Stratford not treading lightly for Holy Innocents

The temptation to overlook a 5-5 team in the first round of the GHSA Class 1A private school playoffs is so easy to succumb to for Stratford fans.

After all, the way the brackets fell into place, a win over Holy Innocents brings about a second meeting against Tattnall Square, the Region 7-1A champion that Stratford had on the ropes until Ahmad Barron broke open a 40-yard scoring run in the final minutes two weeks ago for a 7-3 Trojans victory.

Tattnall is in the second round already by virtue of its No. 5 seed and a first-round bye. There’s no rematch, however, unless Stratford beats Holy Innocents at home at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. And based on Holy Innocents’ region schedule and type of offense, this playoff matchup is far from the easiest one out there for Stratford.

“There’s only one game on our bracket,” Stratford head coach Mark Farriba said in reference to Holy Innocents. “That’s it.”

Holy Innocents, which moved down from Class 2A, plays in Region 5-1A, the home of three of the top eight seeds in Class 1A private: No. 1 Eagle’s Landing Christian, No. 7 Landmark Christian and No. 8 Wesleyan. The Golden Bears’ other two losses also came against playoff teams: No. 18 Mount Pisgah Christian and Class 5A qualifier Riverwood.

“They’re 5-5, but the bad news for them is that they’re in the region with Eagle’s Landing, Wesleyan, Landmark,” Farriba said. “That’s a tough hit on your record. But they’re a good football team. They’re solid, good running game, good front four. It will be a tough game.”

Stratford, which has the No. 12 seed after going 7-3, lost 13-3 to Landmark Christian on Sept. 2. Holy Innocents, which finished fourth in Region 5-1A, also had a tight game with Landmark, losing 22-14 on Oct. 28.

The Golden Bears, who closed out the season 4-1 after a 1-4 start that included lopsided losses to ELCA and Wesleyan, run an option-based offense, something Farriba said Stratford has yet to see this season.

“Big fullback, option, dive, veer-type team,” Farriba said. “Lot of fullback, lot of fullback, lot of fullback. A real physical, good, solid team.

“Everybody’s got to be real disciplined. It’s assignment football; that’s what it boils down to. You have to be real assignment-oriented.’

Although Stratford had that heartbreaking loss two weeks ago to Tattnall Square, the Eagles picked up an impressive 27-7 win Friday at Aquinas, a team that beat Stratford three times last season. The Eagles ran for more than 300 yards while holding the Irish to 133 yards of total offense.

FPD (6-4) will hope to match Stratford’s success at Aquinas on Friday when the 17th-seeded Vikings take on the No. 16 Irish (6-4). The Vikings are 0-2 all-time against Aquinas, losing 33-32 in 2013.

The FPD-Aquinas winner visits ELCA in the second round.

This story was originally published November 8, 2016 at 4:09 PM with the headline "Stratford not treading lightly for Holy Innocents."