The 2014 Knappa Loggers will take their 10-1 record and a No. 2 ranking into Saturday's semifinal football game.

The Heppner Mustangs will bring an offense averaging 44 points per game. The Knappa Loggers feature a defense that allows an average of six points per contest.

So something’s got to give Saturday, when the two teams lock horns in a Class 2A state semifinal game, scheduled to kick off at high noon Saturday at Liberty High School in Hillsboro.

The No. 3-ranked Mustangs and the No. 2-ranked Loggers will be playing for a spot in the Class 2A state championship game, with the winner to face either Burns or Regis Nov. 29.

It’s hard to say who the favorite is. Knappa is the higher-ranked team and holds a 4-1 playoff record against competition from the Columbia Basin since 2008.

The Mustangs have a perfect record (11-0), but saw leading rusher Brian Rill go down with an ankle injury in last week’s win over Central Linn. He spent the second half on crutches.

“I’m hoping for (Rill’s) sake and our sake that he can play,” Heppner coach Greg Grant told the East Oregonian. “He’s put a lot into it. We’ll just have to be solid. It’s going to be a real battle.”

Knappa’s “Mr. Indestructible,” senior running back Justin Dragoo, overcame a sore knee and ran 37 times for 149 yards in the quarterfinal victory over Oakland.

Take your pick.

Either way, “We got what we wanted,” said Knappa coach Aaron Barendse, following last week’s win. “I told the boys when you get to the semifinals, anything can happen. We’re playing high school kids, and they can make mistakes too.”

Grant sounded similar in his interview with the East Oregonian.

“I told the team going in, playoff games are sometimes determined more by mistakes than anything else,” he said.

Heppner is coming off a 45-8 win over Central Linn, in which the Mustangs overcame a slow start to lead 24-0 at halftime.

The Loggers, meanwhile, trailed Oakland 7-6 at halftime of their quarterfinal game, before scoring a touchdown in the fourth quarter to take the lead.

The Loggers have won five in a row since losing their only game, a nonleague contest at Warrenton Oct. 10.

Since then, Knappa has been taking it “just one week at a time, one game at a time,” said Dragoo, following Knappa’s win over Oakland. “Heppner’s a good team. It’s going to be a very hard battle. They have a big running back and a big line, too.”

And Heppner has a pretty good defense of its own, led by linebacker C.J. Kindle. The Mustangs allowed Central Linn to gain just 152 yards for the game, 71 coming on a touchdown run in the final quarter against the Heppner reserves.

Weston Putman forced a fumble and had a game-high nine tackles for the Mustangs.

Following the victory, Grant said, “(The Mustangs’ defense) did a great job. Every one of our edge defenders are good. They were great today.”

Then again, conditions weren’t conducive for offense football last week in Heppner, with a recent snowfall resulting in a rock-hard solid playing surface.

With Rill out of the game, Kindle had 131 yards receiving and a touchdown, and also ran for 95 yards on 10 carries. He delivered the knockout blow late in the third quarter, bouncing an inside run down the left sideline for a 76-yard touchdown and a 38-0 lead.

Heppner quarterback Kaden Clark threw three touchdown passes and also ran for two.

With Rill on the sideline, the Mustangs tried to get the ball to the edge via the short passing game and off-tackle running plays.

The future looks bright for Heppner, with Clark, Kindle, Putnam and Rill all juniors.

The horizon is even brighter for the Loggers, whose roster is loaded with freshmen and sophomores.

While Knappa has several key underclassmen, “The senior leadership is why we’re where we’re at,” Barendse said. “I get fired up during the games, but when I sit back and watch films from this season, it’s pretty remarkable what the kids are doing with the youth we have.”

Prediction: Whenever you have a high-scoring offense facing a tough defense in the postseason (see Super Bowl XLVIII), the defense usually gets the nod. Knappa has been living off takeaways lately, so expect the Loggers to force turnovers and make some big fourth-down stops, and look for Dragoo to run for another 150-plus yards.

Knappa will likely be out-sized and out-numbered — but that’s nothing new. The Loggers have been overcoming the odds all season. Knappa 26, Heppner 14.