Football Wednesday: Lakeville South vs. Burnsville

Lakeville South (5-2, 5-2 South Suburban Conference) vs. Burnsville (2-5, 2-5 South Suburban Conference)

PLAYMAKERS

-- Austin Britnell (Lakeville South – running back)

Austin led the South ground game last week, gaining a season-high 71 yards on 11 carries. Not the biggest running back, the junior doesn’t run a lot inside, but is more suited to run off-tackle. He cuts well with the ball, and is averaging 6.1 yards per carry.

-- Devan Bzoskie (Lakeville South – wide receiver)

With leading receiver Matt Heller double-covered much of the night, Devan took over in the passing game last week, catching nine balls for 85 yards. Devan has 31 catches for 421 yards and four touchdowns in seven games this year.

-- Ben Baker or Will Reger (Burnsville – quarterback)

The Blaze lost starting quarterback Dan Motl for the season two weeks ago, and Baker and Reger were a combined 0-for-7 throwing at Eagan. That number will have to improve against a South team that likes to use its speed on defense to disrupt an opponent’s passing game. Ben and Will have both have taken snaps this week at practice. “We’ll see how it goes,” said coach Tyler Krebs.

-- Michael Callanan (Burnsville – defensive back, running back, kick returner)

Callanan, one of the fastest players on the Blaze team had two interceptions last week (one was returned 72 yards). In addition to continuing to get a few carries as a running back, he added kick returns to his duties last week.

COUGARS WIN IF...

They get their offense back on track. Lakeville South has scored just 12 points in its past two games against top conference teams and 29 in its past three after averaging 37.5 in its first four games, albeit it against weaker teams. “This game is so much about confidence and we’ll be OK,” said coach Larry Thompson. “We need to play as a team.” The Cougars will need to run the ball better to set up the pass. South had just 108 yards on 33 carries last week, and threw for 129. The defense should throw many different looks at whichever relatively inexperienced quarterback Burnsville has under center.

BLAZE WIN IF...

They play 180 degrees different than they did in a 31-0 loss Friday at Eagan when the offense struggled to find any rhythm, and the defense tackled poorly. Burnsville must hang on to the ball; it lost two fumbles and threw an interception on its first three drives at Eagan and quickly fell behind. As an added incentive, a win should guarantee a home playoff game. Rosemount and Prior Lake will be the top section seeds, with Burnsville, Eastview and Bloomington Kennedy — each 2-5 — getting the three through five slots. The Blaze has wins over the Lightning and Eagles, but on paper, Eastview and Bloomington Kennedy have easier games this week against Bloomington Jefferson and Apple Valley, respectively.

2-MINUTE DRILL

SITE: Burnsville High School

TIME: 7 p.m. Wednesday

WEATHER: Partly cloudy, 40 degrees

LAST MEETING: Lakeville South won 21-13 last season.

LAKEVILLE SOUTH SCHEDULE

Fri. Sept. 2     vs. Eagan                

Fri. Sept. 9     @ Eastview             

Fri. Sept. 16   vs. Apple Valley       W 45-6

Fri. Sept. 23   @ Bloomington Jefferson W 42-7

Fri. Sept. 30   vs. Rosemount        

Fri. Oct. 7       @ Lakeville North   

Fri. Oct. 14     vs. Prior Lake          L 28-6

Wed. Oct. 19 @ Burnsville

BURNSVILLE SCHEDULE

Thur. Sept. 1 vs. Bloomington Jefferson L 20-18

Fri. Sept. 9     @ Rosemount                  

Fri. Sept. 16   @ Bloomington Kennedy  W 20-7

Fri. Sept. 23   vs. Prior Lake                  

Fri. Sept. 30   @ Lakeville North            

Fri. Oct. 7       vs. Eastview                   

Fri. Oct. 14     @ Eagan                         

Wed. Oct. 19 vs. Lakeville South