What to watch in Week 8: Sectional draw storylines to track, players to watch, future schedules
With the sectional draw coming Sunday, we look ahead to some of the more intriguing storylines, players to watch in the big games Friday night in Week 8 and offer some exciting scheduling news for future seasons:
Sectional draw storylines
The high school football sectional draw is set for 6 p.m. Sunday. While this is obviously a highlight for all teams, its importance is based on the overall strength of the sectional. Here are 10 sectional draws involving local teams that are worth watching:
Ben Davis-Brownsburg
Keep in mind Class 6A and 5A teams get a bye the first week of the tournament so there are no games in those classes the week of Oct. 20. But the draw will tell us if we get the much-anticipated No. 1 Brownsburg (7-0) vs. No. 3 Ben Davis (6-1) showdown in the sectional semifinal or championship. The other two teams in the sectional (Avon and Pike) have one win between them so it seems inevitable this game will happen, it’s just a matter of when (Oct. 27 or Nov. 3).
Adding to the intrigue is that the Giants and Bulldogs did not meet in the regular season. Brownsburg defeated Ben Davis in the sectional last year for its first tournament win over the Giants in six meetings.
Mudsock Part II?
Class 6A No. 5 Hamilton Southeastern (6-1) and No. 7 Fishers (5-2) are in a four-team Sectional 3 grouping with Homestead (3-4) and Fort Wayne Northrop (0-7), so a rematch of the Mudsock game – a 35-34 overtime win for HSE in Week 4 – seems like a done deal.
You could make a good argument that the winner of Sectional 3 also becomes the favorite to make it from the north side of the 6A bracket to Lucas Oil Stadium for the state finals, though sixth-ranked Westfield (6-1) in Sectional 4 also has a case.
Cathedral-Lawrence North matchup?
Sectional 6 is increasingly looking like it could come down to No. 8 Cathedral (5-2) vs. Lawrence North (5-2). It would be a potential rematch of last year’s 44-35 Irish win in the sectional semifinal. Both teams probably will want to draw North Central (0-7) instead of Lawrence Central (3-4), a dangerous team that can put up some big offensive numbers.
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Class 5A south
Last year, Whiteland emerged as the Class 5A representative from the south half of the bracket, losing 35-31 to Valparaiso in a state finals classic. Could a local team make it again?
Whiteland is still lurking in Sectional 14, but the Warriors are 3-4 and not as strong as a year ago. Terre Haute South (3-4) and Franklin (4-3) (the latter knocked off Whiteland 22-21 in Week 4) will make it difficult for the Warriors to get out of the sectional.
A more likely possibility could be that the Sectional 13 winner emerges as the 5A south favorite. There are three top-10 teams in that group: No. 5 Lafayette Harrison (6-1), No. 6 Plainfield (6-1) and No. 8 Decatur Central (5-2). The Quakers beat Harrison 15-14 in Week 2 and lost 26-23 to Decatur Central in Week 6. McCutcheon (4-3) is also a good team in the four-team field.
Sectionals 21 and 22 in 4A
Both eight-team sectional groups in Class 4A are loaded with local contenders, though the route through the tournament will most likely lead defending champion and No. 1 East Central (7-0).
In Sectional 21, the draw will be important. Brebeuf Jesuit (3-3) is a slight favorite, but this sectional with no ranked teams also has Roncalli (3-4), Mooresville (3-4), Northview (5-2) and Lebanon (3-4), along with improved Crispus Attucks (6-1). Brebeuf is the favorite based on its 39-23 win over Roncalli two weeks ago.
Sectional 22 is the Hoosier Heritage Conference bracket with No. 5 New Palestine (5-2), No. 7 Greenfield-Central (6-1), Pendleton Heights (5-2) and Mt. Vernon (3-4) making this a top-heavy eight-team field. New Pal is 3-0 against that group, but the draw will be interesting, especially if the Dragons draw Greenfield-Central in the first round.
LOADED Sectional 28
Bishop Chatard, at 7-0 and ranked No. 1 in Class 3A, is the favorite to repeat. But amazingly, three of the other teams ranked in the top-5 in 3A are also in Sectional 28: No. 3 Guerin Catholic (5-2), No. 4 Hamilton Heights (7-0) and No. 5 Tippecanoe Valley (7-0). And Peru (7-0) is ranked No. 9.
Yeesh. Obviously, no one wants to see Chatard opposite them Sunday night, but there is nowhere to hide. There is not a lot of familiarity in this eight-team group, though Chatard beat Guerin Catholic 13-7 in overtime two weeks ago.
Sagamore showdown
Class 3A Sectional 29 is traditionally a Sagamore Conference showdown, though last year Monrovia of the Indiana Crossroads emerged after upsetting Danville in the sectional championship. Can the Bulldogs (5-2) do it again?
No. 8 Tri-West (6-1) is probably the favorite after beating Western Boone (5-2) and Danville (5-2) in the regular season. But rematches are common here and don’t always turn out like the regular season games.
Triton Central’s path
Triton Central (6-1) is the new No. 1 team in Class 2A, though that designation has bounced around so much you wonder if the Tigers should even want it.
The interesting thing about Sectional 39 is that No. 3 Brownstown Central (6-1) is also in the eight-team field. Scecina (4-3) is the other team that has a fighting chance in Sectional 39, though Triton Central beat the Crusaders 38-14 last week.
Park Tudor in Class A
Can No. 5 Park Tudor (7-0) win a sectional for the second consecutive year? The Panthers are probably the favorite in Class A Sectional 42 with North Vermillion (5-2) and Clinton Prairie (5-2) as potential contenders. Park Tudor could potentially contend for a regional title.
Can anyone stop Lutheran?
Two-time defending Class A state champion Lutheran (7-0) is an overwhelming favorite to win a third consecutive title. The Saints are part of the seven-team Sectional 47, where the toughest challengers are No. 6 South Putnam (6-1) and Covenant Christian (3-3).
But I don’t see anyone beating Lutheran. I’m not sure the Saints need to watch the sectional draw. Just bring it on.
Five players to watch in Week 8
Five players to watch this week in Central Indiana’s biggest games:
Aiden Brewer, Noblesville: The junior tight end is a big-time threat for Noblesville in the passing game (15 catches, 282 yards, two TDs). The Millers will need to control the ball and find Brewer a few times against 6A top-ranked Brownsburg.
Cannon Brunes, Western Boone: The senior has been a four-year star for the Stars. He leads Western Boone on defense (85 tackles, 20 for loss) and offense (538 rushing yards, eight TDs) going into a matchup with Danville.
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Davion Chandler, Lawrence North: The junior receiver has come through as the Wildcats’ big-play receiver (27 catches, 571 yards, seven TDs). The Wildcats will need him to make a few against Center Grove.
Toby Savina, Cascade: The sophomore has a team-leading 737 rushing yards and 12 rushing TDs going into the Cadets’ matchup with Monrovia.
Mikeah Webster, Westfield: The Westfield defense will be tested by Fishers and running back Khobie Martin. Webster, a junior, leads the Shamrocks with 78 tackles.
Good news on future schedules
I have probably become unnecessarily argumentative against scheduling out-of-state opponents. They are not all bad games to schedule (Louisville Trinity, Cincinnati Moeller are good ones, obviously), but the 6A powers are just playing way too many of them this season for my taste, especially when there are perfectly good rivalry games out there.
So, some good news to share on that front: Carmel, which played three out-of-state opponents in the first four weeks, will start a new series with Westfield next season in Week 2 and has a Week 1 series beginning at Fishers in 2025. Games against former Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference rivals against North Central, Ben Davis, Warren Central and Lawrence Central are remaining on the schedule and there are plans to add Cathedral back to the schedule in 2025 or ’27.
While reupping the Copper Kettle series with Center Grove does not appear imminent, games against Fishers and Westfield are guaranteed to bring big gates and become meaningful northside rivalries.
Center Grove has Ben Davis coming back on the schedule for Week 4 of next season and Cathedral moving from Week 9 to Week 7. Carroll, a rising power in Fort Wayne that the Trojans saw in last year’s state finals, come to Center Grove for Week 2.
Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriep at (317) 444-6649.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Week 8: Sectional draw storylines, players to watch, future schedules
