CENTERBURG — The hottest team in the Knox Morrow Athletic Conference will meet the league’s Cinderella story Friday night.
Winners of five straight, Centerburg hits the road for a showdown with Mount Gilead. At 4-2, the Indians are off to their best start since opening the 2011 campaign with four consecutive wins.
KMAC victories have been hard to come by for Mount Gilead. The Indians are a combined 4-31 in KMAC play since the league’s inception in 2017.
Nevertheless, Centerburg coach Andy Colella said the Trojans can’t afford to overlook anyone in the rough-and-tumble KMAC.
“We just try to take it one week at a time because you can see, I mean, any week somebody can (knock someone off),” Colella said after the Trojans rallied in the fourth quarter for a 28-21 win at Loudonville in Week 5. “We’ve already proven … that anybody can beat anybody at any given time, so you’ve gotta stay the course.
“You’ve gotta focus on what it is that you’re doing, and getting better with the things that we do.”
Centerburg (5-1, 3-0) at Mount Gilead (4-2, 2-1): The Trojans cruised to a 47-14 win over Cardington-Lincoln last week. Quarterback Tyler Johnson completed 9 of 16 passes for 179 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 200 yards and two scores on 23 carries. Running back Caylan LeMaster had a big game as well, rushing for 182 yards and four touchdowns on 20 attempts. Jesse Rings caught four passes for 59 yards and a touchdown. Johnson has accounted for more than 1,600 yards of total offense. He ranks second in the Knox Morrow Athletic Conference with 902 rushing yards and nine touchdowns on 139 carries and has completed 52 of 107 passes for 730 yards and 11 TDs. LeMaster has rushed for 779 yards and seven TDs on 97 carries.
After last week’s 22-6 win at East Knox, Mount Gilead embarks on a grueling three-game stretch that includes road trips to Northmor and Danville. Running back Garret George ranks third in the KMAC with 788 rushing yards and nine touchdowns on 111 carries, while quarterback Matt Bland has rushed for 725 yards and seven TDs and thrown for 571 yards and five scores. Bland returned an interception for a touchdown in last week’s win at East Knox and has three picks on the year. Judah Reid leads the league with 7.5 sacks.
Fredericktown (4-2, 2-1) at Loudonville (2-4, 0-3): The Freddies held on for a 22-15 win over Northmor last week as Teegan Ruhl rushed for 148 yards on 30 carries. Ruhl is the KMAC’s top rusher with 1,009 yards and 11 touchdowns on 104 carries. Quarterback Ben Mast tossed a 51 yard touchdown to Grant Hartley last week and has thrown for 364 yards and three TDs on the season. Mason Hoeflich ranks third in the KMAC with 58 tackles.
The Redbirds are still searching for their first KMAC win after last week’s 19-7 road loss at Danville. Quarterback Matt Sprang is one of the league’s top passers, completing 74 of 136 attempts for 972 yards and eight touchdowns. His favorite target is Zach Frankford, who has 28 catches for 355 yards and a touchdown. Aiden Wolford leads the Loudonville defense with 58 tackles, including five tackles for loss, and two interceptions. Micah Simpson has five sacks.
Wooster (3-3, 2-2) at Mount Vernon (1-5, 0-3): Nothing went right for the Generals in last week’s 48-6 loss to Ohio Cardinal Conference-leading West Holmes. Wooster trailed 41-0 at the half and 48-0 after three quarters. Quarterback Luke Snowbarger tossed a 1 yard touchdown pass to Michael Howman-Williams midway through the fourth quarter to avoid the shutout. Wooster has lost two straight OCC games and has dipped to 16th in the Division II, Region 7 computer ratings.
The Yellow Jackets were limited to 167 yards of offense in last week’s 44-6 loss to New Philadelphia. Quarterback Layne Kuhlman completed 15 of 27 passes for 96 yards, including a touchdown pass. Jonny Askew caught eight passes for 521 yards against the Quakers and has 25 catches for 261 yards and five touchdowns on the season.
