Preview: Defiance (1-2) at Van Wert (1-2)

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports

After dropping back-to-back road games, the Van Wert Cougars hope there’s “no place like home.” The Cougars, who are 21-2 at Eggerss Stadium since 2020, with both losses coming last year, will host Defiance on Friday night. 

“We are looking forward to being back on home turf,” Van Wert head coach Keith Recker said. “This is a big game for us and being at home with our crowd will be a big boost. Our players are hungry to get another win and we look forward to having that opportunity at home Friday.”

Last Friday, Van Wert trailed Celina 21-14 at halftime, but four turnovers were too much to overcome as the Bulldogs went on to enjoy a 42-14 victory. The Cougars were also victimized by defensive breakdowns, Celina scored on plays of 51, 78 and 96 yards. The Cougars are allowing 201 yards per game via the pass and 209 yards per game on the ground.

“The mistakes we are making are very fixable but we have to get them fixed,” Recker stated. “A lot of times the mistake is a simple technique that our players are very capable of doing. We need to focus each play on what we preach every day – alignment, assignment, technique. We have to know those three things each play.” 

“Our coaching staff is continuing to find ways to put our players in the best position to succeed and making our schemes and any adjustments simplified so we can play fast and with confidence,” he added. “We believe this is the most important game of the season and we repeat that each week. This is the only game we can prepare ourselves for so our focus is solely on Defiance and doing what we need to to get back in the win category.”

Through three games, quarterback Briston Wise has completed 65-of-87 passes (74.7 percent) for 666 yards, six touchdowns and seven interceptions. Micah Cowan (32-445, four touchdowns) and Keaten Welch (23-126, one touchdown) have been the top two targets. Wise also serves as the team’s leading rusher with 467 yards and six touchdowns on 66 carries, while Gearry Hilleary has chipped in with 33 carries for 118 yards and a score. The Cougar offense has been very balanced, with 222 yards per game coming through the air and 242 yards per outing on the ground.

“Van Wert is a very dangerous team who knocked us off last year at home in a shootout,” Defiance head coach Travis Cooper said. “They have an electric player at quarterback who can hurt you with his arm and his legs.  Their offense is explosive and can score a lot of points in a short amount of time. They have some really nice receivers and a solid offensie line.”

“Defensively, their linebackers do a nice job of getting to the ball and their defensive line does a nice job keeping blockers off of them,” Cooper continued. “They mix up their looks a lot in the secondary which presents a challenge in the passing game.”

After an 0-2 start, Defiance (1-2, 1-1 WBL) stunned St. Marys Memorial 14-10.

“It was a classic tough, hard-hitting WBL game,” Cooper said. “We had our backs up against the wall with being 0-2. Our effort was much better than in Week No. 2 vs. Wapak. St. Marys is a really good football team, so it was nice to see us finally finish.”

In the win over the Roughriders, running back Anthony Wilder (5-10, 175 senior) ran for over 200 yards and three touchdowns (80, 44, 43 yards) on 12 carries, while catching four passes for 50 yards and another touchdown. He has 39 carries for 372 yards and has caught 11 passes for 105 yards and has thrown a touchdown pass.

“Anthony has been starting since his freshman year so he has played in a lot of big games,” Cooper stated. “He always rises to the challenge. He is a swiss-army knife – he can play every skill position. Every team we play game-plans to stop him. He understands that and is a selfless player. He doesn’t care who gets the ball or who the play calls are for. He just wants to win.”

“Offensively they run a lot of different formations and can put No. 11 (Wilder), who is a great weapon for them offensively anywhere on the field and can get the ball to him a number of ways,” Recker said. “(Brez) Zipfel is a very good quarterback who distributes the ball well and is very accurate. They have good size up front, multiple guys in the 250 to 260 range.”

Zipfel has completed 26-of-51 passes for 295 yards, one touchdown and four interceptions, while Noah Gomez has connected on 15-of-20 tosses for 75 yards and a touchdown. Offensively, the Bulldogs are averaging 333 total yards per game, while allowing 352 yards per game.

Van Wert has won seven straight games against Defiance, including last year’s 43-42 thriller at Fred Brown Stadium.

Friday’s game will air live on WERT 1220AM/104.3FM.