“They have tremendous talent,” said Wayne coach Roosevelt Mukes, who has already led his team to one more victory than a season ago. “(Northmont coach Tony Broering is) doing a great job over there, and we’re just blessed and fortunate enough to be in a situation where we get to compete against the best so our guys look forward to the challenge.”
Wayne has won four in a row after dropping its opener 21-14 at Springfield.
“It’s been a combination of the guys just continuing to work hard, believing, trusting the game plan and just executing,” Mukes said of the winning streak. “I think the biggest difference between this year and last year is just finishing plays and people making plays. Last year we might have been in the same situation and just found ourselves a play or two short. So just seeing their growth and knowing that now, people have been stepping up to make plays is is very good and exciting for us.”
Meanwhile, Northmont has shown a flair for the dramatic in putting together its perfect record so far.
The T’Bolts trailed by 14 in the fourth quarter last week before rallying to beat Miamisburg 40-34 in overtime. They erased a 21-point deficit in Week 4 while rallying to top Springfield 38-35 in overtime.
In this matchup last season, Northmont held on for a 28-27 victory as Markus Allen caught three touchdown passes.
That was the first win for the Thunderbolts in the series since a 14-11 triumph in 2012.
The Warriors have won eight of the last 10 in the series, and Northmont last won two in a row in 2008-09.
Allen is tied with Anthony Brown of Springfield for the league lead in receiving yards with 435.
Northmont quarterback Cade Rice is second in the GWOC with 1,181 passing yards. The senior leads the league with 15 touchdown tosses while Allen is No. 1 in touchdown receptions with six.
Michigan verbal commit Rod Moore gives Northmont two of the top six receivers in the league (279 yards on 16 catches) and has made 27 tackles from his safety spot.
Cam Fancher, a 6-foot-2, 200-pound junior, leads the Warriors offense. He is fourth in the GWOC with 851 yards passing and second in rushing yards with 356.
His top target has been Elijah Brown, who has 222 yards on 16 catches, while RJ Mukes has 13 catches for 182 yards.
Northmont linebacker Phillip Quansah is third in the GWOC with 47 tackles, followed by the Wayne duo of Antonio O’Berry (40 stops) and Adam Trick (37).
Northmont last won a league title two years ago when the Thunderbolts were outright champs of the GWOC National West. That same season the Warriors shared the GWOC National East title with Springfield.
“It’ll be a huge challenge going there and trying to get a victory, but we look forward to it and know that we have to make sure that we minimize our mistakes and because they’re very explosive and it’s gonna be a great game,” Mukes said.
If Wayne hands Northmont its first defeat, Springfield can also win a share of the GWOC crown by beating Beavercreek, the only winless team in the conference.
High school football: Week 6 Power Rankings https://t.co/3IsYdklIDh
— Marcus Hartman (@marcushartman) October 1, 2020
Other notable matchups in the area this week include Tri-Village at Fort Loramie and Greenon at Greeneview.
Tri-Village and Fort Loramie are both undefeated, and the winner will be the outright Cross County Conference champion. The Patriots are coming off a 58-0 victory over Mississinawa Valley while the Redskins shut out Twin Valley South last week.
Fort Loramie is ranked No. 2 in Division VII Associated Press state poll and the Dayton Daily News power rankings while Tri-Village is No. 4 in the state poll and third in the local version.
The outright Ohio Heritage Conference South championship will be on the line in Jamestown, where host Greeneview and visiting Greenon will both put four-game winning streaks on the line.
Dakota Mangan headlines the Rams offense with 519 rushing yards on the season (second in the OHC) while Ian Henry leads the league in sacks with 5.5 and Caleb Allen is No. 1 with four interceptions.
Greenon quarterback Evan Davis is fifth in the OHC with 826 passing yards while Trevor Stewart and Kameron Cox have combined for 702 rushing yards for the Knights. Sophomore linebacker Zack Stevens leads Greenon’s defense with 47 tackles (one more than Cox) and 4.5 sacks.
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