Edgewood draws tough road matchup at Scottsburg to open football sectional play
Edgewood (6-3, 3-2 Western Indiana) has a tough road in the Sectional portion of the playoffs. Playing in the seven-team, Class 3A Sectional 31, the Mustangs will travel 75 miles to play at Scottsburg. That contest will be played this Friday on Oct. 24 at 7 p.m.
Now that the high school football regular season has wound down, the talk of playoff competition fills the air. The Indiana High School Athletic Association released Sectional matchups on Oct. 12 for all 310 teams in the state.
Edgewood (6-3, 3-2 Western Indiana) has a tough road in the Sectional portion of the playoffs. Playing in the seven-team, Class 3A Sectional 31, the Mustangs will travel 75 miles to play at Scottsburg. That contest will be played this Friday on Oct. 24 at 7 p.m. If Edgewood wins the matchup, the Mustangs then have to play the winner of the game between North Harrison and Corydon Central.
“We actually drove (to Scottsburg) last Friday night,” Edgewood head coach Scott Fischer said. “So they kind of got the feel for what their body’s going to feel like. We’re leaving a little bit earlier than we usually do. Get down there and be able to stretch out a little bit longer.”
Edgewood started the season on a six-game win streak, but the Mustangs have cooled off in recent weeks. Three consecutive losses to Beech Grove, Sullivan, and Northview have moved Edgewood to 3-2 in the Western Indiana Conference. Due to injuries to Irvington Preparatory Academy, the Mustangs did not play their ninth game. The forfeit handed Edgewood a 2-0 win and its sixth win on the season.
“I think initially they were pretty bummed out that they didn’t have a ninth game,” Fischer said. “An opportunity to win on the field, technically they get a victory for it, but they would rather won it on the field itself. We got healthy, let some bumps and bruises heal up, went back and worked on some fundamentals.”
On the other side of the field, Scottsburg enters the contest with just two losses on its overall record. After a 20-17 loss at Charlestown on Sept. 26, Scottsburg blew out its next two opponents, Clarksville 70-7 and Eastern 64-0 before dropping its season-finale against Brownstown Central 34-14.
The ultimate goal for every school in this season’s IHSAA playoffs is playing at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Nov. 28-29. The 3A state championships will take place at 3 p.m. on Nov. 28.
Edgewood: Offense
The Mustangs have had a balanced attack this season behind juniors quarterback Braylon Linerode and running back Braxton Carpenter. Linerode has thrown for 898 yards this season, while completing 49.3% of his passes. He has produced 15 touchdowns and nine interceptions this season.
Senior tight end Gunnar Perry and senior wide receiver Jaxton Collier have a team-high 16 receptions this season. Perry has put up 211 yards and four touchdowns, while Collier has only 114 yards plus three scores. On the ground, Carpenter has run for 867 yards and seven touchdowns on 146 carries.
“It really starts with Carter Hayden and the offensive line up front,” Fischer said. “Those guys have done a great job of opening holes for Braxton and Braylon. We’ve got a good schematic idea of what they’re going to do against us, and now we just got to go out and execute.”
Edgewood: Defense
Perry is also a dangerous player as linebacker on the defensive side. He leads the team with 91 tackles and has added seven tackles for loss. In the air, Perry has a tied-for-team-high two interceptions. Senior defensive back Michael Law also has two interceptions for the Mustangs.
Junior defensive lineman Lincoln Getts has produced a team-high eight sacks and 11 tackles-for-loss this year. Sophomore linebacker Rowan Heitink has second-most tackles with 83 and two sacks. Sophomore defensive lineman Tyler Newton has also produced two sacks this season.
Scottsburg: Offense
The Scottsburg offense is dangerous through the air and on the ground. Senior quarterback Nathan Byrd has completed 61.5% of his passes for 1,755 yards and 23 touchdowns plus four interceptions. He has thrown to senior wide receiver Garrett Boling the most.
Boling comes into the showdown with 830 yards and 14 touchdowns on 22 receptions. Senior wide receiver Matthew Wickey is close behind with 26 receptions, but has only produced 373 yards and four touchdowns. Junior running back Matthew Hamilton also has four receiving touchdowns on 20 receptions for 217 yards. Senior running back Landon Shuck leads the way on the ground with 1,057 yards and five touchdowns on 161 carries.
Scottsburg: Defense
Defensively, Scottsburg is only allowing 11 points a game this season. The 34 points from Brownstown Central last Friday was the most points given up in any game. Boling also plays linebacker, producing a team-high 122 tackles and 15 tackles for loss, along with four sacks. It’s a significant gap down to their next-leading tackler, Shuck. The linebacker has 50 tackles and three tackles for loss this year.
Senior defensive lineman Jacob June has six sacks, which leads Scottsburg, and 39 tackles, plus 14 tackles for loss. Senior defensive back Janyer Pinto-Herrera leads the team with four interceptions this season, while five other Warriors have at least one. Wickey also plays defensive back and has a second-most three interceptions.
A final pre-game word from Coach Fischer
“It’s going to come down to who plays the most physical 48 minutes, and who makes the least amount of mistakes and doesn’t turn the ball over,” Fischer said.
“Win your last game, that’s the goal of every football season,” Fischer said. “Don’t worry about what happened just now, but what’s next. No matter what your regular season went like, if you get hot at the right time then you’ve got an opportunity to advance.”
A 55-yard touchdown from Mustangs quarterback Braylon Linerode to Gunnar Perry (10) to start the second quarter against Owen Valley put the first points on the board for either team (Dave Askins, Sept. 12, 2025)
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