Prep football notebook: Is Warren Central still elite?
By CLIFF BRUNT
ISL Editor
Is Warren Central still elite?
It’s a strange question, but I’m going to put it out there.
Warren struggled offensively last season, and that continued in the Warriors’ season opener against Center Grove last Friday. The Warriors were held to 205 total yards in the 21-10 loss.
Warren Central, known for winning championships, went 5-6 last year. Yes, most of the losses were close and against great teams, but they were still losses. I’ll give Warren credit for knocking off Carmel in postseason play last season and giving Lawrence Central a battle after that. But isn’t that what Warren is supposed to do?
The Warriors dropped from fifth to eighth in the AP’s Class 6A poll this week. At some point, they have to start consistently winning these games again. I’ll give new coach Jayson West some leeway since he just won a state title at Lawrence Central last year and the transition is still ongoing, but not much at a program like Warren.
The Warriors now will host Indianapolis Cathedral, the No. 2 team in Class 5A, on Friday. Warren’s defense will be tested by Cathedral’s short precision passing game and by Ohio State commit Terry McLaurin down the field, so the offense must get it together.
The Warriors need to find ways to get the ball to Darius Lee, who caught four passes for 46 yards in the opener. If they can’t, Warren Central will start to lose some of that mental edge that comes with just being Warren Central.
Is Carmel the unluckiest high school football team on Earth?
The Greyhounds barely won their season opener, and now they face Louisville Trinity.
Trinity, the former USA Today No. 2, lost last week, 27-26 to Ensworth of Nashville, Tenn. Trinity will not be happy.
Carmel barely escaped Indianapolis Tech last week, grinding out a 6-2 win. I’m going to step out on a limb and say six points isn’t going to get it done this week. As a result of the less-than impressive offensive performance, AP voters dropped Carmel from co-No. 1 to No. 4 in Class 6A. But perhaps Trinity will struggle to score against the always-solid Carmel defense. Anyhow, we will learn a lot this week, about Carmel, and perhaps about Tech.
How many yards can Alex Kimack put up this season?
You might not have heard much about Kimack because Pete Hartley ran for more than 2,000 yards for Chatard last season.
You’ll hear plenty this year.
Kimack ran for 249 yards in the season-opening loss to Brebeuf. Even though Chatard lost, you know the Trojans will bounce back. That’s what they do.
It’s actually not all that shocking that Kimack put up such numbers. Last season, Hartley was injured during the 3A regional final against Greensburg and Kimack stepped in and ran for 260 yards and three touchdowns. He’s a workhorse, too – he carried 36 times against Brebeuf. As long as he can stay healthy, rushing records could be in jeopardy this season.
What to watch Friday against? Can he carry that kind of load for a second straight week. The Trojans play at Broad Ripple, which lost its opener 22-18 to Northview.
New No. 1s
Only one class was untouched at the top of the AP rankings.
Indianapolis Ritter remains at the top of Class 2A after its win over Heritage Christian.
In 6A, Carmel was co-No. 1 with Lawrence Central, but the Greyhounds fell to No. 4 after squeaking past Indianapolis Tech in its opener. Lawrence Central now stands alone at the top of Indiana’s largest-school class.
Fort Wayne Snider is the new No. 1 in Class 5A, replacing Cathedral, though I’m not sure Cathedral should drop for losing to Ben Davis. Cathedral is in at No. 2.
Columbus East is the New No. 1 in Class 4A after Chatard, the preseason No. 1, lost its opener. Chatard fell to No. 3.
Brebeuf moved up from No. 5 to the top of Class 3A after its win over Chatard.
Linton is the new No. 1 in Class 1A after Sheridan’s loss, moving up from No. 2 in the preseason. Sheridan fell to No. 5.
Can the powerhouses bounce back?
You’d probably have to look back a long way to find the last time Warren Central, Cathedral, Chatard and Sheridan lost on the same day.
Sheridan, the preseason No. 1 in Class 1A, lost its opener 34-13 to Western Boone and has dropped to No. 5.
Sheridan’s stud running back, Austin Hoover, still rolled up 221 yards against WeBo, though much of his damage was done after his team fell behind 27-0.
The Blackhawks will try to right the ship Friday at home against Hamilton Heights, ranked No. 8 in Class 3A.
Western Boone, by the way, has moved up to No. 3 in Class 3A after starting the season at No. 9 under new coach Justin Pelley. The Stars play at Clinton Central on Friday.
Is T.C. McKiernan really that good?
McKiernan, Noblesville’s talented quarterback, put up video game numbers in Friday’s upset win over Fishers. He completed 17 of 25 passes for 221 yards and three touchdowns and ran 23 times for 160 yards, 7.0 yards per carry. We’ll find out what he’ll do for an encore — the Millers play at Brownsburg on Friday. Both teams are knocking on the door of the Top 10 in Class 6A.
How much damage can Kyree Hollis do this season?
Hollis is Cardinal Ritter’s new receiving star, replacing Alex Parrett in that role. Hollis caught three touchdown passes in the first half of Ritter’s 59-7 win over Heritage Christian on Friday (boy, does Heritage miss Matt Hunt and Anthony Warrum). He’s a sub-4.5 sprinter who is drawing Division I interest. With a quarterback like Jake Purichia, anything is possible.
