MAC Football Game of the Week - Delphos St. John's at Minster

Since head coach Nate Moore arrived at Minster High School before the 2010 season, the Wildcats simply couldn’t get over the hump.  Although they regularly beat the teams on their schedule that they should have, Minster usually slipped up when facing the ‘big dogs’ in the league.  Moore wasted little time in reversing that trend.  Through three seasons, the Wildcats have now defeated every MAC at least once, except for one – the Delphos St. John’s Blue Jays.  This week, the Wildcats and Blue Jays will tangle in the final regular season contest of the 2012 season.  “At this point in the year I think we are used to going on the road, and I enjoy the feeling of being the underdog on the road,” remarked St. John’s head coach Todd Schulte.  “If we can pull out a win on the road against a quality opponent like Minster it is a big confidence boost for the players.”

The Wildcats host St. John’s this week in hopes that their first victory over them since 1996 will pave the way to hosting a first-round playoff game next week.  Since losing in mid-season to St. Henry and Coldwater, the Wildcats have won four straight and look to end the season with an 8-2 overall record – their best regular season finish since 1992.  Last week, in their 20-14 win over the Versailles Tigers, quarterback Adam Niemeyer tossed for one touchdown and ran in another, as he accumulated 256 yards of Minster’s 298 yards of total offense.  “I thought our defense really played well in the last three quarters, and we proved we can go toe-to-toe with a great offensive line and get stops,” Moore pointed out about his team’s play against Versailles.  “We had to put the game into the hands of our senior quarterback, Adam Niemeyer, and he really stepped up to plate and made some great throws to guys like Devon Poeppelman, Ethan Wolf, and AJ Huelsman.  It doesn't get any easier this week - St. John's is an excellent football team who is talented and very well-coached.  They are led by their powerful junior running back Tyler Jettinghoff, and if we are going to have a chance this week, we have to find a way to slow him down.” 

The Blue Jays currently sit at number four in region 22, and a victory at Minster would solidify them a first-round playoff game.  The Blue Jays fly into week ten with a 6-3 overall record, as their three losses – Lima Central Catholic, Marion Local, and Coldwater – have a combined record of 25-2 as of this week.  Following their week-six loss to the Flyers, the Blue Jays have won four straight including last week’s 34-3 victory over New Bremen.  In that win, Tyler Jettinghoff carried the ball 17 times and logged 103 yards with a pair of touchdowns, while Luke MacLenman and Troy Warnecke tacked on 62 yards and a touchdown each.  “For us, Kody White and Brock Bonifas have really come along to strengthen our defensive line, while offensively Tyler Jettinghoff has definitely been our work horse,” Schulte commented.  “Minster is peaking at the right time of the year – they have a good combination of athleticism and size, and we need to establish our running game and make plays both defensively and offensively to have a chance.”

Kickoff is slated for 7:30 at Memorial Stadium in Minster.

By Robb Hemmelgarn