Week 9 Preview Capsules: Mount Gilead getting sneak peak at playoff football
MOUNT GILEAD — For the first time in school history, Mount Gilead will play in the high school football playoffs.
The Indians earned the berth two weeks early, according to computer points tallying website JoeEitel.com, after its 36-9 victory at Northmor in Week 8, which gave them their most wins since 2008.
"Some of the media had already informed me and got it out, and I wasn’t going to keep it from the kids by any means, so I wanted to be the first one to show them," Mount Gilead coach Mike Reid said of their Saturday morning briefing with the team. "It was real quiet. They were real quiet. They had smiles on their faces and their eyes were really big, but they were really quiet.
"I don’t even know if they were familiar with Joe Eitel’s site to be honest. It was a really cool moment."
The Indians haven't experienced a chance to play the weekly playoff positioning watch game that crests toward Week 10. The last time they won five games in a season was 14 seasons ago. Their last winning season, with seven victories, came in 2004, but they never made the postseason until 2022.
"They’ve never been here before. They’re not really sure. I said, 'You’re allowed to enjoy this, guys. It’s going to feel different in the practices coming up. You’ve played yourself into a meaningful situation. I hope you have the time of your life,'" Reid said of his message to that quiet room on Saturday.
The playoffs are still two weeks away, but Mount Gilead will get a taste of what playoff football is like when it travels to Danville. MG still has slight Knox Morrow Athletic Conference championship hopes as do the Blue Devils.
Danville lost a first-place showdown with Centerburg last week 16-11 to fall to 6-2, 4-1, while Centerburg is in first place at 7-1, 5-0. Mount Gilead is right behind at 5-2, 3-2, so it needs to win-out and the Trojans need to lose their final two games to Northmor and Fredericktown, opponents that are both 5-3 overall, so it's possible.
"Danville is a playoff team. This is the type of team we’re going to see in the playoffs. It doesn’t get easier in the playoffs. These are challenges we want to have," Reid said. "When I sent the (preview) out to the media at the beginning of the year, I said I hope we will be playing meaningful games at the end of the season, and by golly that’s where the kids are."
Playing in the park on Tough Street with much on the line Friday night at Danville means the Indians will get the hostile environment that comes with early-round playoff games. It's a good primer for MG as it gets used to playing in intense matchups.
"People are surrounding the field giving you the what-for," Reid said with a laugh. "When we go over there and they start giving us the grief, we know that we are at least respectable now. Back in the old days when they knew they could whip up on you, it wasn’t that loud."
It's a different time in Mount Gilead for sure.
Here are some other games from around the area that will be played during Week 9 on Friday night:
Marion Harding at Ontario
Of the eight teams Marion Harding (0-8, 0-5) has faced this season, six of them are .500 or better. And with Ontario at 4-4, 1-4, make it 7 of 9 opponents with good records. Meanwhile, the Warriors snapped a four-game losing streak and earned their first Mid Ohio Athletic Conference victory of the season with a late-game comeback at Pleasant last week 31-20. Ontario still has postseason hopes in Division III, while the Presidents were eliminated from playoff contention in Week 8 in Division II.
Pleasant at Galion
After beating Shelby and Ontario, Galion fell to Highland 35-21 last week. Nevertheless, expect the Tigers to have the eye of the Tiger as they control their own destiny when it comes to the postseason in Division IV. Pleasant (1-7, 0-5) saw its string of six straight playoff appearances snapped as the Spartans are mathematically eliminated with two weeks to go in the regular season.
Elgin at Upper Scioto Valley
Despite a 6-2 mark and being the second-best team in the Northwest Central Conference at 4-1, Upper Scioto Valley does not control its own destiny in its Division VII region. The same goes for the Comets (4-4, 3-2) as they sit 16th and in the final qualifying spot in Division VI's Region 23. An upset of USV should propel Elgin into Week 11, but the Rams are equally motivated, plus feature one of the most explosive offenses in northwest Ohio.
Ridgedale at Waynesfield-Goshen
The Tigers (8-0, 5-0) have already clinched a playoff berth and will be looking to sew up an NWCC championship Friday night, so don't expect a letdown from the home team. Ridgedale is 2-6, 1-4, and coming off a 56-6 loss to USV.
Cardington at Fredericktown
The Pirates are 1-7, 0-5 but have yet to be mathematically eliminated in Division VI. Fredericktown (5-3, 3-2) has an outside shot at the KMAC trophy and a chance at a playoff spot in Division V, so the Freddies should be fired up Friday night at home.
Northmor at Centerburg
Mount Gilead, Danville and Fredericktown will all be fans of the Golden Knights as they go to the league leaders in hopes of pulling off the upset. Northmor (5-3, 2-3) can run its streak of playoff appearances to six in a row, so it has something to play for, while the Trojans (7-1, 5-0) can clinch at least a piece of the KMAC and solidify a home game in Week 11 with a victory. There are a lot of spoils to go around in this one.
North Union at Indian Lake
The Wildcats (6-2, 2-1) slipped on a banana peel last week in losing 39-33 to Graham (4-4, 2-1). That said, North Union still controls its destiny in terms of the Central Buckeye Conference's Mad River Division as a Week 10 game at No. 1 Urbana is on the horizon. As for the Division V playoff scene in Region 18, NU tumbled to 14th, and it does not control its own destiny, although winning out should gain it a berth. Indian Lake is 1-7, 1-2, snapping its seven-game losing streak with a 35-7 win over Northwestern (1-7, 0-3) In Week 8.
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This article originally appeared on Marion Star: Week 9 Preview Capsules: MG getting sneak peak at playoff football
