A USA-365.com Special Report By Mark Smith
Kickoff:
7 or 7:30 p.m.
Tickets:
$5
Weather:
Upper 40s and light rain. The field will surely be wet.
History:
The last meeting of Andrean and Wirt goes back to Oct. 10, 1997 when the 59ers
won at Wirt 28-14. Andrean, which actually is the Catholic school 'assigned' to
Gary, used to play Wirt every season. The 59ers beat Wirt in 1989 (16-6), 1990
(35-18), 1991 (34-8), 1992 (28-20), 1993 (35-0), 1994 (16-12), 1995 (31-14) and
1996 (34-20). Wirt last beat Andrean in Gary 18-14 on Sept. 2, 1988.
Gary Wirt’s 2002 Season Summary:
8-23-2002:
Wirt 14-8 win at Indianapolis Tech (0-9)
8-30-2002:
Wirt 0-54 loss at (New Lenox, 111.) Lincoln-Way East (6-2)
9-6-2002:
Wirt 30-41 loss to Wheeler (6-3)
9-13-2002:
Wirt 48-36 win at Gary West Side (4-4)
9-20-2002:
Wirt 14-18 loss to Gary Roosevelt (3-6)
9-27-2002:
Wirt 60-0 over Horace Mann (0-9)
10-4-2002:
Wirt 20-10 over Lew Wallace (4-4)
10-11-2002:
Wirt 22-27 loss at East Chicago (3-6)
10-18-2002: Wirt 6-27 loss at St. Francis DeSales (2-5)
Wirt Update:
Wirt has not been consistent, obviously. The Wheeler game and the three
victories in Gary indicate some strength but the loss at DeSales is very
telling. East Chicago and Hammond beat DeSales. Almost everybody beat DeSales.
Plus, two
wins for the Troopers are over teams with a combined record of 0-18. Throw out
the massacre at Lincoln-Way. There's nobody in Northwest Indiana (with the
possible exception of Valparaiso) that could beat either Lincoln-Way team.
Wirt is led
by senior QB Brandon Spaulding (91 of 188, 1,453 yards, 14 TDs, 4 INTS), a
6-foot-1, 180-pound passer of considerable note. Spaulding was 18-of-35 for 302
yards against Wheeler, a decent team. The 59ers also have to lookout for Jaymar
Johnson (6-1, 160), who caught six passes for 119 yards against the Bearcats.
Johnson has scored 15 touchdowns this year. Wirt is probably the best team in
Gary but they blew the city title when they lost 18-14 to Roosevelt.
The Troopers
have not been good against the run. West Side rushed for 392 yards on Wirt. East
Chicago ran for 230 yards on them and Lincoln-Way ran for over 400 yards against
Wirt. The Trooper line has some big guys in Tim Taylor (6-4, 315), Wally
Lipscomb (6-4, 330) and Aaron Wadley (5-11, 290) but they're going to be
helpless against speedy players like Andrean’s Derrell Tinner. Wirt has had
some success in up-tempo track meet type games. Against power running teams,
though, they visit a world of hurt.
NINER UPDATE:
Andrean played with the type of intensity and love of impact that a state
championship team needs in the 31-7 win at Lowell last week. Forget the score,
the 59ers hit hard enough to intimidate in a game they didn't truly need to win.
Andrean coasted through contests with Highland, Griffith and Kankakee Valley but
they showed a lot of fire at Lowell.
QB
Brett Goins (78 of 122, 1,307 yards, 16 TDs, I INT) showed why Purdue’s Joe
Tiller should give him a call. Goins hit 8 of 15 for 173 yards and 4 TDs in his
best game of the year. Tommy Finn, Ty Harangody and Derrell Tinner caught TD
tosses against the overmatched Lowell secondary. It is a concern that Lowell's
Justin Henley carried 20 times for 120 yards but Wirt has no one like Henley or
Lowell's offensive linemen. Middle Linebacker Rob Caldwell made 11 tackles,
including two QB sacks and his presence makes the 59ers tougher up the middle.
The 59ers drew eight more penalties for 70 yards and the season totals (74 fouls
- 617 yards) are far too high. But Andrean has always been a heavily penalized
team and that's not going to change. I wouldn't ask the 59ers to tone down. They
need to hit hard against teams like Wirt, which don’t see that type of
intensity all season.
WHAT WILL
HAPPEN:
You've got to run on the 59ers to keep their array of skill position offensive
players off the field and Wirt can't run the ball. Look for an aerial war with
Andrean as the USA and Wirt as Iraq. The 59ers will zip to a 21-0 lead but
Brandon Spaulding will eventually get his team on the board more than once. The
cold and wet weather will see the Niners quickly going to the ground to wear
down the Troopers. Wirt would like to see Brett Goins throw 30 times but, in
damp conditions, he'll settle for 10 of 15 and three TDs. Everybody plays in
this one as six Andrean players score TDs.
NINERNOTES:
Look for the Niners to get Derrell Tinner (108 carries, 819 yards) near the
l,000-yard mark Friday night. Friday's game was the second time that soph Tommy
Finn (5-11, 170) had caught two TD passes in a game. Finn caught two in the 41-7
win at Highland on Sept. 27. Rob Caldwell was officially credited with 21
tackles in the 35-6 win at Kankakee Valley on Oct. 11. The 59ers have only six
turnovers (5 fumbles and one interception) all season.
Not counting
the highly questionable IHSAA-flavored forfeit of the 67-0 win over Horace Mann,
Andrean has won 58 of 74 games since the start of the 1997 season.
The winner of
Wirt and Andrean will probably play at Bishop Noll (a prohibitive favorite over
Calumet Friday) on Nov. 1. Junior Mark Edwards has kicked four field goals (20,
30, 36, 37) in his last five games. This will be another tough night at the box
office for Andrean. Of their home games (Griffith, Noll, Highland, Horace Mann
and KV) only Highland and Griffith bring crowds. Wirt doesn't have many football
fans, either.