Sweet Home seeks second straight title
by MATT KRUEGER Reporter

The Sweet Home Panthers will stare down a familiar foe this week when they take to the field at Ralph Wilson Stadium for the Section VI Class A title game at 9:30 p.m. Friday.

Standing on the other side of the line of scrimmage will be the Iroquois Chiefs, the team Sweet Home has met in the playoffs four of the past five years.

The teams have taken turns eliminating each other in the semifinals the past two years. Iroquois won in 2004 on its way to the New York State semifinals. Sweet Home won last year and lost in the sectional finals.

"I think it's going to be a tremendous match-up," Iroquois coach Frank Payne said. "I think it's going to come down to who makes the fewest mistakes and who capitalizes on the mistakes of the other team."

Although they didn't face each other in the regular season, both coaches said they know what to expect in this game.

"I think they're a well-coached team," Sweet Home coach John Faller. "We've played them before in the semis and finals throughout the years since they came into the division, so we kind of have a little rivalry going."

"They're a very talented team," Payne said. "They have a lot of speed with that spread offense and they can also run that double-wing offense. They offer a lot of challenges. We have to tackle and play assignment defense. And we have to execute on offense. This is a great test."

For Sweet Home, the emphasis is to control Iroquois quarterback Kyle Shevlin, who is a threat with his arm and his legs.

"We have to contain him and try to limit the things he can do with the football," Faller said.

Sweet Home has outscored its opponents, 254-94, in eight games this year.

e-mail: mkrueger@beenews.com