By TYLER HENRY
Salina Post contributor
After a strong finish to their regular season, including a 42-26 beatdown of the formerly undefeated Concordia Panthers, the Chapman Fighting Irish are riding high heading into the 2021 postseason.
“We’ve had every position group really step up across the board,” Irish head coach Kurt Webster said. “They’ve all been challenged and every one of them has found a way to come through. This is when you know you have a special team.”
While Chapman does enter the playoffs with two losses on their resume, those came at the hands of 8-0 Holton and 8-0 Riley County, two of just six remaining undefeated teams in Class 3A.
“We’ve got a large group of seniors for the first time in a long time and they’re starting to think ‘why not us,” Webster said. “The feeling around our locker room is that if our only losses are to undefeated squads, we might have a pretty good football team.”
The Irish will begin their run this Friday when they host the 5-3 Smoky Valley Vikings.
The Vikings slipped into the playoffs with a 35-0 shutout of the Russell Broncos last week to secure the final playoff spot from district six.
“Every team that Tim Lambert coaches is going to be extremely physical,” he said. “You know you’re going to get a power run game and a hard, slanting front. It’ll be a difficult challenge, but it’s one we’re looking forward to.”
Smoky Valley boasts a run-heavy offense led by the all-junior backfield of quarterback Karson Pihl and running backs Justice Autry and Trystan Stambaugh.
While the Vikings have just one touchdown pass this season, Autry and Stambaugh have combined for 1,404 yards and 15 touchdowns on the ground, bulldozing opposing fronts in each of their five wins.
“We have to be more physical than we have been all season long,” Webster said. “They’re a big, fast team that pursues the ball well and if we don’t play with fire and intensity we’re going to be in trouble.”
The winner of this game will advance to the round of 32 to play whoever emerges from a matchup between 8-0 Southeast of Saline and 2-5 Marysville.
Kickoff between Chapman and Smoky Valley is scheduled for 7pm at Chapman High School.
For continued coverage of Chapman’s postseason run, stay tuned to the Salina Post.