John Glenn's strong defense will look to shut down OSU QB commit Tavian St. Clair in Week 11

NEW CONCORD – John Glenn's calling card all season has been defense.

That defense got tested mightily last Friday on the road in Dresden in a 42-7 loss to a Scotties team that boasted a powerful offense led by a veteran, strong-armed quarterback.

The game started well, but as the Muskies failed to convert scoring opportunities, the home team started clicking and pulled away in the second half.

“Early in the first half, we had a couple of opportunities that we didn't capitalize on that might have changed the completion of the game,” John Glenn head coach Matt Edwards said. “But in the second half, they were clicking on all cylinders.

“I thought we did a nice job on their tailback and taking away (Ashton) Sensibaugh, but they had three or four other guys step up and have big nights. They have a bunch of playmakers.”

It's not the way Edwards and company wanted to back into the postseason, but the Muskies already locked a spot up prior to kickoff in Dresden. The game's result only factored into where JG would be headed come Week 11.

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Week 11 is here, and that defense is about to get a whole other level of tested.

John Glenn's loss dropped the Muskies to the No. 10 seed, meaning Friday they get to load up the buses and head two hours to the west — northwest of Columbus to be exact in Logan County — where they will face the No. 7 seeded Bellefontaine Chieftains

It's there that the home team's offense is ran by none other than Ohio State University commit Tavien St. Clair.

St. Clair threw for 230 yards and four TDs on 13 of 18 passing as the Chieftains rolled past Kenton Ridge, 42-7, to cap an 8-2 regular season.

If the Muskies defenders ever wondered what it'd be like, or how they'd stack up against a Power 5 Division-I level quarterback, they are about to get their chance.

“They are going to see up close what an OSU commit looks like,” Edwards said. “We had a string of five years where we made the postseason and that snapped last season. We've had a good season and put ourselves in position to play in Week 11.

“We get to play somebody new that we've never faced before and that's created some excitement at practice. We've played hard all year, and I expect them to do the same this week.”

Bellefontaine has some impressive wins, but Edwards was equally impressed with one of its losses, a 28-25 narrow defeat on the road at Division V state power Coldwater in Week 2. The other loss came against undefeated London, 36-6, at home on Sept. 22. The Red Riders are the No. 2 team in Region 11 as Bishop Watterson drew top honors with a 9-1 mark.

The fact that a team sporting an OSU-commit at quarterback is rated as far back as No. 7 speaks to the overall talent level, both individually, and team-wise, in the region.

“Region 11 is one of the toughest in the entire state, top to bottom,” Edward said. “Bellefontaine has a couple quality losses to Coldwater and London. They play a lot of big opponents.”

The Muskies will look to dance with what's brought them this far and that's a solid defense mixed with an effective ground game. The passing game, currently in the hands of either Owen Edwards or Jake Johnson following the injury to starter Noah Winland, takes flight just enough to keep defenses honest.

Lincoln Gilcher leads a three-prong rushing attack with 778 yards and nine touchdowns while Reese Metzger (365 and 5) and Ryder Rock (279) have seen their workloads increase after losing Winland from the rushing ranks as well.

Johnson was the team's leading receiver with 29 catches for 227 yards, with Joey Wentland, Lane Hall and Kobe Shade seeing their targets increase. Shade, Wentland, and Rock each own a touchdown reception, with team totaling five collectively.

While St. Clair is the big name for Bellefontaine's offense, Edwards knows his team can't sleep on the run and senior Christopher Fogan (5-11, 180 pounds). Fogan gives the Chieftains a sizable weapon with speed and power running out of primary gun formations.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Jeffersonian: John Glenn football excited to be back in OHSAA playoffs