobody else does anything like that. Sectional champ but future loser Decatur Central (10-2) is their next victim.

Week 13 of the playoffs means travel. 3A No. 1 Griffith has to take a two-hour drive to Hamilton Heights. Merrillville has to ride two hours to Penn. Lowell rides the big yellow bus two hours to Concord. Lake County teams are at a special disadvantage at this point because they are in the Central time zone and they lose an hour when they head into the Eastern time zone. If Griffith, Lowell and Merrillville get on the bus at 3:30 Friday for a two-hour drive, it will be 6:30 local time, by the time they get where they're going.

Just another reason for the state tournament to be staggered between Friday and Saturday nights. Most other states do that and we'll get there. What do you think? You can let us know at USA-365.com Sports.

The Pirates' kick returner Chad Dawson #26 is tripped up by the Bulldogs' Chris Wilson #25 as Nick Ciochina #35 closes in for the tackle before a sold-out Demaree Stadium crowd of nearly 8,000 fans in the Class 5A, Sectional 1 championship game won by Merrillville 16-13 on 11-4-2005. (Photo by Mark Smith)

MERRILLVILLE - Merrillville won the 1-2 showdown with Crown Point, squeaking out enough points to beat the arch-rival Bulldogs 16-13 in the Section one title game. All state halfback James Aldridge carried 26 times for 139 yards and shifty QB Evan Parker completed 11 of 22 passes for 112 yards and added 50 yards rushing with no turnovers, the Pirates' key all year when they have been successful.

The offensive line anchored by Division 1 big boys Dexter Larimore and Brandon Jordan won key battles at the line of scrimmage with CP's run-stopped, blitzing '35' defense. Teams that gear on James Aldridge may miss the point that the Pirates' four wide receiver formations are designed for QB Evan Parker, whose scrambling and running was the difference against CP.

Merrillville now has 24 pass interceptions in 12 games and they'll pose big problems for Penn freshman Tommy Kurth, who was 6-of-8 for 71 yards last week in Penn's 35-21 win over Elkhart Memorial in the Sectional two title game.

The Pirates have won seven games in a row and are primed for a return to Penn, where they got smoked 31-0 last season. Merrillville's special teams, which were very shaky (the punt game was frightening) against Crown Point must get better this week because Penn is an elite special teams squad by tradition. But I can guarantee you it will not be 31-0 again. At least not 31-0 Penn. The Pirates don't move up in the poll because, privately, everyone already considered them the No.1 team. Folks just couldn't say it out loud until now.

The Bulldogs' Matt Ernest #15 goes up into the air to pull down a Matt Jansen pass as Ryan Forney #12 runs a counter pass pattern against Valparaiso in CP's 45-20 win 10-21-2005.

CROWN POINT - Why did the Bulldogs lose 16-13 in the 5A sectional one championship game at Merrillville? Besides the obvious, they had trouble blocking Merrillville 's front four, which did not sack QB Matt Jansen but kept him on the move all night. One key pass play completed for a TD on the final snap of the first half inevitably tipped the scale to the Pirates. But CP had a 6-3 lead and a 1st-and-goal at the Merrillville 6-yard-line and did not score.

Two truths: 1.) When you are breaking down why you lost into individual plays or series, you didn't lose by much, and 2.) When you are an undefeated Class 5A team playing on the road in November in the Indiana state playoffs, you have a target on your back that you can't simulate in practice. This was a version of the Bulldogs' debut in November road playoff games and actually, they acquitted themselves well. This team won an undefeated Duneland Athletic Conference (DAC) title which is actually tougher than winning the sectional. In time, they will consider 11-1 a near-great year.

CP, which will probably (depending on what Merrillville does) finish the 2005 season with the No. 1 Class 5A scoring defense (9.3 allowed) state wide, returns most of their offense in 2006 when the Bulldogs could easily again be playing on the first week of November. What is the 'obvious?' Merrillville has the best players in NW Indiana.

GRIFFITH - Griffith had a rough day, but survived it, edging Morton 24-21, a game where they dominated statistically but couldn't cut the mustard when they got near the goal line. I agree with the theory that this game is good for Griffith, which is vastly overrated by local media that has already given them the state title.

You have to be concerned about the cast on scoring star Drew Rogowski's left hand (fractured hand) that hampers his ball handling. He was held to 94 yards on 14 carries last week by a Morton defense that hadn't really stopped any good back on the ground. His game is catching the ball on punts, passes and pitchouts. Rogowski has 29 TDs and without him at 100%, Griffith is not going to be favored to beat teams outside Lake County.

Griffith outrushed Morton 316-48 so they should have won by much more that three points (it was a 10-point game much of the second half), but three turnovers handcuffed the offense.

The Panthers need this week's game at Hamilton Heights to be pushed back to Saturday or they are at a major disadvantage driving to suburban Indianapolis on a Friday night. Hamilton QB Justin Boser completed 18 of 23 passes for 321 yards Friday night as HH (9-3) buzzed Frankfort 35-21. I hope Griffith's pass defense is better than Frankfort's but there isn't much evidence of that. They've got four days to work on it.

LaPORTE - LaPorte dropped out after a 24-14 loss to Elkhart Memorial, which later got smoked 35-21 by Penn. The Slicers' season-long problem, an inability to stop the run, cost them here as Memorial rushed for 210 yards and controlled the game in the second half. LaPorte did not score in the second half despite a 2,000-yard passer (Lance Juergensen (124-215, 2,081 yards, 26 TDs, 13 INTs), a 1,000-yard rusher (Airrence Shark - 224 carries, 1,258 yards) and a 1,000-yard pass receiver (Kris Staats - 49 catches, 1,036 yards). I don't know why the usually tough LaPorte defense was so soft (allowed 191 yards per game) this year but if you can't stop the run in August and September, you can't stop it in October and you're probably not playing in November. Again, could Valparaiso, Lowell or Andrean beat them. The answer is no.

Valparaiso's Hollis Ballard #23, who had over 1,100 yards rushing this season, returns for the Vikings as a senior running back in 2006.

VALPARAISO - Valparaiso's 5-5 season is validated as No. 10 Merrillville, No. 7 Penn and No. 2 Crown Point, teams that handed Valpo four of their five losses (the other was to No. 9 LaPorte) advanced to sectional championships.

The Vikings did get 1,100 yards rushing from junior Hollis Ballard (186-1,031 yards, 8 TDs) who will return in 2006. The Vikings averaged 302 yards a game and they found an excellent place-kicker in Colin Krupchak. VHS loses fullback Aaron Biggs (107-788 yards) and star lineman Paul Kasperan (6-5, 280) plus QB Carl Hoefler (54-115, 733 yards, 3 TDs). But Valpo returns a full compliment of receivers, a young QB prospect in Alex Sarkasian (6-1, 163) and about half of their linemen. This will be looked back on as a good year even though the Vikings don't think that way now. Two of the Vikes losses were to sectional champions and one (or two) will be to a regional champ.

Would Valparaiso beat Andrean (8-2), Lowell (8-4) or Morton (8-4)? What do you think?

Michigan City's QB Kevin Collyard #18 takes snap from shotgun formation against CP, where he was 11 of 17 for 175 yards passing. But bad snaps and sacks resulted in 6 carries for minus 45 yards in their 47-7 loss to CP on 10-14-2005.

MICHIGAN CITY - Michigan City was within 14-6 in the third quarter but they got rolled over by Merrillville 49-12 and their season ended. MC needs to look at it like Valparaiso should. MC lost to No. 2 Crown Point, No. 9 LaPorte and No. 10 Merrillville twice. Ryan Fics gained 223 yards on 28 carries and he finishes the season with an unofficial 2,040 yards on 237 carries, making him the third runner (Antoine Brown-2003, James Aldridge-2004) ever to gain 2,000 yards playing a Duneland Athletic Conference (DAC) schedule. The immediate future might be a little rough in 2006. MC loses Fics and some good linemen plus QB Kevin Collyard to graduation. But if they can keep producing big, strong linemen, the Wolves' day in the DAC sun is on the horizon. I've done a top-10 poll for 15 years and this is the first time I've even had a Michigan City team in the final Top 10.
And they make it easily. They'd beat Chesterton. They're better than Portage and they'd run Morton (8-4) off the field. I think the size difference would be too much for Lowell (8-4) and they'd give Griffith and Andrean a battle, again due to the matchups. MC's two losses to Merrillville don't look so bad now, do they? This was a good year for Michigan City football.

Dustin Warren #88, Daniel Remboski #42, Scott Gray #6, Steffan Peck #31, Eric McGee #78 and the rest of the Lowell Red Devils enter the 'Inferno' for their Class 4A Sectional 9 semifinal game at home versus Kankakee Valley. The Devils won big-time 41-6, 10-28-2005.

LOWELL - Lowell smoked out Hobart 32-6 for a NW Indiana best third consecutive Class 4A Sectional nine championship. It was Lowell's sixth three-TD or more margin of victory in the last seven games. But here's the cold truth. They were favored in all seven of those games. Every single one. The Devils should have won. All they did was take care of business.

If you talk football at Lowell, they mention how they've lost the regional title game in each of the last two years, not that they've won the sectional title game two (now 3) years in a row.

Lowell halfback Scott Gray (259 carries, 1,871 yards, 24 TDs) got better as the game went on and rolled up an unofficial 252 yards rushing on 31 carries. And just as in 2004, as teams key on the tailback, they get struck by breakaway TDs from all-purpose star Jeff Clemens, who caught a 34-yard pass from QB Jimmy Ritter (5-of-7, 81 yards). The run defense held Hobart to 89 total yards. No one has consistently hurt Lowell on the ground all season.

Now the Devils step up to prime time. Lowell hits the road to 4A Concord, a team that scored 24 points against Jimtown, a team with six shutouts. The Red Devil defense now faces the boys who could do them in. Concord QB Bobby Cira (135 of 233, 2,396 yards, 18 TDs, 9 INTs) and receiver Michael Meade (42 catches, 1,018 yards, 10 TDs), who averages an amazing 24 yards a catch. The red flag on Concord is that they have allowed 21 points a game. That's 256 totals points in 12 games and that's a lot even in the offense-minded Northern Lakes Conference. And that's why Lowell is better off playing Concord than Plymouth.

Andrean's QB Jesse Repay #12 throws pass in direction of John Kennedy #11 in 7-0 win over Lowell, 9-16-2005.

MERRILLVILLE - The 59ers lost a 10-8 lead in the fourth quarter and lost in sectional play at Morton 24-10. It's the first time in five years that the 59ers have not won the sectional title.

Defensive back Chris Skinner could not play due to an injury suffered in the Griffith game on Oct. 7, but that may not have been the difference. Andrean had some major off-the-field issues (un-related to any present player) that had to upset the squad. The 59ers were not sharp in the final two games and actually should have lost to Munster on Oct. 14.

It's difficult to rank Andrean because they almost certainly had a better team than Morton, but the Governors were ready to play in week 10, and the 59ers, for whatever reason, were not. Morton's 8-4 record validates Andrean somewhat, as does Lowell's 8-4 record.

Some will consider this an off season. But actually, the 2004 state championship team also lost twice and the defeats were worse than the 2005 losses. With QB Jesse Repay (97-162, 1,248 yards, 12 TDs, 6 INTs) and receiver Ron Burton (30-377 yards) coming back in 2006, the 59er offense, which was lacking in 2005, will be much-improved.

The 59ers, who need more of a running game to control the clock, might be a better team next year, but the record might not be as good. With Highland (4-6) and Munster (3-7) and Morton (8-4) going 3-0 against Hammond schools, this was a down year in the LAC Black Division.

HAMMOND - Morton stayed close in losing to Griffith 24-21, a moral victory, but no sectional title. The Governors were not as close to beating Griffith as the score might indicate as they gave up another 300 rushing yards. But for them to be anywhere near Griffith somewhat validates the wins over Andrean (8-2) and Lowell (8-4) and excuses the loss to Highland (4-6).

I'm sure 6-foot-3 senior Andre London thinks of himself as a basketball player, but he should think again. London (47 catches, 762 yards) is a Division I wide receiver. Morton can't give up 300 yards rushing in a playoff game. It should be noted that Morton was 10-2 in 2002 and they followed it up with 5-6 and 4-7. Morton graduates most of their skill players, but a lot of the linesmen return. The Governors' program has made great strides since the 0-10 season in 1997 but that was eight years ago. The challenge now is to stop portraying yourself as the underdog where a season is 'great' when you didn't win any titles. You can't go 0-2 against Griffith every year and call it a victory.

QB Josh Miracle #18 passes over Lowell's Jeff Barker #34 in Hobart's 14-7 loss to Lowell, 10-7-2005.

HOBART - The Brickies were 0-2 against Lowell (8-4) in 2005 (they are 1-5 in the last 3 years) and that's no shame. But the .500 mark has to be a little disappointing. Still, this is a very young team. They say goodbye to top LB Richard Mitchell (120 tackles), but the Brickies should become an offensive powerhouse with Junior QB Josh Miracle (139-282, 1,697 yards, 12 TDs, 17 INTs) and top receivers Bobby James (43 catches, 571 yards) and Michael Brown (43 catches, 547 yards).

Coach Wally McCormack had top passing teams at Andrean and that's where Hobart is headed.

I like what little I saw of Andrew Jackson (6-2, 220) at tailback and I believe half of the offensive line returns. With Lowell and Morton headed for big graduation losses, Hobart will contend for the league title in 2006... before they head down to Lowell again.

PORTAGE - There were lots of personnel problems that hid the efforts of Rhein (129 of 236, 1,918 yards, 17 TDs, 15 INTs) and WR Shane Dixon (50 catches, 896 yards), both of whom are seniors. This team averaged 21 points and gave up 25 a game. Portage averaged 360 yards gained per game and gave up about 260 per game. Those numbers alone indicate that Portage should have done better. They did lose to 5A No. 2 Crown Point, 5A No. 9 LaPorte and 5A No. 10 Merrillville as well as a St. Joseph's team that is still playing in November. But 2-8 is 2-8. You get tired of explaining why you lost.

Portage's seven-game losing streak is their longest since the Indians went 0-9 in 1955. The Indians return junior runner Nate Milligan (134-605 yards) and WR-DB Billy Doll (38 catches, 628 yards, 7 TDs plus 4 interceptions on defense). The Indians always have a QB ready, as they did in 2005. I don't think Rhein played one game before this season. Anybody who thinks Rensselaer or Whiting could beat Portage does not understand the game. The Indians are also better than Chesterton. I don't care if the Trojans beat them twice. Portage is better.

RENSSELAER - The Bombers gained 441 yards in a 56-20 rout of outmanned Winamac. Jacob Kiger threw three TD passes to Eli Albrecht. Addrian Frederick intercepted two passes and now has 13 hijackings. Kiger, who has scored 132 points and has thrown for 19 TDs, has to have a big game this week as the Bombers face elimination on the road at Jimtown, which has shut out everybody six weeks in a row. This is not a good match because Rensselaer is a speed oriented team and so is Jimtown, which has allowed more than 10 points to just one team (Concord). Either Rensselaer will go down to the wire against a former state champ and perennial power this week or the Bombers get blown out and shut out. This is a major step up in competition and to give up 20 points to Winamac is a bad sign.

Some of the things the Bombers have done all year on the perimeter will not be available at Jimtown. Rensselaer has played a tough schedule to prepare for this day, but so has Jimtown. None of this is new to the Jimmies, who have only lost 18 games in 11 years. Rensselaer has to play much better than they have all year or they will be wiped out this coming Friday and they probably know it.

WHITING - Whiting's schedule caught up with them again as they were bombed in the second half at West Central 45-21. You can sugar coat it, but the Oilers didn't play well the last third of the season and this loss is not a surprise. Whiting gave up 250 yards rushing so it's no secret why they lost. Local media that had them playing for the state title was slightly off, as they fall in the third round of a six-week playoff. It's not the Oilers' fault they lost to a high top-10 team after a season of playing low-riders.

Why Whiting does not play Rensselaer or North Judson (or West Central) to prepare themselves for the state tournament is beyond me. Undefeated league seasons are nice but Whiting has to understand that they play in a soft league and they need to overmatch themselves in nonconference play.

QB Matt Kobli graduates after a 2,000-yard passing season, so the Oilers face massive rebuilding. Class 1A schools can't be good every year so an opportunity here was missed. But the schedule needs to be upgraded before the next strong Whiting class gets to 12th grade.

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Week 12: NW Indiana High School Top-10 Football Poll