Garaway football continues its march through the OHSAA playoffs

Garaway’s strong march through the Division VI football playoffs continues Friday night when the Pirates play Northmor in a Region 23 semifinal game at Heath High School’s Swank Field at 7 p.m.

To say the Pirates, outright champions of the Inter Valley Conference South Division, have been impressive would be an understatement. They have dominated teams on both sides of the football, both in the regular season and through the first two weeks of the postseason.

“This is our fifth year in a row in the regional semifinals, and we talk about getting over that hump but the (previous) experience is definitely priceless,” said Garaway head football coach Jason Wallick. “We had some key kids back on both sides of the ball, and those guys have been our leaders all year long and have gotten us back here to the regional semifinal, and hopefully can push us over the top.”

The Pirates (12-0) are coming off a 49-7 home playoff romp over East Knox last Friday night.

“Our offensive and defensive lines really controlled that game,” said Wallick from last week’s one-sided win. “We were able to control the trenches and run the ball, and defensively, our defensive line and two outside linebackers were just all over the field.”

Garaway’s third-round playoff opponent Northmor is 10-2 on the season. The Golden Knights are members of the Knox Morrow Athletic Conference. Danville, which is 12-0 and still in the playoffs, won the title in that league this fall, while Northmor finished as league runner-up. Other members of that conference include Cardington-Lincoln, Fredericktown, Mount Gilead, Centerburg and East Knox, who the Pirates whipped in the playoffs last Friday.

Northmor football: Trust between quarterback, receivers built over 10 years

Like Garaway, Northmor has a quarterback that has thrown for over 2,000 yards and a running back that has rushed for 1,000 yards. The Golden Knights’ signal-caller is junior AJ Bower, who is averaging over 200 yards and three touchdowns per game passing. His top receiver is junior Jax Wenger, who is averaging four receptions per contest. Meanwhile, sophomore running back Carson Campbell is averaging 100 yards per game on the ground.

“They (the Golden Knights) are really, really athletic,” Wallick said. “They’ve got three really nice wide receivers and a quarterback that can sling it all over the place. They’ll try to establish the run, but they’re definitely a pass-first team. Then, defensively they’re a 40 with two really quick defensive ends and two big pluggers in the middle, so it will be a challenge to run the ball on them as well.”

Northmor’s two losses this season came to Danville, which defeated the Golden Knights 43-21 in Week 5 of the season. Its remaining loss came at the hands of a 5-6 Mapleton team (40-33) in Week 3 of the campaign.

Meanwhile, Garaway, which has outscored its first two playoff foes, 94-14, blends a perfect balance between the run and pass on offense.

Junior signal-caller Brady Geibel (6-4, 195) is averaging just under 200 yards passing per game, while his top receivers include senior Jenson Garber, averaging five receptions per game and senior Wyatt Wallick who is averaging two receptions per contest.

Meet the team: A list of the Full East District Football squad

On the ground, the Pirates continue to be led by senior Dillon Soehnlen who is averaging 100 yards per game.

“We’ve been (consistent) in all three phases of the game,” Wallick said. “Offensively we’ve been able to get into the flow and be efficient. We’ve been able to mix in the run and pass, and it makes it hard to game plan for when you can do both as well as we have the last two weeks.”

On defense, a staple of Garaway’s traditional success, the leading tacklers on the team are senior linebackers Wyatt Wallick and Ethan Kimble and senior safety Payton Keller.

“Defensively, knock on wood, we haven’t given up the big play to spark another team,” said Wallick. “Overall, we’ve played very well defensively. I think we’ve only given up four or five touchdowns all year with our first group. Those guys have really played well.”

Northmor advanced through the second round of the playoffs last week with a 31-6 win over a 6-5 Trimble team.

Wallick was asked about the key to winning Friday?

“Not giving up the big play,” said the Garaway mentor. “Their quarterback really likes to chuck it, so we have to be sure tacklers and give ourselves somewhere to stand. That will be a huge key for us — not giving up the big play.”

Indian Valley vs. Steubenville

Indian Valley, which is the 13th seed in Division IV Region 15 playoffs, will play top-seeded Steubenville Friday night at St. Clairsville’s Red Devil Stadium at 7 p.m.

Indian Valley, which is the highest remaining seed left in the entire tournament in any division, has upended two teams ranked higher in road triumphs during the first two weeks of the postseason. The Braves defeated fourth-seeded Logan Elm 48-27 in their playoff opener two weeks ago followed by a 34-14 romp over third-seeded Columbus Bishop Hartley last Friday.

The Braves are 9-3 on the season while Steubenville is 11-1, with its lone loss occurring in a 36-28 loss in its season opener back in August to unbeaten Youngstown Ursuline at Youngstown State’s Stambaugh Stadium.

The Braves have been led all season by senior quarterback Sam Carter, who is averaging 116 yards per game through the air, sophomore running back Grady Kinsey, averaging 100 yards per game on the ground and senior running back/receiver Kolton Thomas who is averaging 40 yards per game on the ground to go along with five receptions per-contest.

On defense, the Braves are led by senior Quake Beatty with 10 tackles per game and Kinsey, averaging nine stops per-contest.

Steubenville, which loves to pound the football with its strong running game, is led by running back Savier Faulks who rushed for 190 yards and two touchdowns in Big Red’s 50-26 playoff win over Licking Valley last weekend, while quarterback Ayden Manning threw for 252 yards and three aerial scores.

Indian Valley checks in to Week 13 averaging 34.8 points-per-game on offense and giving up 15.5 ppg.

By comparison, Big Red is averaging 35 points-per-game and giving up 14.9 ppg.

Indian Valley and Steubenville are meeting in the playoffs for the second consecutive season. Last fall, Big Red ousted the Braves from the tournament with a 41-7 win in a regional final.

Friday’s game marks the third time the two schools have played in the football playoffs. Steubenville leads the series, 2-0.

West Holmes vs. Sandusky Perkins

West Holmes will likely be facing the toughest team on its schedule Friday night when the Knights play the Sandusky Perkins Pirates in a Division IV Region 14 semifinal playoff game at Marion Harding Stadium at 7 p.m.

West Holmes (10-2) is the fourth seed in the Division IV Region 14 playoffs, while Perkins (11-0) is the top-seeded team in the region.

The Knights are coming off a 22-19 second-round playoff win over the Galion Tigers last Friday, while Perkins also had a close win, turning back St. Marys Memorial 28-21 to advance to the third round.

West Holmes is led on offense by its dual threat quarterback Morgan Smith.

Sandusky Perkins is paced by senior quarterback Logan Lesch, who is averaging 231 yards and three touchdowns per game passing and junior running back Isaac Bunts, who is averaging 143 yards and two touchdowns per contest.

Perkins, which won the Sandusky Bay Conference this season, is averaging 49.1 points-per-game, one of the top scoring averages in the state. Meanwhile, its defense is surrendering 12,7 ppg.

The Pirates’ wins this season have been recorded against Toledo Woodward (81-0), Elyria Catholic (62-19), Rocky River (59-28), Bellevue (49-0), Clyde (31-7), Edison (49-14), Norwalk (52-3), Sandusky (31-14), Tiffin Columbian (55-28), Vermilion (44-6 in the first round of the playoffs) and St. Marys Memorial (28-21 in the second round of the playoffs).

West Holmes, which finished second to champion Mansfield Senior in the Ohio Cardinal Conference, also features an explosive offense. Heading into Week 13, the Knights are averaging 40.2 points-per-game and giving up 25.1 ppg.

Friday’s game marks the first time West Holmes and Sandusky Perkins have played in football.

This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Garaway football continues its march through the OHSAA playoffs