From the second East Noble went to work on Friday night amidst the intermittent rain in Kendallville, you could tell it was going to be a long night for the then-unbeaten New Haven Bulldogs.
And down until the last two minutes, that is exactly what happened as the Knights dominated on the ground and stifled New Haven defensively to pull out a 31-21 win.
Don’t let that score trick you, the game was 31-7 until the closing two minutes of the game.
Now, the convoluted Northeast 8 is right back where it was a few weeks ago, all tied up at the top. The Knights, Bulldogs and Leo all now sit 5-1 in conference and a three-way tie for the conference title is coming should they all win in Week 9. More importantly though, the lock up atop the NE8 has made Sectional 19 all the more compelling. With the possibility of multiple rematches between those teams, East Noble’s win means that sectional time will be the ultimate bragging right.
East Noble have always been in the picture, but it hasn’t been a big part of the conversation. This is probably the time to start talking about the Knights as a favorite come sectional time.
While Friday’s offensive output was impressive for the Knights, the defense was on point. It held the vaunted New Haven offense to just seven points for the majority of the game, a unit that has scored over 40 on four occasions, with 21 now marking their season low.
It was an effort similar to what East Noble did in a close loss to Leo. The Lions were held to 14 points despite scoring 33 or more points six of the eight weeks this season.
East Noble’s defense was a problem for the Bulldogs all night. Sophomore Rylee Biddle had a fumble an interception, but it was only part of a complete effort that chased quarterback Donovan Williams and keeping him out of a rhythm until late in the game. The defensive backfield broke up passes and played to their advantages in a wet game as they added pressure to New Haven’s receivers, minus Mylan Graham, who was sidelined in street clothes and a walking boot.
East Noble’s defensive effort played perfectly into the way it wants play the game offensively. Holding Williams to 15 of 31 passing, it made New Haven put the ball on the ground and therefore grind clock themselves while playing from behind.
After the Bulldogs came up empty on their first drive, the Knights got to work with a ground attack from Tyson Reinbold, Michael Mosley and Dylan Krehl that was capped by Krehl’s one-yard score midway through the first. New Haven answered immediately as Williams escaped heavy pressure for a 29-yard touchdown to Ajani Washington.
It was three full quarters before New Haven would score again.
Mosley punched it in from five yards out midway through the second to put East Noble ahead. After Dallas Plattner made a huge pass breakup on a New Haven 3rd and 17 late in the first half, a blocked punt set up East Noble again and Krehl’s surging eight-yard touchdown with under a minute to play put the Knights up 14 at halftime.
Coach Luke Amstutz’s team would add a 26-yard Alex Sprague field goal and another Mosley touchdown run to push its lead to 31-7, leading to fans to head for the exits. It was a dominating performance for and if anyone tells you differently, its probably time to stop listening to their opinions.
New Haven didn’t just go quietly into the night and with time not on its side, the Bulldogs still fought. That is something they have done consistently and it helped end the night a bit more positive for the Bulldogs. In the final two-plus minutes of the game, a Williams connection to Tre Starks set up a Tre Bates touchdown run and a James Hardy two-point conversion. An onside kick recovered by Ajani Washington set up a Williams to Hardy touchdown with 1:48 to go. But the 14 points in 17 seconds wasn’t enough to come back, just enough to make the final score more respectable.
Reinbold’s 130 yards rushing led East Noble, followed by 72 from Mosley and 66 from Krehl while new Haven was paced by Williams, who completed 15 passes for 212 yards.
It all sets up a great Sectional 19.
Now, the conversation shifts. Leo is still top of mind after hanging 51 points on Columbia City. Bishop Dwenger’s addition to the sectional once the season started is still something we think about. New Haven has the argument that it wasn’t at full strength in its lone loss with Graham sidelined. Meanwhile, Wayne is a team that no one wants to draw to open the postseason.
Yet, the conversation right now deserves to be about East Noble. How do you stop that dominating, multi-tiered run game? How do you score points on a team which has only given up more than 15 points twice?
East Noble just did what it does on Friday night. The scheme didn’t have to change, the Knights just had to stay the course to assert themselves.
And now, East Noble is the story.
These opinions represent those of Blitz and Outside the Huddle. No opinions expressed on Outside the Huddle represent those of any of our advertisers. Follow Blitz on Twitter at Blitz_OTH
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