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Valley to host John Glenn; Caston to travel to No. 1 North Judson; top 10 teams Pioneer, Triton to meet; Winamac to host South Central
BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS
Sports Editor, RTC
Southwood (0-7, 0-6 Three Rivers Conference) at Rochester (6-1, 6-0), 7 p.m.
The Rochester football team might have senior leaders in players like Drew Bowers, Kye Murphy and Xavier Vance, and they might have productive juniors like Brant Beck, Carson Paulik, Zakk Parks and Mason Hisey.
The emerging class might be a group of four sophomores.
They include tight end-linebacker Ethan Bailey, fullback Kale Shotts, halfback Trenton Meadows and defensive tackle Camden Susaraba.
“I think we’re playing more sophomores than I’d like,” Rochester coach Ron Shaffer said. “But as a group, they’re developing well. … I think a lot of people lose sight that Ethan Bailey is a sophomore in there playing at inside backer and tight end for us. So it’s good that we’re not noticing them so much as being sophomores and playing more like juniors, and we have still quite a few sophomores that are playing JV that are developing and getting better. But I would say we’re doing well with them and surviving. Trenton probably needs to be a little bit stronger yet. Ethan is a little more physically ready to play, but maybe he doesn’t approach the game the way a junior or senior would know how to do. He’s still learning that part of it. And then Kale in kind of the same realm as Ethan: He’s more than physically ready to play; it’s kind of that mental aspect of the game that still needs to develop more.”
Shaffer also complimented sophomore linemen like Barrett Brown and Teagan Moyer for improving on the JV.
In totality, Rochester has won five straight, including a 42-7 win over Northfield last week that kept them tied for the TRC lead with Class 3A, No. 8 Maconaquah. The offense compiled 450 yards of offense, and the defense held Northfield to just 151 yards. Take away two long Jake Perney runs, and Northfield averaged just 2.3 yards per carry.
Northfield fullback Jared Holmes ran for only 20 yards against Rochester after running for 162 the week before in a win over Wabash.
“Pretty well,” Shaffer said of the defense on Holmes. “I thought the kids did a pretty good job of shutting him down. … I think the kids did a really nice job of tackling. We really feel like if we can contain that fullback, then we can win a ballgame against a team like that. I think he one run over eight yards, and everything else was at the line of scrimmage or a couple yards, so I thought the kids did really well.”
Rochester will not only try to extend their winning streak to six, but they will also try to beat Southwood for the third straight year at Barnhart Field.
Southwood is winless under coach Thomas Tyree, a first-year coach who had been the defensive coordinator at Fort Wayne North Side. Tyree replaced Dave Snyder, who retired after 14 years following a 5-6 season in 2023.
They rely on quarterback Griffin Chambers, who relies on both his athleticism and sound decision making on when to pass or run.
“Pretty good thrower from the pocket,” Shaffer said. “He does have the ability to extend plays, so he’s one of those guys if the first initial read’s not open, he’ll pull the ball down and extend the play, but he’ll also keep looking down the field as he’s extending the play. So he’s not just looking to run, though he can. He’s looking to try and get the ball down the field, so you have to stay in coverage constantly.”
Shaffer added that Southwood has relied on a 4-4 defensive scheme with a three-deep zone. Three of the four linemen will be in a stance, but one will not.
“They have one stand-up defensive end,” Shaffer said. “They like the other one down, where Southwood used to be pretty much a four-down front. But not a lot of differences. They’re pretty much a 4-4 team with a three-deep look in the secondary.”
Shaffer said a “run of sickness” has spread through the team. He said “four or five kids” had been battling pneumonia during the week.
John Glenn (1-5, 0-4 Indiana Northern State Conference) at Tippecanoe Valley (5-2, 1-2), 7 p.m.
Valley trailed 14-10 at one point in the second quarter against Western last week but finished with 21 unanswered points and pulled out a 31-14 win.
Brock Derf ran for 118 yards last week, a career high. His previous career best was 96 against Hammond Morton on Sept. 6. He also ran for three touchdowns after having only two touchdowns on the season coming into the game.
Derf’s teammates revere him, according to coach Stephen Moriarty.
“It’s huge,” Moriarty said. “Brock is a leader on the team on and off the field. He’s just such a hard-nosed blocker, and the way they were setting up their defense really allowed for our fullbacks to run free, and Brock did a good job of finishing everything he did that night. He was on a mission, and he just refused to go down, which was big for the team.”
Valley held Western to under 200 yards of offense, but they did allow Brady Comer’s 92-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in the first quarter.
“To be honest, we just didn’t run the alleys the way we should,” Moriarty said. “And on kickoffs, sometimes spacing is everything, and we’re going to work on spacing this week to make sure that we don’t have big alleyways for them to run through.”
Now Valley returns to Smith-Bibler Memorial Stadium: Home of Death Valley Football after a four-game road trip to host John Glenn. Valley beat John Glenn 37-14 in Walkerton last year on a Saturday night in Week 8.
John Glenn has since made a coaching change with former Triton coach Ron Brown taking over for John Barron.
The Falcons won their opener against Boone Grove on Aug. 23 but have lost five straight since. (Their Sept. 6 game against Fort Wayne Blackhawk was canceled due to “multiple previous injuries” with Blackhawk.)
They average only 11 points per game, but they will rely on a stout defense to keep Derf and runners like Wyatt Hart and Grady Moriarty and receivers like Owen Omondi in check.
“Their linebackers,” Moriarty said when asked what impressed him about John Glenn’s defense. “It’s the same linebackers they had last year. I think number 83 (Eli Beeney), he gave us fits last year, and he’s back again, probably one of the better linebackers in the conference. He flies around and makes things happen. He creates their own luck sometimes.”
Wes Parker will be back after missing the Western game with an injury. Hunter Paxton remains out with an injury.
Caston (2-5, 2-3 Hoosier North) at North Judson (7-0, 5-0), 7:30 p.m.
Caston is coming off a 42-0 loss to Triton last week, and the North Judson defense has notched four shutouts in five conference games.
Caston is 0-9 against North Judson since the teams became Hoosier North rivals in 2016. The smallest margin of defeat was 17-6 in 2016.
North Judson, ranked No. 1 in Class 1A, has won six straight at home.
Caston’s Ashton Bowyer had a team-high 77 yards rushing last week against Triton.
Pioneer (6-1, 5-0 Hoosier North) at Triton (5-2, 4-1), 7 p.m.
The Panther offensive line continues to block for every one who runs behind it, notching 449 yards of offense in a 45-20 win over Culver. Quarterback Micah Rans had 177 yards of rushing to lead the team, but four other backs – Shiloh Rine, Noah VanMeter, Phillip McFatridge and Luke Ulery – ran for over 40 yards.
“From Week 1, I feel like our offensive line has performed well overall,” Pioneer coach Adam Berry said. “And they just keep getting better and better every week in practice, and that’s been showing on Friday nights. So that’s been good to see. Obviously, still some things we need to clean up, but not every team is perfect, and we’re looking to clean up those couple things. If we’re on a double team, keeping our eyes up for a linebacker coming through … things like that. We’re looking to clean those things up these next two weeks leading into sectionals. But I’ve been very pleased with how our offensive line has performed and how they’ve been communicating and simply getting to their spots.”
While Class 1A, No. 8 Pioneer has averaged 44 points per game in its current five-game winning streak, they will be facing a Triton defense that has pitched two shutouts in its last three games, including a 42-0 win at Caston last week.
Class 1A, No. 9 Triton allows only 12 points per game.
“The first thing that stands out is their sideline-to-sideline speed,” Berry said of the Triton defense. “And that starts with their linebackers and DBs (defensive backs). They fly to the ball. And then their defensive line, they are also quick off the ball. And just like their offensive line, I’d describe their entire defense as simply athletic, and they get to their spots. Even going back to the previous week against Judson (a 40-0 Triton loss), they made Judson work for everything they had. Judson completed some long passes, but overall, they did a nice job against Judson even. … They got that shutout last week, and I’d say they’re a determined group, and I’d say defense is definitely their strength. You can tell they pride themselves on trying to take away the other team’s best stuff. They look to get their three-and-outs and control the ball when they’re on offense.”
Triton has beaten Pioneer three straight times, including a 35-12 loss in Week 6 of the 2022 season in their last trip to Bourbon.
North Miami (5-2, 3-2 Hoosier North) at Culver (1-6, 0-5), 7 p.m.
North Miami’s season-high for points in a game in 2023 was 27. This year, they are averaging 32 points per game. North Miami beat South Central (Union Mills) 63-20 last week, and that was their most points in a game since a 69-14 win over Northfield in 2003.
Culver wide receiver Caleb McCuen had seven receptions for 83 yards last week in a 45-20 loss to Pioneer. Both numbers were career highs.
Culver quarterback Jonas McCuen threw for 233 yards against Pioneer last week. That marked the second time in his career he has passed for 200-plus yards in a game.
This is the teams’ first meeting since Culver beat North Miami 32-14 on Oct. 21, 2016, in the sectional quarterfinals.
South Central (Union Mills) (1-6, 0-5 Hoosier North) at Winamac (2-4, 1-4), 7:30 p.m.
Winamac is averaging just 6.7 points per game during its current three-game losing streak, which includes a 48-6 loss to North Judson last week. Meanwhile, South Central is allowing 46 points per game. They allowed 63 in a loss to North Miami last week, and that was the most points North Miami has scored in a game in 21 years.
Addison Allen ran for a team-high 71 yards in a 48-6 loss to Class 1A, No. 1 North Judson last week.
This is the teams’ first meeting since Winamac beat South Central 21-14 in the 2020 sectional. This is the teams’ first meeting at Roudebush Field since a 28-20 Winamac win in the 2017 sectional quarterfinals.
