WEEK 8: Margaretta, Woodmore battle for SBC lead

After three straight lengthy road trips, Margaretta football coach Lucas Poggiali is just glad to be back home. It's a big one for the Polar Bears on Friday when Division VI No. 10 Woodmore visits the Duck Pond. Margaretta is 6-1 while the Wildcats are 7-0. Both are 2-0 in Sandusky Bay Conference action. The winner will have at least a share of the league lead with Gibsonburg (3-4, 2-0) hosting Northwood (4-3, 0-2) on Friday. "Our players have earned this opportunity," Poggiali said. "Our guys have been here before and played in meaningful games like this. I don't think the moment will be too big for them." Quarterback Robbie LaCourse had his best game of the season in a 45-14 win over Northwood last week. He completed 14 of 20 passes for 328 yards and four touchdowns. For the season, he is 75 of 125 passing for 1,114 yards with 10 touchdowns and five interceptions. Carter Luzader has been a big piece of the puzzle for Margaretta. He has 145 carries for 840 yards and 14 touchdowns on the ground while adding 23 receptions for 305 yards and three touchdowns. Kale Bailey leads the team with 27 catches for 531 yards and four touchdowns. "I think we played our most complete game of the season last week," Poggiali said. "We want to continue to build on that, especially offensively. We want to continue to see the game plans evolve and put pressure on defenses in various ways. We put a lot on our kids' plates this season and they have responded extremely well." Woodmore is led by former Monroeville coach Scott Stecher. The Wildcats have a whopping six players with more than 100 yards rushing this season. Sophomore Lucas Caldwell leads the way with 112 rushes for 804 yards and five touchdowns. Senior quarterback Calvin Lipstraw has completed 37 of 65 passes for 694 yards, seven touchdowns and just one interception. When the two teams met last season in Elmore, Margaretta walked away with a convincing 35-0 victory. "We have to continue to play our brand of football, which is fast and physical," Poggiali said. "Woodmore is a well-coached team that plays incredibly hard. We have to not only match, but exceed, their levels of physicality in all phases of the game." A look at rest of the area football games for Week 8: Clyde at Sandusky The Fliers (2-5, 0-1) travel to Strobel Field to take on Sandusky (0-7, 0-2) in Northern Ohio Conference Lake Division action. Clyde won its second game of the year last week when it topped Edison on the road. Linkin Mullins had two rushing touchdowns while Blake Beebe scored on a fumble recovery and receiving touchdown from Karcen Garner. Sandusky quarterback Zion Henlon has completed 36 of 69 passes for 483 yards, three touchdowns and six interceptions. "In order to be successful against Sandusky, we have to be able to handle their speed, pressure and aggression," Clyde coach Eric Leuthold said. "They have played some tough competition thus far. I do not believe their record is a reflection of the type of team that they are." Perkins at Norwalk The Div. IV No. 2 Pirates (7-0, 2-0) will be massive favorites when they travel to Contractors Stadium to take on Norwalk (0-7, 0-1) in NOC Lake play. After a tough 10-3 road win at Bellevue, Perkins has won its last two games by a total of 76 points. Grant Kuhnle has completed 64 of 122 passes for 1,080 yards with 15 touchdowns and two interceptions. Just one receiver, Kaden Legando, has double-digit catches. He has 16 receptions for 345 yards and five touchdowns. "Against Perkins, we are going to have to win the time of possession and stay ahead of the chains," Norwalk coach Keith Mora said. "We've talked to the team about needing to sustain long drives and wait to snap the ball until the end of the play clock." Norwalk scored in the fourth quarter in a 63-7 loss to Columbian last week. That was the Truckers' first points since a loss to Mansfield Madison on Sept. 4. "We need to play our game and continue improving in all aspects," Perkins coach Jalen Santoro said. "We need to stay the course and focus on us." Port Clinton at Edison The Redskins (6-1, 1-1) look to bounce back from their first loss when they travel to Freedom Field to take on Edison (2-5, 0-1) in NOC Bay action. Port Clinton fell 24-14 to Vermilion last week at home. The Redskins won their first six games of the season by an average of 25.5 points per contest. "We need to play more physically on both sides of the ball," Edison coach Jim Hall said. "We need to continue to improve in the execution of our schemes and play fast. We need to continue to focus on the process of improvement." Edison also took one on the chin a week ago, losing 38-21 at home to Clyde. Evan Schnittker has completed 64 of 111 passes for 944 yards with eight touchdowns and six interceptions for the Chargers. "Patience and physicality oftentimes are recipes for an opportunity to win. We know we have work to do to continue to improve and this opponent requires that level of discipline in order for us to accomplish our goal of winning," PC coach Kevin Huntley said. Huron at Vermilion The Tigers (0-7, 0-2) seek their first win of the season when they hit the road to Vermilion (6-1, 2-0) in NOC Bay play. Huron was on the wrong end of a 56-21 score against Bellevue last week. For the Tigers, Robert Fisher has completed 64 of 140 passes for 732 yards, four touchdowns and 10 interceptions while leading the ground game with 53 carries for 274 yards and four touchdowns. "In order for us to get the win verus Huron, we will have to execute at a high level," Vermilion coach Bill DiFucci said. "We need to play with the energy and physicality that we have established and start fast." The Sailors look to avoid a letdown after last week's big road win over Port Clinton. Drake Hooks is 42 of 73 passing for 763 yards, 13 touchdowns and two interceptions while Landon Mooney has 92 rushes for 629 yards and four touchdowns for Vermilion. "We need to keep grinding and stay positive," Huron coach Sam Hohler said. "The kids and coaches have worked extremely hard to get better each day. We have shown improvement throughout the season. Hopefully, we can find a way to get it done the last few weeks." Columbian at Bellevue The hottest player in the area looks to keep things going when the Redmen (5-2) host Columbian (5-2) in NOC crossover action. Just in the past two weeks, Bellevue quarterback Ike Brown has completed 31 of 45 passes for 545 yards with six touchdowns and no interceptions. On the ground, he has rushed 23 times for 175 yards and five touchdowns. The Tornadoes have won their last three games after consecutive losses to Ontario and Lima Senior. The meeting is the 96th between the two teams dating back to 1915. "We have to limit explosive plays on defense and control the line of scrimmage on offense," Bellevue coach Alex Shepherd said. "We want to continue to play fundamentally sound." St. Paul at South Central The Flyers (3-3, 2-1) travel to Greenwich to face South Central (3-4, 2-2) in Firelands Conference play. After a bye week and 53-14 loss to Western Reserve, St. Paul has won its last two games by a combined score of 94-0. Casey Fries leads the Flyers with 78 rushes for 579 yards and four touchdowns. "I want to see our players continue to improve as they have throughout the course of the season," St. Paul coach Chris Doughty said. "We have had a lot of younger players step up because of injuries who have shown great improvement. "If we can maintain this mindset, we will continue to put ourselves in position to play meaningful football games at the end of the season." 8-MAN Kennedy Catholic at SMCC (Sat.) The Panthers (7-0, 6-0) host Kennedy Catholic (2-5, 2-4) in Northern 8 Conference action. SMCC continues to play consistently on offense, topping Sebring McKinley 42-7 last week. The Golden Eagles won their first two games of the season, but have lost five in a row including a 64-16 loss at Stryker last week. "With a win, we are in the (Northern 8) playoffs," SMCC coach Toby Hammond said. "But, we don't want to be satisfied making the playoffs. We are going to find out how good we are the last couple games of the regular season." Danbury at Plymouth The Lakers (4-3, 4-2) travel to Plymouth (3-4, 3-3) in Northern 8 play. Danbury saw a four-game winning streak end in a 52-28 road loss to Southington Chalker last week. Through six games, Eli Knight had completed 57 of 98 passes for 1,137 yards with 15 touchdowns and six interceptions while running 47 times for 459 yards and six touchdowns for the Lakers. The Big Red have won two games in a row. "Plymouth is a physical team and we cannot help them by turning the ball over committing penalties or missing assignments," Danbury coach Brayden Martin said. "Plymouth is a physical team and we cannot help them by turning the ball over committing penalties or missing assignments. Offensively, we have to protect the football win at the line of scrimmage and consistently finish drives. "Defensively, we need to align correctly communicate and tackle well in space."