DANVILLE — It’s Devil-Dog Week.
Danville will host arch-rival East Knox on Friday with the Knox Morrow Athletic Conference championship on the line.
The unbeaten Blue Devils would claim the conference crown outright with a win. The Bulldogs would grab a share of the title with a victory.
Danville snapped a four-game losing streak last year, beating East Knox 42-21 in the regular season finale. The Blue Devils used the win as a springboard, advancing to the Division VII, Region 25 championship game before falling to Warren JFK.
Before last year, East Knox had won four in a row. That stretch included a 41-7 victory in 2019, the year the Bulldogs won a regional championship and reached the Division VI state semifinals.
Danville has dominated the rivalry in the 2000s. The Blue Devils won 12 in a row from 2006 to 2017 and are 18-5 since 2000.
East Knox (6-3, 5-1) at Danville (9-0, 6-0): The Bulldogs tuned up for the annual grudge match against Danville with a 42-28 win over Loudonville. Running back Blake Elliott leads the Knox Morrow Athletic Conference in rushing with 1,099 yards and 14 touchdowns on 142 carries. Quarterback Jax Lester has completed 75-of-143 passes for 995 yards and 11 touchdowns. Bracen Davis leads the conference with 36 receptions and ranks third with 536 receiving yards and seven touchdowns. Defensively, Elliott ranks second in the KMAC with 113 tackles. Bryar Householder leads the league with 10 sacks.
The Blue Devils throttled Mount Gilead 53-20 last week. Running back Cole Delaughder has rushed for 1,086 yards and 18 touchdowns on 142 carries. Quarterback Walker Weckesser has completed 73-of-115 passes for 1,099 yards and 14 touchdowns and rushed for 517 yards and 11 TDs on 59 carries. Josh Byers leads the defense with 91 tackles. Caleb Lucas has 67 tackles, including 16 tackles for loss and seven sacks. Weckesser and Jacob Hackman each have four interceptions, while Kendall Carter and Bryer Boeshart have two picks apiece.
Centerburg (4-5, 3-3) at Fredericktown (4-5, 3-3): The Trojans are 18th in the Division V, Region 19 rankings and need a win and some help to secure a playoff bid. Centerburg has lost two in a row, including last week’s 48-7 setback at Northmor. Quarterback Jesse Rings is another of the Knox Morrow Athletic Conference’s talented dual-threat signal callers. Rings has rushed for a team-high 479 yards and five touchdowns on 124 carries and completed 82-of-160 passes for 861 yards and nine TDs. Mason Turske has 21 catches for 313 yards and three touchdowns. Defensively, Rings is tied for second in the KMAC with five interceptions.
The Freddies are clinging to the 15th spot in the Division V, Region 18 rankings and are coming off a 38-16 win at Cardington. Quarterback Blake Sipes has accounted for more than 1,600 yards of total offense, rushing for 754 yards and five touchdowns and throwing for 869 yards and 10 TDs. Grant Hartley had a team9high 19 receptions for 381 yards and four touchdowns and leads the team with three interceptions on defense. Cirk Parker and Lane Warner rank among KMAC leaders with 87 and 86.5 tackles, respectively.
Mount Vernon (2-7, 1-5) at West Holmes (7-2, 5-1): The Yellow Jackets have been shut out the past two weeks, including a 31-0 home loss to Ohio Cardinal Conference-leading Mansfield Senior last week. Jonny Askew rushed for 62 yards on 11 carries against the Tygers, while quarterback Jake Taylor completed 10-of-14 passes for 57 yards. Hayden Higgins caught two passes for 40 yards. Luke Mullins led the defense with eight tackles.
The Knights stunned New Philadelphia 9-8 last week as quarterback Morgan Smith orchestrated a 17-play game-winning drive and threw a touchdown pass to Nate Fair as time expired. Smith completed 17-of-28 passes for 207 yards and rushed for 153 yards on 17 carries.