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Creek respects Beavers

WINTERSVILLE — Indian Creek coach Andrew Connor has a lot of respect for Mike McKenzie and his Beaver Local program.

The two Buckeye 8 North rivals meet tonight at Kettlewell Stadium with the Redskins looking to keep working toward a playoff spot — and potential home game.

“Over the years I have been fortunate enough to become good friends with Coach McKenzie,” Connor said. “Every time I have played him, no matter where he’s been, his kids have always played hard and been well prepared. For everybody involved, we play Beaver Local in our seventh- and eighth-grade league. The kids know each other very well. They have competed against each other for years.

“Over the course of time, with us being in the Buckeye 8 North and Beaver being in the Buckeye 8 North, we have had some really great games with them, and I expect the same thing.”

McKenzie, a former Edison head coach, and his bunch showed resilience in Week 7, coming back from a 20-6 halftime deficit for a 21-20 win at Buckeye Local. Connor knows that his Redskins can’t count the Beavers out.

“I would expect nothing less than for them to be a resilient football team,” Connor said. “They always play hard. They have good kids and they are well coached. They run the ball well. They have a lot of different formations. Defensively, we’re impressed with their ability to rally to the ball.”

The Redskins, who took care of business against Martins Ferry in Week 7, sit 6-1 and fourth in Division IV, Region 13, currently in a position to host in round 1 of the postseason.

“It’s amplified for us, not just because of the playoff race, but Friday night is senior night,” Connor said. “It’s our last regular-season home game. It has been a pretty special run for this senior class.”

Trevor Frante has rushed for 751 yards and 12 touchdowns. He is averaging 5.9 yards per carry. Sam Mazar has thrown for 503 yards and a score, while rushing for 254 yards and five more touchdowns. As a whole, the Redskins offense averages 27.4 points and 283 total yards per game.

On defense, Indian Creek allows an average of 7.6 points and 209 total yards per game.

On the other side, Beaver Local averages 24.3 points per game for and 21.0 points against.

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