Bellefontaine’s football team can’t afford to dwell on an emotional loss to Springfield Shawnee last week. The Chiefs have to quickly regain their focus as they prepare to go on the road to face unbeaten Jonathan Alder on Friday in a Central Buckeye Conference Kenton Trail division game.
The Pioneers (6-0, 1-0) are currently ranked second in the state in Division III. “They are solid in every facet,” said Bellefontaine head coach Toby Smith. “They will make it difficult for usto take advantage of things, but the one thing I know is we will be ready to go.”
Following the league loss to the Braves, Bellefontaine (4-2, 0- 1) doesn’t have much leeway left if it wants to accomplish its goals of winning a league title and getting a playoff berth. Smith said his team is not showing any signs of panicking. “We have had a good week of practice,” he said. “The kids have worked hard. This is a senior laden group and they know that every game is valuable. They understand they need to take advantage of every opportunity.”
The Pioneers have been impressive on both sides of the ball in getting off to their 6-0 start. They are averaging 38 points per game while giving up just 15 points per contest. Junior quarterback J.T. Keith has sparked a balanced Jonathan Alder offense. Keith has completed 60-of-93 passes (65 percent) for 899 yards and 14 touchdowns. He has only thrown one interception. Keith’s favorite targets have been junior Jackson Izzard and senior Dawson Detweiler. Izzard has made 18 catches for 320 yards and seven touchdowns and Detweiler has added 14 catches for 270 yards and three touchdowns.
The Pioneers also feature the top rusher in the CBC in senior Garret Proxmire. He has amassed 908 yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground, averaging 6.8 yards per carry and 151 yards per game. For the Chiefs to knock off the Pioneers, they will need to clean up some of the miscues that have plagued them at times this season.
In last week’s loss to the Braves, a bad snap on a punt attempt resulted in a Shawnee touchdown. Bellefontaine also had a touchdown called back because of a penalty. “We have to play a clean game,” said Smith. “We can’t afford to make a lot of mistakes.”