IHSAA Class 2A football state final: Adams Central vs. Linton-Stockton

Class 2A final: Adams Central vs. Linton-Stockton, 11 a.m. Friday
Stream PPV on IHSAAtv.org

The Indiana high school football state finals begin Friday with Class 2A play. A closer look at the matchup:

Matchup: Adams Central (13-1) vs. Linton-Stockton (12-2)

Rankings: No. 4 Adams Central; Linton-Stockton No. 7

Start: Friday, 11 a.m., at Lucas Oil Stadium

How to watch:IHSAAtv.org

Championships: Linton-Stockton won its only Class A football state championship with a 34-20 win over Pioneer in 2016 after finishing second in 2015. The Miners have two girls’ basketball state titles (2020 and ’21 in Class 2A) and a boys’ track and field title in 1910. Adams Central won its only Class A football state title in 2000, going 29-21 -Victory over Attica. This remains the school’s only state title in any sport.

trainer

Adams Central coach Michael Mosser, 50, is in his 16th year^Th season at Adams Central, his only head coaching job. Mosser has led the Flying Jets to a 154-50 record. He graduated from Adams Central University in 1993 and played quarterback in college at Anderson University. Mosser started as a middle school coach at Eastbrook and South Adams before working as an assistant at Adams Central from 2006-08.

Linton Stockton coach Brian Oliver, 47, is in his 12th season^Th Season as Miners coach with a record of 126-27. He led Linton to all three state finals appearances and its only state title. Oliver, a 1996 Linton-Stockton graduate, was an assistant at his alma mater for 15 years before getting the coaching job. He was a quarterback and safety for three years in high school.

A closer look at Adams Central

The fourth-ranked Flying Jets lost their opener in Garrett before rattling off 13 straight wins, including a 20-13 victory over Andrean in the semistate last week. Adams Central reached the Class A state final each of the last three years, losing to Lutheran each time, before moving up to Class 2A this year thanks to the IHSAA’s tournament success factor. The Flying Jets become the ninth school to play in four consecutive state championship games.

Adams Central’s Wing-T/Spread offense produces 35.9 points per game and 282.7 yards rushing per game. Senior running backs Matt Heiser (1,224 rushing yards, 20 TDs) and Aaron Hirschy (975 rushing yards, 19 TDs) and sophomore quarterback Jamison Roach (824 rushing yards, 11 TDs) are the team’s leading rushers. Roach has also thrown for 686 yards and 12 touchdowns, almost entirely to 6-4 junior receiver Braylend Reber (20 catches, 492 yards, nine touchdowns). The defense is led by senior linebacker Max Kaehr (162 tackles, two fumble recoveries), junior linebacker Hayden Bluhm (107 tackles), senior defensive back Jaret Smith (93 tackles, three interceptions) and junior defensive tackle Cam Fravel (76 tackles, 9 ½ bags).

Quotable

“It’s surreal. We are a small school in the country. This is our fourth trip, which in itself is a bit surreal and crazy. It just doesn’t happen. We have a long tradition of excellence in football, but the last few years have been very special, so the community even expects us to be successful and they couldn’t be more supportive or encouraging. They love Adams Central football and love these kids. It’s a big deal for our little ones. rural farming community to be on the big stage. – Adams Central coach Michael Mosser

A closer look at Linton-Stockton

No. 7 Linton-Stockton defeated three top-10 teams in the tournament, defeating No. 8 South Vermillion in the sectional, No. 2 Brownstown Central in the regional (22-21) and No. 3 Lutheran in the semistate (40). -28). Linton-Stockton runs a hybrid Wing-T offense that produces 237 rushing yards per game and 465 yards of total offense. The defense intercepted 17 passes.

The offense is led by senior quarterback Braylon McBride, who has completed 61% of his passes for 1,758 yards and 17 touchdowns with seven interceptions. McBride completed most of those passes to 6-4 junior Paul Oliver (49 catches, 927 yards, 12 TDs) and 6-3 senior Hayden Feltner (55 catches, 740 yards, six TDs). Jesse Voigtschild, a senior, is the team’s leading rusher with 1,368 yards and 10 touchdowns. Russell Goodman, a junior defensive back, has 418 rushing yards and seven rushing TDs. Corey Andrews, a 6-3, 250-pound junior linebacker, leads the Miners with 175 tackles, 14½ for loss, five sacks and three forced fumbles. Oliver has seven sacks and five forced fumbles and junior Cooper Smith has 17 tackles for loss and 6½ sacks.

How Adams Central can win

Control the ball and the clock and stay on track. Adams Central has the advantage of having been here three years in a row. In those previous appearances, the Flying Jets made Lutheran sweat twice, losing just 34-28 in 2021 and 35-28 last year (the 2022 game ended 30-13 Lutheran). Adams Central was able to keep up in last year’s game by making some big plays in the passing game. Three years ago it was more about the running game, which seems more likely this time.

How Linton-Stockton can win

Stop the run on defense and make some big plays with the passing game on offense. Linton-Stockton is definitely the more balanced team of the two and will likely be tested by a tougher schedule in the tournament. The Miners’ receivers could pose a problem for Adams Central’s defensive backs.

Class 2A state final prediction

Adams Central 31, Linton-Stockton 28. This could be a mild surprise regardless of the rankings. But after three straight years of coming up short, the Flying Jets have finally gotten it done.

Breaking News

Dellupodisabato

IHSAA Class 2A football state final: Adams Central vs. Linton-Stockton

Leave a Reply Cancel reply