NO. 4 CLEARVIEW VS. NO. 1 BELLVILLE CLEAR FORK

Last year, Clearview won nine games in a row after losing the season opener and earned a playoff berth for the first time since 2012.

The Clippers finished on the wrong end of a 44-0 quarterfinal loss at the hands of Bellville Clear Fork that season, but the team had accomplished so many of its goals that, at the time, maybe it was enough just to get back to the postseason. Not anymore. Clearview (10-1) put together a near mirrored season in 2018 — including another lopsided loss to Amherst to kick off the year — but with one incredible difference.

When the Clippers earned back-to-back playoff berths for the first time since 2002-03, almost no one gave them a shot to pull off a first-round victory over Marengo Highland. Yet not only did they win, they looked like the dominant team seemingly no one expects from this group.

“If you look at the newspaper, you see we were not projected to win against Columbia, we were not projected to win last week as well and yet here we are,” senior Julian Colbert said.

“I think it’s how gritty and together we play,” fellow senior Drew Engle added. “Playing together is key for any team but I think the grit you add onto it, a lot of these kids have heart. Lots of seniors don’t want to leave right now, so I think that’s what’s carried us through some of the upsets we weren’t picked to win.”

It wasn’t enough to say What: Division IV, Region 14 semifinal When: 7 p.m., Nov. 10 Where: Follis Field, 515 Oldman Road, Wooster Records: Clearview 10-1, Bellville Clear Fork 11-0 Last playoff appearance: Clearview 2017, Clear Fork 2017 The road here: Clearview — Def. Sparta Highland, 30-16, in a regional quarterfinal, Clear Fork — Def. Bryan, 20-6, in a regional quarterfinal

they simply made it to the playoffs last year. Besides, if you’re going to be there, you might as well compete.

So the players spent countless hours together, hitting the weight room and rededicating themselves to creating a winning culture at Clearview.

“We came together as a group. We hit the weights, and we dedicated more to football,” Colbert said. “Even after it feels like we’ve met all our goals, we still want to set more as the season progresses.” The next goal? Exact some revenge on a Clear Fork team that ended

the Clippers’ season much too early last year.

It certainly won’t be easy, but that little bit of postseason experience and a familiarity with its opponent has helped Clearview prepare for the program’s biggest game in 15 years.

“We know their key players they brought back, who we need to focus on and just overall how to prepare to beat them,” Engle said.

“We can’t be down on ourselves from last year. They beat us up pretty good but we can’t let that get to our head right off the jump. We have to be the more aggressive team to beat them. ... Keeping a focused mindset will help.”

That focus is now solely on what the Clippers do best: run the football and make big plays on defense.

Both Engle and Colbert know a little bit about both.

Engle has emerged as one of the area’s top running backs and had three touchdowns in last week’s win over Highland, and Colbert anchors a defense that’s held opponents to a mere 11.2 points over the last 10 games.

“At this point it comes down to executing on the field,” Colbert said. “We’re not running any new trick plays or anything, we’re just coming out to play the best football we can play.

“We know they’re not the same team they were last year and we know we’re not the same team we were last year either. We plan on going out and doing exactly what we’ve done all year.”