By SCOTT NOVAK
Dowagiac Daily News

The playoffs are in sight for the Dowagiac varsity football team, but the Chieftains will have to go through three of the toughest opponents on their schedule to get there.

Dowagiac, which needs just one more victory to qualify for the fourth straight season, takes on Gull Lake, Otsego and Paw Paw to wrap up the regular season.

Gull Lake, which the Chieftains face on Friday night, and Otsego are both 4-2 on the season, while Paw Paw currently sits at 3-3 after getting beat 38-15 last Friday night by league-leading Three Rivers.

Highest scoring team
Dowagiac with its 47-0 victory over Plainwell last Friday night took over the top spot as the highest scoring team in the Wolverine Conference.

The Chieftains have scored 237 points this season and are averaging 39.5 points per game.

Three Rivers is second in scoring with 209 points, followed by Gull Lake (185), Paw Paw (156) and Otsego (38).

Brandon Douglas continues to lead Dowagiac in rushing with 770 yards on 64 carries for an average of 12 yards per tote.

Douglas has also scored 12 rushing touchdowns and has one receiving touchdown.

Jon Myers is second on the team in rushing with 421 yards and six touchdowns. Myers is averaging 11.4 yards per carry.

Defense continues to shine
The Chieftain defense really got after Plainwell last Friday night.

Dowagiac limited the Trojans to 92 yards in total offense, of which 58 came on the ground.

Dowagiac is second in the Wolverine Conference when it comes to points allowed. The Chieftains have allowed just 91 points this season, second only to Three Rivers’ 85 points.

Anthony Nelson continues to rack up the tackle numbers for Dowagiac.

The linebacker has 61 stops on the season to go along with 14 tackles for loss, a fumble recovery and an interception.

Cody Nowak is second on the team with 51 stops. Myers has 10 tackles for loss and Ryne Lindsey three interceptions.