Friday’s game
What: Carlisle (2-2, 1-0 SWBL Buckeye) at Northridge (2-2, 0-1 SWBL Buckeye), 7 p.m.
Where: Northridge Stadium, 2251 Timber Lane, Dayton
Last meeting: Carlisle won 59-18 in 2014
There is an upside to playing your third-string quarterback and watching a lead nearly slip away in the fourth quarter.
“It showed some resilience that I hadn’t seen yet, so we were able to rally around that,” Carlisle High School football coach Mike Brown said of his team’s 21-20 victory over Waynesville last Friday. “We kind of missed the injury bug all the way into the fourth week, then it hit us all at once. It was definitely a next-man-up mentality, which was nice to see from them.”
The Indians led 14-0 and 21-7, then held off the visiting Spartans after Reece Human blocked an extra point in the last minute.
Waynesville followed by recovering an onside kick, but turned the ball over on downs as Carlisle improved to 2-2 overall and 1-0 in the Southwestern Buckeye League Buckeye Division.
The injuries? Well, quarterback Daulton Butler went out in the third period with a wrist issue. Second-string QB Jake Moore — a starting wide receiver — was unavailable by that time after taking a big hit in the second stanza.
That left Adam Goodpaster, a two-way starter at receiver and free safety, to handle the Indians’ quarterback position. He was incomplete with his only pass attempt, but carried the ball four times for 31 yards.
“He stepped in and looked like he’d been there for years,” Brown said. “He just took over. He’s got great confidence in his ability and the offensive line in front of him, and it’s nice to have (fullback) Ridge Reed beside him.”
Brown said Wednesday afternoon that he’s not sure if Butler or Moore will be able to play Friday at Northridge. If they can’t go, Goodpaster will get the start at QB.
“Adam had taken some snaps during July,” Brown said. “He actually drove us all the way down the field on a long drive Friday and we scored, but it was called back for holding. Then we stalled.”
Butler completed 5 of 13 passes for 128 yards and two touchdowns, both to D.J. Chambers. Reed roared to 188 yards and a TD on 23 carries — it was the 11th 100-yard performance in his last 12 games.
“He’s running like crazy, and he’s leading the team in tackles too,” Brown said of Reed, who also plays linebacker. “He’s playing some darn good football.”
The CHS coach credited Waynesville (1-3, 0-1) with its second-half performance, but also said the Indians “were riddled with penalties.”
Northridge isn’t known for its gridiron prowess, yet the Polar Bears (2-2, 0-1) appear to be on the upswing. Quarterback Anthony Carroll threw for 520 yards last week in a 29-22 loss to Milton-Union, and Carroll (104 of 157, 1,465 yards, eight TDs) and Drew Ogletree (46 catches, 670 yards, two TDs) lead the SWBL in passing and receiving, respectively.
“The Northridge I’m watching on film is a pretty good football team, so that’s all I really know,” Brown said. “They’re disciplined, they don’t have many penalties, and they have some really good athletes that can go the distance at the snap of a ball. And they hit hard on defense. We know we’re in for a long, physical game on Friday.”
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