With Friday’s Week 9 game between the Chardon Hilltoppers (6-2) and Kenston Bombers (6-2), played at 7 p.m. at Memorial Field, a lot is at stake for both schools.
The Hilltoppers sit in the No. 12 spot in Division 3, Region 9, according to joeeitel.com. The Hilltoppers believe if they win out they can reach the playoffs, but a loss surely will eliminate them.
While the Bombers are in the No. 8 spot. With as competitive as the region has been this season, the game is in many ways a playoff game for both teams.
Chardon started playing Kenston again in 2003 and since that time the teams have met 15 times, with the Hilltoppers posting a 10-5 overall record.
Since Mitch Hewitt took over the program in 2011, he has posted a 6-1 record against his Geauga County rival, beating them twice in 2012, including a playoff game.
Chardon comes off a tough Week 8 loss against Brush where the team lost going for a 2-point conversion at the end of the game.
The Bombers have an upbeat attitude, said head coach Jeff Grubich, who has watched his seniors endure two losing seasons in 2015 and 2014.
“They’ve been through the rough patches the last two years,” said Grubich, in his sixth season leading the Bombers. “And they are not content. That makes a coach’s job that much easier.”
Kenston has struggled against Chardon’s Wing-T offense the past seven seasons. Grubich said it’s tough to prepare for in the Western Reserve Conference because Chardon is the only offense that runs it.
“It’s tough to simulate in practice, but we just need to bring our A game,” Grubich said. “We are just focused on this week, and taking it one day at a time.”
The Bombers joined the WRC in 2015 after being ousted by the Chagrin Valley Conference. Most of the WRC is made up of former non-defunct Premier Athletic Conference teams. Chardon and Kenston had been playing each other Week 2 before the change.
The Hilltoppers have endured injuries this season but have overcome most of them to sit in this position, despite graduating 23 seniors from a year ago. This senior class is also a large one, after success at the freshman and JV level, another playoff appearance for Chardon would be a great accomplishment for this program.
