Week 15 - Football Game of the Week Preview

Class 4A State Championship

Lowell (10-4) at No. 6

(Indianapolis Roncalli (12-2)

A USA-365.com Special Report By Mark Smith

11-25-2005

When: Saturday, November 26, 2005

Where: RCA Dome - 100 South Capitol - downtown Indianapolis
I believe that Maryland and Washington (streets are one-way in downtown Indy) are the East-West center of Indianapolis and the RCA Dome is one block south of Capitol and Maryland. It is 140 miles from Route 30 to downtown Indianapolis. Get off I-65 (Ignore 465, that is the highway that circles Indianapolis) at Michigan or New York St. in the downtown area and head west. More than one exit will take you west towards the RCA Dome, but keep in mind, you can't park right in front of the Dome without paying $10.

I used to spend lots of time describing exactly how to take you from your front door to the ticket booth at the RCA Dome. But I'll let 'Map Quest' do that for you. Just between you and me, that giant mushroom-looking building that you see as you approach downtown Indianapolis is exactly where you're going. If you really can't find the RCA Dome in downtown Indianapolis, you probably should not be driving.

Tickets: $10 for three games starting at 11 a.m. (CST) Saturday
The Indiana state finals are never sold out. This is a 55,000-seat stadium and the six teams involved Saturday bring 5,000 fans each at the most. All fans don't stay for all three games so the RCA Dome is noisy and festive but not truly that crowded. Keep in mind. If every student from all six competing schools comes to the game and brings both parents, the Dome will still be almost half empty. There is always plenty of room.

One note. Bring lots of money. Programs are $3. This is an IHSAA event and everything at IHSAA events is very expensive. I honestly believe they consider it a donation.

Kickoff: 2:30 p.m., CST / 3:30 p.m., EST.

Radio-TV: Com Cast Cable - Channel 4 - live (all five state title games will be on Cable Channel 4)
WEFM (95.9) FM, WWCA (1270), WJOB (1230) AM will all carry this game live.

Believe it or not, all Roncalli games are aired in Indianapolis on ESPN 950 AM or 95.9 FM, the Roncalli Radio Network. Obviously, Roncalli is a very popular high school from a football standpoint. The best parallel would be Chicago's Mount Carmel, the 12-time state champion of Illinois. I honestly do not know if you can pick up AM or FM radio inside the RCA Dome. Many times the crowd noise (remember you are indoors) makes it hard to hear a radio anyway.

WEATHER: It'll be 40 degrees and windy in Indianapolis Saturday, but that only matters while you are walking to the Dome. It is always 72 degrees and dry inside the big downtown stadium. It's great for fans who can take their coats off and relax. Players should remember, however that as the Dome fills up, it can become a bit warm for players. Believe it or not, players need to drink a lot of water. Boys have been playing in 30-50 degree weather for almost a month and suddenly they'll play in 70 degree weather and low humidity Saturday. They need to act like it's September from a weather standpoint.

PARKING: On a Saturday afternoon in Indianapolis there is a lot of on-the-street parking. There are lots that will charge $5 to $10 but there is metered parking in downtown Indianapolis almost everywhere. If you arrive early, it will only cost you a few quarters to park on the street. There is construction on South St. near the Dome and that is the new Indianapolis Colts' downtown stadium that will replace the RCA Dome in 2008.

Northwood, which will play Chatard at 11 a.m. Saturday, brings lots of fans and they will be leaving as Lowell is getting ready to play. Even if you are late, you could luck out and get a parking spot near the Dome. The best option, however, is to arrive early with the first crowd (9-10 a.m.) Saturday morning when the weekend city streets are empty.

Chatard and Roncalli do not jam up the RCA Dome area with extra cars because they are hometown schools and can come in groups. If you are envisioning thousands of fans and a crush of people it's just not like that. It's 20,000 folks coming in and out of a building that's built for 55,000. If you keep making left turns and circling the Dome area, you will probably find a parking spot without paying the gangster tab that they want at the pay lots. There's no need to worry about leaving the Dome after dark on Saturday night in Indianapolis. They are very sensitive to visitors for athletic events and there will be security. And, even if there isn't, this isn't Chicago or South Bend. This is an oversized college town (IUPUI, Marian, Butler, U of Indy) with lots of young people. You're much more likely to get into a fight inside the Dome if you wear Chatard or Roncalli colors down the wrong aisle than you are to find some trouble outside. There just isn't that much crime in Indianapolis.

RIVALRY: None at all. I don't believe Lowell has ever played a game south of Monticello. Roncalli is a combination of two schools. Sacred Heart of Indianapolis opened in the early 1900s and was renamed John Kennedy high in 1966. In 1962, Bishop Chartrand (not to be confused with Bishop Chatard, which is another school) opened on the south side of Indianapolis. As Indy grew in the 1960s Kennedy and Chartrand combined in 1969. The new school was named after Cardinal Angelo Roncalli, who was later and better known at Pope John Paul XXIII.

Roncalli has what they call an 'open enrollment' policy which, I believe, means they can accept students from anywhere within the parish. Tuition is $5,695 per year (significantly more than Andrean) with discounts for more than one kid in the same family. It is said that Roncalli gets all the good Catholic school players on the south side of Indianapolis and there may be some truth to that. Private school superpowers and Roncalli's arch rivals Cathedral and Bishop Chatard are on the north side of Indianapolis. Indianapolis Lutheran is relatively close to Roncalli but no other Catholic schools are.

That means that all Catholic grade school football programs on the south side of Indianapolis send kids to Roncalli. Chatard people probably will tell you that they have great coaches who establish a great work-ethic and hard-working kids who excel. That's undeniably true but all big-winning programs have that, some probably more so that Roncalli.

Small-town dominators like Jimtown probably have to work harder at being good than Roncalli does because Jimtown has much less margin for error. They have to make winning teams out of the boys in a much less populated area.

Lowell has to win with boys who sometimes aren't very good. The real Roncalli edge is that talent base which has a half dozen 8th-graders playing each position the year before they enter Roncalli. Once the team establishes success, all those kids want to come to wear the red, white and blue. The Rebels don't have down years now because they always have several candidates coming into school at every position every year. A school like Lowell might have one or none.

Still, you've got to win the close games and the playoff games and Roncalli was 15-0 in 1999. The Rebels have won 10 or more games for four years in a row with different players. Lets leave no doubt here. Roncalli is the 'Notre Dame' of Indianapolis high school football. They are the 'gold standard' in 4A. The Rebels have won 23 consecutive state tournament games, an Indiana record, and they carry the burden of being the favorite in every game. You'll notice the lack of two-time defending 5A champ Warren Central, Ben Davis or Lawrence North on Roncalli's schedule or, for that matter, on Chatards or Cathedrals schedule. I wonder what stops some promoter from renting the RCA Dome and lining up the city's top Catholic schools against the city's giant public schools in a one-day showdown?

Since Bishop Chatard won three consecutive Class 3A state title in 2001, 2002 and 2003 and Roncalli backed that up with 4A titles in 2002, 2003 and 2004, it becomes hard to argue that Catholic schools don't win all the time. The argument that two Catholic schools work harder than all of the other public schools is pretty laughable when Chatard and Roncalli have combined for 15 state football titles in the last 25 years and both are in the final game again Saturday. But however they do it, these schools win consistently against all comers. These are unprecedented achievements which may never happen again. Once the IHSAA goes to six classes (and they will have to in the next 5-10 years) each class may be smaller and Roncalli, Cathedral and Chatard may end up in the same class. There is also the new Father Guerin high which will quickly come to power in Hamilton County. In 10 years, Guerin certainly could be a power along the lines of Chatard, Roncalli and Cathedral.

Meanwhile Lowell has risen from the depths. The Devils had .500 or below records from 1969 to 1992 and athletic director Don Bales can tell you about the years he stood on the sidelines keeping statistics while the Devils were getting beat up 50-0 on a weekly basis. To get from where they were 25 years ago to where Lowell is Saturday is as remarkable a comeback as is possible for a football program. The Lowell comeback from the depths is the untold story of NW Indiana football. For a school that was 0-10 in 1978, 0-10 in 1979 and 0-10 in 1983 to be in the state title game after a long run of winning seasons roughly a quarter of a century later is a wonderful indicator of how far the pendulum can swing in amateur athletics.

No one who understands what's going on is claiming that Lowell has the second best 4A program in the state, but for the Red Devils to be anywhere near Indianapolis in uniform makes this the greatest season in Lowell football history, no matter what happens Saturday afternoon. This might not be Lowell's best team (1999 and 2004 probably saw more talent) but it is almost certainly their best class. The senior Red Devils who will walk on to the floor of the RCA Dome Saturday were undefeated seventh and eighth grades and were 9-0 as freshman in 2002 outscoring the opposition 297-48 and allowing just 1,040 total yards all year. Griffith was the No. 1 3A team in Indiana this year. But in 2002, Lowell freshmen beat Griffith freshmen 28-0.

While some would say this is also a somewhat lesser Roncalli team (2004 all-America WR-DB Jason Werner graduated and is a freshman at Purdue), that has had several close games, Roncalli has defeated No. 2 Cathedral, No. 7 Zionsville and No. 8 Jasper. The Rebels have won those close games which command respect and, if Rebel seniors are to be the first in state history to be in school for four state titles in the football program, the south side Catholic school will have earned it. No one else in 4A has defeated three top-10 4A schools in the post-season. The Rebels have actually played Cathedral twice and Chatard, their 3A sister school. Strength of schedule favors Roncalli over just about anyone below 5A. Roncalli's rank as the 6th best 4A team in the final AP poll is ridiculous and almost as laughable as Warren Central's rank as No. 3 in the 5A poll. No result this season has proven that Warren and Roncalli are not No. 1 or at the very worst, No. 2 in their class.

So, while unranked Lowell is chasing a first-ever team state title, an absolute landmark achievement and the greatest sports moment of all time at a high school that is over 100 years old, Roncalli is trying to set an all-time state record that would set them apart from Catholic cousins Cathedral and Chatard. Something that, in Indianapolis high school football circles, is worth more than gold.

33rd IHSAA State Football Tournament

State championship games - Saturday, November 26, 2005

Class 5A:
Hamilton Southeastern (11-3) vs. #3 Warren Central (13-1)
Class 4A:
LOWELL (10-4) at #6 (Indianapolis) Roncalli (12-2)
Class 3A:
NorthWood (8-6) at #4 Bishop Chatard (12-2)

Friday, Nov. 25 - Final Scores:

Class 2A:
#3 at Jimtown (14-1) 35, North Posey (12-3) 7
Class 1A:
#10 Sheridan (13-2) 21, #6 Knightstown (14-1) 7

4A (Indianapolis) Roncalli

Coach: Bruce Scifres (167-38) 16th season
State Championships (8) 18985, 1988, 1993, 1994, 1999, 2002, 2003, 2004
Semistate Championships (11) 1983 1985, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1999, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005
Regional Championships (13) 1983, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005
Sectional Championships (16) 1983, 1994, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005.

Enrollment: 1,035
Last year: 13-2, Defeated Wawasee 35-10 to win the Class 4A state championship

4A (Indianapolis) Roncalli Rebels (12-2)
Aug. 19    (W) 26-0 Center Grove (5-6)
Aug. 26    (W) 33-7 Franklin Central (6-4)
Sep. 2 (L) 7-14 Indianapolis Chatard (12-2)
Sep. 9 (W) 23-0 Plainfield (6-4)
Sep. 16 (W) 20-6 Indianapolis Scecina (4-6)
Sep. 23 (L) 14-21 (Indianapolis) Cathedral (10-2)
Sep. 30 (W) 34-16 Whiteland (5-7)
Oct. 7 (W) 27-13 at Mooresville (4-7)
Oct. 14 (W) 27-21 at Brebeuf Jesuit (6-4)

4A Sectional
Oct. 21 (W) 27-24 (OT) No. 7 Zionsville (8-2)
Oct. 28 (W) 28-10 at Westfield (7-4)
Nov. 4 (W) 16-12 No. 3 Indianapolis Cathedral (10-2)
4A Regional
Nov. 11   (W) 17-7 Greenwood (11-2)
4A Southern Semi-State
Nov. 19 (W) 14-9 at No. 8 Jasper (12-2)

4A State Championship
11-26 (Sat) vs. LOWELL (10-4) ESPN (950) AM (in Indianapolis), WEFM (95.9) FM at RCA Dome - Indianapolis - 3:30 EST

Class 4A Lowell

Coach: Kirk Kennedy      (114-59, 15 years)
Enrollment: 1,150
Sectional titles: (5) 1992, 1994, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2005
Regional titles: (3) 1994, 1999, 2005
Semistate titles (1) 2005
2004 record: 9-4
Lost the regional championship game at home 28-21 to state Class 4A runner-up Wawasee.

Lowell Red Devils (10-4)
8-19 (L) 6-16        5A No. 2 Crown Point (11-1)
8-26 (W) 61-14    at 3A Calumet (4-6)
9-2   (L) 0-21        3A No. 1 Griffith (13-0)
9-9 (L) 13-32       at 3A Morton (8-4)
9-16 (L) 0-7          3A No. 4 ANDREAN (8-2)
9-23 (W) 41-7      3A HAMMOND (1-10)
9-30 (W) 48-7      at 4A Munster (3-7)
10-7 (W) 14-7       at 4A Hobart (6-6)
10-14 (W) 41-14   4A Highland (4-6)

4A Sectional nine
10-21 (W) 41-7 at Gary Roosevelt (3-6)
10-28 (W) 41-6 vs Kankakee Valley (7-4)
11-4 (W) 32-6 Hobart (6-6)
4A Regional
11-11 (W) 30-23 at Concord (9-4)
4A Semistate
11-18 (W) 16-14 (FW) South (11-3)
4A State Championship
11-27 (Sat) at No. 6 (Indianapolis) Roncalli (12-2)

Com Cast Cable Channel 4 - 2:30 p.m. CST, at RCA Dome - Indianapolis - 3:30 EST

Prime time Players

Lowell (C-LB) Ryan King (5-11, 202) 139 tackles

King again cold be the key. The senior linebacker was credited with 20 tackles against Fort Wayne South last week. Last Saturday against Jasper, Roncalli ran the ball 41 times and threw eight passes. They are coming in between the tackles and that's where King and state finalist wrestler Ethan Winel will be. King actually did play for a state champion from Lowell. He was a pitcher on Lowell's 16-and-under baseball state champions in August of 2004. Because he is undersized, King's small college athletic future may be in baseball, making this his last game ever.

Lowell QB Jimmy Ritter (6-1, 171) 79-140, 988 yards, 6 TDs, 8 INTs

Jimmy Ritter made the biggest offensive play of the year in the third quarter last week when his 18-yard TD pass to Jeff Clemens was right on the money with Lowell trailing 14-0. Ritter will be asked to rally Lowell again this Saturday and he will find conditions perfect for passing in the RCA Dome. The key in passing indoors is to throw hard because there's no wind to affect anything and the defenders are a step faster. With that said, indoors, its easier to throw the ball up high in the air and let a high-jumper like Jeff Clemens out leaps smaller defensive backs near the goal line., With the defense spread against Scott Gray and Jeff Clemens, Ritter might QB sneak a couple of times for nice gains.

Lowell HB Scott Gray (5-8, 175) 307 carries, 2,183 yards, 28 TDs

Any scenario where Lowell beats Roncalli includes Scott Gray running for a TD and that's not far-fetched. Gray has gone coast-to-coast in each of the last three games. His 86-yard run clinched the sectional title against Hobart. Gray's 94-yard run rallied the Red Devils against Concord and his 74-yard TD sprint rallied Lowell against FW South last week. He will be even faster on the artificial turf although the same thing is true of the people chasing him. Roncalli knows they have to hold Scott Gray to less than the 150 yards he's been averaging in the post-season.

Lowell (WR-KR) Jeff Clemens (6-2, 190) 48 catches, 699 yards; 51 carries, 362 yards,
105 tackles, 9 interceptions, 113 tackles, 35 punts (33.5 avg.)

Clemens is probably playing hurt because of his reckless style, but that does not matter because this is the final day of the year for everybody. Early in this game, Clemens has to go deep to get the Roncalli defense off Scott Gray's back. Clemens can out jump defenders for long balls and he can prevent Roncalli from throwing high lobs near the goal line. There will be a lot of punts in this game which again makes Clemens a key player. He can hang the punt high for better Lowell coverage and he can return Roncalli punts for long gains. Clemens is the key player in this game and both sides know it.

Lowell (LB) Ethan Winel (5-10, 202) 60 tackles, five sacks

Winel had three sacks last week and he can help put the rush on Roncalli QB Paul Corsaro. What's more likely, however, is that Winel will draw a double-team which will allow someone like Jeff Barker (6-4, 179) to get to the passer. Remember, Roncalli personally scouted last week's game. The last two Lowell foes, Concord and Fort Wayne South were speed teams. Roncalli is a power team and Winel is a state finalist wrestler. If Lowell wins, Winel will have had a strong game.

HB - Roncalli - Chris Merkel (5-10, 185) 310 carries, 1,879 yards, 16 TDs

A power runner who can keep the chains moving. A key to Roncalli's attack, because he keeps the chains moving. Merkel has gained 100 yards in three of Roncalli's five playoff wins. He almost never fumbles or gets caught for loss of yardage. Merkel is a straight-ahead, tackle-breaking runner. Merkel gained 255 yards on 35 carries on Sept. 16 in a 20-6 win over Scecina and he ran 32 times for 247 yards in a 27-21 win over Brebeuf on Oct. 14.. Roncalli is in the tradition of 1970s, 1980s Southern California football with an offense that is dominated by pitch sweeps to the let and right. Merkel is the 'toss-ee'. He is the reason Roncalli controls the ball.

LB - Roncalli - Nick Merkel (5-11, 225) 75 tackles

Chris Merkel's twin brother and a top Rebel defender, Merkel is a hard-hitting linebacker who stops the run. The Rebels occasionally move him to fullback near the goal line for extra blocking. Merkel, who has scored on a 50-yard interception return this year, was part of the defense which held Jasper powerhouse Luke Schmidt (6-2, 235) to just 120 yards last week in the Rebels' 14-9 win.

QB - Roncalli - Paul Corsaro (6-0, 174) 32 of 52, 461 yards - playoffs; Overall: 85-148, 1,290, 15 TDS, 4 INTs

Corsaro has thrown the ball more in playoff games than he did during the year. He was 12 of 16 in the 27-24 win over No. 7 Zionsville in October. Corsaro is a legacy player. His mother (volleyball, track) and father (football) were the Indianapolis athletes-of-the-year in 1983 when they played for Roncalli. Corsaro's cousin (Pat Kuntz) plays for Notre Dame and his grandfather played for the schools that merged into Roncalli in 1969. A good throw-on-the-run QB, Corsaro may roll out and attack Lowell's small secondary early inside the Dome. The junior did not play in last year's state title game but Corsaro did play in a loss to Cathedral in the RCA Dome in September.

OT - Roncalli - Will Roush (6-5, 318)

The size and strength of Roncalli up front is a major concern for Lowell. Roncalli has 40 players on the roster over 200 pounds. In short yardage situations, they will come with pure power. Big tackles can be very slow but Roush has played in the RCA Dome before and he'll be looking for the quicker devil defenders to run around him. Obviously Lowell has no one of this size to go head-to-head with Roush in running situations.

LB - Roncalli - Bill Perry (6-2, 215), 121 tackles, 4.5 sacks

A college size linebacker who can stuff the run. Perry is hard to get to in the Rebels' 4-4 defense. Roncalli must keep Scott Gray from bouncing plays outside of the tackles. If they do that, Gray cuts back. And Perry is the player who must not overrun the play and meet him when he does.

LOWELL (10-4) at No. 6 (Indianapolis) Roncalli (12-2)

Lowell: Offense (27.4), Defense (12.8)

Roncalli: Offense (22.4), Defense (10.7)

Sagarin computer ratings: Roncalli by 13

INDIANAPOLIS (11-26-2005) There's no way Lowell is favored in this game. That's obvious. Roncalli has won 23 consecutive playoff games. They've won the last three 4A state titles in the RCA Dome and they played Cathedral in the RCA Dome in September. Lowell has never played a game in the city of Indianapolis, much less on the artificial turf of the RCA Dome. Lowell has not faced a top-10 team in the state tournament while No. 6 Roncalli has defeated three of the other nine Top-10 4A teams. The Red Devils are traveling 140 miles to play this game while Roncalli can be downtown in 20 minutes. The Rebels have played 10 teams with winning records and five teams (counting Cathedral twice) with 10 wins or more. Lowell has seven wins over teams that were .500 or less.

So what does Lowell do here?. They've got to get to the perimeter where all-purpose star Jeff Clemens and record-breaking runner Scott Gray can break a big play. The 2005 Devils are a different breed from past teams because they have two long range threats.
Lowell can run six or seven plays to try to set up one that breaks for 75 yards. Everything here assumes that the usually solid Lowell run defense does not break down here against a big line and a hard running back like Chris Merkel. When Roncalli throws, Paul Corsaro likes to toss it high for tight end Joe Britner (6-6, 226) or spin it out to his running backs like Kirk Cahill (6-1, 182), who ran seven times for 36 yards last week but caught four passes for 56 yards the week before. Cahill carried 28 times for 181 yards against Westfield on Oct. 28.

I think Roncalli takes the lead early on a Lowell fumble. The Devils have never been here and Roncalli plays in this game every year. There has to be nervousness. If Lowell can play a scoreless first quarter, they can pull the upset. Lowell should be able to run a reverse on Roncalli if they set it up with a half dozen handoffs to Scott Gray. I think the Devils can score on a roll out pass to the tight end but they will only get six or seven possessions.

The big offensive line, led by Will Roush (6-5, 318) is something I don't know if Lowell has an answer for. I also worry that Lowell has not played a top-10 team since September and Griffith and Andrean just are not as steady and mistake free as Roncalli. Rebel QB Paul Corsaro is a passing threat and Lowell will have problems against tall receivers indoors where its easier to catch the ball.

Lowell's QB Jimmy Ritter will throw a couple of long play-action passes for big gains on this day. But I think Roncalli can hold Scott Gray without any 80-yard runs, even though it was an 87-yard run by Chatard's Joe Holland (a player very similar offensively to Jeff Clemens) that beat Roncalli 14-7 back in September.

A trick pass play like Clemens to Gray may work for a TD because everyone on the Rebel defense must move when Gray gets the ball. But Roncalli has certainly seen every trick play imaginable and this version of the Devils has had little success with gimmicks. Indoors, Lowell's David Lang should be good for a field goal (he has a 50 yard leg) but the Devils have to find a way to get their hands on the ball.

Even though Lowell has shown amazing stamina in close playoff games, I've got to think the one platoon defenders of Lowell could wear down against the two-platoon setup of Roncalli in 70-degree temperatures. Watch for Lowell to rotate a lot of defenders to keep people fresh in the excitable early minutes. Players can burn themselves out quickly in a championship game.

You'll know I'm wrong if Lowell jumps to a quick lead, but I don't see the Red Devils being able to win the first quarter from the 'home' team. Lowell has trailed early in the last two games and they'll be conservative early. But I see Roncalli scoring early on a short run by Chris Merkel and moving out to 14-0 on a pass from Corsaro to Kirk Cahill. The Rebels have so much experience in this game and in this building that it would be hard for any out-of-towners to start quickly without gambling and Lowell never gambles early. Gray's best chance to score early in this game will be on a kickoff return after one of those first two TDs.

Roncalli's Corsaro will score on a QB draw play to re-create the two touchdown lead before Lowell will pull to within 21-13 in the third quarter on a pass-and-run from Jimmy Ritter to Jeff Clemens. The Devils will find fan support in odd places late in the afternoon as the fans of Chatard, who will have just seen the Trojans beat Northwood decisively, will start to rally behind the Devils due to a significant lack of love for the southside Rebels.

Roncalli has to take the game seriously even if they jump to a 14-0 lead. Lowell has a tendency to look harmless and easy-to-stop early on. But the Rebels can't let the momentum turn because the Devils have dominated the second halves of games in the playoffs, outscoring five foes 89-23. Griffith led 10-0 in the first quarter last week in the 3A Northern Semistate game at Northwood, Fort Wayne South led Lowell 14-0 at the half last week and both Griffith and South will be watching the finals on television Saturday.

Even though there's not 30 points difference between the two teams, you have to understand the magnitude of this upset. If Lowell, which has never even reached the state finals in any sport, beats Roncalli, which has eight football titles and three in a row, on Roncalli's home away from home field in Indianapolis, they'd make a movie about it. This would be one of the biggest upsets in the entire 33-year history of the state tournament.

Lowell can run to the ball on the artificial turf and they can blitz the corners against the pitchout happy Rebels because the Devils corners (Gray and Steffan Peck) are little linebackers anyway. Unless the Red Devil offense turns the ball over, there won't be any rout here. Roncalli isn't good enough offensively to go 60-70 yards down the field on Lowell five or six times.

But I've heard people this week say that if Northwood can beat 3A No. 1 Griffith, then Lowell can beat Roncalli. That's a weak comparison. Lowell and Northwood are equals and similar in a lot of respects but Griffith, with all due respect, is no Roncalli. Not even close. Even though Cathedral is the 'Fighting Irish,' Roncalli, in more ways than one, is the Notre Dame of Indiana high school football.

Lowell is Navy. Honest and noble. Undersized. Going to bowl games more often than not. Doing the best they can with what they have. Down home Americana. But let's face it. Navy just does not beat Notre Dame.

(Indianapolis) Roncalli 28, LOWELL 16