Lakota West enters Friday's Greater Miami Conference home game against Colerain ranked No. 2 in the region, while Lakota East travels to Middletown needing a win to stop a two-game slide.
The Blitz 5 Top 25 rankings, published by WLWT and TriStateFootball.com on Monday, Oct. 5, slot the Firebirds (6-1, 5-1 GMC) at No. 2 behind unbeaten Princeton (7-0). The Thunderhawks (4-3, 3-3 GMC) sit at No. 11 after back-to-back losses dropped them from a 4-1 start.
Lakota West vs. No. 16 Colerain
The Firebirds are rolling. Senior running back Kenyon Norman, a Northwestern commit, rushed for 145 yards and four touchdowns on 25 carries in a 35-0 shutout of then-No. 9 Middletown on Friday, Oct. 2. It was Lakota West's first shutout of the season, and the defense has allowed just seven points over the past two weeks.
Quarterback Jackson Smith completed 11 of 15 passes for 181 yards and a touchdown in that game. Wide receiver Karmelo Jordan hauled in five catches for 135 yards, including a 67-yard score.
"Kenyon runs the ball so hard that it does wear on teams," head coach Tom Bolden said after the Friday, Oct. 2, win over Middletown.
Norman led the GMC with 1,036 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns through six weeks, according to WLWT's Week 7 preview. Defensively, Purdue commit Roman Combs and junior linebacker Judah Blair anchor a unit that held Middletown to 150 total yards and 1-of-13 on third down.
Colerain (4-3, 4-2 GMC) arrives on a three-game winning streak, scoring at least 41 points in each of those victories. The Cardinals beat Sycamore 41-23 in Week 7. Colerain entered the season with at least eight players holding Division I FBS offers, according to WLWT's preseason preview.
Lakota West's only loss came at No. 1 Princeton, 27-24, on Sept. 19.
Lakota East at No. 10 Middletown
The Thunderhawks need a bounce-back. Lakota East fell 35-31 at then-No. 20 Fairfield on Friday, Oct. 2, its second straight defeat after opening the year 4-1.
Junior quarterback Nile Knutson threw for 443 yards in the loss, per @cincybuffs on X. The effort was not enough to overcome the deficit.
Head coach Jon Kitna, a former NFL quarterback in his fourth season leading the program, takes his team into a Middletown squad that is also regrouping. The Middies (4-3, 4-2 GMC) had their four-game winning streak snapped by Lakota West's shutout and are playing without starting quarterback Kolby Morgerson, who was ruled ineligible by the OHSAA under its transfer bylaw. Backup Gavin Nolan has started in his place.
Middletown managed just 150 total yards against Lakota West's defense on Friday, Oct. 2.
What's ahead
A win keeps Lakota West in the hunt for a potential postseason rematch with Princeton. For Lakota East, a third straight loss would hurt the Thunderhawks' playoff positioning heading into the stretch run.
Kickoff for both games is Friday, Oct. 9.
