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Game of the Week: Upper Arlington vs. New Albany Regional Semifinals Preview

By Danny Fogarty, 11/11/21, 6:00AM EST

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COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The Golden Bears and the Eagles have both prowled and flown freely this entire season.  Yet, this week they both meet for a battle that will put one of them just two steps away from the Division I State Championship.

No. 1 Upper Arlington (12-0) will meet No. 4 New Albany (12-0) on Friday night at 7 p.m. at Olentangy Patriot Stadium for this regional semifinals matchup.

As shown in their perfect records, both the Golden Bears and the Eagles have been effective on both sides of the ball this season.

Upper Arlington has averaged 40 points per game all season which is nearly the best among teams in the area.

The Golden Bears' coach Justin Buttermore, who recently won district Coach of the Year, said that his team will not change its strategy coming into Friday night, but rather improve upon what they already do so effectively.

"We've really approached it the same way we have the first 12 weeks," Buttermore said. "We're trying to get better at the things we do from a from a technique standpoint on offense and defense."

Both offense and defense have flourished for the Golden Bears this season giving them an average point differential of 29 points meaning that they have averaged a 29-point win this year.

New Albany coach Matthew "Bubba" Kidwell said that Upper Arlington has been impressive the entire year, and his team is looking forward to the game on Friday night.

"They've done a wonderful job preparing all season long," Kidwell said. "We have a routine and our guys have very excited about this game."

The Eagles have boosted their own undefeated season with effectiveness on both sides of the ball and particularly with their rushing offense led by running back Jadyn Garnes.

Garnes currently has 28 touchdowns on the year and averages 153 rushing yards per game.

This has led New Albany to nearly exclusively keep its offense on the ground. Kidwell said that the Eagles will keep to their run-first strategy against the Golden Bear defense.

"I don't see us throwing 40 times in the game. That's not our style," Kidwell said. "We'd like to attack teams and use our speed to get out on the perimeter."

To deal with this effective rushing, the Upper Arlington defense will need to stay disciplined especially considering the different schemes New Albany puts together every week.

Buttermore said that New Albany's offense has many tricks within it, and his players will need to be smart in their decisions.

"They (New Albany) really have a ton of misdirection," Buttermore said. "They attack the field from sideline to sideline. So you've really got to be disciplined in reading your keys."

Upper Arlington has its own rushing attack led by running back Carson Gresock who has an impressive 32 touchdowns this season.

The Golden Bears' offense centers around their lead rusher, but what sets them apart is their ability to pass the ball. This passing barrage is led by quarterback Simon Monnin whose scored 23 touchdowns this year including a 4-touchdown game in Week 10 against Hilliard Davidson.

Kidwell said that his defensive strategy will be to limit Gresock but also to keep Upper Arlington from success through the air.

"We need to limit the running game for them to have as little success as possible," Kidwell said. "But then we also have to worry about the pass game as well because Coach (Buttermore) does a great job mixing in the pass."

While both of these teams have been perfect all year, one will have to lose this weekend.

The other team will move on to compete for a regional title, and on Friday at 7 p.m. at Olentangy Patriot Stadium, it will be decided just who that team will be.

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