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Farmington faces Dwight/GSW in the quarterfinals of the 2024 Class 2A IHSA football playoffs. Friday Night Drive reporter Bill Freskos will have live updates, scores and news from the game.
What to know
Farmington vs. Dwight/GSW kickoff: 1 p.m. Saturday
Where: Dwight High School
About the Farmers: Farmington has taken on a couple of forms this season. Early on, the Farmers were putting up tons of points. While that hasn’t maintained at quite the same pace, the defense has played better and better and has only four games in which it has allowed double-digit points. One of those was in Round 2 of the playoffs, when it edged Rockridge 14-10 and forced a number of turnovers in the red zone to ensure the victory was in hand. The Farmers – champions of the Lincoln Trail-Prairieland Large – haven’t lost this season, but have had a number of close calls with three games decided by a touchdown or less, including a 26-20 win over 7-3 Macomb, an 8-6 victory over 6-4 Annawan-Wethersfield and last week’s four-point playoff win hosting Rockridge. One game that wasn’t close? The Farmers’ 40-0, Week 5 blanking of Elmwood-Brimfield, the team Dwight/GSW edged 12-6 last week. Farmington is the top seed in 2A’s North Bracket.
About Dwight: Dwight/Gardner-South Wilmington showed a flair for the dramatic in its first second-round playoff victory, as it clipped Elmwood-Brimfield 12-6 on a Collin Bachand-to-Evan Cox 6-yard touchdown pass with 2.8 seconds remaining. Dwight’s first-round playoff win over Momence was the program’s first since 1983. Dwight/GSW has done most of its postseason journey courtesy of a strong running game and even stronger defensive efforts. Limiting Elmwood to six points was an accomplishment considering how many points that team had posted during the regular season. Dwight/GSW’s offense has been workman-like, utilizing a number of runners – namely Ayden Collom (73 yards last week), Cox (90 yards) and Dylan Crouch (28 yards) plus Bachand (31 yards) on keepers – to keep the chains moving. It might be in the Trojans’ best interests to play a little bit of possession ball with Farmington and sustain long, clock-chewing drives, as the Farmers have the capability to be a quick-strike offense. The Trojans are the only team left in 2A with more than one loss this season.
Next: Should Dwight/GSW pull off its third straight upset, the Trojans would play the winner of Saturday’s Bismarck-Henning-Rossville-Alvin (11-0) vs. Chicago Christian (10-1) semifinal. Dwight/GSW would be on the road in either matchup.
FND pick: Farmington