Norwich steps out of the section to face an old rival. The Tornado travel to Chittenango tonight for a 7 p.m. start. It's a reunion, of sorts, as the two teams squared off in the 1993 state playoffs, a contest that ended with the Bears scoring a late touchdown to advance past Norwich. The loss was Norwich’s lone defeat in a 10-1 season.
“There is some history there, and a lot of people remember that game,” said Norwich coach Mike Chrystie, “I know (that result) is still a very sore spot for everyone I have spoken to.”
Clearly, the events of that game have no bearing on either club’s current fortunes. None of the protagonists on the field were born, and Norwich’s head coach, Chrystie, was still in grade school at Oxford Academy.
In the present, each team has matching 1-3 starts with Chittenango coming off recent lopsided losses to Homer and Marcellus. Meanwhile, Norwich produced its first victory of the season last weekend rolling to a 33-6 victory over Windsor. It wasn’t a perfect performance, but Chrystie and his staff will certainly take it.
“We looked at the tape and I think we played well and executed well, but we know we can still improve and still play better,” the NHS coach said. “We need to be more consistent with our effort, our technique, and our overall game plan.”
In Chittenango, Norwich will square off against a team that wants to dictate at the line of scrimmage with a power running attack. If that fails, all bets are off, and Chittenango may resort to a wide-open spread offense. “We want to get them out of their bread and butter and force them to do things they don’t want to do,” Chrystie said.
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A reader pointed out that I make predictions of high school games in Tuesday’s Football Contest, so at the bottom of each game preview, I will repeat my selection. For what it’s worth, I did predict Norwich to defeat Chittenango this week. Below is a look at the other four local football games on the docket:
Tioga (3-1) at Oxford (3-1), Friday, 7 p.m.
Oxford and Tioga do have matching records through four games this season, but in terms of reputation, past success, and results so far this season, the Tigers enter the game as the favorite.
“This will be our toughest competition to date, and going into the game, our kids will need to believe in themselves, believe in team play, and play every down as if it is the last,” said Oxford coach Jeff Newton.
Looking at Tioga on film, Newton said that Tioga operates its offense like a machine, and the defense is disciplined with what it does. The teams that have beaten Tioga were just as fundamentally sound and more physical. “You have to be willing to go nose to nose (with Tioga),” Newton said. “From the beginning of the season to now, our team has done a 180 with being dominant and physical.”
Prediction: Tioga.
Mt. Markham (2-2) at Sherburne-Earlville (3-1), Friday, 7 p.m.
Tonight’s scrap will be the first time since the midway point of the 2012 season that the Marauders have the opportunity to bounce back from a loss. S-E’s lone loss a season ago was in the Section III playoffs, and in 2012, it was knocked out of the playoffs as well.
