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Sullivan and South Putnam battle for second-place
This weekend marks game seven for the four Putnam County teams and as the season heats up, so do the implications.
A potential first-place tie lies in waiting for Western-Division leaders Northview (6-0, 3-0 Western Indiana Conference), South Putnam (5-1, 3-0 WIC) and Sullivan (4-2, 2-1 WIC). With Sullivan traveling to South Putnam on Friday and Northview facing a determined Greencastle club the same night, this Friday will prove to be pivotal for several teams in the division.
Sullivan (4-2, 2-1 WIC) at South Putnam (5-1, 3-0) Homecoming - Friday, 7 p.m.
These two western-division foes combine for nine wins, yet still trail undefeated Northview. With both teams having dynamic organizations, they will have to go head-to-head Friday to decide who holds either first, second or third place in the division.
Sullivan has won four games this season by 20 points or more but has also lost two games by the same margin. South Putnam, on the other hand, has only one loss on the season to now one-loss North Putnam (5-1, 2-1 WIC) by a score of 26-18.
A one possession loss for South compared to Sullivan's two three-possession losses may be all the indication fans need when braving the (hopefully) 60-degree temperatures and 20 mph winds on Friday.
Coming off of a big 22-16 conference win over West Vigo last Friday, South Putnam will once again rely heavily on junior running back Kyle Shaffer and senior quarterback Grady McHugh. This duo has allowed the Eagles to be very effective both on the ground and in the air this season, totaling 1,650 yards for the aforementioned and 778 yards for the latter.
Shaffer has run for more than 1,000 yards in six games and 15 total touchdowns. Shaffer easily leads the team in both yardage and scoring, dwarfing the next running back's overall yardage of 199.
Sullivan's junior running back Trevor Magill leads the Golden Arrows on the ground, averaging 72.3 yards per game. Next in line is sophomore back Wes Bedwell who picks up nearly 50 yards per game.
Eagle quarterback McHugh will once again be targeting his many wide-outs to gain his 110 passing yards per game, including fellow senior Jimmy Rutter who has 22 catches on the season for 504 yards and five touchdowns. McHugh has thrown a total of 36 completions this year for 660 yards to Rutter (22), freshman Dalton Scott (4), junior Dylan Wood (4), senior Brandon Gierke (3), Shaffer (2), junior Kyle Hall and senior Dan Grundlock.
The two teams' scoring averages match up rather well on paper as each total roughly 35 points. Although Sullivan may have the upper hand in average points scored, South Putnam takes the prize on defense, totaling 84 tackles per game compared to Sullivan's 70.
And although the Golden Arrows have outscored the Eagles this year with 247 and 215 points, respectively, South Putnam has only allowed 82 points to its opponents compared to Sullivan's 154 points-against.
North Putnam (5-1, 2-1 WIC) at Cascade (3-3, 2-1 WIC) - Friday, 7 p.m.
The Cougars from North Putnam have seen quite a bit of success on the road this season. Whether it was a 28-7 victory over Greencastle on Aug. 21, a 31-21 win over Southmont on Aug. 28 or a 13-0 shutout at Edgewood on Sept. 25, the Cougars have disappointed host after host.
On the flip-side, Cascade has only played two games at home this season, winning one (Cloverdale, Sept. 11, 55-0).
Leading the way for North have been sophomores Ethan Christy in the backfield and Hayden Rudes under center. Christy has averaged 173.4 yards on the tundra this year, totaling 319 yards and six touchdowns. Meanwhile, Rudes racks up 112.2 yards per game, throwing for an impressive 561 yards and four touchdowns on the season.
Defensively, the Cougars make 65.4 tackles per game (compared to the Cadets' 35.8) and have hurried the opponent's quarterback 27 times, bringing him down six of those times for a negative value of 21 yards.
Senior Trevor Bingman leads the Cougars in tackles per game with 10.5.
The "points for" and "points against" categories are a bit unusual for these two combatants. Although each team has scored more than 150 points this season (North Putnam 176, Cascade 159), Cascade has allowed for an abysmal 196 points-against while North has only allowed 79 points. North leads the WIC in points-against while Cloverdale has allowed the most with 275.
Greencastle (1-5, 0-3 WIC) at Northview (6-0, 3-0 WIC) - Friday, 7 p.m.
The undefeated Northview Knights in Brazil will be hosting the hometown Tiger Cubs from Greencastle as they hope to stay in first place in the western division of the WIC.
Although records are typically indicative of a team's prowess, the Tiger Cubs should expect a tight game Friday when they take on the Knights.
Greencastle averages 20 points, 168.5 yards rushing and 97.7 yards passing per game while claiming one of the largest margins of victory this season -- a 50-point win over Cloverdale on Aug. 28.
However, it will take all the strength the Tiger Cubs can muster as Northview puts up a hefty 51 points, 297.5 yards rushing, 125.7 yards passing and 77 tackles per game.
Tiger Cub juniors Nick Costin and Devin Clar have led the way for the Tiger Cubs this season in the quarterback and running back positions, respectively. Costin earns a steep 168.5 yards passing per game and has thrown 50 completions for 570 yards and seven touchdowns to four different receivers -- senior Anthony Rossok (2), senior Chase Chew (2), junior JT Matthews (2) and junior Jackie Scanland.
Unfortunately for Greencastle, the Tiger Cubs have scored 120 points this season compared to 187 points-against, resulting in their 1-5 record. However, Greencastle has had a tougher schedule than most, playing North Putnam (5-1, 2-1 WIC), West Vigo (4-3, 1-2 WIC), South Putnam (5-1, 3-0) and Sullivan (4-2, 2-1 WIC).
Now, as if that wasn't tough enough, the Tiger Cubs head to the undefeated Knights' home field.
Owen Valley (5-1, 3-0 WIC) at Cloverdale (0-6, 0-3 WIC) - Friday, 7 p.m.
Cloverdale has seen a sluggish start to the season, but as previously stated, high schools sports results are never predictable.
The Clovers are gaining momentum, despite losing to Brown County (2-4, 1-2 WIC) on the road by a score of 39-28.
Cloverdale's latest loss was the closest yet, losing the previous five games by 30 points or more. And quarterback Parker Watts threw for a total of 320 yards and three touchdowns.