By DOUG DONNELLY

OTTAWA LAKE – The Whiteford vs. Ottawa Hills matchup Friday night isn’t going to decide a league championship and there is no trophy on the line.

But the matchup between two early season undefeated teams is still a matchup that has earned plenty of attention in Southeast Michigan and Northwest Ohio.

“They are the type of team that we would see in a Regional final matchup or semifinal or final,” Whiteford coach Todd Thieken said. “They are a good football team, probably the best team they’ve ever had.”

BCSN has dubbed the matchup its Game of the Week and will have a live pre-game show from the Ottawa Hills stadium, something along the lines of ESPN’s College Football Game Day. Kickoff at Ottawa Hills is at 7:05 p.m. to accommodate the TV broadcast.

Whiteford brings its 2-0 record and 16-game winning streak into the game against the Green Bears, who are 3-0 and have won all three games in dominating fashion.

“Across the board, offensively, defensively, and special teams-wise, we have had to spend a lot of time this week making sure we are locked in at practice,” said Whiteford coach Todd Thieken. “They can do a lot of things and are athletic.”

Thieken called Ottawa Hills junior Chase Miller one of the best quarterback’s he has seen.

Miller, who has 402 yards passing in three games, has plenty of weapons, including running back Rocco Pillarelli and receiver Reddik Pillarelli. Rocco has 460 yards rushing and has scored seven times in three games. Reddick has 119 rushing yards and 102 receiving yards and has scored four touchdowns himself.

Thieken said the Green Bears run a spread offense, come out of the huddle in multiple formations and employ a lot of run-pass-option plays in their offense.

“They do a lot of things,” Thieken said. “The quarterback is very good and runs the offense very well.”

On defense, Thieken said Ottawa Hills is aggressive and creates turnovers.

“They do a lot of things to try and confuse you,” he said. “As an offensive line, we have to make sure we are locked into what our assignments are.”

Ottawa Hills is the defending Toledo Area Athletic Conference champion and are coming off an 8-3 season.

First year Head coach Brandon Carter told The Blade that Whiteford will be a challenge.

“Whiteford is a well-coached and disciplined football team,” he said. “It will be a good challenge for our program and also a measuring stick with how far we have come as a program.”

The Bobcats are coming off back-to-back come-from-behind wins. They were down 21-20 to Blissfield with under 30 seconds left before scoring a touchdown to pull out the victory. Against Ida, the Bobcats trailed 7-6 until deep in the third quarter before pulling away for the 22-7 win.

Thieken said he’s emphasized to the Bobcats this season that they cannot simply show up to games and win – they have to work hard and prepare.

“We can’t just come to practice and go through the motions,” he said. “When they get on the bus, they have to learn to bring themselves to a different level of intensity.”

Whiteford’s offense is directed by freshman quarterback Tre Eitniear, who has thrown for three touchdowns in the first two weeks – all to receiver Kolby Masserant. Jake Iott had more than 100 yards rushing last week, and Hunter DeBarr has a punt return touchdown.

Whiteford’s defense stiffened last week after allowing Ida to score on its first drive of the game. The Bobcats forced five turnovers the rest of the game.

Thieken said despite Whiteford coming off a state championship season and being 2-0, the Bobcats are still seeking some respect from Northwest Ohio football teams.

“I’ve tried to tell our kids all week that everybody in Ohio says we can’t play with the Ohio schools,” said Thieken, a former head coach at Evergreen. “I hope something like that gets under their skin a little bit and make them want to show up and play at the level we are capable of.”