Photos: Brownsburg thumps Ben Davis to advance

INDIANAPOLIS — Brownsburg’s aura of invincibility was supposedly shattered after a loss at Hamilton Southeastern two weeks ago. The Bulldogs were no longer

INDIANAPOLIS — Brownsburg’s aura of invincibility was supposedly shattered after a loss at Hamilton Southeastern two weeks ago.

The Bulldogs were no longer unbeaten, they surrendered their No. 1 ranking in Class 6A and, adding to the perceived postseason uncertainty, quarterback Jayden Whitaker suffered a sprained ankle.

Not so fast. 

Consider a 48-20 road thumping of Ben Davis in the Sectional 5 opener Friday night as convincing evidence that third-ranked Brownsburg can bounce back and reassert itself as a state title contender.

Unlike in the season opener, when the Bulldogs edged the host Giants 21-16, Brownsburg started impressively by scoring the game’s first 24 points.

Caleb Morris scored on a 2-yard run then Whitaker, showing no ill effects from his injury, threw a 24-yard TD pass to Frederick Hawthorne to make it 14-0 in the first quarter.

Mike Berry kicked a 25-yard field goal and Garrett Sherrell scored on a 25-yard run to make it 24-0 in the second quarter.

Ben Davis, a nine-time state champion and most recently in 2017, never recovered.

The Giants finally scored near the end of the first half as Thomas Gotkowski threw a 17-yard TD pass to Destin Beuchamp, but Brownsburg’s defense delivered a pair of knockout blows with a pair of pick-sixes in the third quarter. Griffin Simpson returned the first 43 yards to make it 34-6, then Nick Cloyd ran back an interception 40 yards along the sideline for a 41-13 lead.

The Giants scored again, but the Bulldogs countered as Sherrell scored from 2 yards out to make it 48-20 with 8:32 remaining. The large lead allowed Brownsburg to rest Whitaker after that.

Gotkowski had three TD passes, the others covering 7 yards to Marques Reese and 36 yards to Lincoln Murff.

Brownsburg (9-1) ensured an opportunity to play for a sectional title against the Avon Orioles (2-8), who defeated host Pike 25-14. The Bulldogs beat the Orioles 60-21 in Avon in Week 4.

Ben Davis, which had lost its previous three games by one score or less, finishes at 6-4.

Brownsburg vs. Ben Davis football

Photos from Mark Evrard