Wayne, get ready for the biggest test of the season, because here it comes in the form of Delta.
The Generals are playing as well of late as any team in the area. However, Delta - minus last week - has been playing as well as any team in the state since August.
The two teams meet at 7 p.m. Friday at Delta for the IHSAA Class 4A Sectional 12 championship.
“We've watched three films of Wayne, and we know they're good,” Eagle coach Grant Zgunda said. “They're going to run the ball a lot and run it right at you.”
That they will.
The Generals (7-4) have averaged 268 yards rushing each game this season and have carried the ball across the goal line 27 times in 10 games. In its 30-0 sectional opening win at Marion, Wayne quarterback Jordan Patterson, renowned for his running ability, showed off his throwing skills. The junior completed 5-of-8 attempts for 146 yards.
“(Patterson) has a nice arm,” Zgunda said. “(Wayne) does some play-action with their passing and they can throw it.”
Wayne has run roughshod through its two sectional opponents, outscoring Marion and New Haven by a combined 44-2. That probably won't be the case Friday.
Delta (11-0) is one of the more prolific offensive teams in the state. The fifth-ranked team has a runner of its own in Teddy Dawson, who has gained 1,379 yards. But the Eagles' best weapon is receiver Logan Young.
The 6-foot-5 Indiana recruit is the second-most-productive receiver in the state; he has caught 52 passes for a dozen touchdowns and nearly 1,200 yards. It was Young who saved the Eagles' season last week with a fourth-quarter touchdown as defending sectional champion Delta beat county-rival Muncie Southside 7-6. It was the first time the Eagles had been held to fewer than 21 points all season.
“(The coaches) didn't overlook (Southside),” Zgunda said. “But sometimes it's hard to get it across to 16-year-olds that just because you beat a team (42-10) earlier in the year, doesn't mean anything now.”
In the rain and muck last week, the Eagle offense was slowed considerably. Friday's forecast calls for dry weather and on the field turf of Delta's stadium, Young, Dawson and their mates will be running at full speed. As will Wayne's talented foursome of Patterson (797 yards rushing), Tyrell Jones (720), Miquel Banks (724) and Charles Harvard (460).
Though Wayne will more than likely be able to run the ball, as it has against almost every team this season, it will be the ability of its defensive backs, most notably Donovan Carr and Devon White, who have a combined six interceptions, to at least control Young.
Stopping Dawson will be the responsibility of the General linebackers, of which senior Taylor Deckard (101 tackles) is the leader.
“We're going to have to play well to beat them,” Zgunda said.
“They have four losses, but it was to Snider, (Bishop) Dwenger, South Side and Harding. Those are some pretty good teams.”
