By RICHIE HALL
After a week off, Indiana’s big schools are ready to join the football post-season fray.
That includes all 32 of the Class 6A teams. They all got a bye week last Friday, but are back in action this Friday in the sectional semi-finals. Noblesville, moved to Sectional 3 this year, will host Homestead at Beaver Materials Field. Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m.
Two all-county clashes are set in Sectional 4, with Fishers traveling to Westfield and Carmel playing at Hamilton Southeastern. Guerin Catholic, back home after a road victory in last week’s first round, hosts a high-flying West Lafayette team in Class 3A Sectional 28 action.
NOBLESVILLE-HOMESTEAD
The Millers will take on an undefeated Spartans team that is ranked No. 3 in the IFCA coaches poll. All nine of Homestead’s victories were in Summit Conference play, which consists entirely of Fort Wayne teams, so the Spartans are league champions as well.
Homestead beat Northrop 43-6, Concordia Lutheran 35-6, Bishop Luers 51-0, Bishop Dwenger 17-15, Snider 49-36, North Side 47-21, Carroll 42-15, Wayne 24-0 and South Side 56-0. This marked the first perfect regular season for the Spartans since 2012.
Junior Luke Goode is the Homestead quarterback, and has had a strong season, throwing for 2,164 yards and 23 touchdowns.
“Homestead has one of the most explosive offenses in the state,” said Noblesville coach Justin Roden. “Luke Goode has a fantastic arm and is as good a QB we have faced all year.”
Three of the Spartans’ receivers have made at least 20 catches. Senior Griffin Little leads with 28 receptions (five TDs), followed by Jake Archbold, who has 25 catches, including 10 touchdowns, and junior Jared Kistler with 23 catches, four for touchdowns. Roden said that Archbold and Kistler “are standouts and playmakers” and that Little, the tight end, “also can beat you several ways.”
Junior Braeden Hardwick is Homestead’s top runner, with 957 yards and 15 scores. Goode has two rushing touchdowns as well. On defense, junior Luke Palmer has 70 tackles, while senior Cam Rogers, a Miami of Ohio recruit, has 58 tackles. Both have made 11 tackles for a loss.
“Defensively, they fly to the ball and run a 3-3 defense that causes a great deal of chaos for offenses,” said Roden. “They are undefeated because they can score on any play and they play smash mouth on defense.”
Noblesville will start senior Alex Zavac as quarterback; he has thrown for 243 yards and three touchdowns. Senior Carson Sanders leads the receptions with 14, including one TD.
Senior Jayden Barrett is the top runner with 288 yards. Barrett has caught two touchdown receptions and rushed for another score. Three Millers players have at least 70 tackles on defense: Junior Skyler Tolliver (80), senior Lucas Williams (75) and junior Zach Blevins (70).
“Our preparation is very similar to any other week,” said Roden. Noblesville comes into the game 1-8, but Roden said that record is “not indicative” of the players’ attitude. In addition, the Millers have played the toughest schedule in the state according to the Sagarin ratings.
“They have been awesome and remain very positive about the direction of the program,” said Roden. “They truly believe they can win Friday. I appreciate them a great deal.”
“Friday should be fun,” said Roden.
FISHERS-WESTFIELD
There will be a recent Hoosier Crossroads Conference rematch at Westfield’s Riverview Health Stadium on Friday, as Fishers travel to the Shamrocks’ field for a Sectional 4 semi-final.
The two teams played each other just three weeks ago, on Oct. 11. The Tigers won a close game, 19-14. Fishers scores two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to take that contest, which was also played at Riverview Health Stadium.
The No. 7-ranked Tigers are 7-2, and tied for second in the final HCC standings with a 5-2 record. Westfield is 5-4, and finished fifth in the conference with a 3-4 mark.
“I really do like the progress this team has made and how we have learned to fight through difficult situations,” said Fishers coach Rick Wimmer. “That being said, we have a great challenge this week. Westfield is a good team and good teams are hard to beat twice in the same season. We are aspiring to be a really good team, a great team. Great teams find a way to win these games.”
“We have played many of the best teams in Indiana,” said Shamrocks coach Jake Gilbert. “We have come up a little short vs. a couple of great teams. We know we can play elite football along with the state’s best.”
Senior Marcus Roux is the Tigers’ quarterback, and he has thrown for 1,225 yards and 14 touchdowns, and has also rushed for six scores. Sophomore Jeffrey Simmons is the top receiver with 26 catches (five TDs), followed closely by senior Nick Leath’s 25 receptions (three TDs).
Another senior, Dylan Scally, has rushed for 921 yards and eight touchdowns. Senior Geoffrey Brown has been dominant on defense, making 96 tackles, 11 of them for a loss.
Westfield coach Jake Gilbert said Fishers has “an elite defense,” and the Tigers are tough on offense as well.
“They run the ball extremely well and the quarterback has played well within their system,” said Gilbert. “They have had a great season and are a great team.”
As for the Shamrocks, senior quarterback Camden Simons has also had a great season, throwing for 1,450 yards and 12 touchdowns, also rushing for four TDs. Junior Mason Piening has 27 of those catches, including four touchdowns, and senior Dane Wheeler has made 25 receptions, three for TDs.
Senior Eli Patchett is Westfield’s top rusher, totaling 696 yards and 11 scores. The Shamrocks defense is led by two sophomores, Micah Hauser (71 tackles) and Bryson Hoover (69 tackles), with junior David Frey making 67 stops.
Wimmer said that Westfield is well-coached and plays hard.
“They present some problems for our defense because of their balance not just in terms of running and passing yards and attempts, but also they have good balance in terms of the number of players touching the football,” said Wimmer.
CARMEL-SOUTHEASTERN
Carmel travels to Hamilton Southeastern’s TCU Field for a 7 p.m. kickoff in the other Sectional 4 semi-final game Friday.
This will be the first meeting between the No. 4-ranked Greyhounds and the Royals in three years. The teams last played each other in 2016, a season where they faced off twice. Southeastern beat Carmel 27-21 in the season opener, but the Greyhounds won over the Royals in the sectional semi-final, 17-14.
Carmel is 6-3, and finished 5-2 in Metropolitan Conference play. This season, there was a four-way tie for first place in the MIC’s final standings, so the ‘Hounds will share the conference championship with North Central, Warren Central and Ben Davis.
Junior Christian Williams has moved into the quarterback spot for the ‘Hounds, passing for 400 yards and three touchdowns. Williams also has one rushing touchdown. Senior Zach Gish and junior Colton Parker each have made 18 catches, with Parker collecting three touchdown receptions and Gish making one.
Senior Dylan Downing is Carmel’s leading rusher, with 719 yards and eight scores. Junior Dominic Padjen leads the Greyhounds’ defense with 90 tackles, while senior Ty Wise has 72 stops, including 11 tackles for a loss.
Southeastern enters the post-season with a 5-4 record, and finished fourth in the Hoosier Crossroads Conference with a 4-3 mark. The Royals got a huge win at the end of the regular season, upsetting Brownsburg 28-25.
Senior Andrew Hobson has had a solid year as quarterback, throwing for 1,797 yards and 14 touchdowns. Two seniors lead the Southeastern receptions list: DeAndre Rhodes has 41 catches, including six scores, and Ben Boysen has made 36 receptions, two for touchdowns.
Sophomore Blaine Wertz is on top of the rushing with 608 yards and three TDs. On defense, senior Seth Smarelli has 74 tackles, followed by junior Nate Haas with 67.
GUERIN CATHOLIC-WEST LAFAYETTE
In Class 3A Sectional 28 play, Guerin Catholic will host a West Lafayette team that is making a return trip to Hamilton County on Friday.
The No. 4-ranked Red Devils played at Hamilton Heights last week in first-round sectional play, winning 52-7. That improved West Lafayette’s record to 8-2 for the season, with its only losses to 6A Lafayette Jefferson and Hoosier Conference champion, 2A No. 2 Lewis Cass.
“West Lafayette is a great team,” said Golden Eagles coach Tom Dilley. “They are extremely explosive on offense. They are very well coached, athletic, and extremely talented at all of the skill positions. Defensively, they are very fast and physical. They limit big plays and take the ball away. They typically get a lead on opponents, make them one-dimensional, and attack.”
Red Devils senior quarterback Kyle Adams has had an incredible year, throwing for 3,408 yards and 51 touchdowns, also rushing for seven scores. Sophomore Cannon Melchi has 86 catches for 11 touchdowns, while senior Harrison Truitt counts 17 touchdowns among his 62 receptions.
Senior Spencer Blankman is the top rusher with 738 yards and 11 scores. On defense, three players have over 10 tackles for a loss: Senior Lamont Johnson counts 14 TFLs among his 87 tackles, while sophomore Mariere Omonode also has made 14 tackles for a loss. Senior Hojun Yun has made 74 tackles, 11 for a loss.
Guerin Catholic, ranked No. 10, is 6-4 and started its sectional with a 26-7 win at Yorktown last week. Senior quarterback Christian Gelov has totals of 1,158 yards and 11 touchdowns, while rushing for four TDs. Senior Bernie McGuinness has made 37 receptions, six for scores.
Senior Gus Baumgartner has been an outstanding rusher for the Golden Eagles, with 1,364 yards and 13 touchdowns. On defense, senior Tom Hokanson leads with 84 tackles and junior Jagger Albert has 81 stops.
“The improvements we have made over the course of the season and the lessons we have learned have given us the opportunity to grow,” said Dilley. “We hope to finish a great week of preparation and play our best game this Friday.”
Hamilton Southeastern quarterback Andrew Hobson (center) has thrown for 1,797 yards and 14 touchdowns this season. The Royals host Carmel Friday in the semi-finals of Class 6A Sectional 4. Also pictured are Blaine Wertz (left), who leads the Southeastern rushing with 608 yards and three TDs, and Ben Boysen (right), one of the Royals’ top receivers with 36 catches, including two scores. (Kent Graham/File photo)