FAC High School Football Preview: Week 6
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
Conference play begins for the Frontier Athletic Conference this Friday night, as for the first time this year teams from the FAC will square off for the next five weeks to determine who will become the inaugural conference champions.
For the six-team conference, the first five weeks consisted of games away from the conference with none of the teams going undefeated in conference play, as they all faced varying levels of competition since the start of the season.
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Entering the sixth week of football action, the Jackson Ironmen and Hillsboro Indians are both 4-1 overall, while the Chillicothe Cavaliers stand at 3-2, followed by the Washington Blue Lions at 2-3 and both the Miami Trace Panthers and McClain Tigers are 0-5 on the season.
Here is a look at the three conference games for the FAC this week, as all games are scheduled to kick off at 7 p.m.
• Hillsboro Indians (4-1) at Chillicothe Cavaliers (3-2)
Before the start of the regular season, the Chillicothe Cavaliers were one of the favorites to win the first FAC football championship, and though they have two losses in non-conference play, their schedule away from the FAC this season has been pretty strong.
This season, the Cavs’ opponents have an overall record of 17-8 with four of those losses coming from one opponent, so either way you look at things, the teams the Cars have faced this season have been tough.
Chillicothe has played close to even in the scoring column with their opponents this season, with the Cavs having 139 points, while their five opponents have combined for 139 points.
Through the first five games this season, CHS quarterback Branden Maughmer has completed 45.9 percent of his passes for 460 yards and three touchdowns. He’s also rushed for 731 yards on 102 carries for 11 touchdowns. Maughmer has all but one of Chillicothe’s rushing touchdowns this season. Zach Coates leads the team in receiving with 14 receptions for 174 yards and one touchdown.
As for the Indians, this has been a resurgent season for a team that has struggled in gaining wins over the past few years. Last season, the Indians totaled four wins in 10 games, and this season they’ve already tied that amount in half as many games. Being 4-1 overall, the matchup with the Cavs is possibly the biggest test thus far this season for the Indians.
The Indians haven’t defeated Chillicothe since joining leagues with them in the former South Central Ohio League, including a loss to CHS last season by a 47-7 score. In 2014, the Indians were close with CHS, losing by a 14-6 score.
Hillsboro will rely on a heavy rushing attack like they have all season long, and if they can keep possession of the ball and out of the hands of the Cavaliers’ offense, then this game could be another closely played game, but that is a tough task as the Cavs are one of the more athletic teams in the conference.
• Miami Trace Panthers (0-5) at McClain Tigers (0-5)
Either the Miami Trace Panthers or the McClain Tigers will gain their first win of the 2017 football season in their FAC opener. The Panthers haven’t won a game since Week 7 of the 2016 season, and the Tigers have not won a game since Week 1 of last year.
Going into this game, both teams have struggled to score points on offense, and even more so, keep their opponents out of the end zone as well. MT has tallied 58 points this season while allowing 189 points through the first five weeks of the season. As for the host Tigers, they’ve scored 34 points in the first five weeks of the season and have allowed 172.
McClain is averaging 147 yards rushing per game and 60.4 yards receiving. Quarterback Justin Osborne has completed 21 passes for the Tigers this season for 302 yards passing and one touchdown.
The Tigers have three players with over 100-plus yards rushing on the season, with Darius White having the team-high 365 yards (4.7 yards per carry) and one touchdown on 78 carries in four games played. Tanner Tate has 34 carries this season for 148 yards, averaging 4.4 yards per carry.
Landree Gray is the Tigers’ leading receiver with six receptions for 120 yards and one touchdown.
In their most recent game, the Miami Trace Panthers lost to Zanesville by a 41-7 score as their lone score came from a run by Caden Sweitzer.
• Jackson Ironmen (4-1) at Washington Blue Lions (2-3)
The Blue Lions have lost their past three games, as a 2-0 start to begin the season has now left them with a 2-3 record after five weeks of play. The Ironmen began the year with four straight wins in convincing fashion, but in Week 5 they suffered their first loss of the year to the Wheelersburg Pirates by a 38-14 score.
Even with the one loss, the Ironmen are one of the strongest teams in the FAC, and in non-conference play they’ve shown they are one of the strongest teams in the SE District in Division III as well. This season, the defense of JHS has allowed just 65 points, while the team has scored 163.
Todd Compston of The Telegram in Jackson wrote last week the Ironmen totaled 250 yards of offense in Week 5 against Wheelersburg, with 170 yards rushing by the team.
Now for the Blue Lions, they have played the past two games without their starting quarterback, and it is evident the offense isn’t playing the same as it was earlier in the season. This past week, the Blue Lions were held to just 12 points in a 34-12 loss to St. Charles.
In their past two games, the Blue Lions have allowed 72 points and scored 20, and for the season, they have totaled 142 points but have given up 161 points.
This is another tough task for the Blue Lions, and starting the conference schedule with a team like Jackson isn’t easy for any team in the FAC.
For the six-team conference, the first five weeks consisted of games away from the conference with none of the teams going undefeated in conference play, as they all faced varying levels of competition since the start of the season.
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Entering the sixth week of football action, the Jackson Ironmen and Hillsboro Indians are both 4-1 overall, while the Chillicothe Cavaliers stand at 3-2, followed by the Washington Blue Lions at 2-3 and both the Miami Trace Panthers and McClain Tigers are 0-5 on the season.
Here is a look at the three conference games for the FAC this week, as all games are scheduled to kick off at 7 p.m.
• Hillsboro Indians (4-1) at Chillicothe Cavaliers (3-2)
Before the start of the regular season, the Chillicothe Cavaliers were one of the favorites to win the first FAC football championship, and though they have two losses in non-conference play, their schedule away from the FAC this season has been pretty strong.
This season, the Cavs’ opponents have an overall record of 17-8 with four of those losses coming from one opponent, so either way you look at things, the teams the Cars have faced this season have been tough.
Chillicothe has played close to even in the scoring column with their opponents this season, with the Cavs having 139 points, while their five opponents have combined for 139 points.
Through the first five games this season, CHS quarterback Branden Maughmer has completed 45.9 percent of his passes for 460 yards and three touchdowns. He’s also rushed for 731 yards on 102 carries for 11 touchdowns. Maughmer has all but one of Chillicothe’s rushing touchdowns this season. Zach Coates leads the team in receiving with 14 receptions for 174 yards and one touchdown.
As for the Indians, this has been a resurgent season for a team that has struggled in gaining wins over the past few years. Last season, the Indians totaled four wins in 10 games, and this season they’ve already tied that amount in half as many games. Being 4-1 overall, the matchup with the Cavs is possibly the biggest test thus far this season for the Indians.
The Indians haven’t defeated Chillicothe since joining leagues with them in the former South Central Ohio League, including a loss to CHS last season by a 47-7 score. In 2014, the Indians were close with CHS, losing by a 14-6 score.
Hillsboro will rely on a heavy rushing attack like they have all season long, and if they can keep possession of the ball and out of the hands of the Cavaliers’ offense, then this game could be another closely played game, but that is a tough task as the Cavs are one of the more athletic teams in the conference.
• Miami Trace Panthers (0-5) at McClain Tigers (0-5)
Either the Miami Trace Panthers or the McClain Tigers will gain their first win of the 2017 football season in their FAC opener. The Panthers haven’t won a game since Week 7 of the 2016 season, and the Tigers have not won a game since Week 1 of last year.
Going into this game, both teams have struggled to score points on offense, and even more so, keep their opponents out of the end zone as well. MT has tallied 58 points this season while allowing 189 points through the first five weeks of the season. As for the host Tigers, they’ve scored 34 points in the first five weeks of the season and have allowed 172.
McClain is averaging 147 yards rushing per game and 60.4 yards receiving. Quarterback Justin Osborne has completed 21 passes for the Tigers this season for 302 yards passing and one touchdown.
The Tigers have three players with over 100-plus yards rushing on the season, with Darius White having the team-high 365 yards (4.7 yards per carry) and one touchdown on 78 carries in four games played. Tanner Tate has 34 carries this season for 148 yards, averaging 4.4 yards per carry.
Landree Gray is the Tigers’ leading receiver with six receptions for 120 yards and one touchdown.
In their most recent game, the Miami Trace Panthers lost to Zanesville by a 41-7 score as their lone score came from a run by Caden Sweitzer.
• Jackson Ironmen (4-1) at Washington Blue Lions (2-3)
The Blue Lions have lost their past three games, as a 2-0 start to begin the season has now left them with a 2-3 record after five weeks of play. The Ironmen began the year with four straight wins in convincing fashion, but in Week 5 they suffered their first loss of the year to the Wheelersburg Pirates by a 38-14 score.
Even with the one loss, the Ironmen are one of the strongest teams in the FAC, and in non-conference play they’ve shown they are one of the strongest teams in the SE District in Division III as well. This season, the defense of JHS has allowed just 65 points, while the team has scored 163.
Todd Compston of The Telegram in Jackson wrote last week the Ironmen totaled 250 yards of offense in Week 5 against Wheelersburg, with 170 yards rushing by the team.
Now for the Blue Lions, they have played the past two games without their starting quarterback, and it is evident the offense isn’t playing the same as it was earlier in the season. This past week, the Blue Lions were held to just 12 points in a 34-12 loss to St. Charles.
In their past two games, the Blue Lions have allowed 72 points and scored 20, and for the season, they have totaled 142 points but have given up 161 points.
This is another tough task for the Blue Lions, and starting the conference schedule with a team like Jackson isn’t easy for any team in the FAC.