Red-hot Owls welcome top-five Bloomington South to Bulleit Stadium Friday

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Seymour football usually has a 24-hour rule after each game, whether it’s a win or a loss.

You have 24 hours to either celebrate a win or be disappointed by a loss before moving on and turning your focus to the next week.

Last Friday, when the Owls handily defeated New Albany 49-7 to win a share of their first Hoosier Hills Conference title since 2001, head coach Tyson Moore admitted they allowed the team to soak it in just a little longer.

“It’s not something that happens all the time,” Moore said. “We understood once Monday came, we did the player awards, helmet stickers, all that, but we told them, ‘All right, guys, you accomplished one goal. Now, you’ve got to move on to accomplish our next goal.’”

That goal is to win a sectional championship, and there’s no better way to prepare for sectional than what Seymour is facing this Friday to close out the regular season.

The Owls welcome in Bloomington South, which is ranked No. 4 in the AP media poll and No. 5 in the coaches poll. The Panthers are 6-1 this season and are on the other side of the bracket in Seymour’s sectional.

“The hardest part was just trying to refocus for this week,” Moore said. “It’s another important game, and it’s going to be a preview about what our sectional will be like.”

Bloomington South and Seymour have only played four times, and the Panthers hold the 3-1 series lead. The two programs haven’t met since Oct. 7, 1994. Bloomington South won that game 49-7.

“We’re going to see the most explosive offense we’ve seen all year,” Moore said. “Offensively, they’ve got a lot of pieces to their puzzle. Defensively, it has to be the most disciplined team we play.”

Moore said aside from Columbus East, which is always well-coached and disciplined, the Panthers might be the most disciplined team Seymour will line up across this season.

Moore hopes the Owls can come out like they did last Friday against New Albany. He wasn’t afraid to admit he didn’t expect his team to run over the Bulldogs like they did. Not that he didn’t think they were capable, but it hasn’t been Seymour’s forte this season.

Prior to that game, four of Seymour’s five wins had come by scoring go-ahead touchdowns in the final 2 minutes. The week before New Albany, Seymour underestimated a Jennings County team that almost upset the Owls.

Moore feels like that game played a role in preparing Seymour for the big moment last week.

“I was not prepared for it to just be go out there and open the floodgates,” he said. “I think what happened the previous week with Jennings County really refocused our guys, and I noticed it was the best week of practice we’ve had all year. Our guys were focused from the get-go and were ready to go.”

The Owls now turn that focus to their toughest test of the season Friday night at Bulleit Stadium. If Seymour is able to defeat Bloomington North in the sectional Oct. 28, there’s a good chance the Owls would see Bloomington South in the sectional title game Nov. 4. South plays Columbus East for its first sectional game.

Win or lose this Friday, it will be a good measuring stick to see where the Owls are at for their postseason aspirations.

“Not only did they when a HHC championship on Friday, but the Seymour football team that played on Friday is very capable of winning a sectional championship,” Moore said.

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