Middletown playing for NCS Division 5 football title Saturday

A multitude of storylines will be on display when second-seed Middletown plays top-seeded St. Patrick-St. Vincent of Vallejo Saturday in the North Coast Section Division 5 championship football game.

The game is set for 7 p.m. at Alhambra High in Martinez. Despite a 10-game winning streak, the Mustangs (10-1) will be heavy underdogs against the Bruins (10-1), who are the 2016 defending state champions in Division 6-A.

“St. Patrick-St. Vincent is bigger, more athletic and faster than we are,” Middletown coach Bill Foltmer said. “It will be a tall order to go against them, but we are up for the challenge. Our star players have to play big for us on Saturday night.”

Foltmer, who is in his 34th year as head coach of Middletown, will be coaching in his sixth NCS title game. He is 3-2 in the previous five championship games, with 2001 the last time Middletown won the championship, against Cloverdale.

Foltmer’s experience should help prepare his team for the daunting task ahead.

“We are fairly heavy underdogs, but there have been upsets and things happen in sports all the time,” Foltmer said. “We have our game plan and know what to expect.”

Another key is how stout Middletown’s defense will be against the dynamic Bruins offense featuring mobile quarterback Akil Edwards and bruising tailback Marshel Martin (6-foot-2, 201 pounds).

“We are playing our best defensive football of the season,” Foltmer said. “(Martin) is a human highlight reel. Their quarterback (Edwards) is elusive and fast and can throw to fast, dangerous receivers. We have to rally to the ball, be smart and contain them. We have to get some stops defensively.”

Added Middletown lineman Colton Hall: “We have to chew up clock on offense to keep our defense off the field … St. Patrick-St. Vincent has a little more size and weight on us on the lines, but we are a little quicker.”

Offensively, Middletown lives and dies by the run, but quarterback Luke Holt might be the true catalyst for the Mustangs if he can keep the St. Patrick-St. Vincent defense off balance with timely passing.

“Luke has had some good games for us down the stretch. He is a very capable quarterback and he has won games for us,” Foltmer said. “We need Luke to be on Saturday night. If he is, then St. Patrick-St. Vincent can’t stack the box on defense and it will loosen things up.”

Holt said he has been put in a position before where he needs to convert on big-play passes for his team to have a chance.

“Every team packs the box, so we’ve seen it before. We are going to be forced to throw, probably around 20 times,” Holt said. “I’ve done it before (delivered in the clutch) so I can do it again. ... It would be really good for Lake County if we win.”

Holt’s favorite target is receiver Trey O’Neill, who Foltmer said has had some great games and will also have to have a huge game on Saturday.

“Our practice has been really upbeat lately. We are fired up,” O’Neill said. “I think we want it more than them. We really want that banner up in our gym.”

Tailback duties will be filled primarily by Nico Barrio, who is replacing Drake Harbison, sidelined since midseason due to several ankle injuries.

“Nico has come in and done a fantastic job,” Foltmer said. “He doesn’t have the ability to break tackles like Drake did, but he has the ability to break a big play.”

Middletown is the North Central League I champion, but will be the third NCL I team to go up against St. Patrick-St. Vincent. The Bruins defeated Kelseyville 50-29 in the preseason and defeated Clear Lake 60-44 last week in the semifinal round.

Foltmer said he spoke to coaches at both Clear Lake and Kelseyville and got confirmation that St. Patrick-St. Vincent is a true offensive powerhouse.

“St. Patrick-St. Vincent is a very athletic team. They have an excellent offense,” Foltmer said. “They have some offensive weapons, but defensively they give up points. We have to come up with time-consuming drives on offense.”

No matter what happens, Foltmer said it’s been a successful season.

“You’ve got to be proud of these kids with what they have accomplished this season,” Foltmer said. “On Saturday, we just want our kids to play hard on every play. We don’t want to have any ‘could haves’ or ‘should haves.’”