Sectional First Round: Five players to watch on Friday night

JAMISON ROACH, ADAMS CENTRAL (vs. Concordia)

Roach will be looked at to carry the offense as the Flying Jets open sectional play opposite a future ACAC opponent. Roach has been a steady presence all year running the ball, mixing in his passing skills as needed. He will be looked upon to keep Concordia’s defense on its toes as the Cadets have given up 33.8 points per game this season. Last week in a regular-season finale win, Roach only threw the ball four times, but ran for a game-best 101 yards and three touchdowns.

TOMMY COFFMAN, BISHOP DWENGER (at North Side)

While the Saints are often heavy on the run game, Coffman has done more than his part on offense to lead this team and that started Week 1 against Roncalli. He has completed 58.6 percent of his passes and gone over 1,100 yards, so he still slings it well with eight touchdowns to zero interceptions on the season. Coffman does also lead that run-heavy offense with 452 yards and three more touchdowns. How poised he is to start the postseason will be an important marker against North Side.

TANNER RIDER, COLUMBIA CITY (at Leo)

The senior defensive tackle has been both stout and consistent for the Eagles. He comes into the postseason second on the team in tackles with 41, with 19 of those coming for loss – also a team second-best. His six sacks lead the team and he also has a fumble recovery. He had six tackles and a sack the last time the Eagles played the Lions a few weeks back, so look for him to be more comfortable this second time around.

KOLTON ARMSTRONG, FREMONT (vs. Southern Wells)

As of late, Armstrong has become the big offensive guy for the Eagles. In the last two weeks of the regular season, the junior running back tallied 43 carries for 525 yards and six touchdowns. His ability to go for big yardage spreads out the Eagles offense well as teams started keying in on quarterback Jaret Laughlin. Armstrong sits just 53 yards from 1,000 on the season and is also a target in the passing game. He has just four catches, but has scored touchdowns on three of them.

LESLIE WOODSON, NORTH SIDE (vs. Bishop Dwenger)

Woodson has been a pick to watch on Friday nights previously, and for good reason. For the Legends to knock off one of the SAC’s best in the postseason at home, how he impacts the defensive side of the ball may be the most important piece to the winning puzzle. Woodson has racked up 68 tackles this season, with 24.5 of them coming for loss. His ability to get into opposing backfields has been high level, as he also has 14.5 sacks and 15 hurries and has forced two fumbles.