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Portage
(1-3) at
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Week
5 - Football Game of the Week Preview |
Portage
(1-3) at
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9-14-2006
When:
Friday, September 15, 2006
Where: Crown Point high school - 1500 S. Main, Crown Point, IN.
Tickets: $4 - (for everyone).
Kick-off: 7:00 p.m. (CDT)
TV/Radio/Internet: WWLO (89.1) FM, www.USA-365.com, WHLP (89.9) FM.
PARKING: On what should be a good weather night for
fans, a large crowd should gather for CP's third home game this year. But,
with a limited group coming from Portage, there should be plenty of
room. This
isn't a provable theory, but a large home crowd at a high school football game
doesn't dominate the parking lot like a large visitors' crowd does. The home
crowd can walk to the game and they know alternative parking spots near the
school. All the visitors' cars head for the big lot. On a night when home
fans will greatly outnumber visitors, parking should not be a problem. You can roll in at 6:30 and find a good spot.
RIVALRY:
Portage
leads the all-time series 26-15-2, but CP won a come-from-behind 31-21 victory
in 2005. Portage didn't play Crown Point in football very often until CP joined the
Duneland Athletic Conference in 1993, but they now meet on a more than regular
basis. This Friday's game will be the 19th meeting in the last 14 years.
Before 1993, the two schools hadn't met since 1986. But in the 1970s and 80s,
CP was the non-conference season opener for Portage. The Indians defeated CP
20-6 in 1976, the year they went on to win the state title. The earlier meeting on record is CPs 14-0 victory over Portage on the opening
night of the 1955 season, five years after Portage began playing high school
football.
Portage is a city of about 43,000, which was a mill town, buoyed by US Steel Gary steelworkers from World War II through the 1950s and 60s. National Steel opened a mill in Portage in 1959. Portage Township, which dates back to the early 1800s, was originally called 'Twenty Mile Prairie', a name which speaks for itself and the towns' distance from Michigan City.
It was a very quiet woodsy place for a century and truthfully was a perfect rural alternative to Gary, Hammond, Michigan City and East Chicago for decades after that. Portage became a city in 1959 when they decided they needed to incorporate (become a city) or get annexed by Valparaiso. Portage doesn't get credit for being multi-cultural, but they have blended nationalities without anybody noticing.
You are beginning to see black families move in from Lake County and it is surprising to learn that Portage has a 10% Hispanic population and has for some time now. The school's top softball pitcher is Meghan Gutierrez. The football placekicker is Raphael Martinez. A transfer from East Chicago to Portage this year was Kevin Alvarado, who has five sacks at defensive end. Portage had 11,000 people in 1960, 30,000 in 1990 and 43,000 now. Growth appears to have slowed, probably due to the decline of the steel industry. But it is a large, peaceful bedroom community that makes the high school a perfect fit with big town schools like CP, LaPorte and Valpo in the DAC.
Not surprisingly, in the 1990's, Portage rose to state-wide prominence in high school football, going 13-1 in 1994 and 11-1 in both 1995 and 1996. The Indians won 17 regular season games in a row until Lake Central beat them 15-14 on Aug. 30, 1996. Portage won 19 consecutive games in the DAC until they lost 31-23 at Hobart on Oct. 4, 1996.
In the decade of the 1990s, Portage was 81-33, including records of 8-4 in 2002, 11-2 in 2003 and 8-4 again in 2004 before hard times set in. The Indians' 2-8 record in 2005 was a shocker. That was the first losing season for coach Craig Buzea who arrived in 1993 and had instant success. There may be no great secret reason for the decline here. Portage was bad in all boys varsity sports (boys basketball is 10-32 in the last 2 years, baseball is 17-35 in the last 2 seasons) in the 2005-2006 school year. The entire school has hit an athletic drought (girls basketball is 8-34 in the last 2 years) and they're a little concerned. Numbers are not a problem as Portage is the third largest school in the northern half of the state behind Penn and Lake Central.
There's little doubt they will come back, but the problem with the DAC as Crown Point and Lake Central can tell you, is that when you get knocked down, it's very hard to get up. Portage is trying to get up off the floor, but they can't find an easy game. Three years ago, Portage was 4-0 (on the way to 11-2) and six years ago, Crown Point was 0-10. It's just a cycle. One understanding must be that Portage isn't very much bigger than Merrillville, Crown Point and Lake Central anymore. Portage isn't bigger than Lake Central.
It's not so much a changing of the guard as just the revolving cycle of success that is inevitable in a league where almost everybody has 2,000 students and an entire town behind them. Portage still has a huge following that rode behind them since the 1990s and it would only take one win, like an upset of the state's second ranked team to get the Indian nation fired up again.
5A
Portage (1-3)
Coach: Craig Buzea (101-40, 13th year)
Enrollment: 2,657
2005 record: 2-8*
Sectional titles: (7) 1983, 1993-96, 1998, 2003,
Regional titles: (2) 1977, 1994
Semistate titles: (1) 1994
State titles: (1) 1977
*Lost 5A sectional quarterfinal 49-28 to Chesterton
Portage (1-3, 0-2
DAC)
8-18 (w) 28-0 (SB) Washington (1-3)
8-25 (L) 6-28 at (SB) St. Joseph's (4-0)
9-1 (L) 3-10 Lake Central (3-1)
9-8 (L) 3-28 Merrillville (3-1)
9-15 (F) at Crown Point (4-0)
9-22 (F) at Chesterton (1-3)
9-29 (F) Michigan City (1-3)
10-6 (F) at Valparaiso (1-2)
10-13 (F) LaPorte (3-1)
5A Sectional 1 playoffs
10-20 (F) quarterfinals
10-27 (F) semifinals
11-3 (F) championship
5A Crown Point (4-0)
Coach: Chip Pettit (32-26, 5 seasons)
Enrollment: 2,387
2005 record: 11-1
Sectional titles: (2) 1988, 1991
Regional titles: (1) 1988
Lost Sectional 1 championship 16-13 at eventual regional champion
Merrillville.
5A Crown Point (4-0)
(W) 17-0 Lowell (1-3)
(W) 34-20 at Hobart (3-1)
(W) 17-2 at MERRILLVILLE (3-1)
(W) 31-14 LAKE CENTRAL (3-1)
9-15 (F) PORTAGE (1-3)
9-22 (F) at VALPARAISO (1-2)
9-29 (F) at LaPORTE (3-1)
10-6 (F) CHESTERTON (1-3)
10-13 (F) at MICHIGAN CITY (1-3)
5A Sectional 1 playoffs
10-20 (F) quarterfinals
10-27 (F) semifinals
11-3 (F) championship
CROWN POINT
(9-15-2006) This spread seems far too high, but remember, in the
last two weeks, the Sagarin spread has been very close. The gap here is
probably based on Portage's problems on offense. The Indians have not
scored 10 points in any of the last three games. When you hear about
coach Craig Buzea shuffling offensive linemen, you know Portage is hurting.
CP's skill position players right now aren't that much better than they were
five or six years ago. The line is much better and that's why they're winning.
Portage's Albert Evans (68 carries, 306 yards) is a wonderful player, but
he doesn't have the line CP's Jon Sertich does. In the DAC, it is
so much about the lines, and if you are unsettled there, you will lose more
than you win.
Portage has very good skill players in junior WR Billy Doll (6-0, 170), senior Nate Milligan (5-11, 190), speedy junior Albert Evans (6-1, 190) and senior soccer kicker Raphael Martinez (6-1, 160), who averages over 57 yards a kickoff and has booted two field goals.
The Indians' defense has been much better than the record indicates. They have not allowed a touchdown in the first quarter and Portage has only given up about 110 yards rushing a game. The Indians get to the ball quickly and make things happen and it's not surprising. Portage returned all 11 starters from last year's team, although one was replaced by Kevin Alvarado (6-3, 245), the EC transfer. Doll and Steve Juszczak (5-10, 205) lead the team in tackles and this team appears to have a defense that's just waiting for the offense to move the ball.
When you have given up just 24 first half points ALL SEASON, you just should not be 1-3. The Indians have not displayed much of a passing attack, but Albert Evans and Nate Milligan are good runners. Portage is averaging just over 200 yards of total offense per night and while the Indians completed 10 passes last week, three were to the other team in a 28-3 home loss to Merrillville. Crown Point's strength is run defense. No one has run for more than 150 yards against them. If CP can stop the run against Portage, the Indians will be forced to do something they do not do well.
CP was 11-0 last year, but look at this year. They are the only team to beat Merrillville (3-1), Hobart (3-1) and Lake Central (3-1) and they beat them all by 10 points or more. QB Blake Mascarello (36 of 63, 521 yards, 6 TDs, one INT) has been steady and the one interception is a high point. WRs Matt Ernest (11 catches, 216 yards) and Ryan Forney (8-122) and RBs Tommy Parks (9-105) and Jon Sertich (6-46) have been quality targets.
Parks (46 carries, 261 yards) and Sertich (59-260) are strong and reliable runners and the line, with junior Kurt Wermers (6-5, 270) and Andy Krumwied (6-5, 245) on the right side, can knock people down. CP has four turnovers all year.
The defense, with five new linebackers from 2005, has
allowed only 36 first downs and 333 yards rushing on 81 carries and they have
faced rushers like Hobart's Andrew Jackson (530 yards) and Lowell's Steffan
Peck (430 yards). The Bulldogs have allowed 439 yards passing and they
have faced two good tossers in Hobart's Josh Miracle and LC's PJ Gbur.
New placekicker Michael Lipton is 12 of 13 and the one he missed was blocked.
Lipton also has three (32, 29, 32) field goals. Soccer goalie Nick
Barber has been a potent kickoff man.
CP had some vivid special teams problems against Lake Central so they have
something to work on there, especially since Portage needs a coast-to-coast
special teams bust out to pull the upset Friday. Portage has lost to teams
that are having good years. The Indians should have beaten LC (3-1) and
actually could have defeated St. Joseph's (4-0), despite that final score.
A lot of teams lose to Merrillville (3-1). All these
Portage boys have grown up watching winning teams at the high school. Any
night, they could shake down the thunder and play above their heads on pride in the tradition of their program. CP needs to play this
game as if it is the deciding contest for the Duneland Athletic Conference (DAC)
championship because it could eventually be.
WHAT WILL HAPPEN?
Nobody has blown away the Portage defense. But Portage has used three quarterbacks and none have truly been effective. Four new linemen have moved in on offense. It was hard to judge the newcomers by the Merrillville game, a 28-3 loss and it may be hard to judge them by this night against a CP defense that has stopped everybody so far.
Portage needs to put on a show on the road here. They can't just play for field position because CP's going to win that game. The Indians need to play long toss with Billy Doll and try to get halfback Albert Evans outside the tackles. Look for a trick play on special teams by Portage, which certainly saw CP's low-rent special teams against LC.
I see the Bulldogs using Tommy Parks (6-0, 205) in this contest and working the ball down the field slowly. Portage is quick defensively so the CP plan will be to run straight ahead. Parks scores the first TD in the second quarter. A short punt will set up another Bulldog drive and Jon Sertich will take it to 14-0.
Portage needs a dry field to get Evans outside, but this is not a slow CP defense. I don't know who Portage will start at QB. It could be Nate Milligan or Vance Johnson, who played the first two weeks. A kick return by Evans will set up Raphael Martinez for a field goal to put Portage on the board, but there's not much to indicate the Indians can sustain a drive. The Indians can't block well enough to run off 10 plays and 70-75 yards.
A sack by Joe Patrick will create a fumble which will lead to a Mascarello to Matt Ernest TD pass and a 21-3 lead. Parks will score a fourth TD in the fourth quarter to create the final score. There is some unknown here with a Portage team that is constantly changing, but they have not scored consistently and they may be in the wrong place at the wrong time on this night.
Portage won't get blown out, but they won't be in position to win either. It's important that the Indians stay in this game in case they play CP again. CP will play conservatively in case the two schools do meet again. But the Bulldogs are solid, if not spectacular, all over the field. The only group that can beat CP on this night is themselves.