5 storylines to watch for Week 5 of high school football in SW Indiana
EVANSVILLE — We're as close to the high school football playoffs starting in Southwestern Indiana as we are to the beginning of the season.
Welcome to Week 5, the defacto midpoint considering everyone is guaranteed 10 games. There are some massive showdowns on deck this Friday, including a matchup of two undefeated teams. This week's slate also features two of the best teams locally in Class 3A and we should see the conference title pictures become clearer, too.
Let's dive into a few storylines to follow heading into Week 5.
High school football in SW Indiana: Complete coverage from the 2023 season
Who remains undefeated: North Posey or Heritage Hills?
One of the most highly anticipated games all season in Southwestern Indiana will be played on Friday night.
The Class 2A No. 6 Vikings and Class 3A No. 3 Patriots, both sitting with unblemished records, boast some of the area's best offenses. North Posey's 159 points scored are the most in the Pocket Athletic Conference Small School Division, while Heritage Hills' 179 points leads the entire Courier & Press coverage area.
The two teams are also similar to each other when it comes to running the football. Heritage Hills' Braydon Durham, Jett Goldsberry and Hunter Meredith have combined for 853 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns. North Posey senior quarterback Liam Stone, who had 20 rushing touchdowns last year, already had eight scores on the ground the first three games of this season.
Two of the last three Heritage Hills-North Posey matchups were decided in double-overtime. The Vikings won last year's matchup 33-26 after the Patriots won the previous four contests. In those four games, Heritage Hills outscored North Posey 185-55.
Something has to give this week.
Fellow unbeatens Memorial, Reitz continue to thrive on defense
It's tough scoring against the two teams atop the SIAC standings as they boast top-five defenses in Class 4A.
Reitz only has allowed 21 points, the program's second-fewest in the first four games since 1986. Meanwhile, Memorial's 19 points allowed — the best in the SIAC — is the program's fewest at this point of the season since 1961.
These teams stifle opposing offenses because their tackling has been solid. Memorial junior Alex Broshears (43 tackles, six TFLs) and Reitz senior Ayden Wells (42 tackles, four TFLs) are near the top of the SIAC leaderboard. Reitz's AJ Coates and Calab Utley are inside the top five in sacks with three. Memorial's Jason Lowery and Reitz's Xavier Burris are SIAC co-leaders in interceptions with two.
The Tigers and the Panthers could continue their momentum on defense when facing winless Harrison and Central, respectively, this week. The Warriors and the Bears have combined for 43 points on offense so far this season. As a comparison, Reitz scored 45 points when it defeated Harrison in its opener.
The key to a perfect month for Reitz? Defense has stepped up each week
Southridge-Gibson Southern should be another fun area matchup
While Friday won't impact either of the PAC's division races, it's usually one of the most competitive games every fall.
Southridge's defense, led by junior Blake Taylor (24 tackles, one sack) and senior Yamil Arroyo (22 tackles, eight TFLs, three sacks), is returning to form after losing to Heritage Hills. The Raiders (3-1) shut out opponents in back-to-back games since the loss and limited Pike Central offensively in their 49-12 victory last week.
Gibson Southern is 2-2 for the first time since 2020, and the rest of its games will be played in Indiana this year after going 1-2 against out-of-state foes. The Titans also have star players across the board, from Tanner Boyd (999 total yards, 11 total touchdowns) to Beau and Jack Rose (91 combined tackles, 10 TFLs) and Brody Klem (20 tackles, seven TFLs).
The Titans have been successful against Southridge in Nick Hart's tenure, winning nine of the last 12 games. The Raiders' last win in Fort Branch was in 2012.
Castle-Vincennes Lincoln could be the best game in the SIAC this week
This is the only conference game this week featuring a pair of teams with winning records.
Castle and Vincennes, both 3-1, are a game out of first place thanks to solid running games — Castle junior Max McCool (376 yards, seven touchdowns) is one of his conference's top rushers. Whoever wins will be in an excellent spot in the SIAC standings heading into the back half of the season.
The Knights have won all three meetings against Vincennes since its return to the SIAC, averaging over 33 points per contest. The closest contest happened last year at John Lidy Field as Castle won 35-21. McCool ran for 166 yards and a touchdown in the victory.
After losing in Week 1, Mount Vernon has been on a roll
Things are looking up for the Wildcats now that we've reached the midway point.
They made their debut in the latest C&P power rankings after shutting out Washington 38-0 in their third straight road game. Seniors Nicot Burnett, Kortez Stewart and Jackson Clowers have impressed in their final years with the program. Sophomore Nash Hostetter is also emerging as one of Mount Vernon's top wideouts.
Mount Vernon is tied for first place in the PAC Big School Division with Heritage Hills and Gibson Southern. It has a chance to win its fourth-straight game this week at home against Forest Park. The Wildcats won the previous three meetings against the Rangers (3-1) and scored 90 points in the last two.
Courier & Press sports reporter Treasure Washington can be reached via her email, treasure.washington@courierpress.com, and on X, formerly known as Twitter, @Twashington490.
Week 5 Evansville-area high school football schedule
Castle (3-1) at Vincennes Lincoln (3-1), 6:30 p.m.
Bosse (1-3) at North (2-2), 6:30 p.m.
Harrison (0-4) at Memorial (4-0), 6:30 p.m.
Reitz (4-0) at Central (0-4), 6:30 p.m.
Jasper (2-2) at Mater Dei (1-3), 6:30 p.m.
Boonville (2-2) at Linton-Stockton (3-1), 7 p.m.
Forest Park (3-1) at Mount Vernon (3-1), 6:30 p.m.
Hancock County [KY] (3-1) at Tell City (2-2), 7 p.m.
North Posey (4-0) at Heritage Hills (4-0), 7 p.m.
Perry Central (1-3) at Tecumseh (0-4), 7 p.m.
South Spencer (1-3) at Pike Central (1-3), 6:30 p.m.
Southridge (3-1) at Gibson Southern (2-2), 6:30 p.m.
Washington (1-3) at Princeton (0-4), 6:30 p.m.
This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: 5 storylines to watch for Week 5 of Evansville-area football
