Divisions IV-V OHSAA football previews: Ready getting ready for Indian Valley
During its Division IV, Region 15 quarterfinal win, Ready built a 10-point lead by halftime and kept enough distance between itself and top-seeded St. Clairsville to come away with a 24-21 upset Nov. 4.
The ninth-seeded Silver Knights have built on strong starts throughout their current six-game winning streak, which has them in a regional semifinal against fourth-seeded Gnadenhutten Indian Valley on Nov. 12 at White Field in Newark.
The winner faces second-seeded Steubenville or third-seeded Columbus East in the regional final Nov. 19 at a neutral site.
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“We’re playing really solidly,” said Ready senior quarterback Kaleb Schaffer, whose team improved to 8-3 with its regional quarterfinal victory. “We’ve gotten a lot of wins in a row and momentum is really helping us going forward. We’re confident but we’re not cocky, which is a really good thing.”
Ready was supposed to open its season at White Field on Aug. 20, but its game against Newark Catholic was canceled because of bad weather.
While this is the Knights’ third consecutive postseason, Indian Valley is in for the sixth year in a row but has won multiple playoff games for the first time during that stretch.
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The Braves are 9-3 and have won five in a row, including a 35-14 victory over fifth-seeded Gallipolis Gallia Academy on Nov. 4 in a regional quarterfinal.
“We’ve been getting better, which is the goal,” Ready coach Michael Schaefer said. “Win, lose, have a great practice, have a bad practice − you always want to keep getting better and that’s the thing the kids have bought into, and it’s just been a little of everything in terms of communicating.”
Schaffer passed for 73 yards against St. Clairsville to complement a running game that has been Ready’s strength since it lost three of its first five games.
Kentrell Rinehart ran for 141 yards and one touchdown on 17 carries, Brian Fitzsimmons had 93 yards on 19 carries and Anthony Campbell added nine rushes for 61 yards and two scores.
For the season, Fitzsimmons has 1,227 yards and 19 touchdowns, while Rinehart has 851 yards and 17 touchdowns.
“There’s a rhythm that goes with things, and our offensive line has really become one of the strengths to the team,” Schaefer said. “(Offensive line coach) Dan Bjelac has done a good job and they’ve all gotten better.”
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Indian Valley also likes to run the ball, as the Braves rushed for 200 yards during the first half against Gallia Academy while building a 28-0 lead.
Freshman Grady Kinsey has 1,002 yards and 11 touchdowns and senior Gavin Henry has 993 yards and 17 touchdowns to lead Indian Valley’s offense.
Junior Kolton Thomas has 29 receptions and also sees time as a wildcat quarterback.
Defensively for Ready against St. Clairsville, the Knights got big games from defensive backs Preston Tirey (interception, 8.5 tackles), Luke Whitmer (interception) and Kasen Abbott (8 tackles).
“(Indian Valley is) really well-coached from what we’ve seen on film,” Schaefer said. “They’ve got a really stout defense and were up (28-0) on Gallia Academy at halftime. They’ve got really athletic skilled kids offensively, and No. 7 (Thomas) jumps off the film, a really special athlete. They’ll throw it enough that you have to respect it.”
No. 3 Columbus East vs. No. 2 Steubenville
After giving up an average of just 11.9 points through its first 10 games, East proved it also can win in a shootout during the quarterfinal round of the Division IV, Region 15 playoffs.
The Tigers, who are in the playoffs for just the third time and had never won a postseason game before this season, survived two overtimes to defeat 11th-seeded Cambridge 40-39 on Nov. 4.
The win advanced East into a matchup Nov. 12 at New Philadelphia against Steubenville, which is 10-2 and coming off a 31-0 drubbing of 10th-seeded Hartley.
“(The win over Cambridge) was an instant classic,” coach Mike Bell said. “There were so many highs and lows. It was epic, one for the ages, and it was standing-room only for our side.”
It will be the first meeting between the programs, with the winner to face fourth-seeded Gnadenhutten Indian Valley or ninth-seeded Ready on Nov. 19 for the regional title.
Against Cambridge, Wayne Lindsay III rushed 24 times for 98 yards and Taizaun Burns had 88 yards on 23 carries.
Burns ran for a 2-yard touchdown in the second overtime and East went for two, with Burns catching a pass from Lindsay for the victory.
Burns has run for nearly 1,400 yards on the season and has scored 28 touchdowns. He also returned an interception for a score against Cambridge.
Steubenville limited Hartley to 95 yards of offense and posted its third shutout of the season.
The Big Red is making its 22nd consecutive playoff appearance and has won three state titles during that time, with the last coming in 2017.
Against Hartley, Steubenville finished with 224 yards of offense as running back Savier Falks rushed for 103 yards.
“They’re real physical and strong up front, and they run that ball and pound it,” Bell said. “They’ve got a super physical front line. We’ll need to get some stops. We’re going to have to win on first down, and we’re going to have to be physical for four quarters.
“We’ll have to compete at a high level. We’ve heard a lot of about them and we’re excited for the opportunity to compete against a known program like they’ve got.”
Division V
No. 2 Harvest Prep vs. No. 6 Wheelersburg
When these teams met last season, the Division V, Region 19 championship was on the line and Harvest Prep trailed by 10 at halftime.
The Warriors, who rallied to beat the Pirates 20-17 and went on to lose in a state semifinal, are preparing for a rematch Nov. 11 at Nelsonville-York. The winner meets top-seeded Ironton or fifth-seeded Portsmouth West on Nov. 18 for the regional title.
“This is what we expected,” said Harvest Prep junior running back Marchello Cox, whose team breezed through its first two playoff games to improve to 12-0. “We’re glad we finally get to go up against some more competition now. We’re going to fix our mistakes and work toward (a tough matchup).”
While Harvest Prep is coming off a 47-16 win over 10th-seeded Zanesville West Muskingum in a regional quarterfinal, Wheelersburg dropped previously unbeaten and third-seeded Barnesville 55-31 to improve to 9-3.
Against West Muskingum, Harvest Prep quarterback Aidan Rogers rushed for 59 yards and three touchdowns and completed 16 of 21 passes for 315 yards and two scores. Cox had 80 yards and one touchdown rushing, and Chris Brown had three catches for 114 yards, including a 71-yard score.
Cox, who has seen some action at slot receiver, has 830 yards and eight touchdowns rushing on the season, while Rogers has thrown for 2,176 yards with 23 touchdowns.
Wheelersburg also has returned its quarterback from last season in Eli Jones, but he has thrown for just 797 yards and seven touchdowns while rushing for nine scores.
Against Barnesville, running back Derrick Lattimore ran for 236 yards and three touchdowns.
“Mostly (running the ball) is what they do, like last year,” Cox said. “I know they’ve got a couple returning players. We just need to work on a couple of our mistakes, but our mindset is right.”
julrey@thisweeknews.com
@UlreyThisWeek
This article originally appeared on ThisWeek: Ohio high school football playoff regional semifinal preview
