MIDDLETOWN >> Appearing in the North Coast Section football playoffs isn’t exactly headline news at Middletown High School because the Mustangs rarely miss — the last time was 2007 — and this year is no different.
Middletown (5-4), the third-place team out of the North Central League I, will host another NCL I school, Willits (5-5), on Friday night in the opening round of the Division V playoffs at Bill Foltmer Field in Middletown. Kickoff is 7 p.m.
Only 11 teams qualified for the 16-team field this year, which means the top five seeds all have first-round byes. Middletown earned the seventh seed behind No. 1 Berean Christian (9-1), No. 2 St. Bernard (9-1), No. 3 John Swett (9-1), No. 4 Valley Christian (8-2), No. 5 Salesian (4-6) and No. 6 Ferndale (6-4).
The rest of the field includes No. 8 Cloverdale (7-3), No. 9 Stellar Prep (6-3), No. 10 Willits and No. 11 Livermore Valley Charter (5-4).
A Middletown win against Willits would put the Mustangs into the quarterfinals on Nov. 21 against St. Bernard at St. Bernard Academy in Eureka (1 p.m. kickoff).
Middletown beat Willits 43-8 back on Oct. 2 at Willits, the league opener for both teams. If the Mustangs are going to beat the Wolverines again, they’ll have to do it without starting quarterback Connor Armstrong, who is out for the season after sustaining an injury in a 13-0 win at Cloverdale two weeks ago, an injury that required his spleen to be removed. The Wolverines figure to have their hands plenty full with Middletown’s rushing attack, which took a huge chunk out of their defense in the first meeting. Coleman Drew rushed for 179 yards and four touchdowns while backfield mate Ty Chorjel added 75 yards and two TDs.
Willits enters the playoffs having lost five of its last six games. Middletown is working on a three-game winning streak.
Middletown owns a 2-2 record against teams in the Division V field. The Mustangs beat both Willits and Cloverdale in league play and lost to both Salesian and Berean Christian during the non-league portion of their schedule.
