STAFF WRITER

The last time Canton and Belleville squared off on a football field, George W. Bush was a couple days away from taking over the reins of the country and Canton football coach Tim Baechler was a couple weeks away from entrenching the Chiefs on the Michigan high school football playoff map.

Now, four years later, Baechler is the only one of the two who is assured of having a job next week.

On Oct. 27, 2000, Canton defeated a perenially strong Belleville team, 21-10, in the first playoff game of Baechler's tenure. The Chiefs later advanced to the regional final game before getting knocked off by Clarkston.

Canton hasn't missed the playoffs since.

Canton and Belleville meet again Friday at 7 p.m., but unlike the previous meeting, the Chiefs will host the game and are the prohibitive favorites to advance to the next round against the winner of the Novi-Northville showdown.

Canton has outscored its foes, 403-60, while the Tigers have outpointed their opponents, 164-153.

"We were kind of hoping we would be playing in another district," Belleville coach Bob LaPointe admitted, "because you never like to go against a team that's 9-0 like Canton. But our kids are excited about being in the playoffs. Hopefully, we'll go out and put on a good show."

LaPointe said he isn't surprised by the Chiefs' unblemished record after viewing a few of their game films.

"On offense, they do what they want to do very well," he said. "They have some very powerful running backs and they fake very well, so you have to really pay attention to who has the ball.

"Defensively, they really attack you. They're still doing the same stuff they did the first time we played them four years ago. They get after you."

Baechler said the Tigers haven't changed much either since that first encounter he had with them one Presidential election ago.

"Belleville has always been known for its toughness, especially on defense," Baechler said. "They're very quick and scrappy. Offensively, they run the same system that Walled Lake Central runs, but they remind me more of (Livonia) Churchill."

If the Tigers plan on advancing to the district final, they will need a strong effort out of speedy running backs Isaac Kindell and Carlos Clark. Kindell has resembled a human lightning bolt on several occasions this season, racking up 814 yards on 111 carries and scoring 10 touchdowns. Three of his TD's came on special-teams returns.

Clark may be Belleville's second option to carry the ball, but he's equally dangerous, having amassed 465 yards on 71 carries and five TD's.

"We came on strong at the end of the year," LaPointe said, referring to the Tigers' 40-6 win over River Rouge and 36-0 thumping of Romulus in the final two games of the regular season. "We're more efficient running the ball than we were earlier in the season. We have to work to try to control the ball, because if Canton gets it, they're capable of putting together long drives."

Canton's machine-like offense is paced by a stellar, all-senior offensive line and the strong running of backs Julian Smith and Chuck Schumacher. Schumacher has gained a team-high 977 yards while Smith has picked up 787 yards on 15 fewer carries.

The Chiefs have mercied all but one of their opponents - Ann Arbor Pioneer - this season, which means the team's starters on both sides of the ball haven't played a complete game since the opener.

"It helps our depth when our reserves get to play," Baechler said, "but it hurts our starters because they haven't played all 48 minutes since the Pioneer game. We haven't been able to see how they're going to react playing all 48 minutes in a close game. It especially affects the players who go both ways."

ewright@oe.homecomm.net