Chasing the dream

Two decades have come and gone since the Indian River varsity football team last had their shot at a state championship, and even longer — 23 years — since they came home with the trophy. But the Indians are rewriting history this year, and giving themselves another chance, after a comfortable 49-14 win over Howard last Friday, Nov. 25. The win, in the semifinals of the state tournament, has them positioned for the title, when they face Caravel at Delaware State University this Saturday, Dec. 3, at 7 p.m. for the State Division II championship.

In a contest of the unbeatens, the Indian River Indians (11-0) and the Caravel Buccaneers (12-0) have shared a similar road to this year’s title game. Caravel scored an average of nearly 37 points per game, holding their opponents to an average of a little less than 11 points and recording three shutouts along the way. The Indians typically saw higher-scoring games this year, allowing an average of 14 points by opponents, but scoring more than 44 of their own each matchup, with two shutouts on the season.

Both teams are also working under first-year head coaches. The Indians are guided by Ray Steele, whose 30-year tenure with former head coach Jim Bunting, at both the high school and middle-school levels, echoes the dedication and hard work that the program has put into the sport, year after year. The Buccaneers are run by Bill Martin, who presided last year as an interim coach, following an early-season loss to the Indians. Martin, who also an integral part of Caravel’s coaching staff, has since been appointed head coach of the team.

Both Indian River and Caravel are looking at preserving a perfect season after mediocre seasons the past couple of years. Each team finished with a cumulative 10-10 record for their past two years, the Indians ending up 5-5 in both, and the Buccaneers going 3-7 last season and 7-3 the year prior.

Yet, both have had a significant history in Division II football. Since 1979, Caravel Academy has made it to the championship game six times, including four consecutive visits between 2004 and 2007. They came out victorious in three of their six visits (1989, 1990, 2005). The Indians have seen five state-title games but have fallen short in all but one (1988).

“If you told us that we’d be here at the Division II championship game, at the start of the year,” said Indian River’s Steele, “I would have told you we had a long way to go. That’s something I asked the guys,” he said of the time after their win over Howard. “They said they knew they had it in them, and throughout the season, they’ve really come together.”

With their 10-0 regular-season record, including wins over three Division I schools, the Indians earned a seat atop the entire Henlopen Conference (both North and South), clinching the Southern Division title, ousting two-time defending rival Delmar, and a bye-week in the first round of the state tournament.

In the second round of the tournament, the Indians defeated fifth-ranked Howard (9-1 in regular season), which had enjoyed a first-round advancement over Archmere. Third-ranked Caravel pulled out a marginal — and unlikely — win over Delmar in the tournament’s opening round, posting 11 points in the final 30 seconds to defeat the Wildcats, 21-18. The Bucs then ousted No. 2 Hodgson by a mere point, earning them a spot against the Indians for the championship.

Though the paths the two teams carved to the final game of the year have mirrored each other, week in and week out, Steele knows his Indians are going to have to prepare for a heated contention if they are to raise a state banner back in the school’s gym and take home the trophy.

“There’s a lot of history with both of these teams,” he said. “From 2003 to 2005, we were in the state tournament, but it was Concord or Caravel who has always knocking us out before we made it to the final game. As a coach, you’ve got to put that out of your head. That football sitting on the field doesn’t have a memory. It holds no bias. We’ve got to be prepared and play the game that we know how to.”

Steele praised the effort of his offense, headed by senior quarterback Jamie Jarmon but also attributed the season’s undefeated record to the defense.

“Our defense has really developed all season long,” he said. “The guys are buying into what we’re selling, and as long as we don’t worry about stats and numbers, we can win any game. The offense is what typically gets you the headlines, but it’s that defense that gets you championships.”

This Saturday, Dec. 3, top-ranked Indian River (11-0) will face No. 3 Caravel for the Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association (DIAA) Division II Championship at Delaware State University at 7 p.m. Tickets cost $8 per person and can be purchased at the gate or online at https://diaaticketleap.com.