By DOUG DONNELLY

Monroe News

Don’t expect many surprises when Whiteford and Ubly square off for the Division 8 state finals Saturday.

Not only is it a rematch of last season’s state championship game, both teams look pretty much just like they did last year at this time.

“There’s no secret in what they are going to do,” Whiteford coach Todd Thieken said. “They are not any different than what they were a year ago.”

Ubly head coach Eric Sweeney said virtually the same thing.

“We knew they would be the best team in Division 8,” Sweeney said. “They have some studs.”

Whiteford and Ubly will kickoff two days of state championship tilts at Ford Field at 10 a.m. Saturday. It is the only one of eight state championship games in which two undefeated teams will face off. The two teams have seemingly been on a collision course since last season’s 26-20 Whiteford win in the state finals.

“At the beginning of the year, I didn’t know if we’d make it,” Sweeney said. “I knew they would, but I didn’t know about us. Our kids have really stepped up. We were really green on our line this year. We had one guy on our offensive line to start the season that had played offensive line before. The kids have really improved.”

The roads the two teams took are similar. Ubly rolled through the regular season with two shutouts and had a running clock in most of its games. The closest regular season game the Bearcats had was a 56-20 week four win over Harbor Beach.

They had to get past Harbor Beach again in the playoffs, then beat powerhouse Ithaca 41-20 and traditional power Beal City 24-6 last week.

The Bobcats started the season with three come-from-behind wins. They beat Blissfield after trailing 21-20 with under a minute remaining. They were down 7-6 to Ida at halftime before outscoring the Bluestreaks 16-0 in the second half and needed two fourth quarter touchdowns to come back and beat Toledo Ottawa Hills.

After that, the Bobcat machine rolled with multiple games that had a running clock.

“This year we both have been challenged a bit,” Sweeney said. “I think that makes the matchup even better.”

Ubly has a powerful running game that has accounted for 4,409 yards this season on an average of 8.3 yards per carry and scored 72 rushing touchdowns. Five Ubly backs have at least 400 yards rushing, led by fullback Canden Peruski, who has rushed for 1,558 yards on 145 carries, an average of 10.7 yards per carry. He often runs behind all-state lineman Mitchell Foote.

“We have to stop their fullback,” Thieken said. “Everything they do is built around him.”

Ubly has completed 19-of-31 passes on the season, but the average completion has gone for 30 yards.

“They get that running game going, sort of get your defense thinking run, run, run then hit that pass,” Thieken said. “They are a dangerous team.”

Brett Mueller is the top Bearcat receiver with 14 receptions. He is also an All-State kicker who has booted 73-of-78 extra points this season and made a 54-yard field goal in the semifinal.

“He came to me after our banquet last year and said he wanted to be more involved,” Sweeney said. “He is tall and very athletic. He has really good hands.”

Senior Mitchell Foote is Ubly’s top lineman. Sweeney said the line of scrimmage will be the biggest battle in the game.

“The key to us is keeping the ball in our hands and keeping the ball away from them,” Sweeney said.

Thieken agreed.

“They have three big backs and their offensive line averages about 230 across the board,” Thieken said. “Their lineman gets off the ball fast. If we can’t control the line of scrimmage, it’s going to be a very long day.”

Whiteford has a more balanced attack than Ubly, although it relies heavily on its running game. Jake Iott (897), Hunter DeBarr (832) and Drew Knaggs (645) each have more than 500 yards rushing.

The x-factor could be receiver Kolby Masserant, who torched Ubly in last season’s state championship game. This year Masserant has had a tremendous season with 43 receptions, 956 yards and 13 touchdowns receiving – all Whiteford records.

Two Bobcat quarterbacks have gotten him the ball – freshman starter Tre Eitniear, who has 995 yards passing, and senior Ryin Ruddy, who has more than 1,000 yards of total offense.

Neither team has a shortage of great history. Whiteford is playing in its fourth state championship game in eight seasons and are 2-1 in state final appearances. Ubly is in the state finals for the fourth time and is 0-3.