Now that nine weeks of the regular season are in the books for area prep football teams, it is time to look ahead to sectional play.
We continue our sectional football primers in Class 3A, Sectional 28 with several teams who could string together a trio of wins and emerge with some hardware.
THE DRAW
Norwell (2-7) at Bishop Luers (5-4)
Jay County (2-7) at Bellmont (0-9)
Heritage (8-1) at Delta (4-5)
Oak Hill (6-3) at Mississinewa (9-0)
THE FAVORITE
MISSISSINEWA (9-0)
While the Central Indiana Conference isn’t necessarily loaded with great teams, what Mississinewa did in rolling through that league should command people’s attention.
Prior to knocking off previously-undefeated Madison-Grant 26-22 in Week 9, the Indians had given up 14 points total.
Fourteen points. All season.
Mississinewa opened the season with five-straight shutouts, including a 35-0 blanking of Norwell in Week 1.
Senior quarterback Kellen Rock has thrown 18 touchdowns, while junior Ahlijah Monday is a 1,000-yard rusher with 20 scores.
As a unit, the defense has accumulated 60 tackles for loss, 14 sacks and 12 interceptions.
There is a tick up in competition in this sectional compared to the regular season, but this is still a proven program under Coach Kyle Buresh that has captured two sectional titles in three years, beating the likes of New Haven, Wayne and Columbia City to do it.
THE CHALLENGERS
HERITAGE (8-1)
The Patriots have a tough road thanks to the blind draw. They must go to sneaky-good Delta and then likely match up with undefeated Mississinewa in the semis.
But if there is a team built to handle the pressure, it is Heritage, which is stacked with experienced seniors facing their final prep playoff experience on the gridiron. That can be quite a motivator.
This team is exceptional at protecting the football. It has lost just one fumble all year, while Eli Tigulis has thrown only one interception in 150 pass attempts.
The offense as a whole can put up points, averaging 36 points per game. No foe has been able to hold the Patriots out of the end zone less than twice all year.
Defensively, playmakers pepper the field with the likes of Charlie Riddle up front, Mason Abbott at middle linebacker and Braden Walter on the back end.
The road is bumpy, but this team is capable of making a run.
BISHOP LUERS (5-4)
The last two seasons that the Knights entered the playoffs with a 5-4 record in Class 3A, they won sectionals – 2017 and 2018.
So let’s toss the notion that Bishop Luers can’t compete over the next three weeks for a sectional crown.
The draw did Bishop Luers immense favors, with three teams with a combined four wins on its half of the bracket.
The Knights come into the postseason on a three-game slide, including a shutout loss to rival Bishop Dwenger and a shocking one-point defeat to South Side in Week 8.
The positive? The Knights played all but one game this year against teams in Classes 4A-6A. The lone game against a 3A foe? A 38-0 blanking of Concordia Lutheran.
Coupled with the draw, which will give the Knights an opportunity to build momentum into the sectional final, anything can happen. This is still a team learning to play as a unit with a lot of underclassmen in key spots, not mention the injury bug that has bit this roster hard all year long.
THE REST
DELTA (4-5)
Speaking of teams that have played up in competition all year, Delta did just that in the Hoosier Heritage Conference. All five losses this season came to Class 4A foes.
So don’t overlook the challenge that Heritage has going to Delta to begin sectional play. Quarterback Bronson Edwards is capable begin center and can also take off and run. Senior edge rusher Landon Brooks, a Purdue commit, can be a menace defensively.
The road to a sectional crown, however, will likely take Delta through three teams over-.500. That will be tough sledding.
OAK HILL (6-3)
A six-win regular season with a three-game ongoing winning streak would put most teams in the running to win a sectional.
The problem is, Oak Hill will play in its first game Mississinewa on the road, the very team that shut out the Golden Eagles 35-0 in Week 3.
Oak Hill averages 241 yards per rushing per game, but mustered just 68 yards against Ole Miss the first go around. That must dramatically improve for it to have a shot in Round 2.
JAY COUNTY (2-7)
The Patriots come into the playoffs on a six-game losing streak, with their lone wins coming against two-win Blackford and winless Southern Wells.
The draw is favorable with a trip to winless Bellmont. After that, a likely matchup with Bishop Luers looms.
NORWELL (2-7)
Another team that has a tough go of it this fall. The Knights are allowing 37 points per contest, which doesn’t bode well with some of the offenses residing in this sectional.
Injuries and lack of depth have been problems, with the offense not executing well enough to make up for the defensive deficiencies.
BELLMONT (0-9)
Losers of 31-straight games, it is tough to see that streak coming to an end against Jay County. However, don’t forget 2018 when Coach Marty Ballard’s team entered the postseason winless, only two win two straight and play Bishop Luers tough in the sectional final.
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