Edgewood Mustangs (6-1) at Bloomington South Panthers (4-3)
When: Friday, Oct. 11, 7 p.m.
Where: Fred Huff Field
Last Meeting: 34-13 W (1992)
After a tough battle on the road against Columbus, the Panthers will face cross-county Edgewood for just the second time ever. The Mustangs will make the short drive to Bloomington South on senior night.
Offense: The Panther offense was completely shut down last week against Columbus North. The good news for South is that Edgewood is a much weaker opponent, and they have yet to face a team even close to the same caliber as Bloomington South. After a couple rough performances, junior quarterback D.J. Bull should get back on track against the Mustang defense. Senior James Bomba will now take over at center, making senior Reid Johnson the primary tight end. Expect seniors such as Re’Chaun Bledsoe and Peyton French to have a larger impact in this game. Defensively for Edgewood, former Panther, Jantz Hunt, is a notable name up front along with junior Reece Novak. Senior linebacker Tristan Bland is a small but scrappy playmaker who can disrupt the backfield.
Defense: If you take away the Bloomington North game, the South defense has been one of the better units in the state, allowing just 13 points per game. The secondary has shown signs of improvement as the season has progressed, letting up few to none big plays through the air the last couple of weeks. The Mustang offense comes in to week eight averaging 29.5 points per contest; however, the strongest opponent Edgewood has played this season is 3A Indian Creek, who they lost to 56-20. Starting at quarterback for the Mustangs is senior Schuyler Curtis, with junior Brody Schaeffer seeing the majority of carries. Schaeffer, along with senior Parker Harrington, lead the way in the passing game. The Panther defense will be looking to take advantage of the Mustang’s fumbling mishaps, as they had five last week against Brown County. As long as South’s offense doesn’t turn the ball over inside of Panther territory, the defense should have no trouble holding their own on Friday.
Overview: This game should be a big morale booster for Bloomington South. Expect outright dominance from the Panther defense for the entirety of the game. Prediction: BHSS- 49 EHS-0
Keys to the game:
- Don’t get sloppy in the second half
- Give the defense reasonable field position to work with
- Get the passing game back on track
