** Ben Evensen is a Mount Si High School senior and an aspiring sportswriter. Look for his game analysis before each Mount Si football game throughout the 2013 season. **
After a big win over Seattle Times ranked #9 Kennedy Catholic last week, #5 Mount Si gears up for another non-conference showdown with class 4A Issaquah High School Friday, September 13th.
In last week’s victory, QB Nick Mitchell 4 touchdown passes. Any questions about how well the receivers would play was answered with high production from different targets. It was over by halftime, as the Wildcats were up 28-0. A touchdown run in the second half gave the Mount Si one more touchdown, producing a 35-12 win.
This week, Mount Si takes on Issaquah High School. Issaquah is 1-0, with a huge 44-3 win last week over Interlake High School. However, don’t be fooled by that score. Issaquah is one of the weaker teams in KingCo 4A. They do, though, boast one of the top running backs in the entire state in Jack Gellatl. Besides this running threat, though, Issaquah lacks any other big playmakers.
Last Friday Mount Si’s defense proved they are still dominant – for the most part. They still are not quite as good as last year’s defense, but they did a very nice job of keeping Kennedy contained and preventing any scoring opportunities through the entire first half. Kennedy had an explosive running back, like Issaquah, in Colin Cossette, but Mount Si did a decent job of containing him. They at least kept Cossette from bringing Kennedy back into the game. While Gellatly is better, I still see the Mount Si defense keeping the Issaquah star in check.
Offensively, Mount Si just needs quarterback Nick Mitchell to play at least half as good as he did last week and they will be successful. They will move the ball all over Issaquah in an aerial attack, with receivers Trevor Daniels and Beau Shane hauling in catch after catch.
In the end, Mount Si’s offense is just too good for Issaquah. The Wildcat defense should be able to contain Gellatly, making the Issaquah offense ineffective. It should be another huge Wildcat win, with touchdown pass after touchdown pass. We could even see a Wildcat shutout, but Issaquah should hit double digits when it’s garbage time at the end.
Prediction: Mount Si 42 Issaquah 14
