The first two weeks of the playoffs had the Edwardsburg Eddies preparing to face teams who like to throw the football and had a nimble quarterback.

Then came the regional finals where the Eddies had to stop a potent running back.

On Saturday, Edwardsburg must switch gears once again as it takes on Grand Rapids Catholic Central and standout junior quarterback Miles Morrisey, who threw for 242 yards and four touchdowns in the first half of the Cougars’ win over Comstock Park.

Morrisey also ran for a touchdown as he finished with 331 yards passing and five TD passes.

So far in the post season, the Eddies (11-1) have been able to stop both the run and the pass. They shut down Otsego and Paw Paw and their pass oriented offense before beating Lansing Sexton for the regional championship by stopping its outstanding running game.

Edwardsburg will have to contain Morrisey and Grand Rapids Catholic Central (10-2) on Saturday afternoon at Vicksburg High School in the Division 4 semifinals.

The winner will advance to Ford Field in Detroit to take on either Detroit Crockett (11-1) or Williamston (11-1).

Part of  the reason why the Eddies have been so successful on defense in stopping both the run and the pass is that they are very aggressive on that side of the ball. Another part of that has been the success of the Edwardsburg offense in controlling the time of possession.

The Eddies have been racking up big numbers on the ground all season long and especially in the post season. For the year, Edwardsburg has rushed for 4,543 yards. In its three playoff games, the Eddies have amassed 1,420 in rushing.

It has been a season of firsts for Edwardsburg. The Eddies won their first home playoff game, district and regional championships and have now won more games than any other team in school history.

The Cougars are no stranger to making runs in the playoffs. Grand Rapids Catholic Central was a state semifinalist in 2008, falling to Holland Christian 38-14.

Of their two losses, they came at the hands of playoff teams Middleville Thornapple Kellogg (31-28) and Grand Rapids Forest Hills Eastern (37-13).

In the post season, the Cougars have scored 140 points, while giving up 104 points.

Last week against Comstock Park, Grand Rapids CC trailed 7-0 and 13-7 before the Cougar offense got rolling.

In the final seven minutes of the first half, Catholic Central scored three times and twice in only a minute.

In the second half the Cougars started running the ball to use up the clock, but when Comstock Park cut the lead to 38-28 halfway through the final quarter, Morrisey went back to work and sealed the victory for Catholic Central.

Tickets for Saturday’s game are $6 per person and available at the gate.