Week 2 Picks:  2005 NW Indiana High School Football

A USA-365.com Special Report By Mark Smith

August 25, 2005

WEEK ONE (1) ANALYSIS: Goshen led LC 6-3 in the fourth quarter when LC hit a 3^rd-and-20 pass completion to start the winning drive. Glenn was out gained 225-161 and still beat Judson. Andrean never trailed despite gaining just 188 total yards. But the biggest surprise was Crown point, without two all-area offensive players (QB Matt Jansen and WR Matt Ernest) defeating Lowell. There's no explanation for that one.

WEEK 1 (2005) PIX recap

WEEK 1: 16 of 20, 80%

2004 Overall: 156 of 216, 72.2%

WEEK 2 (TWO) 8-25-2005

WEEK (2) TWO: The big game in the state brings Ben Davis (1-0) up north to Penn (1-0) but there aren't really any major matchups locally. Two of the state's oldest continuous rivalries pits Starke County rivals Knox and North Judson (56 years) against each other and Lake County neighbors Clark and Hammond (67 years).

Arch-rivals Lake Station and River Forest match up while Catholic Lake County rivals Bishop Noll and Andrean meet. Portage tries out their new artificial turf against 1^st time rival St. Joseph's while Jasper County neighbors KV and Rensselaer go head-to-head.

The 85-degree heat returns for Friday and that may work against larger teams after a week of cool weather.

River Forest (0-1) 22, Lake Station (0-1) 20

RIVER FOREST:  The Eagles were able to run on North White in a 30-15 loss but RF won't make five turnovers like they did against Whiting and they have the better passing attack. I have a feeling River Forest was not ready in week one and will be asked to show some pride this week. The passing team should win the late summer matchup. But if they meet again later, LS would have an edge. This is always a spirited game. Lake Station won 45-39 last year and it was all good.

Clark (0-1) 20, Hammond (0-1) 14

HAMMOND:  Somebody's got to win here so I'll take Clark to end their 12-game losing streak. Soph QB Mario Ramirez is a top-level athlete and the Pioneers have a big fullback and some strong lineman. If they keep it conservative, the more physical Clark boys can handle a more skilled Hammond team which has lost nine in a row. Hammond won 34-0 last year, as if Clark needed any more incentive.

Michigan City (1-0) 28, Clay (1-0) 17

MICHIGAN CITY:  The Wolves power running attack with tailback Ryan Fics (3 TDs) faces Clay QB Danny Bauters (15-20, 108 yards, 3 TDs). Clay won 35-2 last week, MC triumphed 41-8. Both are taking a step up in competition.

This could be an excellent game between two teams that are on the rise. Clay was 7-5 last year and may do better. MC has been a sleeping giant for a couple of years now.

They have some big perimeter people in LB Lemon Kelley (6-2, 230) and FB Adrian Johnson (6-0, 220) and four returning offensive linemen. An upcoming sophomore class is even bigger. If they can overcome fumble problems (4 fumbles last week), their size and strength will prove too much for Clay.  But if MC doesn't sock it to Clay, they can forget about competing in the Duneland Conference.

Whiting (1-0) 27, Riley (0-1) 12

WHITING:  Riley was held to 98 yards in a 50-13 loss to Griffith last week. Nobody was surprised. Riley was 1-9 in 2004 and 1-10 in 2003. The Wildcats have won six games in four years and their last winning season was 1997.

Lake Central was 1-9 in each of the last two seasons. The only team they beat both years was Riley. Whiting rolled over River Forest 57-0 last week and, while the Wildcats should score on Whiting, they just don't play well enough consistently to win here. In the Sagarin computer rankings, 1A Whiting is 14 points better than 5A Riley and Riley will be lucky if it's that close.

Morton (1-0) 35, Gavit (1-0) 21

HAMMOND:  It's almost like somebody set up a 4-team Hammond tournament.  Last week Gavit beat Hammond and Morton beat Clark. Now Morton plays Gavit for the unofficial championship of Hammond.

Morton QB Robert Dutton rushed just six times last week, gaining 147 yards but the big deal was scoring two TDs, throwing for a third and catching a pass for a fourth. The good times will continue to roll here, but Gavit's Victor Ayala will score a couple of TDs for the Gladiators in a high-scoring battle.

South Central (0-1) 26, Culver (0-1) 14

UNION MILLS: Culver gave up 450 yards rushing in a 55-14 loss to West Central last week and they were almost helpless. South Central played well in a 28-14 loss to LaVille and they should have no problems here. Culver has lost 28 of their last 31 games after consecutive seasons of 8-5 (1999), 8-5 (2000) and 9-4 (2001). That's the way it is at a very small (250 kid) public high school. Ask South Central. SC has lost 25 of their last 33 after going 8-3 in 2001.

Andrean (1-0) 24, Bishop Noll (1-0) 8

HAMMOND:  Noll's going to have major problems moving the ball in this game even though halfback Bill O'Connor gained 149 yards on nine carries last week in a 34-12 win over Wirt. The 59ers need a big offensive show, but they aren't quite ready for that. Noll will stay in this game most of the way, but the 59ers defense will score to break it open late.

Merrillville (1-0) 42, Highland (1-0) 14

HIGHLAND:  Highland is being very bold for scheduling this match with the state's No. 3 ranked 5A school and you can bet your bottom dollar they noticed when Merrillville shelled East Chicago 82-0 last week. But Trojan QB Andrew Helmer and some experience in the offensive line won't let the Trojans get shut out. But there may be a speed problem here that Highland won't be able to overcome. Some of Merrillville's star players didn't get to play much last week and they may be eager to get it on. No big deal. For the Trojans, it's better to lose by four TDs to Merrillville than to beat Wheeler by five TDs like they did last week.

Rensselaer (1-0) 28, Kankakee Valley (0-1) 27

DeMOTTE: The two Jasper County teams go head-to-head in what should be a close game. KV took Munster to the wire last week before losing 58-21. Rensselaer rolled up 58 points on North Newton. Rensselaer's Jacob Kiger is QB, kick runner, place kicker and defensive back who had a hand in five TDs last week. If he played for Griffith, he'd be NW Indiana Player of the Year. He would have been last year.

LaPorte (1-0) 33, Elkhart Central (0-1) 16

ELKHART:  Can't be sure about this game because TB Airrence Shark was injured late in last week's game. If he's out, this is an even game. But LaPorte QB Lance Juergensen was 11 of 25 for 179 yards last week and he should carry the Slicers over Elkhart even if LaPorte is short-handed. LaPorte kicker Nick Ford has 50-yard range and is the deciding factor in most close games.

North Judson (0-1) 35, Knox (0-1) 0

KNOX:  North Judson should win by 50 but this is a bitter, old rivalry in rural Starke County and it may not go down like that. Knox has lost 20 of their last 21 but they only lost 27-18 last week. They appear to be improved. Again, Judson was upset 20-14 by Glenn last week and they should be in the mood to beat somebody like a dusty rug. They are bigger physically which would matter if it was 35 degrees and snowing.  I say Judson by 35 but don't bet your life on it.

New Prairie (0-1) 21, (SB) Washington (0-1)

NEW CARLISLE:  Washington was held to 127 total yards and got crushed by Portage 34-0 last week, but New Prairie isn't Portage. Still, the Cougars' running game (250 yards last week) will cause problems for Washington, which has lost 22 of their last 30.

New Prairie has a new athletic complex and they break it in Friday night. That should be enough in a 3A-5A matchup.

CROWN POINT (1-0) 27, Hobart (1-0) 21

CROWN POINT:  This is an unpredictable game. Is Hobart really changing? QB Jeff Miracle threw for four TDs last week against Gary West Side. The Brickies traditionally run the ball 90% of the time. Crown Point has lost potential all-staters Matt Jansen (2,000 yards passing in 2004) and Matt Ernest (1,000 yards receiving in 2004), so what have they got left?

Enough to win at Lowell 16-6 last week. The four Bulldog linebackers of CP are experienced hard hitters but Brickie backer Richard Mitchell (6-2, 215) can smoke out ball carriers as well. This could be a roller coaster ride and look for CP tailback Jon Sertich to score a couple of TDs to decide an exciting game in front of a big crowd.

Portage (1-0) 38, South Bend St. Joseph's (0-1) 17

PORTAGE:  This is a first time meeting of two football schools but Portage is about three times the size of St. Joseph's. There is a question of an injury to Portage QB Erik Rhein but the truth is, sophomore Vance Johnson played most of the game last week and threw for 150 yards. Rhein was hurt in the second quarter of Portage's 34-0 win over South Bend Washington.

St. Joe let a 14-0 lead slip away in a 21-14 loss to Mishawaka and they gave up 325 total yards. In Portage's home opener, St. Joe will give up points faster than the Chicago Bulls in the NBA playoffs.

Chesterton (0-1) 21, Griffith (1-0) 16

GRIFFITH:  They've played twice in the last two years and Chesterton has won twice. Chesterton has to be unhappy with five turnovers in a 17-14 loss to Andrean last Friday, a game where they threw 38 passes. Griffith's weakness has been in the secondary and they may get into a passing battle here.

The Panthers had 10 penalties for 105 yards last week so they can match Chesterton mistake-for-mistake. If the Trojans don't fall behind early and they can balance their attack, Griffith will be playing catch-up, definitely not their game.

And again, the Panthers were supposed to beat Chesterton in each of the last two years and they didn't get it done. They don't need to. Russ Radtke is probably already putting in the game plan for Lowell (Sept.2) and he should be. These are ego games.

There's no money on the table until the league season begins.

EYE-OPENERS (Week 1)

1A SEEGER:  The defending 1A state champions who graduated all-time leading scorer Eli Cook, fired up new QB Brady Cronk who completed 10-of-15 for 300 yards and 2 TDs in a 42-16 win at Rockville. You might be suspicious of Rockville, but they were 8-4 last year.

Cook was one of the best players in the history of the state with 41 TDs. It isn't possible to bounce back with another big time player? Is it?

3A BISHOP CHATARD: The unspoken word about Andrean's 3A state title last year is that they'd have been hard-pressed to come within 20 points of Indianapolis-based Bishop Chatard, which lost 13-10 at the semistate level when all-America running back Dray Mason broke an ankle with them leading Heritage Hills 10-0.

Chatard is back with a multi-purpose player named Joe Holland (6-2, 180), who carried 13 times for 130 yards in last week's 37-20 victory over 5A Broad Ripple. Ripple was held to 60 yards rushing and 9-of-32 passing.

Much bigger tests are coming including three-time state 4A champ Roncalli and Cincinnati superpower Elder. One of the keys to Chatard's state titles is a lethal schedule which includes Indianapolis Cathedral. Chatard has won five of the last eight 3A titles and they are undefeated in state title games. I'm still waiting for somebody in NW Indiana to schedule them.

1A WEST CENTRAL:  Many in NW Indiana media have Whiting going deep into the playoffs, but when they played West Central last year in the sectional, Whiting's hopes evaporated faster than the White Sox lead in the American League Central Division.

Did anybody notice that West Central opened the season with a 55-14 rout of Culver. Jacob Fritz gained 204 years on 11 carries and led 55-0 after three quarters. West Central has won 20 of their last 27 and they returned almost every skill position player.

West Central plays all 1A and 2A teams but they have scheduled 1A No. 18 Tri-County, 1A No. 15 North White and 1A No. 2 Pioneer while Whiting plays nine teams that figure to finish at .500 or below.

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Revised: August 25, 2005 .