Northwood football coach Ken James isn't into making excuses, but facts are facts.

It is a well-known fact that the Rangers have dominated the Toledo Area Athletic Conference – eight championships in 11 years – since they joined the conference in 2000.

Northwood went unbeaten in the TAAC again this year and finished 9-1, losing only to Hopewell-Loudon. Their strength of schedule gave the Rangers enough computer points to finish fourth in Division V, Region 18, meaning they would get to host a playoff opener for just the second time in school history. Northwood hosted Mohawk in 2002.

The Rangers made their seventh playoff appearance, all since 2001, last Friday night and hosted Patrick Henry. Northwood went up 7-0 in the first quarter against the Patriots, but the Rangers' three turnovers and the lack of a consistent running game eventually did Northwood in en route to a 49-28 loss.

“To their credit, they took us out of it,” James said. “We didn't score off their turnovers and they capitalized on our turnovers. In a game like that, five or six plays are going to be crucial. We could have been up 10-0 or 14-0. We could have conceivably had a 17-point lead. That makes it a different game. But, they stiffened up and we didn't get into the end zone.”

The Rangers are now 1-6 all-time in the playoffs. Northwood's only playoff win was against Edgerton, 20-13, in 2003. The Rangers lost to eventual state champion Columbus Grove, 27-0, in the second round.

Northwood hasn't had easy first-round matchups in the playoffs. In 2004 the Rangers made the postseason with a 5-5 record. Their reward was a first-round matchup at top-ranked Hopewell-Loudon, which won 21-0.

Two years ago the Rangers made the playoffs with a 7-3 record. That gave them a first-round game at top-ranked Patrick Henry, which rolled to a 41-14 victory.

Patrick Henry (9-2) entered last Friday's game as one of the most successful D-V teams in the state. Coach Bill Inselmann's Patriots won a state title in 2005 and have made the playoffs 14 times, including 10 years in a row.

Still, the Rangers had their chances to build momentum but came up short. They had a first-and-goal early and couldn't score. They recovered a PH fumble and had a field goal get blocked. What was once a 7-0 Northwood lead turned into a 21-7 halftime deficit, and the Patriots took advantage of a muffed Northwood punt return and a fumble to turn the game into a rout in the third quarter.

“We had so many opportunities in the first half,” James lamented. “This was a game of momentum and you have to play like a maniac in a game like that. We knew they were good. They've been getting a lot better and we felt like we had been getting better, too. We felt like we could compete with them, but they hit the right plays at the right time and we did not. We're done and they're still playing.”

Had Northwood had three less boys in grades 9-11 this school year, it would have competed in D-VI, the smallest football division in the state. The Rangers would have avoided Patrick Henry, and their most likely first-round opponent would have been Arcadia (7-4), which lost its playoff opener at Leipsic, 51-0.

“We're one of the smallest schools competing in our division in the playoffs,” James said. “The region we're in is one of the toughest regions in the state. We just have to find more ways to be competitive. That's how it works.”

The Rangers graduate 11 seniors from this year's team. They will return their entire starting offensive line, their quarterback, one split end and a fullback, and they will have to replace three starters in the defensive secondary, one tackle and one linebacker.

James called this year's playoff loss “frustrating,” adding that his coaching staff plans to make some changes in the program in order to compete at the next level.

“Some people can always second guess what you did,” James said. “Nobody will second guess more than us. We as a staff have already been picking that (PH) game apart. We are taking a look at the offense and defense; same thing with our offseason program. We got run down from behind twice last Friday, so we have to look at some things where we can make ourselves faster overall.”

James said it was difficult giving a post-game speech to this year's squad.

“The seniors did a great job for us this year,” he said. “We're still a little young, we just didn't quite get it done when we had to. It's a real frustrating end to the year, but it's been a special year with the quality of kids on the team. We had some really good young men on this team. We had lot of fun being around each other. It was a year you hated to see end.”

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