GOSHEN — For Wawasee defensive lineman Chad Eppley, a golden opportunity appeared in the first quarter of the Warriors’ 28-14 victory over Goshen.

After a fumble, Eppley saw the ball lying on the ground near the Goshen 30.

So he picked it up and ran with it — all the way to the Goshen 5-yard-line.

Alas, he was tackled from behind at that point. But one play later, the Warriors cashed in with a TD run by Derrick Sorensen.

For Epply, as long as the team scored, he was happy.

“I thought somebody was going to fall on it, but when I saw it still lying there, I decided to pick it up,” Epply said.

Eppley characterized the play as  more of a “rumble” than a run.

Twin picks

One interception in a game is a good night for many defensive backs.

Wawasee junior Brendin McCulloch had two Friday night against Goshen, And his first — a 63-yard Pick Six with 1:08 left — snuffed out a potential game-tying or game-winning drive by the Redskins.

McCulloch said his pick was a matter of being in the right place at the right time – as well as some astute observation on his part.

“They had run that play a few times   before,” McCulloch said. “I had an idea where they were going to throw it.”

McCulloch added another pick in the closing seconds.

Redskin records

The Goshen Redskins established two schools records Friday night. Sophomore quarterback Derek DeMeyer attempted 51 passes to break the mark of 45 by Jerrod Bardwell against Hobart in 1990. DeMeyer completed 22 passes, which fell short of the record of 24 by Rick Mirer in 1988 against both Homestead and Wawasee.

Senior split end Austin Henke had 14 catches for 158 yards. The 14 catches breaks the single-game record of 12 by Mike Moon in 1988 against New Haven.

Receiver kind of night

Henke was the only receiver to have big game on Friday as several area signal callers seemed to target a specific player.

Concord junior Adam Glanders snared nine passes for 132 yards and two TDs in his team’s win at Warsaw. NorthWood senior Nick Graber grabbed eight balls for 155 and a pair scores in a loss to Plymouth. Elkhart Memorial senior Dimetri Chatman had 12 catches for 123 yards in his team’s win at Northridge.

On top of all that Elkhart Central had a pair of receivers go over the century mark in its 31-21 win at South Bend Clay. Senior Spencer Schnell caught nine passes for 119 yards and two scores while junior Blake Faus had seven for 109.

Concord history

The Concord Minutemen made a little history of their own Friday night at Warsaw. Concord defeated Warsaw 34-9 to capture a share of the NLC title with the Plymouth Rockies.

It’s the third straight league championship for the Minutemen following outright titles in 2011 and 2010.

“I’m so proud of the players for accomplishing something that has never been done at Concord before,” Concord coach Tim Dawson said.

Winning a third straight title was a goal of the Minutemen this season.

“The kids didn’t lose sight of the opportunity,” Dawson said. “They rebounded after losses to Jimtown (48-0 in Week 6) and Plymouth (31-28 in Week 7).”

It’s the 10th NLC crown for the Minutemen. The first was in 1979. Others came in 1983, 1984 (shared with NorthWood), 1991 (shared with NorthWood), 2004 (shared with NorthWood and Wawasee), 2006 and 2007.

Bizarre contest

The Concord-Warsaw game was a strange one. Concord fumbled the center snap in the shotgun formation on the first two plays the Minutemen tried to run. Between the two clubs there were a total of 18 penalties for 158 yards. Concord drew 12 flags for 106 yards and Warsaw six for 52.

Concord had a possession in the first period where the Minutemen had a 1st-and-10 at the W-11. But a holding call, an illegal procedure flag and a sack by the Warsaw defense made it 2nd-and-33 at the W-34.

The unusual string of events prompted one professional colleague in the press box to inquiry, “Do these two teams know it’s Friday the 12th and not Friday the 13th?”

Raider special

Just as the Chicago Bears made NFL history when Lance Briggs and Charles Tillman returned interceptions for touchdowns in consecutive weeks, Northridge might have made some special teams history with two unusual feats in back-to-back games. For the second straight Friday the Raiders recovered a surprise onside kick on their 50. And Craig Kasten duplicated fake punt perfection with his second straight 23-yard run on fourth down from the punt position. Both runs garnered first downs. And for good measure, Travis Schlabach added a third big special teams play Friday with a 79-yard punt return for a touchdown.

Falcon return

Fairfield senior Brett Baumgartner returned a kickoff 88 yards for a TD with 7:11 left in the second quarter Friday at Culver Military Academy.

NECC title

Churubusco defeated Lakeland 38-16 Friday in a battle of previously unbeaten squads. It’s the fourth straight league crown for the Eagles and the second consecutive outright one. The Eagles shared the top spot with Angola in 2010 and with Fairfield and Lakeland in 2009.

Churubusco’s senior running back Jason Nicodemus rushed for 217 yards on 28 carries and scored five TDs in the Lakeland contest.