TRC crown at stake for Pirates, Bulldogs
For the second straight season, Riverside enters a Week 10 matchup against Milton-Union with a Three Rivers Conference championship on the line.
Last year, the Pirates could have earned a share of the title with a win, but lost 37-14.
On Friday, the Pirates can win an outright TRC title if they knock off the unbeaten Bulldogs in West Milton.
“I am really happy for my players and coaches to be in this position,” said Riverside head coach Bryce Hodge. “We were able to play for a chance at a co-league title last season against Milton-Union, so to play for a chance at an outright league title in Week 10 again is a great opportunity for our guys. It’s a testament to the work our guys put in all year, this is a great chance for them that they’ve earned a shot at a league championship. However, we aren’t just happy to be here in this game, our goal each year is to win a league title, not just play for one.”
The Pirates and Bulldogs are both 5-0 in TRC play. Riverside has a seven-game winning streak on the line, while the Bulldogs will look to finish off a perfect regular season.
Milton-Union, ranked eighth in the latest Division V state poll, has dominated on both sides of the ball. The Bulldogs have outscored their opponents 397-40 overall and 252-13 in TRC play.
“Their size, strength and speed are impressive,” said Hodge. “They have 18 seniors on their team out of 44 players. They bring back four first-team all-state players, they are very well coached, they are the defending league champs and they’re a tough team.”
Since the TRC debuted last year, the Bulldogs have yet to lose a league game.
The Bulldogs have a veteran offense that has been very balanced this season.
Senior quarterback Nate Morter is 52-of-92 passing for 949 yards on the season with 14 touchdowns and just one interception.
The top running back for the Bulldogs is senior Michael Elam, who has rushed for 691 yards and 15 TDs on 91 carries.
Junior Jordan Foose has contributed 432 rushing yards and nine TDs on 55 attempts.
Senior Blake Brumbaugh, who was a first-team all-Ohio defensive back last year, is a threat running and catching the ball. He has 382 rushing yards and eight touchdowns and 413 receiving yards with six more TDs.
Cooper Brown, a 6-4 senior, has been a big-play threat at wide receiver, catching 19 passes for 356 yards and five TDs.
The Milton-Union offensive line is anchored by 6-3, 280-pound senior Ethan Lane, who earned third-team all-Ohio honors last year.
The Bulldogs have been extremely stingy on defense. They have not allowed more than 14 points in a game and have recorded four shutouts.
Defensive lineman Jake Brown was a first-team all-state selection a year ago. He has three sacks and six tackles for loss this season.
Senior linebacker Ozzie Gregg has piled up a team-high 89 tackles, with 15 for loss and 4 1/2 sacks.
Milton-Union also has a big-time special teams weapon in kicker Mason Grudich, who earned first-team all-Ohio honors last season. Grudich has kicked a 47-yard field goal this season.
“We need to play a great game,” said Hodge. “We need to execute to near perfection and limit our mistakes. We need to control the ball, and try our best to get their offense off of the field. We try to be the best tackling and blocking team on the field, as well as win the turnover battle, when we do that we typically get the result we want.”
Elsewhere around the area this weekend:
WL-S at Triad
West Liberty-Salem travels to Triad on Friday for an Ohio Heritage Conference showdown that will have playoff implications surrounding it.
The Tigers (5-4, 2-2) currently sit in eighth place in their region. With the top eight teams getting a first-round home playoff game, a win would go a long way in helping the Tigers earn that luxury.
Triad (3-6, 1-3) sits in the 12th spot in Region 24 and can clinch a playoff spot with a win over the Tigers.
Both teams are looking to snap two-game losing skids.
The Tigers saw a four-game winning streak snapped with a 33-10 loss to Northeastern in Week 8. Playing without its top two running backs last week because of injury, WL-S was shut out by Mechanicsburg 35-0.
The Cardinals fell to West Jefferson 28-20 in Week 8 and lost to Northeastern 43-12 last Friday.
Triad will lean on standout sophomore running back Awsom Mitchell, who leads the OHC in rushing with 1,309 yards and 14 touchdowns on 162 carries.
WL-S has been fueled by the 1-2 punch of Gabe McGill (889 rushing yards, 11 TDs) and Josh Wilcoxon (509 rushing yards, three TDs) but neither one was able to go against the Indians last week.
Northwestern at Ben Logan
Benjamin Logan will look to keep its momentum going from last week’s win over Graham when the Raiders host Northwestern in a regular-season finale Friday night.
The Raiders (3-6, 2-2) used a late touchdown to knock off the Falcons 35-34 in Week 9.
It has been a rough season for the Warriors, who are 1-8 overall and 0-4 in the Central Buckeye Conference Mad River division.
Northwestern has scored just 99 points on the season while giving up 340.
The Warriors’ offense relies heavily on quarterback Brock Mansfield. He has completed 58-of-145 passes for 658 yards with seven touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He is the team’s leading rusher as well with 410 yards and six TDs on 115 carries.
Senior running back Austin Ernst has contributed 245 rushing yards and 194 receiving yards.
Graham at Indian Lake
Indian Lake will wrap up its 2022 campaign at home Friday against Graham in a Central Buckeye Conference contest.
The Lakers (1-8, 1-3) are coming off a 41-7 loss to North Union.
It has been a roller coaster of a ride for the Falcons (4-5, 2-2) recently. They pulled off a 39-33 upset over North Union in Week 8 before losing to Benjamin Logan 35-34 last Friday.
Graham’s offensive attack is sparked by senior quarterback Eli Hollingsworth, who has thrown for 1,737 yards and 19 touchdowns and rushed for 630 yards and six TDs.
Running back Tucker Nave has contributed 557 yards and nine TDs on the ground for the Falcons, while their top receiver is Eli Jacks (29 catches, 537 yards, five TDs).
Upper Scioto Valley at Ridgemont
Ridgemont will welcome a hot Upper Scioto Valley squad on Friday for a Northwest Central Conference football game.
The Gophers have lost two straight to fall to 4-5 overall and 3-3 in the NWCC.
Upper Scioto Valley (7-2, 5-1) has won five games in a row. The Rams beat Elgin 34-14 last Friday.