Sectional Final: East 28, East Central 12
Columbus East’s first real test of the season looked like more of the same, although the Trojans certainly kept fighting to the end. Ultimately though, the Trojans were settling for field goals while the O’s were scoring touchdowns, and that’s no way to knock off the No. 1 team in 4A.
Coach Bob Gaddis talked about how the O’s wanted to show they were just as physical as East Central, and they did, running the ball a lot, even if few of their runs resulted in big plays. Of course, the physicality of this game took its toll on East, with several players forced to limp out of the game.
Fortunately for East, they’ll have an extra day to get healthy for their next opponent. East will play at Jasper next Saturday (the 15th). We’ll run East-approved directions to Jasper this week in The Republic, and as soon as we find out what time the game will be, we’ll let you know that too. We’ll also be monitoring the East girls basketball situation, since they’re scheduled to open the regular season at home against Rushville on the 15th as well.
And a quick look ahead at semistate, although I’m sure the East coaches and players aren’t thinking that far ahead. Regardless, East (should they defeat Jasper) has two possible opponents in the semistate: Cathedral or Zionsville. If it’s East vs. Cathedral, that game will be here at John Stafford Field; if it’s East vs. Zionsville, that game will be played at Zionsville. That’s assuming I’m looking at the IHSAA Web site correctly.
Sectional semifinals: East 42, Madison 6
Another quick-and-dirty blog update here, since I’ve got an early morning on Saturday.
I didn’t see the regular season East-Madison game, so I don’t know what the differences were in play-calling and game situations between that one and Friday’s sectional game. But it seemed clear from the start that the O’s had no intention of trying to repeat the 75-point performance they laid on the Cubs four weeks ago.
Besides, with all due respect to Madison, it was pretty clear that East was going to win this one. Too much depth, too much talent, too much experience. So why risk some of these guys who are banged up when a 42-6 win is just as good as a 63-6 victory?
The good thing is that East got to see what some of their other running backs and defensive players can do. That depth is going to come in handy as the tournament continues.
Of course, the next step is getting past East Central. The Trojans are a tough opponent, with a 10-1 record following their win over Shelbyville in the other sectional semifinal.
And East Central will be looking for a measure of revenge against the O’s: East has ended East Central’s season two straight years and three times in four seasons.
Sectional Round 1: East 42, Seymour 14
Just a few quick thoughts on the East-Seymour sectional opener:
It was good to see Nick Olds back in the lineup for the Olympians. He had just one catch, but it was a spectacular highlight-reel style 39-yard reception. It was also good to see that East’s passing game is more than just Olds and Duwyce Wilson. Of course, it’s been that way for some time, but Shane Henderson continues to impress and Clayton Miller made his presence known with an 81-yard scoring pass from Dusty Kiel.
The East defense got tested a little bit by the Owls, who put together some good drives. But some big sacks and a couple of key turnovers helped ensure another easy victory.
One last item to note: I forgot to mention this in the story in Saturday’s paper, but I’ll point it out her as well as in Monday Morning QB — Matt Wilson became the fifth player in school history with 200 career points. Wilson’s six extra points on Friday give him exactly 200 points for his career. Duwyce Wilson and Joumeel McLaurine each have 188 points in their careers; it’s pretty likely they’ll join the 200-point club as well.
Next up, Madison.
Another perfect regular season
A couple of things have kept me from blogging the last few weeks: my father-in-law passed away earlier in the month, then this week, I decided — based primarily on where I live and where our stringer lives — to send our stringer from Bloomington to cover East at BNL while I went to the Greensburg-North Decatur game. I expected to see a much closer game than I’m used to, but the Pirates had to go and make me feel “at home” with a blowout of the Chargers. Thanks.
But you’re here to read about the 4A No. 1 Olympians, who finished a 9-0 regular season and enter the tournament as one of the favorites to battle for the state title at Lucas Oil Stadium on Nov. 29.
The sectional draw certainly helps. All due respect to Seymour and other teams in Sectional 15, but let’s face it: the favorites are East, East Central and Shelbyville. And while the Trojans and Golden Bears are in the top half of the bracket, the O’s are in the bottom half.
The tournament begins with East hosting Seymour. Should the O’s prevail — and keep in mind, the Owls did stun the O’s in the first round of the 2005 sectional — then East has a long road trip ahead of them.
Regardless of who wins between South Dearborn and Madison, that team will host East in the second round of the sectional.
Personally, I’m hoping for the Cubs to pull the upset, because Madison is a lot easier to get to than South Dearborn. Trust me, we’ll be printing directions in the paper if East should have to travel to Dearborn.
Of course, should East reach the sectional championship, the game will be played at the friendly confines of John Stafford Field.
And beyond that? Well, if I’m reading the IHSAA site correctly, East should hit the road yet again for the regional.
That’s right. Another trip to the Reitz Bowl, anyone?
East 62, Floyd Central 0
Lost amid all the hubbub over East’s record-setting offense is the incredible play of the defense.
Consider that Friday’s win was the third shutout of the season by the O’s. That’s pretty impressive, especially when you consider how many fourth quarters this season have been JV vs. JV.
The last time East had three shutouts in one season was 2006, but one of those came in the regional. The last time East had this many shutouts in the regular season was 1983, when the Olympians blanked four opponents in a 9-2 season.
And in that 1979 state championship season? Six shutouts and a total of 74 points allowed total in a 13-0 season.
Just saying, is all.
East 42, New Albany 14
Since there’s not much more to say about yet another resounding HHC win by the Olympians – they’re 35-3 now in the conference since 2003 – let’s talk about highways.
Now, I realize that our, ahem, FINE interstate road system needs to be worked on from time to time. Things fall apart, it’s true.
But 9:30 p.m. on a Friday night? Really? You couldn’t do this at, say, 1 a.m. on a Wednesday?
OK, with that out of my system, and since this is an East football blog, a little bit about Friday’s game.
Coach Gaddis made it a point to talk about the offensive line and their unsung work. Well, let me sing a little bit here (and a bit more in Monday Morning QB).
East’s O-line was dominant Friday night. You don’t rush for 301 yards — unofficial totals, mind you; keep in mind I was tallying numbers in the vehicle while my wife patiently waited for traffic to JUST GET MOVING ALREADY! — without the line making a gigantic push up front.
And the fact Dusty Kiel had time to throw for 292 yards showcases the talent up front.
Bottom line: Without the O-line, Kiel, Duwyce, Olds and McLaurine — while still putting up big numbers — wouldn’t nearly be as effective.
And a quick word on the defense before I call it a night.
With all due respect to Columbus North, New Albany really did pose the biggest offensive threat East has faced this season. A quarterback who’s not afraid to throw or run, fast athletes in the backfield and split wide, and a decent offensive line.
The Bulldogs were not in the least bit intimidated by all of East’s gaudy statistics.
And they still got clobbered.
It’s only midway through the season, with always dangerous Jeffersonville and a Bedford North Lawrence team waiting to play spoiler down the road.
But you might as well pencil in a fifth straight conference title for 4A’s No. 1 team.
East 44, Seymour 14
Not to belabor the point, but East continues to prove they’re not only the premier team in the HHC, but they’re certainly deserving of their status as the No. 1 team in Class 4A.
Considering the depth this team has — Will Saddler misses the game with an injury and his replacements on kickoffs and the secondary make his absence a moot point — I don’t foresee anyone giving them trouble during the regular season.
Of course, it should be noted that Joumeel McLaurine went limping off in the second half. But with all due respect to McLaurine, who would be THE MAN on any other team, there are plenty of options at tailback should No. 22 have to spend some time on the pine.
An aside here: compliments to the Owls, and not just because of my ties to Seymour. Coach Richey was honest in his assessment that Seymour doesn’t have the athletes that East does. He’s not putting down his team, it’s just a fact. But what the Owls do have are a hard-working team that kept playing hard against the No. 1 team in the state.
East 35, North 3
Wow. So much for another close game in the annual city showdown.
But the nice thing is that, short of an early display of misplaced energy, this didn’t turn as ugly as it could have. After all, a 35-3 margin of victory could have led to some bad blood and heated tempers.
That it didn’t is a testament to both sides of the rivalry. Good for you, Columbus.
The big game
Just a little over 24 hours now, as I write this, before the annual East vs. North football showdown.
I’m now in my third year of covering East football, and — no surprise — the East-North matchup has been the most compelling. Probably because it’s the most competitive game on the Olympians’ schedule.
East has dominated the Hoosier Hills Conference. From 2004 through 2007, East’s regular-season conference record is 27-1. That sole loss was a 33-30 heartbreaker at Bedford North Lawrence which saw the Stars control with big running plays and an opportunistic defense.
East also lost to conference rival Seymour in the 2005 sectional opener. But look at their 27 conference wins in that span and you see the O’s outscoring their opponents 1,264 to 292. That’s an average margin of victory of 36 points per game.
Meanwhile, against North? Last year’s 20-10 North win featured the largest margin of victory since 2003, when the Bull Dogs won 35-7.
Certainly the conference season is important for the O’s. There’s certainly some confidence that can come from easily beating these other teams, especially when you consider five of East’s seven HHC foes are in Class 5A.
But ultimately, I think it’s tonight’s game that has pushed East and North alike into the state’s upper echelon of football programs.
There’s no doubt anymore that Columbus is a football town. Which makes tonight’s game truly “the” game on both team’s schedules.
At least until one or both make it to Lucas Oil Stadium at the end of November.
Columbus East 52, Greenwood 0
With an earlier than normal deadline, I had to scramble to get my story done for tomorrow’s paper while also editing everybody else. So if there are any mistakes, that one’s on me.
Just some quick thoughts on Friday’s season-opener for East before I call it a night:
In 14 games now with Dusty Kiel at QB, East has topped 50 points in six of them. In that same span, the O’s defense has three shutouts and eight times total have held opponents to single digit-scoring.
Any concerns about that defense were put to rest, or at least addressed, on Friday night. Yes, the Woodmen broke off a few long runs, but that’s going to happen when your defensive focus is on speed rather than bulk the way East’s is. The O’s, I’m sure, will take those occasional long runs when they’re pitching a shutout otherwise.
