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Calumet (0-1) at Lowell (0-1) |
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Week
2 - Football Game of the Week Preview |
Calumet (0-1) at Lowell (0-1) |
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8-22-2006
When:
Friday, August 25, 2006
Where: Lowell High School, Route 2 and Holtz Road, Lowell
Tickets: $4 (for everybody)
Kickoff:
7:00 p.m.
Radio-TV: WTMK (88.5) FM will carry this game
live. Lowell is doing better in the radio wars this season. This is
one of eight Lowell games that will be carried live.
WEATHER: A small concern. Upper 80s are predicted for this mid-summer Friday and hopefully, there will be some cloud cover by kickoff. Otherwise this game may be stopped for heat breaks.
PARKING: With Lowell's renovation complete, there is lots of parking for a game of this magnitude (read: it is likely that few fans from Calumet are coming). Most Lowell people already know this, but you can leave the parking lot through the old exit east of the school building or the new road on the west side of the school. The annual pig roast (or hog roast, I'm not sure which it is and I'm not sure the pig cares) will be held Friday, because Lowell was not at home for the scrimmage. So, lots of folks will be hanging around after the game. This could be one of the easiest Lowell games to attend because of the expected light visitors crowd.
RIVALRY:
Absolutely none. Lowell and Calumet were old rivals in the Lake Suburban
Conference in the 1970s and 80s but there is no connection between folks at the
far south end of Gary and people from the far south end of Lake County.
Two different worlds. The last three meetings between these two teams have
been lopsided wins by Lowell 61-14, 57-0 and 42-0 and I'm not sure this series
continues after this year with the long overdue breakup of the Lake Athletic
Conference. Lowell does not have to play Calumet and, I'm sure, the
Warriors appreciate Lowell dropping by every other year with a few hundred
fans. But Calumet does not bring fans to Lowell and the Red Devils need to
find someone who does. The LAC people sometimes act like they are offended
by the LAC breakdown, but it's the Lowells and Munsters and Andreans that should
be offended. Some of the LAC schools have no fan groups that follow them,
which means schools like Lowell -- which choose to play them -- are forsaking
their own athletic programs. Stuff costs money and when the visitors'
stand are empty at football games, it becomes tough for the home team to pay
their bills. When Hobart shows up, they bring 500 fans. When
Griffith comes to Lowell, they bring 500 fans. When schools like Calumet
(with no support) come to Lowell they bring 50 fans. That's why the LAC is
soon to be history. With that said, Lowell will keep Morton on the
schedule in 2007 even though Morton has no fans, because they have become good
competition and they can maximize the Lowell home crowd. It's all about
the money and it should be, because more money means more and better sports for
the boys and girls. The question of whether there's a rivalry here
will be answered by how many fans are in the visitors' stands Friday night.
Class 4A Lowell
Enrollment: 1,150
2004 record: 9-4
Sectional titles: (5) 1992, 1994, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2005
Regional titles: (2) 1994, 1999, 2005
Semistate titles: 2005
State title: 2005
2005
record: 11-4, Won first state title with a 28-27 win over eight-time champ
Roncalli
2006
LOWELL Red Devils
Coach:
Kirk Kennedy, 115-59 in 16th year at school
Aug.
18 (L) 0-17 at (5A) Crown Point (1-0)
Aug. 25 (F) (3A) Calumet (0-1)
Sep. 1 (F) at (3A) Griffith (1-0)
Sep. 8 (F) (3A) Morton (1-0)
Sep. 15 (F) at (3A) Andrean (1-0)
Sep. 22 (F) at (3A) Hammond (0-1)
Sep. 29 (F) (4A) Munster (1-0)
Oct. 6 (F) (4A) Hobart (1-0)
Oct. 13 (F) at (4A) Highland (4A)
2005 Lowell Red Devils (11-4)
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 (12-1)
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 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 (9-3)
4A Semistate
11-18 (W) 16-14 (FW) South (11-3)
4A State Championship
11-27 (W) 28-27 at Indianapolis Roncalli (12-3)
2006
Calumet (0-1)
Enrollment:
676 - Class 3A
Head Coach: Jeff Bean (0-1)
Championships
SECTIONALS (0) none
REGIONALS (0) none
Lost 3A Sectional 18 opener 24-17 in 3 overtimes to winless Hammond high
2006
Calumet Warriors
Coach:
Jeff Bean, 0-1 in 1st year at school
8-18
(L)
0-28 (Mishawaka) Marian (1-0)
8-25 (Fri) at Lowell (0-1)
9-1 (Fri) at Whiting (1-0)
9-8 (Fri) Wheeler (0-1)
9-15 (Fri) at Clark (0-1)
9-22 (Fri) Lake Station (0-1)
9-29 (Fri) Kankakee Valley (0-1)
10-6 (Fri) at Bishop Noll (1-0)
10-13 (Fri) at Gavit (1-0)
2005 Calumet Warriors (4-6)
Aug.
19 (L) 14-51 (Mishawaka) Marian
Aug. 26 (L) 14-61 Lowell
Sept. 2 (L) 0-40 Whiting
Sept. 9 (L) 7-21 at Wheeler
Sept. 16 (W) 27-6 Clark
Sept. 23 (W) 50-49 at Lake Station
Sep. 30 (L) 14-55 at Kankakee Valley
Oct. 7 (W) 39-7 Bishop Noll
Oct. 14 (W) 34-13 Gavit
3A Sectional 18
Oct. 21 (L) 17-24 at Hammond, 3 overtimes
Sagarin
computer ratings: Lowell by 38
LOWELL
(8-25-2006) Okay, so when one team is favored by 38 points, how much
analysis can you do? I may be a cult of one, but I don't think Calumet is
that bad. Calumet has a potentially great running back in a big sophomore
named Darnell Ballentine (6-0, 175) who gained over 1,000 yards and 13 TDs in
2005, and who can do good things with an offensive line, and therein lies the
problem. Marian held Calumet to 136 yards rushing in a 28-0 Marian win
last Friday.
Offensive tackle Richard Gray (6-2, 225) leads an offensive line that is not that big. A key man is fullback Pat Goethe (5-9, 220), who has got to knock down the first defender. Another sophomore, George Ezell (6-1, 175) has the speed to break away if Calumet can get him the ball by passes or on the reverse.
Calumet threw the ball quite a bit last season, but that QB (Michael Alvarado) has graduated. Senior QB Michael Ryason (5-10, 156) will key a rushing attack along the lines of what new coach Jeff Bean helped with in his days as an assistant to Bob Holmes in Michigan City. In game one though, Calumet was 3-of-8 passing with three interceptions.
That puts it all on Ballentine's 16-year-old shoulders and Darnell may have made a strategic error when he was quoted in local newspapers as saying that he'll run for 1,500 to 2,000 yards this season. That's going to make him a serious target for every defense Calumet will face. You should never talk before you have accomplished very much and new sophomores really should never say anything in the press at all.
Calumet must run to win and that means they need a warm night and a dry field, which they should get in Lowell. They must run and control the ball because Marian gained 411 yards on the Calumet defense and Marian's offense has all-new skill position players, much like Lowell does. The Warriors will be excited about playing the defending state champions and they may be encouraged by the 28-point loss at Marian because they lost 51-14 last season to Marian. But Calumet lost at home 61-14 to Lowell last season and the Warriors may be worried that they have to come down to Lowell this time. Calumet may also be worried about a young defense allowing 260 yards rushing to Marian when Lowell probably has a better running game than Marian... IF they can hold onto the ball.
Lowell probably didn't have a fun week of practice. The 17-0 loss to Crown Point was ugly and the Devils' conservative offense requires that they hold onto the ball. I believe that every back except Chris Briggs fumbled against Crown Point and that simply cannot continue. I suspect the Devils' offensive line, led by veterans Kaleb Layman (5-10, 188) and Mike Staniewicz (6-7, 264) will be challenged to dominate this game. Calumet has over 45 players on the roster, but only 20 are juniors and seniors. The best place to attack them is along the defensive front.
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| Lowell QB Joshua Kuiper #14 hands off to RB Steffan Peck #13 as Crown Point LB Nick Cottrell #33 penetrates the Red Devil backfield, 8-18-06. (Photo by Mark Smith) |
Lowell's Steffan Peck (5-7, 165) had a good game last week, but not the game he'd like to have. Peck gained 73 yards on 11 carries, but he missed over a quarter after his leg cramped up in the heat and he had to go to the sidelines. Peck re-entered the game in the late going and he should be okay for this week. Peck is the kind of back who can carry 20 times a game and get 100 yards. He is more quick than fast and he should be durable. I wouldn't be surprised to see Chris Briggs (5-9, 165) get a few more carries on a hot night as Max Znika gets a lot of time at linebacker. Lowell will also want to work wide receivers Johnny Underwood and TJ Lukasik into the running game to take advantage of their speed. Lukasik looked good as a kick returner in week one.
In week one QB Josh Kuiper did get the ball to tall tight end Jeff Barker (6-5, 187) who should develop into a major threat. The ball never got to any wide receivers and if Lowell has early success on the ground, the opportunity might come up to throw deep. The Devils looked a little slow in week one, but that's because they lacked confidence. If you are hesitant, you will not just look slow, you will be slow. This is a very important game to Lowell's development. Here's the Devils' annual bounce back game. Lowell has won the second game of the season nine years in a row since a 15-14 loss to North Judson on Sept. 6, 1996.
This is a very, very young Lowell squad. Just 11 seniors. The Devils probably think they can move the ball, but they don't know it yet. Once Lowell scores a few touchdowns, we will see exactly what the potential of this team is. I think there are a couple of secret stars on this Lowell squad, but if they fumble five times a game you're never going to meet them.
WHAT WILL HAPPEN: The home opener will be a big deal for the Devils as many boys will be getting their first start on the home turf. Lowell's defense gave up 112 yards to Crown Point's Jon Sertich last week, but Calumet's Darnell Ballentine does not have Sertich's offensive line. I think you are going to see the quick lateral pass to the wide receiver that Crown Point failed to execute against Lowell, probably on the first series. But Calumet will largely run Ballentine and he will have a tough time early against Lowell's 4-4 defense. These teams combined for 10 and I don't think that problem will suddenly clear up this week. I look for Peck to score a couple of TDs early as Lowell runs effectively in the early going. But a Lowell fumble will set up Calumet on a short field and I think George Ezell scores Calumet's first touchdown of the year.
But I'm looking for a punt or kickoff return by Lowell's TJ Lukasik to loosen this game up. Calumet does not have the depth to stay strong on a hot night and they will have major trouble pass blocking against Lowell's defensive front. The Warriors can get a couple of breakaway TDs, but they can't stop the run well enough to stay ahead of Lowell in the middle of the contest. Forced to the air by a two TD deficit, Calumet will not be able to block Lowell's rushers and the Warriors will duplicate their four turnover game of week one. You need a good QB to beat Lowell and Calumet has a new QB.
The offensive and defensive lines of Lowell can dominate this game, because I don't know how much difference there is in the skill positions. But the offensive line of Calumet had no success at Marian while the line of Lowell didn't come into play because the Devils fumbled so much.
I think Peck will go over 100 yards and Josh Kuiper will have 200 yards of total offense. Lowell's defensive line, led by Jeff Barker and Joe Carlson, will collect four QB sacks. Back up players need to be ready because of the heat and, if the games breaks open, everybody will play.
Calumet has only won only nine of their last 40 games and they appear to be in the wrong place at the wrong time on this night. Lowell needs to win and they need the offense to score a lot of points. In the first home game of the year, if they can hold onto the ball, they'll be granted at least two wishes.
LOWELL 56, Calumet 14