6A State Talk: Can anybody beat the Trojans?

With the Indiana High School football tournament finally underway, the main question observers have to ask is a simple one: can anybody in the state knock off Center Grove, or will the Trojans go on to four-peat as 6A state champions?

Last year, they won their third consecutive state title over Fort Wayne Carroll 35-9.  Their previous state championship victories were over Westfield (38-14 in 2020, 27-21 in 2021). 

The Trojans faced a very stiff regular season schedule with five out-of-state opponents.  After losing in Week One to an insanely-stacked Cleveland St. Edward team at the Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio, they ripped off eight straight wins against some of the top programs in the region including Cincinnati Moeller, Louisville Trinity, and Cathedral.

Now with the tournament opening up this Friday night for 6A schools, can anybody in 6A get in their way?

Cathedral certainly didn’t make life easy on the Trojans during their matchup two weeks ago.  With Danny O’Neil, Oscar Kirsch, Zach Meeks, Devaughn Slaughter and the promising Albren Johnson along with a bevy of other top college prospects, expect the Irish to be contenders in November.

Carroll could return for a rematch behind the arm of junior quarterback Jimmy Sullivan.  With offensive playmakers like Corey Smith and and Garrett Sherrell, and defensive prospects like Mason Keifer and Jackson Sargent, Brownsburg could also challenge for the state’s top classification title.  But whether the Bulldogs have the goods will be determined on Friday when they face Ben Davis.  The Giants, under the tutelage of first-year head coach Russ Mann, have an electrifying offense with quarterback Thomas Gotkowski and a strong defense with the coverage skills of cornerback Mark Zackery.  

Who else could topple the Trojans?  The Hamilton Southeastern Royals are a strong possibility, too.  The Royals are loaded: offensive linemen Styles Prescod (Notre Dame commit) and Cameron Gorin (Power 5 offers) anchor them up-front while Mason Alexander leads the defense from his perch at safety.  Westfield is also strong and has a very potent offense.

Still, the favorite has to be the Trojans for a four-peat.  Quarterback Tyler Cherry, tight end Dominick Barry, wide receiver Noah Coy, and blossoming sophomore wideout Brevin Holubar provide the Trojans with a potent offensive attack.  Coupled with a battle-hardened regular season schedule as an independent program, the Trojans will be ready for whatever the tournament throws at them.