Game Balls: Week 1 Playoffs

<ul> <li>ATH Daniel Rhoad, Guerin</li> </ul> There were some upsets during the first week of playoff action, but few were bigger than Guerin’s 20-18 victory over #3 West Lafayette.  This was a contest that saw extremely important plays in all three phases of the game. Senior Daniel Rhoad was a player that made game changing plays in all of those phases.  On offense he carried the ball 11 times for 108 yards, including a 57 yard TD run in the 4th quarter to give Guerin the lead.  He was all over the place on defense, including a couple of critical pass deflections that prevented West Lafayette TD’s. He wasn’t done there! When West Lafayette lined up for what would have been a game winning field goal, Rhoad came flying off the edge and fully extended himself to block the kick and seal the game.  There were a number of players that impacted this game, but in my opinion... Daniel Rhoad was the heart and soul of this memorable upset for Guerin. <ul> <li>RB Dequan Stennis, Scecina</li> </ul> Scecina jumped out to an earlier lead, and fed Stennis the rest of the way to a 34-14 upset over Centerville.  While racking up 206 yards on 27 carries and scoring 2 TD’s, Stennis was excellent on the night.  Listed at 5’6" 155 pounds, he is another example of a prospect that plays bigger than his frame.  When you turn on the film, you see a player that can beat you to the edge, but also does a great job of finding holes through the center of the DL.  He has a habit of turning both types of runs into explosive plays. He uses his height to his advantage, and by the time the opposing DL sees him, it is too late because he has already hit the hole.  Combine that with his great balance, vision, and speed to take it the distance... you see a player that has the ability to take Scecina on a run. <ul> <li>QB/ATH Jake Reichard, Plymouth</li> </ul> Reichard was a jack of all trades for Plymouth during their 36-20 victory over New Prairie.  While contributing in all three phases of the game, he made his impact felt the most on the offensive side of the ball.  He is a wildcat style QB for Plymouth, but unlike most wildcat QB’s, he was able to make an impact in the passing game as well.  While throwing for 105 yards and rushing for 162 yards / 4 TD’s, Reichard was a statistical contributor for a whopping 57 of his teams 72 total offensive plays.  When you turn on the film, you see a prospect with the size and skill-set to play a number of positions at the next level. Reichard is currently listed as having offers from Valpo and Tiffin, but with his recent performances he is sure to pick up more recruiting interest in the coming weeks.  This is one of the better players in Indiana without an FCS scholarship offer or higher, and one that coaches seriously need to evaluate. <ul> <li>Andrean Defense: LB [player_tooltip player_id="39070" first="Drayk" last="Bowen"], DL Jayden Lynon, DL Jaden Marsh, LB Alfonso Salinas, DB/LB Trey Stephens etc...</li> </ul> The Andrean defense was suffocating during their 44-0 1st round victory over Boone Grove.  I was originally going to award DL Jayden Lynon as the lone game ball recipient for his 3 sacks and 6 tackles, but when going through the stats and film... This was truly a team effort.  When watching the film, you see a unit that is strong at all 3 levels of the defense, they play fast, and they are extremely disruptive.  A couple other individual statistical performances that stood out are; [player_tooltip player_id="39070" first="Drayk" last="Bowen"] with 3 tackles, a blocked punt, and an interception returned for a TD, and Jaden Marsh with 5 tackles, 2 sacks, and 4 tackles for loss. The list could continue to go on! Another thing that stands out about this defense, is that there were major contributors from freshman to seniors, which bodes well for the future of the Andrean program.  It is no secret that great defenses win championships come playoff time, and with how dominant this defense is... There will be little surprise if Andrean makes a big run in this years playoffs. &nbsp;