High school football: Carmel tramples Ben Davis 37-14

CARMEL – The easy decision for Carmel football coach Kevin Wright would have been to name Isaac James the starter at quarterback this season.

After all, it was James who led Carmel to an appearance in the Class 6A state title game last year as a junior. Michael Viktrup, waiting in the wings, could have earned valuable experience as a junior backup.

Wright took a chance, moving James to receiver and inserting Viktrup as the starter at quarterback. A two-for-one deal, he figured, getting both on the field. It's hard to argue with the results, especially after 6A top-ranked Carmel clobbered fourth-ranked Ben Davis 37-14 on Friday night.

"It's hard when you take a guy who has led you to a state championship game and then say, 'Hey, for the betterment of the team we'd like to get both of you on the field,' " Wright said. "But this way we can get him on the field for 90 snaps instead of 65, so that was the appeal."

With Indiana coach Kevin Wilson watching, James showed off his versatility and value. He ran for a 70-yard touchdown, passed for a 19-yard score and also played defense and special teams.

James led Carmel's dominant 463-yard rushing attack with 140 yards on 12 carries. He was joined by Chris Perkins (132 yards on 19 carries), Shakir Paschall (93 yards on 18 carries) and Viktrup (70 yards on eight carries) in breaking off large chunks of yardage against the Giants on a windy and wet night.

"We knew the weather would be like this and it'd be a difficult to throw the ball," James said. "We had a lot of guys make contributions. We knew that they would load the box and we could probably gash them on the outside with some long runs."

Carmel (7-0 overall, 5-0 Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference) gashed Ben Davis outside, inside and anywhere it wanted on the ground. The Greyhounds led 17-0 at halftime and the lead would have been even larger if not for a missed field goal, a touchdown called back by penalty and a drive that stalled inside the Ben Davis 5 at the end of the half.

Ben Davis (5-2, 3-2) was simply not competitive, falling behind 30-0 by the third quarter.

"Evidently I'm not doing something right," Ben Davis coach Mike Kirschner said. "I'm not getting them mentally and physically to the point where we get to a big game like this that we don't play well. That's (Carmel's) doing. We didn't play well because of what they did. They physically manhandled us up front on both sides."

Wright mentioned the adverse weather conditions as more of a positive for his team than it was for the Giants, who like to put it in the air with quarterback Kyle Castner and a talented group of receivers. But it would have been difficult to project the ease with which Carmel moved the ball against a Ben Davis defense that has been solid against the run.

"We were able to keep it out of their hands for the most part," Wright said. "And defensively, I was very proud of our guys. But it doesn't get any easier next week."

Next week is a trip to the Eastside to take on second-ranked and fellow unbeaten Warren Central (7-0). It is a rematch of last year's state championship game, won by the Warriors 7-6, and a renewal of the state's best large-school rivalry since 2009.

James is something of a mirror of Warren Central's Mykelti Williams, primarily a defensive back who also plays quarterback. James said he doesn't put any labels on himself, which is probably also a good mentality for opposing defensive coordinators.

"I'm an athlete," James said. "I'm not a receiver, I'm not a quarterback, I'm not a defensive back. I just play the game. If you need a player, that's me."

Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriep at (317) 444-6649.

Carmel 37, Ben Davis 14

Carmel – FG Nick Stacy 27

Carmel – Michael Viktrup 20 run (Stacy kick)

Carmel – Tobias Watkins 3 run (Stacy kick)

Carmel – Isaac James 70 run (kick failed)

Carmel – Jalen Walker 19 pass from James (Stacy kick)

Ben Davis – Dorian Tate 7 run (Lucas Figueiredo kick)

Carmel – Walker 11 run (Stacy kick)

Ben Davis – LeShawn Johnson 3 run (Figueiredo kick)

Rushing – Ben Davis, Tate 14-45, Chris Evans 8-24, Kyle Castner 3-7, Johnson 1-3, Chris Flores 1-(-18). Carmel, James 12-140, Chris Perkins 19-132, Shakir Paschall 18-93, Viktrup 8-70, Watkins 4-18, Walker 1-11, Stephen Watts 1-3, Thomas Stone 2-(-4).

Passing — Ben Davis, Castner 24-41-0 266, Evans 0-1-0 0. Carmel, James 1-2-0 19, Viktrup 1-4-0 5.

Receiving — Ben Davis, Stori Emerson 7-99, Rashawn Bond 4-65, Brennan Gillis 7-53, Evans 3-39, Trew Smith 2-6, Tate 1-4. Carmel, Walker 1-19, James 1-5.