Week 10 Football Capsules: Elgin facing Hardin Northern on rare Thursday night encounter
MARION — The football official shortage has come home to Week 10.
Elgin will travel to Hardin Northern at 6 p.m. Thursday to wrap up the regular season in the Northwest Central Conference instead of playing on Friday night as is tradition.
"When we tried to schedule officials at the beginning of the year, there was no availability for Friday," Elgin coach Zack Winslow said. "They did in Week 2 or 3; they found an official group that was open, but they were from far northeast Ohio. They were trying to talk them into more money, so it ended up not working out."
So instead of Friday night lights, it will be Thursday night lights in Dola for the Comets and Polar Bears.
Look back at all of 2023 football: High School Football in Marion: Complete coverage of the 2023 season
What's at stake in Week 10 for the Comets?
The Comets can't catch Waynesfield-Goshen for an NWCC title at 7-2, 6-2, and neither can Hardin Northern at 6-3, 6-2. Elgin has already solidified its spot in the playoffs in Division VI's Region 23 and can finish anywhere from the fifth seed to the 13th in the 16-team bracket, according to Drew Pasteur's Fantastic 50 playoff site. The Polar Bears likely must win to get into the Division VII, Region 26 field, says JoeEitel.com, the high school football playoff points site.
"There’s nothing to not be motivated about," Winslow said of their approach to Thursday night. "We’re pretty much playing for a home playoff game. Hardin Northern has been a spoiler for us the last two years. The games were kind of close and could have gone either way, and they found a way to come out on top both times the last two years. The seniors haven’t forgot that.
"It’s Week 10, and they want to end the season 8-2. They have plenty of things to keep them motivated, I think."
More Elgin football: Meet Elgin football's Energizer Bunny: Quentin Harrison wins August Fahey Bank Award
Scouting Hardin Northern
The Polar Bears use multiple formations out of the shotgun, but they want to establish the run foremost.
"They’re similar to us in that they just don’t rely on one guy," Winslow said. "They’ve got five or six guys who will push the ball and are pretty decent with the ball in their hands. The quarterback is a guy who can hurt you in the run and the pass. We’ve got to be really disciplined. Defensively they’re really aggressive and play multiple fronts."
Scouting Elgin
After stumbling in Weeks 7 and 8 at W-G and Upper Scioto Valley, the Comets righted themselves in a big way, toppling Perry 62-0 on Friday.
"Last week was definitely a get-right week for us, not to say anything negative about Perry because they had tons of athletes everywhere," Winslow said. "We played pretty efficiently and pretty clean. We did have one fumble, but it was a fumbled snap exchange. It wasn’t like a ball-carrier fumble, which is something we hit on after the last two weeks of having multiple turnovers."
Ridgedale at Perry
Scouting Ridgedale: The Rockets are enjoying their finest season in 20 years with a record of 5-4 overall and 4-4 in the NWCC ... Unfortunately they are in the toughest small-school region in the state and even with a win that puts them at 6-4, they still will not make the playoffs, according to JoeEitel.com ... Brayden Townsend might be the area's most productive two-way player as he's thrown for 1,550 yards and 14 touchdowns, plus has posted 53 tackles with 19 for loss and eight sacks on defense.
Scouting Perry: The Commodores (3-6, 3-5) are coming off a 62-0 drubbing at Elgin ... In common wins with Ridgedale, Perry beat Crestline 26-8 (Ridgedale won 41-0), North Baltimore 14-6 (Ridgedale won 37-15) and Cory-Rawson 41-24 (Ridgedale won 34-7).
Clear Fork at River Valley
Scouting Clear Fork: The Colts are 1-8 overall and 0-6 in the Mid Ohio Athletic Conference ... "They run the ball well, so anytime you’ve got a team that can maybe control the clock and keep the football away from us, it makes them a dangerous team," River Valley coach Matt Waddle said of the Colts. "The weather doesn’t look like it’s going to be promising, so that’s another factor for us. We have to make sure we take care of the ball and not turn it over."
Scouting River Valley: The Vikings are 4-5, 3-3 and have already clinched a spot in the Division IV, Region 14 playoffs ... River Valley will likely be anywhere from seventh to 12th in the playoffs ... "It’s business as usual. We can’t look ahead," Waddle said. "Clear Fork is 1-8 and we know they’re still going to play hard. They want to end their season on a positive note and have some momentum going into the offseason and into next year. We know it’s not going to be an easy game."
Pleasant at Shelby
Scouting Pleasant: The Spartans (6-3, 4-2) still have an outside shot at winning a piece of the MOAC championship ... They must beat Shelby, and Highland must beat Ontario to make it so ... The defense is coming off a shutout where they limited Marion Harding to just two first downs, negative rushing yards and less than 50 yards of total offense ... "Everyone came in pumped for the game and shut everyone out. Everyone was excited and flying around the entire time," Pleasant senior Nathen Wansik said. "It’s definitely a big momentum thing, and it’s going out there and playing hard every single play. It’s just shutting them out."
Scouting Shelby: The Whippets (7-2, 5-1) used trick plays to beat previously undefeated Ontario last week 37-31 ... Shelby has the most explosive offense in the MOAC, but Pleasant has been stingy on defense most of the season ... "It’s amazing and it goes back to the coaches. They get us prepared all week. We do our jobs, and everybody’s in their gap and good things happen," Pleasant junior Jace Trachtenberg said after the 36-0 win over Harding.
Galion at Marion Harding
Scouting Galion: The Tigers (6-3, 3-3) used the running of Gabe Ivy and Braxton Prosser to hold off River Valley 42-35 in Week 9 ... Galion has already clinched a playoff game and will likely host in the first week ... The Tigers last week snapped a skid of losses where they dropped three of their last four.
Scouting Marion Harding: The Presidents (3-6, 2-4) are sitting 18th in Division II's Region 7 and still have a playoff hope ... They must beat Galion to get in and root a few things go their way afterward ... Drew Pasteur calculates their odds at 16 percent for making the postseason.
Ontario at Highland
Scouting Ontario: The Warriors (8-1, 5-1) must win or have Shelby lose to Pleasant to claim a MOAC championship ... Ontario competes in Region 10 of Division III and sits sixth, having already clinched a home playoff berth for Week 11 ... The Warriors scored 24 unanswered points on Shelby last week to make a comeback but fell to a hook-and-ladder play in the final minute.
Scouting Highland: The Scots (5-4, 2-4) would love to play spoiler and upset Ontario ... Highland beat the Warriors 27-17 a season ago ... The Scots have already earned their place in the Division V, Region 18 field, and win-or-lose, they will likely be in the ninth to 12th range for seeding.
Loudonville at Northmor
Scouting Loudonville: The Redbirds (3-6, 2-4) are 18th and still have hopes for a playoff bid, but they've got to make it happen with an upset of Northmor to start ... Loudonville has lost four of its last five, including 42-28 last week to East Knox.
Scouting Northmor: The Golden Knights (7-2, 5-1) will be rooting for East Knox to upset Danville so they can share the Knox Morrow Athletic Conference championship with the Bulldogs and Blue Devils with a win over Loudonville ... Northmor has clinched a home game in Divison VI, Region 23 ... According to Drew Pasteur, the Knights have an 88 percent chance at hosting two playoff games by being seeded in the top four in the region.
Mount Gilead at Cardington
Scouting Mount Gilead: The Indians (2-7, 0-6) cannot make the playoffs in 2023 ... Mount Gilead and Cardington have split the last four games in this rivalry ... In 51 games these two teams have met in the playoff era since 1972, the Indians hold a 26-25 advantage ... Mount Gilead went through a four-game stretch where it scored just 21 points, but snapped out of it with a 20-point performance last week against unbeaten Danville ... Through the first seven weeks of the season, MG did not allow more than 28 points in a game, but has given up 31 to Northmor and 53 to Danville the last two games.
Scouting Cardington: The Pirates (1-8, 0-6) cannot make the playoffs either ... The Pirates have shown a bit of offensive life in two of the last three weeks combining for 37 points in those losses ... Unfortunately, they've given up 148 points in those three weeks.
Indian Lake at North Union
Scouting Indian Lake: The Lakers (6-3, 3-1) have already earned a playoff spot in Region 18 of Division V where they will be either 11th or 12th as a seed ... North Union beat Indian Lake 41-7 last year ... Burke Lillard has accounted for 2,000 yards in the air and on the ground combined, ranking in the top five of the Central Buckeye Conference in passing and rushing yards.
Scouting North Union: The Wildcats (4-5, 3-1) are in the mix for a Region 18 playoff spot, too ... NU can get into the field win or lose, but an upset of the Lakers will help their cause, likely solidifying a berth in the 13th to 15th seed ... With a loss, they have an eight percent chance of advancing, according to Drew Pasteur.
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This article originally appeared on Marion Star: Week 10 Football Matchups: What's at stake for area teams in finales?
