Week 4 of high school football in Hamilton County is traditionally one of the biggest weeks of the season.
That’s because there are two big rivalry games scheduled for Friday. First, there’s the Mudsock game: Fishers travels to Hamilton Southeastern’s TCU Field for that annual contest, and while it may look a little different this year, the intensity will remain the same.
Up at Noblesville, the Millers will welcome Westfield to Beaver Materials Field. Both games have 7 p.m. kickoffs.
FISHERS-HAMILTON SOUTHEASTERN
The rivalry between the Tigers and the Royals has been hotly contested over the years. In their past eight regular-season meetings (not counting post-season games), both teams have won four times. Fishers won last year’s Mudsock game 27-6.
The Tigers are 1-2 so far this season. After dropping games to North Central 40-20 and Pike 28-14, Fishers picked up its first victory last week, beating Noblesville 21-0.
“I think they’re well-coached, they’re disciplined,” said Southeastern coach Michael Kelly. “They play hard.”
Tigers quarterback Lucas Prewitt put up solid numbers during the first third of the season, completing 48 of 89 pass attempts for 657 yards and three touchdowns. Senior Landon Morris has all three of those touchdown receptions, including an 83-yarder last week in Fishers’ win. Morris has 17 catches for the season, while junior Jeffrey Simmons has 15.
Sophomore Carson Dunn is the leading rusher with 181 yards and one touchdown. On defense, senior Joey Slimak leads the tackle total with 29, while junior Curtis Kearshner has four tackles for a loss and two sacks.
Southeastern will come in to this game 2-1. The Royals have wins over Lawrence Central 24-0 and Avon 39-28, with a 36-35 loss to North Central in between. Southeastern is ranked No. 8 in this week’s Class 6A AP media poll and No. 10 in the coaches’ poll.
“HSE is very impressive to watch on film and they are having a great start to their season,” said Fishers coach Curt Funk. “They are sharp in all three phases of the game with special teams, offense, and defense. The team plays with energy and excitement.”
The Royals’ senior quarterback John McCall has done well the first three games, going 35-for-52 with 409 yards and four touchdowns to his credit. Junior Martice Taylor has made 11 of those catches, two of them for TDs.
Junior Blaine Wertz leads the rushing with 238 yards and four touchdowns, with McCall gaining 183 yards on the ground, including two scores. Junior Louden Sundling and sophomore Cole Earlewine each have 17 tackles, while sophomore Evan Sherrill has 16 stops, seven of them for a loss, and six sacks.
Kelly said that while this game is a rivalry game, he said at the same time that his team’s objective “is to get better each and every week.
“Preaching that message of consistency and effort,” said Kelly. Consistency and discipline. Those are the factors that help you avoid the trap of focusing on your opponent.”
“We are just taking a business-like approach to the week and treating the game like any other,” said Funk. “We need to do our jobs and not get caught up in the emotions of the week. Take it one day at a time.”
WESTFIELD-NOBLESVILLE
Westfield will come into Noblesville on a two-game win streak. After dropping their season opener to Cathedral (the No. 1 team in 5A) 56-20, the Shamrocks have cruised past Harrison 34-10 and Zionsville 49-16.
“They’re very well-coached,” said Millers coach Dave Sharpe. “They’ve had some great staff continuity. They just do a good job across the board.”
Sharpe noted the two-quarterback combination for Westfield: Senior Nick Talley and junior Maximus Webster. Both players have thrown exceptionally well: Talley is 28-for-40 with 365 yards and four touchdowns, while Webster is 15-for-23 with 295 yards and six TDs.
“We are getting contributions from lots of players and our QB’s have made lots of explosive plays,” said ‘Rocks coach Jake Gilbert.
Webster can also run the ball as well. He has gained 137 yards and has a rushing touchdown for the season.
“Whichever one is behind the center, it doesn’t change what we do because we know that both kids are capable of executing their game plans,” said Sharpe.
Junior Micah Hauser is the Shamrocks’ leading rusher, with 209 yards and two touchdowns, while senior Jack Pfeiffer has 154 yards and one TD. Hauser also leads the defense with 24 tackles.
“This is a very capable team and we look forward to the challenge,” said Sharpe.
Noblesville is 1-2 for the season. The Millers beat Terre Haute South 50-0 in Week 2, and fell to Mount Vernon 42-17 in their opener and Fishers 21-0 last week.
Noblesville has had success with is running game this season, with five players already rushing for over 100 yards. Junior Owen Jones has gained 235 yards and scored two touchdowns, while sophomore Trey Speek has 145 yards and three scores.
Junior quarterback Conner Meinerding has completed 6 of 13 attempts for 81 yards, with sophomore Chance Yeager making four of those catches.
“Their offense is scary,” said Gilbert. “Very unique. Tremendous size and they get numbers at the point of attack. It will be very hard to defend. They always play great defense, so nothing new there.”
Two seniors, Mason Bohland and Skyler Tolliver, have 20 tackles for the season. Junior Sam Steinhofer has made five tackles for a loss, while Alairic Rogers-Walton has two sacks.
GUERIN CATHOLIC-BREBEUF JESUIT
Guerin Catholic will finally get to play a football game on Friday. The Golden Eagles host Brebeuf Jesuit in a Circle City Conference game, with kickoff at 7 p.m.
The Braves are 1-2 for the season. Brebeuf lost to Bishop Chatard 27-14 and New Palestine 28-8 before beating Cardinal Ritter 21-14 last week. Despite the losses, the Braves are tied for fifth with Guerin in the 3A coaches poll and ranked No. 8 in the AP poll.
Brebeuf has a capable quarterback in senior Drake Hagerman, who has completed 55 of 100 pass attempts for 719 yards and six touchdowns. Senior Brendan Petrie has 19 of those catches, including three for TDs. Senior Braeden Sanders has the other three touchdown receptions.
Sophomore Jayden Ohmer is the top rusher with 52 yards. On defense, junior Jayden Childers has been a force, with 34 tackles, 3.5 of them for losses.
The Golden Eagles, also ranked No. 6 in the AP poll, has only one game to its credit so far. Guerin Catholic beat McCutcheon 14-7 in Week 1, but has not played since.
Jagger Albert had a 51-yard rushing touchdown for the Golden Eagles in that game, while Sam Miller caught a 23-yard passing TD from Max McGreal.
HAMILTON HEIGHTS-NORTHWESTERN
Hamilton Heights will travel to Northwestern on Friday for a 7 p.m. game. It will be the first Hoosier Conference East Division contest of the year for the Huskies.
The Tigers are 0-3 for the season, with losses to Twin Lakes 48-6, Logansport 27-0 and Lafayette Central Catholic 38-0. Northwestern has a freshman quarterback, Cameron Davis. He is 23-of-49 on the season with 174 yards.
Junior Amarion Conyers has the most receptions with eight. Senior Kyle Cardwell is the top rusher, with 115 yards, and the top tackler with 23 stops.
The Huskies are also 0-3 for the season, falling to Lapel 42-19, North Montgomery 31-7 and West Lafayette 49-14. Junior Guy Griffey played the first two games as quarterback, going 19-of-49 for 295 yards and four touchdowns. Sophomore Vincent Harley stepped in last week, and was 5-of-11 for 44 yards.
Junior Gavin Bramel has seven receptions to his credit, including two for touchdowns. Sophomore Trey Ehman is the top rusher with 89 yards and one TD. Two juniors, Nate Hulen and Harrison Hochstedler, each have 28 tackles on defense, with Hochstedler also making three sacks.
CARMEL-PIKE
Carmel will welcome Pike to Carmel Stadium on Friday night for a 7 p.m. Metropolitan Conference game.
The Red Devils are 2-1 for the season. They opened with wins over Zionsville 26-24 and Fishers 28-14, then lost to Ben Davis 48-24.
Pike has used two quarterbacks in each of its games this season. Senior Anthony Cialdella has completed 28 of 51 pass attempts for 482 yards and seven touchdowns, with junior Akim Abdur-Rahim going 10-of-22 for 131 yards and two TDs.
Senior Lamar Echols Jr. has the most receptions with 12 (two for touchdowns), and fellow senior Zavier Simpson has 11 catches, also with two TDs. Isaiah Martin is the top rusher with 414 yards and a touchdown. Senior Kyson Allen leads the defense with 26 tackles, with senior Kyran Montgomery making four tackles for a loss.
The Greyhounds are 1-2 for the season. After winning its opener over Plainfield 31-6, Carmel fell to Cathedral 44-28 and Center Grove 42-0. The ‘Hounds are ranked No. 9 in the 6A coaches poll and No. 10 in the AP poll.
Junior Zach Osborne has good quarterback numbers so far, going 34-of-66 with 351 yards and two touchdowns. Senior Colton Parker has 11 receptions, one for a TD.
Senior Zach White leads the rushing with 150 yards and a touchdown, with Osborne gaining 113 yards and scoring two TDs. On defense, senior Tamarris Springfield has 25 tackles, with junior Hayden Cate making two sacks.
