LOOKING TO KEEP IT GOING — Indian Creek’s bid for an undefeated season has a big hurdle to clear this week as St. Clairsville comes to Wintersville on senior night. - Michael D. McElwain

WINTERSVILLE — The Indian Creek football team has secured a postseason birth, however, the Redskins cannot afford to look ahead.

Last week, Indian Creek fell behind Beaver Local early on, however, the Redskins rallied and ultimately held on to defeat the Beavers, 35-28, last Friday night at home at Kettlewell Stadium.

“I think that was the biggest thing,” Indian Creek (8-0) head coach Andrew Connor said about his team’s ability to handle adversity being the difference in the game. “Offensively, when we needed a score, or defensively when we needed a stop, we were able to get it. Our kids were in some bad situations, and they handle it very well. They responded. We were in some positions that could break us, but our kids handle it very well.”

Indian Creek will look to continue its winning ways this week as the Redskins welcome St. Clairsville to town for a 7 p.m. kickoff. The Red Devils enter play this week with a record of 5-3.

“They play a very good schedule,” Connor said. “They are well coached. They are physical. They have some athletes on offense. Defensively, it is the same. They do a lot of things. They are a good football team. They can run. They can power run. They use different formations. They can spread you out and run, and they can pack it in and run. Their quarterback – Sam McLean – does a good job. You can tell he’s a coach’s son. He does everything right. He is fundamentally sound. He does the right things. He can run and throw. They’re balanced offensively.”

St. Clairsville comes into the game off a 24-15 loss to Bloom-Carroll last Friday night at home down at Red Devil Stadium.

“Defensively, St. Clairsville is physical,” Connor said. “They are good up front. Their base defense is a 4-3. Their linebackers tackle well. Their secondary is good. They don’t give up the big play. They are well coached. They know how to win. They have played in a lot of big games. They’re a good football team.”

The boys from Belmont County has had the better of the rivalry as of late, however, the boys from Jefferson County know what they had to do in order to be successful come Friday night.

“We cannot turn the ball over,” Connor said. “We had three turnovers. That’s uncharacteristic. We cannot have three turnovers. That is No. 1. We have to beat smart on offense. We have to do a good job on first down. We have to stay in front of the chains. We can’t be in long-yardage situations. Defensively, we cannot give up a lot of yards on first down. We cannot let them dictate things to us. We’re going to have to get off to a fast start, and we are going to have to play physical. Those are the three things we are stressing this week.”

It is going to be a special night for the Red and Gold as the game will be played on Senior Night, and the Redskins are hoping for another large crowd to make plenty of noise throughout the course of the ballgame.

“It’s Senior Night,” Connor said. “The seniors have done a lot for this program. They have turned things around. We have gotten good crowds this season. Hopefully, we get another one. They make a lot of noise.”

Indian Creek is currently ranked fifth in the Ohio, Division IV, Region 15 standings, while St. Clairsville finds itself in 10th place in the Division V, Region 17 rankings. The top 12 teams in each region qualify for the playoffs, and the top four teams in each region will receive a bye in the first round.