"The Renegade" Week-7 High School Football Poll

CROWN POINT (9-29-2004) - Valparaiso looked as good as they have all season and Merrillville's defense is still strong. Andrean's loss dropped them in other polls but that was because they were ranked too high to begin with. A lot of teams are going to lose at Hobart in the next couple of years. Few are taking East Chicago seriously and we'll see this week when they travel to St. Joseph's. Computer rankings are favorable to the DAC which has five teams in the top-60. The winner of the eventual North Judson (5-1)-Rensselaer (6-0) rematch and the survivor of the inevitable Griffith (5-1)-Andrean (5-1) playoff showdown appears to have a very good chance to reach the state finals. Pioneer (6-0) blocks the path of anyone in 1A and East Noble (6-0) stands in the way of the region's 4A champ. Class 5A is a mine field with Penn (5-1), Elkhart Central (6-0) and Snider (6-0), which averages 60 points a game.

As always, 'The Renegade', with no allegiance to any school or any sponsors (not yet, anyway) can tell it like it is about local prep football. All schools in the six county Northwest Indiana region count and records are irrelevant. These are the BEST teams.

VALPARAISO - Valparaiso rolled up 21 first downs in a 35-14 win over a Crown Point team that had not allowed more than 24 points through five weeks. But they lost leading tackler Bo Gilliland (74 tackles) for the season with a torn ACL. Senior Jeff Brandt (5-10, 168) and junior Gilbert Allen (6-0, 172) are both over 400 yards rushing and the VHS offensive line is experienced and effective. The future is now for Valpo as they have a first place showdown with Merrillville (5-1). The Vikings should be able to overcome Gilliland's loss, but can they overcome it this week against 1,000-yard rusher James Aldridge?

PORTAGE - I don't know how Portage outgained Chesterton 300-215, led 19-14 with 10 minutes left and lost 35-19 to Chesterton. QB Jake Huston (63-115, 842 yards, 6 TDs, 9 INTs) has thrown six interceptions in two weeks, but that's probably just a passing slump. Antoine Brown is approaching the 1,000-yard mark (141 carries, 937 yards, 13 TDs) for the second consecutive season. The Indians have had some line problems, but they held Chesterton to 215 yards last week. That should have been good enough. Portage is still basically solid with good punting and placekicking, an experienced QB and top receivers.

MERRILLVILLE - The Pirates have allowed just 51 points all season so their inconsistent offense may only be so much of a factor. The Pirates gained 322 yards in a 17-7 win at LaPorte last Friday with junior halfback James Aldridge gaining 163 yards on 27 carries, now at 140 carries and 1,070 yards for the season. QB Evan Parker is the key, with 27 of 62 passes for 469 yards, 9 TDs, 3 INTs. He needs a mistake-free game Friday against rival Valparaiso. The Pirates have allowed 553 yards rushing all season and that's the base of their team. 51 points all season breaks down to 8.5 points per game. There's not a lot to say for your chances if the Pirates hold you to 8.5 points per game.

CHESTERTON - Chesterton pulled out a 35-19 win over Portage after being outplayed. This makes up for the season opener against Andrean where the Trojans should have won, but lost. Casey Martin (59-of-112, 768 yards, 8 TDs, 6 INTS) kept his team together and the Trojans scored 21 fourth-quarter points to upset Portage. The Trojans have some injury problems with wingback Zach Werner and big linebacker Garrett Baker (6-0 230) out. The Trojans will welcome in last place Lake Central (1-5) this week with a good chance to stay tied for first in the DAC.

MERRILLVILLE - Andrean needed a loss. Trust me. It will help them. All this winning steak nonsense is gone and no team ever needs to be undefeated on the season. Hobart dominated the time of possession in a 21-7 win over the 59ers. the Brickies did not complete a pass but they rushed 48 times for 247 yards against a suddenly leaky 59er front line that has allowed 500 rushing yards in two weeks. I don't know how Andrean is physically. They have lost players due to injury but specifics are unclear. This loss should create a sense of urgency within the offense. Andrean needs to re-establish Joaquin Rodriguez (77 rushes, 456 yards, 5 Tds) QB Tommy Finn was just 15-of-30 last week but he did not throw an interception and the 59ers did not fumble. Outside of a few injuries, there's nothing wrong with them . I wouldn't want to be the team (Highland) that plays Andrean this week.

LOWELL - Lowell got a walkover in a 47-14 victory against Hammond. Junior safety Jeff Clemens scored TDs in three different ways (punt return, run from scrimmage and interception) for the second time this year. Toby Goetz (132 – 1,103 yards, 16 TDs) is ready to roll into the final three games after just 14 carries last week. The Devils appear to have no major injuries. Lowell needs to reestablish QB Scott Schulz as a running threat. He's only carried the ball 27 times (including sacks) all season and he's one of their fastest players. The Devils are still working on their pass defense, but they may not need it the next two weeks against Munster and Hobart, neither of whom have thrown the ball effectively all season.

GRIFFITH - Griffith's high-powered offense (236 points – 39.2 per game) leveled Highland 43-7, but the last three weeks (Munster, Morton, Highland) have not been a test at all. The Panthers cannot possibly lose to Hammond high this week. Where are those who say the LAC Black is a tough league? Don't forget that, in the two games in which they were challenged, Griffith lost to Chesterton and should have lost to Lowell. Don't forget, though, that Griffith is 3A and all they have to do to reach the state finals is beat Andrean. Rich Lehman is 17 of 43 passing the last three weeks with three interceptions. Look for less throwing in the weeks to come as the weather changes. There's a reason most of the top programs in NW Indiana run the ball most of the time. The Panthers know the schedule with Hobart (5-1) and Andrean (5-1) and they know they have to run the ball and control the clock. Teams do not throw the ball very often in November because teams that pass a lot are eliminated before November.

STATUS: STEADY... This has been too easy.

CROWN POINT – The Bulldogs survived their nightmare month (Merrillville, LC, Portage, Valparaiso) with a 2-2 record. If they're healthy, they can rebound now, but they aren't healthy. CP has four starters or projected starters out for the season and they now start just three seniors on defense. Valparaiso wore CP down at the line of scrimmage in a 35-14 win last Friday, but CP never beats Valpo and Portage. I'm not sure they expect to. The Bulldogs see the final three games as winnable and they have enough offensive weapons left to get it done. CP has allowed only 19 points a game playing one of the top 50 toughest schedules in the state. The long bus ride for a lot of first time starters to play at LaPorte this week could be a problem. CP at LaPorte is a pivotal game for both teams. I don't think that either can win the DAC anymore, but the winner Friday is one game behind 2 teams with two weeks left.

HOBART - The Brickies won their first big game of the year 21-7 over Andrean before 5,000 in the Brickie Bowl. Marc Drobac ran for 190 yards and the undefeated 59ers never got the ball. Everybody wants the 4-time state champ Hobart to come back to power and they will eventually dominate the LAC Black, but not yet. Hobart did not complete a pass in the win over Andrean, the second time this year that has happened. The Brickies are way too physical for Morton this week, but Lowell (4-2) and Griffith (5-1) are waiting. Hobart has won five games in a row for the first time since 1995 but that's why they moved to the LAC. After seven weeks, Hobart will have faced only two teams (Andrean-Portage) with a winning record.

LaPORTE – LaPorte gets a moral victory out of a 17-7 loss to Merrillville last Friday. The Slicers are not as good as Merrillville offensively or defensively but they stayed in the game. Anthony Dubbs has done an excellent job as the regular QB after Lance Juergensen went down with an arm injury in August. Junior kicker Nick Ford has 10 field goals in the last 16 games. The Slicers have allowed over 1,100 yards passing. Like with CP, you must consider strength of schedule. LaPorte's nonconference games were Elkhart Central (6-0) and New Prairie (5-1). The Slicers have to look at CP and Michigan City as two games they can win before Portage arrives in week nine.

EAST CHICAGO - Some local polls have Whiting in the top-10 and do not include East Chicago. Whiting and EC would not ever even consider playing each other (even though they are next door neighbors because it would be a mismatch. Senior Sammy Daniels (118 carries 1,192 yards, 15 TDs) leads all of northwest Indiana in rushing and is now EC's all-time leading rusher. The Cardinals should go 7-2 if they defeat St. Joseph's (3-3) in South Bend Friday night. QB David Rodriguez threw four TD passes in last week's 57-14 victory over St. Francis deSales.

EC's losses are to Portage (4-2) and Merrillville (5-1) and those were their toughest games. Their problem is that the last seven games on their schedule are not the caliber of Merrillville and Portage, two teams they could easily see again at the Sectional.

ELKHART, IN (10-1-2004) - Central has won six in a row including a 28-7 victory over LaPorte, but they face the ultimate test Friday challenging Northern Indiana Conference (NIC) champion Penn. Elkhart QB Phil Bernard, who has 14 TDs, 3 interceptions and 1300 yards passing will challenge Penn's famed 'Wild Bunch' defense that intercepted three passes in a 49-14 victory over St. Joseph's last week. Bernard passed for 1,812 yards last season when Central was 7-4, with two losses to Penn. Penn defensive tackle Frank Bemenderfer leads a defense that has three shutouts.

Penn has lost only to 7^th-ranked Ben Davis and the Kingsmen, who have won 18 consecutive NIC titles, have defeated Duneland Athletic Conference (DAC) leader Valparaiso 17-14 in OT.

Penn is 127-12 in the last 10 years and regularly rejects challenges like this. But Phil Bernard completed 13 of 41 passes for 322 yards in the 40-22 state tournament loss last year. Elkhart Central's speed is formidable and this is surely the first of two meetings. Central and Penn are also sectional rivals.

"The Renegade"

Week 7: High School Top-10 Football Poll