Troy 53 Sidney 6

Sidney has a great stadium. Aside from Troy, it's the best in the GWOC North. It's a great place to watch a game, and I really enjoy going to watch the Trojans play there.

That said, the field inside the stadium leaves something to be desired. As you can see, there was water standing in several places, despite the fact that it didn't rain today at all. Even in places where there wasn't actual water, it looked like a mud pit with a very thin layer of grass sprinkled over the top. The stadium has only been open for seven years, and I'm not sure why they didn't just put in artificial turf to start with (aside from cost issues). If they want to keep their natural surface, they need to fix their drainage issues.

The team that plays in the stadium also leaves a lot to be desired. The last time Troy played here was two years ago, the last game of the 2009 season. Sidney won that game 15-14 in overtime. For the Trojans, that was significant because the loss kept them out of the playoffs that season. For Sidney, it was significant because it allowed them to finish that season at 5-5. It was also the last time they won a game. With tonight's loss, they've gone 0-10 in consecutive seasons.

There's not a whole lot to say about this game. The Trojans could have named any score they wanted and then gone out and put it up. They were up 41-0 at halftime and the varsity was done for the night. The backups were still ripping off long plays against Sidney's first string defense, and only penalties and sloppy tackling (and kneeling on extra point plays) kept the score from being even worse than it was.

So now we wait for Troy's playoff picture to be resolved. They had already clinched a spot in the playoffs regardless of the outcome of this game; a win leaves them with hope of hosting a game in the first round. Of course, defeating a winless team doesn't do much for their Harbin rankings, and none of their previous opponents--CJ, Springboro, Beavercreek, Vandalia, or Miamisburg--won tonight to give them any help (Piqua did, of course, but they played Fairborn, another team Troy defeated, so it's mostly a wash). So I'll hold out hope for a home game, but I won't be surprised if they (and therefore I) end up traveling to Columbus next weekend instead.

UPDATE: If Joe Eitel's numbers are accurate, Troy will be a #5 seed and will indeed travel next week to take on the Upper Arlington Golden Bears. These two teams last played in 2000 in a second-round playoff game at Dayton's Welcome Stadium. Upper Arlington won that game 42-14 and went on to win the state championship.