The Wildcats of North Union are a team that has been playing good football, but this week they will face an opponent that has been able to right their season after a slow start.
The Cats will make the short trip to Buckeye Valley where they haven’t had the best of luck over the recent past.
“It is just one of those things (losing to Buckeye Valley),” said North Union head coach Nick Hajjar. “It has been the trend the last couple of times we have been there. We’re hoping to right the wrong this Friday.”
NU lost at BV 27-7 in 2016 when the Barons went 4-6 for the season and again in 2014 by a 12-0 count, when BV posted the same record.
This year has been a similar trend for the Barons. They tallied a 1-3 record to start this season, but have turned things around with three wins over the last three weeks.
The biggest victory came three weeks ago over Pleasant. That win also sets BV up for a potential three-way tie for the title in the Mid Ohio Athletic Conference with Clear Fork and Pleasant.
“I think one thing that would give any team confidence is they beat Pleasant,” said Hajjar. “I just think they are going to try and win a league title.
“If I was Buckeye Valley that is what I would be screaming,” he said. “They have a legitimate chance if they win this week. For those kids to be 1-3 and now 4-4 I think they are feeling pretty good about themselves.”
With more to play for than just a victory, the Barons will have to rely on what Hajjar calls a big and physical presence up front.
“It is going to be a good challenge (for us),” he said.
The Barons will use a variety of offensive formations in the form of the I under center or spreading the ball out with an empty backfield in the shotgun.
“They are pretty balanced,” Hajjar said. “They do a good job of switching between the run and the pass. Formation-wise, they are doing some of the same things we have seen in the past.”
BV will use Zach Garber to carry the bulk of the load on the ground. He is in the top 10 running backs in the league with more than 500 yards.
Grant Owens will be under center as the gunslinger. He also has impressive stats with more than 800 yards passing and is a top-three QB in the conference.
With BV’s offensive power and large physical nature, Hajjar believes his Cats will need to play disciplined football to win.
“I just think they are going to make you be assignment-sound and disciplined, so everybody has to do their job,” he said. “If every guy does their job, that puts us in a decent position to be successful.”
This game is important to the Bars as they are vying for a league title.
North Union, though, has just as much on the line as it is competing for a spot in the Region 18 playoffs.
A post-seaason berth would start with a win over BV.
“We still have things to play for,” Hajjar said. “We have secured a winning record, but there is more that we all want. However, it goes one week at a time.”
That Cats have set themselves up in the seventh spot of the region with a 6-2 record and need to win to keep those playoff chances alive.
They plan to do so by using the same tools they have to get this far . . . running the ball.
Trevor Moran regained the top spot in the MOAC with nearly 1,000 yards rushing this season.
Teammate Carson Smith is in the top five with nearly 700 yards.
With this being a league game, Hajjar said both teams are very familiar with each other and what they are going to do.
“They know what we do and we know what they do,” Hajjar said. “There could be a wrinkle here and there but this late in the season, you kind of know who you are and you just have to do your job.”
The job is simple for North Union . . . win.
This could be the year the Cats pick up a victory on the road at Buckeye Valley, along with keeping their playoff hopes on solid footing.