CALEDONIA — The Caledonia High School football team hasn’t lost a game in nearly two months.
During that time, it has allowed seven opponents to score 42 points and shut three of them out.
The Warriors (9-2) have outscored their three postseason opponents by a 91-20 margin and allowed two touchdowns over the past six games.
But the challenge that awaits on Saturday is a very different animal than anyone the Warriors have played to this point.
Top-ranked Jackson County Central (10-0), the same team that won last year’s state title and has won 23 games in a row, is the next obstacle for Caledonia is it tries to qualify for an MSHSL Class AA state semifinal.
The Huskies and Warriors will play their quarterfinal matchup at Orono High School and kick things off at 7 p.m. to determine which team will get to play again and which will head home with its season completed.
“They are a good football power in the state of Minnesota,” Caledonia coach Carl Fruechte said of the Huskies, who beat Caledonia in the quarterfinal round two years ago. “To have the opportunity to play them, we look forward to the challenge.
“To be the best, you have to beat the best, right?”
Jackson County Central brings to the game a team that can score points by the truckload behind senior quarterback Roman Voss, one of the state’s top recruits and one who selected the University of Minnesota of his other finalist, Alabama.
While the 6-foot-4, 230-pounder could be a tight end for the Gophers, he has made his impact as a quarterback, wide receiver and safety in high school. Though the Huskies beat Staples-Motley 42-26 for last year’s championship, Voss didn’t play due to an injury.
He has been focused this season on experiencing what he missed out on as a junior and has helped his team win every game by at least 24 points.
“He can run, but they have a lot more,” Fruechte said. “They have a multitude of formations and sets, a good offensive line, two nice receivers — maybe three — and there is a lot for us to be ready for.”
Jackson County Central averages 54.2 points per game, and Caledonia allows 8.4, so something will have to give.
Senior linebacker Noah Schroeder said the Warriors were able to turn a corner after losing two of their first three games through camaraderie, better communication and, of course, working harder in practice.
Fruechte has said multiple times this season that his players needed a bump in confidence and the belief that they could accomplish big things. He saw that start to shift after a 34-0 win at Randolph on Oct. 3.
“They had a very good team, and it’s a program we have a lot of respect for because they’ve grown from 9-man to 1A and are now at 2A,” Fruechte said. “We were fortunate to get after them that night.
“But we talked on the bus about the real reasons we were happy, and that’s because they were aggressive and a lot more confident. That’s been on an incline.”
Schroeder and sophomores Cooper Allen and Max Schmitz have been some of the defensive leaders this season. Schroeder said his role as a leader was magnified this fall, but he used that to make sure everyone felt like they were part of what the team is accomplishing.
“You’ll see a lot of teams where seniors are the only ones talking,” he said. “With so many juniors and sophomores playing, I didn’t want it to be like that here.
“I wanted to make sure everybody was speaking their mind.”
Schroeder has 58 tackles, two forced fumbles and one recovered fumble. Allen tops the team in tackles with 102, and Schmitz leads the way with eight quarterback sacks.
Allen said a good understanding of what everyone is doing on each snap is what has keyed the defensive effort over the second half of the season.
“I think the biggest thing we’ve had going for us is communication,” he said. “There is a great trust in one another.”
