Oak Park Defense
 
Prior to this rivalry matchup, both teams knew this would need to be a big defensive game, for a couple of simple reasons. Coming into this match up, Northtown showed tendencies to utilize ground game more than pass the ball, which looked to benefit the Oak Park defense in matchups like Park Hill South, St. Joe Central  and Truman. Oak Park stepped up in important situations this week, forcing the Hornets to go 3 of 12 on third downs and only 106 yards passing, which Is one of the best performances by the secondary all year.  '22 Jett Sutton lead the defense in tackles Friday night with 10, followed by '21 Logan Linard (6), '21 Nic Hoops (2), '21 Kavon Jackson (3),'21 Sam Brough (3), and '22 Jermaine Harris (3) who all played their roles in this defensive performance . The defense played faster and much more physical this week, with improved tackling which will need to be an area of focus for the Northmen moving forward.   Oak Park Offense
 
The Hornets have proved to have a solid defense this season. It was impressive to see the Northmen offense move the ball effectively and continue to do so throughout the span of the game. Fans were able to see some younger players contribute to the score and make big plays in the later stretch of the game, which kept Oak Park within fingertips of winning. We can all thank the offensive line for giving '22 QB Ty Clemens plenty of time to make his reads and complete some difficult passes.  The first touchdown of the night came from '23 Marlon Gant Jr. in the 2nd quarter, who broke several tackles on an impressive 27 yard run.  Gant would later lead the way for '22 Ty Clemens to his own rushing touchdown in the 3rd quarter.  '22 KeAndre Braxton finished the night with 100 yards on 15 carries and a successful 2pt try, bruising the Hornet defense throughout the night.  The Oak Park passing game was also on fire with two spectacular plays by '23 Xavier Williams, both ending as TD's. Overall, the Northmen ended with 329 yards of offense, 160 passing, 169 on the ground, their third best showing this season.   Up Next
 
The Northmen are up against Grandview (3-4) this week, coming off a last minute bye last week versus Kearney due to some COVID concerns. If they can keep the big passing and rushing plays from happening on the defensive side, and the Oak Park offensive keeps improving, then the Northmen have a good chance in Grandview on Friday night.
 

---