The Grand River Conference’s unbeaten champions from Princeton High School travel to Gower tonight to battle the co-champions of the KCI Conference, the 10-2 Bulldogs of East Buchanan High School. The winner gets a road trip to play in the Class 1 state semifinals next Saturday against either Monroe City or Westran.
With cold temperatures in place for the Tigers showdown with the Bulldogs, the scoreboard could be the hottest item in Gower, with both offenses bringing plenty of firepower into the 7 o’clock kickoff.
While not as dominant as the Tigers resume, East Buchanan has worked around a Week 2 loss to Bishop LeBlond and a regular-season ending defeat at Hamilton to win 10 games, many in close fashion. The Bulldogs ability to battle adversity and still win on Friday nights has impressed Head Coach Kevin Bryan:
Coach Bryan’s spread offense has lit up scoreboards this fall, with junior quarterback Tyler Schottel throwing for 39 touchdowns and nearly 3,600 yards. Princeton has its own dangerous quarterback in senior signal-caller Andrew Smith, a young man that has impressed Bryan:
Smith is an equally dangerous thrower and runner, combining for 61 touchdowns by those modes for the Tiger offense over the past 12 Friday nights. Princeton was hit with adversity at mid-season, losing senior running back Calvin Berwanger for the season with injuries suffered in an automobile accident. Tanner Coffman has done a fine job coming out of the backfield for Princeton in Berwanger’s absence, while PHS boasts perhaps the deepest group of receivers in Class 1, led by seniors Blaine Millburn and Clayton Sweeten.
Second-year Tiger coach Thomas Hotmer notes that while East Buchanan generally utilizes quick passing to move the football with the spread offense, Princeton’s offense, while showing similarities, utilizes the run more than the Bulldogs:
With all the flashy offense on display tonight, Coach Hotmer feels that traditional ‘old-school’ football keys will be big for the Tiger side:
East Buchanan, champions of District 7, will see a different face this week in Princeton, after the Bulldogs won KCI Conference rematches with Mid-Buchanan, West Platte, and Plattsburg to advance to the state quarterfinals. Princeton, with a victory tonight, had a chance of potentially hosting #1 ranked Monroe City in the semifinal round next Saturday, but the hopes of hosting for the Tigers disappeared with Westran’s road win over Marceline in the District 6 final last weekend. Monroe City will play at Westran on Saturday afternoon.
Pregame from East Buchanan High School in Gower hits the air at 6:30 tonight, with kick at 7, on KTTN FM 92.3 and Hot Country Z 101.7.
