Top standouts, best performances in Week 8 of the Indiana high school football season

By Kevin Messenger

Listed below are some of the top standouts and performers from Week 8 high school football games throughout the Hoosier State: 

Cole Ballard, QB, Westfield

The Shamrocks' QB was Westfield’s offensive star with a hand in all four Westfield touchdowns during a convincing 28-17 win over No. 7 Fishers. It was Ballard’s three second-half runs that pushed the Shamrocks to a 28-10 lead as he bolted for scores of 49, 51 and 12 yards. On the night, he rushed for 103 yards and three scores, while passing for 113 yards and another.

Thomas Gotkowski, QB, Ben Davis

Navigating a Giant comeback, Gotkowski completed 10 of his final 11 passes, with three of those going for touchdowns. His 60-yard pass to Zane Skibinski cut Lawrence Central’s lead to 28-14 and his 3-yard pass to Lincoln Murff pulled the Giants within 28-27 in the final seconds. Gotkowski ran right on a 2-point try and pitched to Murff on a reverse for the go-ahead conversion.

Mylan Graham, WR, New Haven

Catching seven passes with three TDs for the second straight week, Graham finished with 146 receiving yards and an average of 20 yards per reception. The state’s leader with 1,020 receiving yards, Graham helped the Bulldogs get past East Noble 37-14.

Luke Hansen, RB, Roncalli

It was the first time this season Hansen has not had multiple rushing touchdowns, but a 10-yard reception for TD was his second score of the game and gave Roncalli a short-lived 23-17 lead. The state’s leading rusher finished with 221 yards on 34 carries in a loss to Cincinnati Elder.

Keith Jackson, QB, Warren Central

Jackson’s numbers weren’t huge, but he engineered the Warriors’ huge upset over No. 4-ranked Carmel. Jackson was 12-of-17 passing for 146 yards including the game-winning touchdown, a 20-yard strike to Devaon Holman. In a game accented by defense and four first-half field goals, Jackson used seven different receivers to keep the Warriors offense moving.

Robert Lamar, RB, Clarksville

Lamar carried for 250 yards and three touchdowns while leading Clarksville to a 46-8 win over Greenwood Christian. It was his third game with at least 250 yards this season, but with only 15 carries, his 16.7-yards-per-carry average was certainly his best of the season.

Arj Lothe, QB, Indian Creek

In a game featuring 99 points and over 1,000 yards in offense, it was Lothe who claimed the loftiest and winning numbers. Lothe found wideout Lance Butler for a two-point conversation to beat Sullivan 50-49 in overtime. Lothe led the Braves to 554 yards of offense, 355 of those and a couple of TD passes coming from his arm. He also rushed for three TDs, the last of which gave the Braves their first lead of the night at 42-35 with 5:00 remaining.

Justin Marshall, RB, Merrillville

Marshall ran 28 times for 207 yards and caught eight passes for 124 yards in a win over Lake Central. His 13-yard run late in the third period sealed the Pirates’ win.

D.J. Mendez, QB, Scecina

Mendez only completed seven passes, but he averaged over 36 yards per completion, finishing 7-of-10 for 258 yards as the Crusaders beat Cardinal Ritter, 45-6. Mendez threw touchdown passes of 42, 65 and 38 yards, in addition to two more rushing scores from 2 and 4 yards.

Danny O’Neil, QB, Indianapolis Cathedral

O’Neil threw for 303 passing yards and two touchdowns, completing 22 of 31 throws. He scored another TD on the ground as the Irish got past Catholic rival Brebeuf Jesuit.

Nicholas Patterson, QB, Mooresville

Patterson ran for 101 yards and a score but did most of his damage through the air on Friday night. He led the Pioneers’ 37-31 comeback win in overtime with 244 yards and three TDs on 22-of-31 passing. His 10-yard TD pass to Dylan Gardner, in overtime, was a fitting finish.

John Shepard, RB, Franklin

Shepard piled up 215 scrimmage yards with four touchdowns in the Grizzly Cubs’ 41-6 spanking of Greenwood. He carried 14 times for 147 yards, including touchdowns of 28 and 74 yards. He caught another pass for 68 yards.

Zane Skibinski, WR, Ben Davis

A junior wide receiver, Skibinski stepped up for the Giants in their remarkable 29-point comeback victory over visiting Lawrence Central. He finished with eight passes for 124 yards and two touchdowns. 

Peyton Slaven, QB, Homestead

When the final score is 61-54, there are bound to be some stats! The Homestead senior was 20-of-29 passing for 394 yards and three TDs. He rushed for another score while carrying for another 73 yards as part of the Spartans’ win over Ft. Wayne Wayne.

Cooper Simmons-Little, QB, Traders Point Christian

Simmons-Little led the Knights to a 35-7 win over Edinburgh, throwing for four touchdowns and 295 yards on just 10 completions (10 of 15). Simmons-Little is second in the state with 2,021 passing yards.

Jimmy Sullivan, QB, Fort Wayne Carroll

Sullivan threw for 237 yards and five TDs as the Chargers blitzed Concordia 51-0 to claim their second straight Summit Conference title.

Isaiah Thacker, WR, New Palestine

Thacker took the game’s opening kickoff 75 yards to paydirt, then caught a pair of TD passes in the Dragon’s 63-12 rout of New Castle. Thacker caught five balls for 115 yards.