EDN WEEK 11 FOOTBALL PREVIEW: Cumberland looks to advance to quarterfinals
Nov. 4—GREENFIELD-PALMYRA NORTHWESTERN TIGERS at CUMBERLAND PIRATES
Records: Greenfield-Palmyra Northwestern (9-1, 5-0 Western Illinois Valley Conference); Cumberland (8-2, 7-0 Lincoln Prairie Conference)
When: Saturday, Nov. 5, 2022, at 2 p.m.
Where: Greenfield High School
Weather: 54 degrees and partly cloudy with a 20-mile-per-hour wind moving southwest.
Scouting the Tigers: Greenfield-Palmyra Northwestern is 9-1 with a 5-0 record in the Western Illinois Conference. The Tigers defeated Beardstown (40-14, Week 1), Concord Triopia-Meredosia-Chambersburg-Virginia (44-8, Week 2), White Hall North Greene (52-6, Week 3), Hardin Calhoun-Brussels (14-7, Week 4), Winchester-Bluffs (48-12, Week 5), Carrollton (34-0, Week 6), Pleasant Hill-Barry Western (42-0, Week 7), Mt. Sterling Brown County (54-6, Week 8), lost to Jacksonville Routt-Springfield Lutheran (20-34, Week 9), and defeated Hardin Calhoun-Brussels (38-7, Week 10). Junior Dylan Pembrook leads Greenfield-Palmyra Northwestern at quarterback. Pembrook has completed 71-of-108 passes for 1,180 yards with 15 touchdowns and four interceptions. His top target is sophomore Garrett Costello, who caught 21 passes for 370 yards and seven touchdowns. Costello, however, isn't the only receiver Pembrook targets. Junior Kohen Vetters has 18 catches for 290 yards and six touchdowns; junior Nathan Nord has 19 catches for 234 yards and three touchdowns; sophomore Talon Albrecht has seven catches for 144 yards and one touchdown; senior Brett Bilbruck has seven catches for 121 yards, and junior Griffin Roberts has 112 yards and one touchdown. Meanwhile, in the backfield, Vetters leads the Tigers with 112 carries for 830 yards and 11 touchdowns. Pembrook adds 579 yards on 73 carries and seven scores. Bilbruck has 512 yards on 68 carries and 10 touchdowns, and sophomore Caleb Albracht has 19 carries for 174 yards and one score.
Scouting the Pirates: Cumberland defeated Rushville-Industry, 34-8, in Week 10. Bryant Weber completed 9-of-11 passes for 129 yards and one touchdown. Trevin Magee caught five passes for 81 yards and one touchdown. Maddox McElravy caught two passes for 20 yards. Ross McBride caught one pass for six yards, and Blake McMechan caught one pass for 22 yards. McMechan was also the team's leading rusher. He finished with 93 yards rushing on nine carries and two touchdowns, while McBride had 64 rushing yards on six carries and two touchdowns.
On the Tigers: "They are a run-pass team, but they've got some skill kids that are good," Cumberland head coach Lucas Watkins said. " Their offensive line is solid, and they move well for their size, so we'll have our hands full from a defensive standpoint because they can throw the ball very well and run it.
"They run certain plays out of certain formations, so we're making sure we're getting aligned properly and recognizing the formations, and that's been our point of emphasis. We've also been reading our keys defensively."
Contact EDN Sports Editor Alex Wallner at 618-510-9231 or alex.wallner@effinghamdailynews.com.
