PINCKNEY — You can call the Pinckney football team a lot of things going into the second round of the playoffs.
Streaking? Certainly. Their six-game winning streak is the longest since 1995.
Confident? True, as the wins pile up.
Afraid? No. You’ll have to stop there.
The Pirates (8-2) are traveling to Walled Lake Western to face a team that has been up and down in recent weeks. The game will be broadcast on The Livingston Post starting at 6:50 p.m.
They had to work to beat Lakeland 21-14 in week 8, romped past Brighton 37-9 in the Lakes Conference title game, then had to stop a 2-point conversion try late to pull out a 31-30 win over South Lyon in the opening round of the playoffs.
“I think they were a little more crisp against Brighton, playing for the (conference) title,” coach Jakob Gailitis said. “South Lyon probably wasn’t their best game, but (the Lions) did a lot of good things. We expect to have our work cut out for us.”
The Warriors, whose only loss was a forfeit in week 1 due to an ineligible player, have three players who will play in the Big Ten or Ivy League next season.
Running back Luke Rendell is respectful but not fearful.
“I think people get scared when they hear that,” he said, talking of Western standouts Cody White, Rob Hudson and Jason Tracy. “We’re not afraid of them.”
“They’ve got athletes, but we’ve got athletes too,” senior Nick Cain said. “It’s a good matchup, I think.”
The Pirates have seen a variety of styles of play and schemes this season, and Gailitis is hoping it all is put to good use tonight.
“I think everything we’ve faced is going to be summed up in one team,” he said, referring to the Warriors. “(Pinckney players) have seen so many aspects of football that they feel comfortable facing the different aspects of what Western does.”
The Pirates have relied on a punishing ground attack led by Rendell, the team’s leading rusher and scorer, and an offensive line that came together at the season’s midpoint, and the Pirates haven’t lost since.
“Luke Rendell and the offensive line have been animals,” Cain said. “Rendell’s having the season of his life and the line’s been tearing it up.”
“It’s become our bread and butter offensively,” Gailitis said of his rushing attack, “and that helps our defense by keeping their offense off the field.”
Quarterback Jack Wurzer has done his part, throwing just enough to keep defenses honest and hitting on some long passes, like his 78-yarder to Nick Cain. It was a play, Cain said, where he got the ball even though he was running the wrong route.
But that’s how things go when things are going right.
The Pirates have been a second-half team in several games this season, including last week’s playoff win against Walled Lake Northern, which saw Pinckney trail 10-0 at halftime, then outscore the Knights 28-7 in the second half.
“Our kids are good at facing adversity,” Gailitis said. “They keep that straight-ahead focus and keep pounding away, one play at a time. Our kids aren’t fazed. They keep doing the same things over and over, and know that good things are going to happen if they keep doing the right thing.”
The winner will play either Fenton or Midland Dow next week. Should Fenton and Pinckney win, Pinckney would play host to next week’s game.
“We still have to do our job,” Gailitis said. “But in the back of our minds, we’re still rooting for Fenton.”
And, if all goes well, another step toward Ford Field.
“Last year at this time, I was putting in work for next year,” Cain said. “It’s great to stick with this team, because it’s a fun group of guys.”
“The players are fired up. The school is fired up,” Gailitis said. “YOu get a lot of people from the community congratulating you and excited for the game. It’s always fun to still be playing football in November.”
