Stakes high as playoffs hit kickoff Rematches dot 1st full slate of the postseason

It’s November, and the stakes are high for the teams that have reached the Eastern Maine high school football semifinals.

“The coaches are a little more intense, and the seniors start to wonder if this is going to be their last football game,” said Belfast co-coach Butch Arthers. “At this time of year, they really go after it.”

No. 4 Mt. Blue Cougars (7-2) vs. No. 1 Bangor Rams (8-1), 7 p.m. Friday at Bangor: Bangor’s 29-7 victory Week 3 over Mt. Blue at Farmington started the Rams’ current seven-game winning streak. Mt. Blue hasn’t lost since then either, its six straight victories including wins over Skowhegan in both the regular-season finale and PTC Class A quarterfinals.

Tailback Lance Meader has topped 1,400 rushing yards for the Cougars, while quarterback Garrett Lake ranks as one of the PTC’s more prolific passers.

The Cougars revamped their defense to shore up their tackling after being ravaged for more than 300 rushing yards by Bangor’s Mike Prentiss amid the wet and wild remnants of Hurricane Isabel. Since then, Mt. Blue has allowed less than eight points per game.

“Bangor’s going to get into your secondary, either with the pass or the run, and the key for us is to be able to make tackles when they get there,” said Mt. Blue coach Gary Parlin.

Bangor had the second-stingiest PTC Class A defense during the regular season, allowing just 41 points. The Rams followed that up with a 41-7 quarterfinal win against Lewiston in which the Blue Devils’ only touchdown came on a fumble recovery.

Offensively the Rams are paced by Prentiss, the senior tailback with more than 1,600 rushing yards this season, and senior quarterback Shaun Sullivan, who passed for 111 yards in Bangor’s playoff opener.

“We had to throw the football against Lewiston, and I’m sure we’ll have to throw it Friday,” said Bangor coach Mark Hackett. “When you get to this point, you have to do a little bit of everything.”

No. 3 Belfast Lions (6-2) vs. No. 2 Brewer Witches (6-2), 7 p.m. Friday at Brewer: Brewer won a 14-12 Week 5 battle against Belfast that wasn’t decided until the Witches denied the reigning Eastern Maine champs’ two-point conversion try with 1:28 left.

One difference in the rematch will be the presence of Belfast quarterback and linebacker Nick Arthers, who missed the earlier meeting with a shoulder injury. Arthers directs a Belfast offense led by tailback Josh Aldus, the PTC Class B’s only 1,000-yard rusher this season. Aldus rushed for 192 yards against Brewer.

Brewer’s option offense is directed by quarterback Court Rancourt and features a bevy of ballcarriers including Chris Fox, Chris Noyes, Andy Frost and Ricky Porter.

“Brewer has a pretty effective option game right now, and that’s something we’ve got to figure out,” said Arthers. “But if you focus too much on that, they can hurt you inside.”

“We’re going to have to move the ball well against them,” added Brewer coach Ed Ortego. “We did pretty well moving the ball against Belfast the first time. Our defense is OK, we’ve just need to be able to move the football.”

No. 4 Maine Central Institute Huskies (6-3) vs. No. 1 Foxcroft Academy Ponies (9-0), 7 p.m. Friday at Dover-Foxcroft: Foxcroft opened its LTC Class C season with what proved to be one of its toughest challenges, a 19-6 victory over MCI at Pittsfield.

Both teams have come a long way since that sunny Saturday in early September.

“We’re in a different place now than we were then, and Foxcroft is in a different place now,” said MCI coach Tom Bertrand.

Foxcroft, the reigning Eastern Maine champion, is led by quarterback Josh Withee and tailback Bobby Gilbert, who rank among the LTC statistical leaders. Defensively, the Ponies are sparked by linebacker Lincoln Robinson.

“We’ve got a lot of veteran guys who have been through the wars, said Foxcroft coach Paul Withee. “Hopefully that experience will pay off.”

MCI features senior fullback-linebacker Johnathon Smith, who rushed for 167 yards in the Huskies’ 43-21 win against John Bapst last week to go over 1,000 yards for the season. Phil Hendricks has stepped in at quarterback for the Huskies, replacing injured starter Ryan Bennett.

No. 3 Bucksport Golden Bucks (7-2) vs. No. 2 Stearns Minutemen (8-1), 7 p.m. Friday at Millinocket: These teams played a Week 4 LTC nail-biter, with the Minutemen emerging from a battle of big plays with a 21-20 victory.

“There were a lot of single-play scores by both teams, and not a lot of drives,” said Stearns coach Chris Preble. “Hopefully this time we’ll be able to eliminate their big plays and put some drives together ourselves.”

Bucksport enters the playoffs on a five-game winning streak. The Golden Bucks boast a diverse offense led by a 1,000-yard passer in quarterback Joey Carmichael and a 1,000-yard rusher in tailback Chris Woodman.

Stearns counters with a defense that has allowed less than seven points per game led by Craig Cullen, the LTC’s leading tackler.

The Stearns offense runs through quarterback Derek DiFrederico, one of three Minutemen with about 500 rushing yards, along with Matt Wark and Matt Barnett.

“Stearns is very physical, and with everything that’s gone on up there they’re on a mission,” said Bucksport coach Joel Sankey. “They’re tough-nosed kids. It should be a great game, two mill towns going at each other.”