LAKE COUNTY — It’s kind of funny to talk about must-win situations when the calendar hasn’t even reached October yet, but the Clear Lake Cardinals and Middletown Mustangs find themselves in exactly that situation Friday night when they square off at Don Owens Stadium.
Both teams enter play 1-1 in the league standings, one game behind leaders Kelseyville (2-0) and Cloverdale (2-0). A second loss this early in the North Central League I campaign will make it difficult for either team to keep up with the Joneses, which in 2018 is proving to be a powerful Knights squad that doesn’t show any sign of slowing down soon.
Middletown at Clear Lake is one of four NCL I games on the Friday night football menu, but hardly the only game offering some intrigue. Kelseyville also hosts Fort Bragg (1-1) in what has the makings of a head-knocker, and the Lower Lake Trojans (0-2) hit the road to play Cloverdale where the Eagles are off to their best start in years at 4-1 overall. The other NCL I matchup pairs St. Helena (1-1) at Willits (0-2).
In eight-man football action, Upper Lake (0-5) opens its NCL III schedule with a long road trip to Miranda to play South Fork (3-2).
Peeking ahead to next week, if Kelseyville and Cloverdale come away with wins this weekend it will set the stage for a Cloverdale at Kelseyville showdown on Oct. 5 in Kelseyville.
Middletown at Clear Lake
What would have been an interesting matchup a year ago never materialized because of the October firestorms that wiped out a full week’s worth of games. Middletown went on to win the league title with a 7-0 record while Clear Lake tied for third place at 5-2. Both teams made deep pushes into the playoffs and had their seasons ended by the same team. St. Patrick-St. Vincent of Vallejo defeated Clear Lake in the North Coast Section Division V semifinals and then beat Middletown a week later in the section championship game.
Prior to last year’s canceled meeting, this head-to-head series has been thoroughly lopsided in the Mustangs’ favor. You have to go back to 2007 to find the last time the Cardinals beat the Mustangs. Between 2008-2016, there was only one competitive game between the two teams as Middletown went 9-0 against Clear Lake with five shutout victories, including a 2-0 forfeit win in 2015.
The last three meetings have ended in shutouts – 36-0 in 2016, 2-0 forfeit in 2015, and 42-0 in 2014.
“It’s a weird little history there,” Clear Lake head coach Mark Cory said of the canceled game a year ago and the forfeit in 2015, the season before Cory arrived in Lakeport to take over the program.
“It’s been a lopsided series. I know against us (in 2016) they came right at us and just manhandled us up front,” Cory said. “They’re a physical team that’s going to come at you and we have to stand up and handle our water.”
Clear Lake’s biggest need is to put together four quarters of football, something they haven’t done this season, not even in their 32-13 victory over Willits two weeks ago, according to Cory.
“We’re not that far off,” Cory said. “But we’ve got to make that little improvement to beat them.”
Clear Lake will start its third different quarterback this season as starter Chris White is out with an ankle injury sustained in last week’s 25-14 loss to St. Helena. Darius Ford will replace him.
“He jumped into the game at St. Helena and didn’t blink,” Cory said. “He played very well. He’s not a guy who gets rattled easily.”
Fort Bragg at Kelseyville
The Fort Bragg Timberwolves get their crack at the Knights on Friday night, fresh off a 38-12 victory over Lower Lake last week in Fort Bragg.
“Fort Bragg has a lot of good, solid players and they run multiple offenses and run them all well,” Kelseyville coach Erick Larsen said. “It’s definitely increased our homework load for preparing.”
The Timberwolves mix up elements of Wing-T, Power-I, spread and trips sets, according to Larsen.
“This week it’s critical the kids watch film so they recognize sets quick enough to adjust,” Larsen said. “If not we’ll be out of position.”
With four NCL I teams at 1-1 in league play going into this weekend, including the Timberwolves, any kind of stumble on the part of the Knights will create a logjam atop the NCL I standings.
“Fort Bragg wins and they’re right back in it,” Larsen said.
While Kelseyville has run over opponents with regularity this season, the team’s passing game also showed life in a 28-0 win last week in Middletown.
“We’re working to take advantage of teams who might put eight to 10 players in the box,” Larsen said. “That’s a team effort and it’s starting to come together.”
On the injury front, the Knights are in as good of shape as they can be for this point of the season, according to Larsen. Although they’re still waiting for running back Adrian Villalobos (collar bone) to get healthy, that’s their only significant injury.
Lower Lake at Cloverdale
Two weeks ago the Trojans were done in by turnovers in a 35-14 loss to Middletown. Last week they committed 205 yards in penalties in a 38-12 loss at Fort Bragg. This week they have the opportunity to not only secure their first league victory, but to knock Cloverdale from the ranks of the NCL I’s unbeaten.
“Discipline and execution,” Lower Lake head coach Justin Gaddy said when asked what it will take to pin a loss on Cloverdale. “We need to play four good quarters and we can’t let the other team dictate what we’re doing.”
Gaddy said the Eagles’ strengths are big running backs and a physical line on offense as well as a strong defensive front, solid linebackers and good corners on defense.
“Coach Alexander has done a great over there,” Gaddy said of Cloverdale first-year head coach Greg Alexander and the 4-1 start the Eagles are off to this season. “We’re looking forward to playing their version of the spread offense.”
Lower Lake will suit up 18 out of 26 on its roster for the game, the team’s list of injured smaller this week than it has been in previous weeks.
“We’re excited about getting some of these guys back,” Gaddy said.
Upper Lake at South Fork
Apart from trying to secure that elusive first win of the season, the Cougars have an extra incentive of giving the South Fork Cubs a better game than they did back on Aug. 31 when South Fork won a 48-6 non-league meeting, also at Miranda.
That this second meeting is the league opener for both teams makes the rematch all that much more important.
“I think we’re a lot different team than we were when we first played them,” Upper Lake head coach Vince Moran said. “We’ve improved and we’re a lot tougher.”
Upper Lake is coming off its most promising performance of the preseason, a 36-22 loss to Rincon Valley Christian. The Cougars had multiple chances to tie or win the game trailing 28-22 in the fourth quarter but couldn’t put together that one drive they desperately needed, largely because senior quarterback Ray Moran was under a withering pass rush – the Eagles defense sacked him five times in the fourth quarter alone.
To that effect, Upper Lake has moved sophomore Richard Guaydacan from the offensive backfield to the line, a switch he enthusiastically endorsed, according to Moran.
“His future is carrying the ball and we know that, but we need help on the line now,” Moran said. “He’s an athletic, tough kid.”
Limiting the damage done by South Fork senior quarterback/linebacker CJ Van Meter will be crucial in the rematch, accoridn got Moran.
“He gave us fits the last time we played, but we’ve got some ideas on how to deal with him,” Moran said.
When it comes to attacking South Fork’s defense, Moran said the Cougars will give the Cubs some new looks.
“I think it will give them a lot more fits this time,” he said.
While Upper Lake lost two league home games when Laytonville (Oct. 5) and Anderson Valley (Oct. 26) folded their football programs because of not enough players, the Cougars have replaced Anderson Valley with a non-league game at Crystal Springs (Hillsborough) on Oct. 27. The search continues to find an opponent for the still-open Oct. 5 date.
