Brunt and Dragash: IHSAA semistate picks
By CLIFF BRUNT
and CRAIG DRAGASH
ISL Staff
This week, we have decided to make picks for all 10 IHSAA semistate games. Enjoy the breakdown!
5A: Terre Haute North (10-2) vs. Indianapolis Cathedral (8-5), Arsenal Tech
Cathedral hasn’t really needed Terry McLaurin much during this run through the playoffs, aside from the first game when he ran for 312 yards against Decatur Central. The Irish will need him this week. The Ohio State commitment has 819 yards on 49 receptions and 662 yards rushing on just 71 attempts. He’s also a lethal return man.
North running back Ricky Brookins will be tough to contain, and Cathedral’s defense has shown vulnerability. Brookins, a 5-foot-8, 180-pound senior, has rushed for 1,961 yards and 27 touchdowns. He just ripped off 192 yards and three touchdowns last week in the win over Bloomington North.
There’s not much negative to say about North. Its losses are an 11-10 double-overtime loss to Southport, a 6A school that lost just once all year, and a stunner to rival Terre Haute South, a team that is much better than its 2-8 record would indicate.
History wins out in this one, though. Cathedral plays a rugged schedule to be prepared for games like this. And the Irish offense, with McLaurin, Ball State commitment Zach Saum at tight end and star quarterback Collin Barthel, is nearly unstoppable.
Brunt: Cathedral 42, Terre Haute North 28
Dragash: Cathedral 28, Terre Haute North 23
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5A: Concord (10-2) at Westfield (11-1), Ryan Naylor covering
Westfield has been rolling through folks, and I don’t see that stopping now. Quarterback Nick Ferrer has passed for 2,350 yards and 27 touchdowns with just six interceptions. Elvin Caldwell balances the offense with 1,202 yards rushing. When you look at the losses, it becomes more clear. Concord’s losses are to Jimtown, a 10-3 Class 3A team and Plymouth, an 8-3 Class 4A team. Westfield’s only loss is a 48-45 triple-overtime thriller against 6A power Fishers.
Brunt: Westfield 35, Concord 14
Dragash: Westfield 31, Concord 17
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4A: East Chicago Central (11-2) at Fort Wayne Dwenger (10-3)
East Chicago Central has been living dangerously. The Cardinals have won its past two games by the skin of their teeth, 46-44 over Gary West and 38-37 in overtime against New Prairie. Dwenger has blitzed two good teams during that same span, rolling past East Noble 33-13 and New Have, which entered last week’s regional with an 11-1 record, by a 42-7 margin. It looks like Dwenger is well on its way.
Brunt: Dwenger 35, East Chicago Central 20
Dragash: Dwenger 35, East Chicago Central 14
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4A: New Palestine (13-0) at Columbus East (13-0), Craig Dragash covering
You’ve got to love a battle of unbeatens this late in the year. New Palestine beat Indianapolis Chatard to get to this point. Any questions about the legitimacy of New Palestine’s record are done.
As impressive as New Palestine has been, Columbus East has been more impressive. The Olympians have played up in class, down in class, whatever, and the result has been the same. Their closest game was a 48-20 win over New Albany, a team that finished 6-4 in Class 6A. With East at home, that tips the scale even more.
Brunt: Columbus East 35, New Palestine 21
Dragash: Columbus East 34, New Palestine 31
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3A: Gibson Southern (13-0) at Indianapolis Brebeuf (10-3) (Saturday, 4 p.m.)
Gibson Southern has been great all season, but the Titans have had a few close calls in postseason play. Their win over Brownstown Central in a battle of unbeatens a week ago was indeed, impressive. Brebeuf has some losses but plays a much tougher schedule.
Nick Sellers is the player to watch for Gibson Southern. The 5-11 sophomore quarterback has passed for 2,718 yards and 31 touchdowns this season.
This, however, might mark the beginning of the 2014 Mr. Football candidacy for Brebeuf running back LeVante’ Bellamy. The junior speedster has rushed for 2,086 yards and 32 touchdowns this season. I don’t expect Gibson Southern to have answers.
Brunt: Brebeuf 28, Gibson Southern 21
Dragash: Brebeuf 34, Gibson Southern 17
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3A: West Lafayette (12-1) at Andrean (13-0)
When looking at the schedules, the result that stood out to me was Andrean’s 34-32 win over Merrillville in Week 2, a 6A school that eventually finished with a 9-2 record. Andrean also beat Munster, a 5A team that finished with a 7-4 mark. Clearly, the Fighting 59ers are not worried about a tough opponent.
Brunt: Andrean 35, West Lafayette 22
Dragash: Andrean 27, West Lafayette 24
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2A: Paoli (11-2) vs. Indianapolis Ritter (11-2), Marian University, Cliff Brunt covering
Many say the frontrunner for Mr. Football this year is Ritter quarterback Jake Purichia. He is a phenom, having passed for 3,135 yards and 39 touchdowns. His top targets are Jake Hagan (1,256 yards, 17 touchdowns) and Kyree Hollis (49 catches, 879 yards). Paoli has had rough sledding the past two weeks, squeaking past Triton Central 21-14 and Southridge 24-20. This could get ugly.
Brunt: Ritter 42, Paoli 14
Dragash: Ritter 42, Paoli 21
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2A: Rensselaer Central (11-2) at Tipton (10-3)
This is a rematch of a Week 4 game that Rensselaer Central won 9-7. But Tipton is rolling now, having won seven in a row, and Tipton is at home in the rematch. Tipton already has avenged a regular-season loss in postseason play, having knocked off Lafayette Central Catholic.
Brunt: Tipton 14, Rensselaer Central 8
Dragash: Tipton 28, Rensselaer Central 23
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1A: Tri-Central (12-1) at Winamac (13-0)
Tri-Central is an improving team. The Trojans defeated Sheridan 33-27 in the regular season, then rolled the Blackhawks 35-7 in postseason play. Winamac has three straight blowout wins against teams that won at least eight games this season.
Brunt: Winamac 23, Tri-Central 21
Dragash: Winamac 35, Tri-Central 28
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1A: Linton-Stockton (13-0) at Eastern Hancock (13-0)
Another glorious battle of unbeatens. Linton-Stockton’s 59-26 win over North Central on Oct. 18 and last week’s 47-28 victory over Fountain Central are particularly eye opening. Eastern Hancock opened the season with a win over Tri-Central and at one point scored at least 62 points seven consecutive weeks, including three games with more than 70 points. To give you an idea of how ridiculously dominant Eastern Hancock has been, Shenandoah won its first seven games before getting demolished 68-19 by the Royals.
Brunt: Eastern Hancock 30, Linton-Stockton 21
Dragash: Linton-Stockton 38, Eastern Hancock 35
