Preview: 6-1 Cougars at 1-6 Kenton

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

With 70 percent of the regular season gone, Van Wert has checked off a lot of boxes. The Cougars have won six of seven games, lead the Western Buckeye League in total offense and points scored and have a No. 6 ranking in this week’s statewide Division IV poll.

However, the last two games have been closer than the final score would indicate. Van Wert led Ottawa-Glandorf 17-16 before pulling away for a 31-14 win and last week, the Cougars had a five point lead, 19-14, late in the third quarter before going on to defeat Bath 36-14.

I think our last two games show how good of coaches and players our league has,” Van Wert head coach Keith Recker said. “Shawnee has some talented players and a coach that has had success at a few programs around the area. With that being said, our film session Saturday revealed some miscues on our part that we have to take care of to take another step forward. We made things harder for ourselves with too many missed assignments, incorrect footwork, and lack of technique. Our players will respond and be focused on the fundamentals the rest of the way.”

While Van Wert has excelled in various areas, one in particular is the first quarter, where the Cougars have outscored opponents by a 104-21 margin this season. Another area is the giveway/takeaway ratio, where Van Wert is plus-7.

This week’s opponent, Kenton has won just one game so far, 20-6 over Bath in Week No. 3. While the Wildcats are 1-6 (1-5 WBL), it should be noted they’ve already played two state ranked teams (Coldwater, No. 1 Division V) and Wapakoneta (No. 11 Division III). Six of their opponents have combined to go 32-10 at this point, giving Kenton one of the toughest schedules in all of Division IV.

The Wildcats average about 240 yards of total offense, including 175 yards passing, second behind Van Wert. Korbin Johnston is in his second season as the starting quarterback and has thrown for over 1,100 yards and four touchdowns. Kenton is last among WBL schools in total defense, allowing 333 yards per game, including 581 during last week’s 55-0 loss to St. Marys Memorial.

“They have a lot of experience back from last season,” Recker said of the Wildccats. “The majority of their players were freshman, sophomores and a few juniors last year, so those guys have significant experience on Fridays. Kenton is still very good in their route running, adjusting routes, finding open holes in zones, and their quarterback makes some very good throws.”

“Defensively, they can throw some blitzes and different coverages at us which has the ability to cause confusion,” he added. “We need to recognize these things during film study during the week so we can play fast on Friday night.”

Van Wert remains a game back in the WBL title chase and will need to win each of the three remaining regular season games and hope Bath, Celina or Defiance can defeat Wapakoneta. The Cougars have unofficially clinched a playoff spot, but remains to be seen what seed the team will earn.

“Playoffs are an exciting time and our team looks forward to an opportunity to compete in the tournament,” Recker said. “We have been fortunate have seen quite a few teams the last two years being in the playoffs, so we are familiar with many of the teams in our region and what they do in all three phases of the game. But with Kenton, Elida, and Bath left on the schedule, our entire focus needs to be on taking care of the opponent directly in front of us and continue to push to change our best in all we do.”

Kenton head coach Zach Turner did not respond to a request for comment for this story.

Friday’s Van Wert at Kenton game will air live on WERT 1220AM/104.3FM.