By Mike Ramczyk
Sports Editor
As a player, any time you lose a game, you remember the team that did it to you.
Green Bay Packers fans will assuredly never forget what the Chicago Bears did to quarterback Aaron Rodgers Monday night.
And the fact that the Bears stole a victory at Lambeau Field won’t soon be forgotten, either.
When the Pack visits the Bears later this year at Soldier Field, the Packers players will push a little harder, hit with more ferocity and play with a sense of unabashed urgency.
This attitude resonates with high school players as well.
Waterford, which did it in the final seconds, and Catholic Central, which did it in the second half, both eventually bested their WIAA Level 2 playoff opponents Nov. 1.
Now, these teams get a chance at one of life’s sweetest joys – revenge – as they must go on the road against two familiar foes Friday night.
Players are sure to conjure up memories of losing in a previous matchup and take that passion and desire for vengeance onto the field.
Waterford faces top-seeded Waukesha West, a former Division 2 state champion which ended the Wolverines’ season in the playoffs last year by only a 14-12 margin.
Also, Catholic Central gets another chance to knock off Lake Country Lutheran, which crushed the Toppers, 27-7, all the way back in Week 2.
It’s playoff time, so you can throw what happened in the regular season out the window.
FOOTBALL WEEKEND
PREDICTIONS
Last week: 5-2
Season: 50-20
No. 2 Waterford (9-2) at No. 1 Waukesha West (9-2), Friday, 7 p.m.
Waterford’s two losses came against an 8-3 team, Lake Geneva Badger, and a 9-2 team, Pewaukee.
Waukesha West, on the other hand, lost to defending Division 1 state champion Arrowhead, 13-7, and Division 2 powerhouse, Catholic Memorial. Arrowhead is 10-1 right now, and Memorial is 10-1 as well.
West plays in the Classic Eight, the toughest conference in the state.
All four of its playoff participants (Memorial, West, Arrowhead and Mukwonago) are still alive and all have legit shots at state championships.
Elijah Fort is Waukesha West’s top threat. The 5-foot-9, 170-pound senior has rushed for 1,898 yards and 25 touchdowns this season.
Fort’s 170 yards and a score helped West overcome an early 14-0 deficit and beat Whitefish Bay, 28-14, last Friday.
Though West is potent, people just don’t run on Waterford. The Wolverines stymied South Milwaukee last week in a 14-7 victory and held the visiting Rockets to only 76 total yards.
Waterford has a big, physical defensive line, and it can make life difficult for any opponent.
However, the Wolverines continue to struggle scoring points, but the last two weeks they have moved the ball.
One week after rushing for nearly 300 yards, Waterford followed it up with 170 on the ground against South Milwaukee. And the Rockets’ D-line was nothing to scoff at.
West will be the most physically gifted opponent Waterford has faced yet, but Jake Bauer and company are up to the test.
Expect an instant classic, but West is just too much.
PREDICTION: Waukesha West 21, Waterford 14
No. 5 Catholic Central (7-4) at No. 1 Lake Country Lutheran (10-1), Friday, 7 p.m., Kettle Moraine High School
The Lightning can kill you on the ground and through the air.
Lutheran has the rare lethal combination of two 1,000-yard rushers, Adam Tovar and Justin Prostinak.
However, Prostinak (78 yards) and Tovar (34) were held in check in the first meeting between these teams.
At that time, all the way back on Aug. 31, Catholic Central’s starting quarterback was Brett Gardner. Gardner threw three interceptions in that game. A little-known backup quarterback named Ben Heiligenthal was 3-for-5 in a limited role in that game.
From that point on, Heiligenthal has been the starter and the Toppers are 7-2 with the talented sophomore gunslinger at the helm.
Lightning quarterback Ben Wilkins has thrown for 1,400 yards and 20 touchdowns, but he tossed three picks against the Toppers.
Lutheran scores 42.5 points per game and has amassed more than 3,000 rushing yards, but one could argue they haven’t really beaten anybody besides Catholic Central.
Lutheran hasn’t faced the Toppers with Heiligenthal, Cole Kresken and Tyler Burzawa firing on all cylinders like they are now.
Last week at the Topper Bowl, Catholic Central beat an undefeated team, 20-0, and the defense was stout.
The Toppers have the ability to shut down Lutheran, and it will be very hard for Lake Country to stop Central, which is on a four-game winning streak.
PREDICTION: Catholic Central 35, Lake Country Lutheran 28
Other playoff predictions
Big Foot 38, Platteville 14
Mukwonago 31, Oconomowoc 24
Franklin 37, Milwaukee Marquette 28
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