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RICHMOND -- Edison's chip landed in Cardinal Mooney's slot.
The Edison football team capped off a memorable regular season by defeating rival Indian Creek, 28-7, in the annual Route 43 Bowl this past Friday night at Kettlewell Stadium.
The Wildcats did not play their best game of the season against the Redskins, however, they played well enough to win at Kettlewell for the first time since 2003.
"Absolutely," Edison (10-0) head coach Mike Collopy said. "The kids knew going into the game that records didn't matter. It is a rivalry game. We knew Indian Creek was going to play as hard as they could play."
The win enabled the Wildcats finish the season undefeated for the time, to win 10 games for the first time and have a 10-game winning streak for the first time in school history.
Field position was not in Edison's favor against Indian Creek, however, the Wildcats were able to make the most of their opportunities.
"We had bad field position on offense," Collopy said. "Due to their offense, we started some drives inside the 20. They had a lot to do with that.
"They had a good game plan. They play hard. They were prepared. We didn't expect anything different in a rivalry game on the road."
Edison's success this season guaranteed the Wildcats at least one home game in the upcoming playoffs, however, the Wildcats were not sure they would end up in the rankings or who they would end up facing in the first round.
Edison ended up bouncing around on the board before settling in as the No. 4 seed giving Edison a match up against No. 13 seed Cardinal Mooney in the first round of the Ohio Division V Region 17 playoffs. The Wildcats and Cardinals are set to meet at 7 p.m. Friday night at the Edison Unified Sports Complex.
"The easiest way to not get caught up in it is to not pay attention to it," Collopy said about all the changes in the rankings before the official standings and pairings were announced Sunday. "We found out Sunday morning we were playing Mooney, and we put a game plan together. We met Sunday, and we did all the things we normally do Saturday. We got everything ready to go for this week."
While the Wildcats enter this week's game coming off a win, the Cardinals (4-6) enter the game having lost two straight contests.
"Mooney is really good," Collopy said. "They are very well coached. A lot of their coaches have coached in college.
"They have a good quarterback. They two good receivers in 22 and 1. 26 (DJ Patterson) is a good running back, and his twin brother – 18 – will also get some carries. They have some good guys in the slot.
"Their line is the biggest we have faced since East Liverpool. They have a couple of 6-6 guys and a couple 6-3 guys.
"They are going to be a challenge. Our kids are excited about having this opportunity."
Typically, Mooney plays a difficult schedule, and this year is no exception. The Cardinals are a better team that what their record indicates.
"Their five losses (on the field) have come against teams like Linsly, Steubenville, Ursuline and Chaney," Collopy said. I don't remember the other two. They play a really good schedule.
"They are a very good team. Their record is not indicative of the type of team they are. With the schedule they play, they have no weeks off. Every week they play really good teams."
Mooney's four wins this season Lake Catholic (3-7), 31-14, Lutheran East (4-6), 32-0, Brush (2-8), 38-7 and Warren G. Harding (2-8), 26-17. The team also beat Youngstown East (1-9) on the field, however, the Cardinals had to forfeit their win against the Golden Bears due to playing an ineligible player.
On the other side of things, Mooney has lost to stiff competition. The losses came against Boardman (4-6), 10-7, Chaney (9-1), 22-17, Linsly (7-1), 28-14, Big Red (8-2), 28-7, and Ursuline (8-2), 13-7.
"Our kids are excited," Collopy said. "They know the challenge they pose for us.
"We are going to get prepared to play Mooney. We want to have a great week of preparation. If you have a good week of preparation, then you usually are consistent on Friday night. We are going to have to be consistent on both sides of the ball and on special teams."
Traditionally, Mooney is a perennial power with a long tradition of success in the postseason.
"They have a lot of experience," Collopy said. "As far as this year goes, they have good players and good schemes. They are well coached. They do what they do, and they do it really well.
"Their schedule has to be the most difficult in Division V. They played Warren Harding, Chaney, Steubenville, Ursuline and Linsly which is a prep school. They play a really tough schedule.
"Every week is a challenge for them. They are going to come out and play hard. We are going to play hard. We expect it to be a dog fight. We are going to have to be ready to trade punches with them early on."
While the Cardinals have had plenty of success in the postseason, the Wildcats have not. Edison is in the playoffs for the third straight season and for just the fourth time in school history. The Wildcats are 0-3 in postseason play.
The Cardinals want to run the football on offense.
"They are balanced," Collopy said. "They like to run the ball. They will use play action off the run. They will use some quarterback boots. A lot of their passing comes off their running game.
"Their tight end is split out. 22 is their X receiver or their split end. They move him around. 10 and 82 are also moved around.
"They are big. They are physical. They want to establish the run. They use play action. They use down and distance to determine if they are going to throw or not."
Mooney runs a common defense.
"They are 4-3 team," Collopy said. "Their defensive line is the best we have faced all year. They are aggressive. They are well coached. They are fundamentally sound. They will blitz. They are at where they are supposed to be at all the time. They do a good job of reading their keys.
"Their defensive linemen will attack the offensive linemen. They will read off the blocks. They do all the things they are supposed to do. They are well coached.
"Offensively, they are well coached. You know if they are going to run or pass based on reading the keys. They do what they are supposed to do."
The boys from Mahoning County also have solid special teams.
"They have athletes who return punts and kicks," Collopy said. "They have good special teams as well. They have good kick coverage. They have good punt coverage. They have a nice kicker. They are typical of a well coached team that has good players. Their special teams are just as good as their offense and defense. You get that when a team is well coached."
The Wildcats are going to need to play well in all three phases of the game to come away with a win this week.
"We are going to have to mix it up on the offensive side of the ball," Collopy said. "We are going to have to throw it and then run.
"Defensively, they have a good offense. They are going to move the ball. We are going to have to bend but not break.
"On special teams, we are going to have to win the field position battle. We cannot put our offense or our defense in bad situations. We can't afford to be behind the sticks. We can't let them work with a short field.
"We are going to have to take care of the ball. Penalties and turnovers are big. We are going to have to limit our penalties and not have turnovers. We can't get behind the sticks. We can't give them a short distance to go."
Edison has received a great deal of support throughout the season, and the Wildcats are hoping for a big turnout from the fans Friday night.
"I hope so," Collopy said. "The support we have received from the community has been outstanding from our first game until now. Our goal is to put a product out on the field that our community can be proud of.
"The Edison community is made up of good hardworking blue collar people. We want to model ourselves off of that. We have gotten a lot of support.
"There has been a lot of former players who have played for Edison who have reached out. They are watching us, they are following us and they are happy for us."