SARANAC LAKE — The regular season ends this weekend for high school football in the North Country, and for the first time in many years, Saranac Lake is battling for a home playoff game instead of earning an automatic bye into the upcoming Class C championship game.

The Red Storm will attempt to clinch a playoff matchup at home next weekend, and how things play out will be known by the end of the day Saturday following Saranac Lake’s homecoming matchup with Plattsburgh. Next week, Saranac Lake will be facing AuSable Valley in the only Class C semifinal game, and this weekend’s results will determine which squad will host the postseason game.

If Saranac Lake tops Plattsburgh, and AuSable Valley falls to Moriah tonight, the Red Storm will tangle with the Patriots on Saturday, Oct. 21 at Ken Wilson Field with the winner advancing to face top-seed Saranac Central for the Section VII, Class C title. AuSable Valley can clinch that home game with a win or with a Saranac Lake loss to the Hornets.

Saranac Lake has stumbled to a 1-5 record in the Champlain Valley Athletic Conference, but a win Saturday can go a long way toward making those struggles disappear. Beating Plattsburgh, however, won’t be easy. The Hornets currently own a 3-3 mark and have had one of their best seasons in years. And they can possibly clinch a home game in the opening round of their Class B playoffs with a victory over the Red Storm.”

Despite having just a single win to their credit, Saranac Lake head coach Eric Bennett said his players are upbeat.

“We’ve been competitive. I just think we tend to make unforced errors in critical times that come back to haunt us late in the second half,” Bennett said. ”It hasn’t even been turnovers. We’ve protected the ball pretty well. We play good teams, and it’s just been a lot of little things — not filling a gap, not covering a kickoff. Those things all add up.

“I think we just keep plugging away at what we’ve been doing, we’re going to get some things corrected, and that’s exactly what the kids are working on. You wouldn’t know we’ve only won one game. The kids are excited and ready to go. Not only are we looking to win on Saturday, we’re looking to be hosting a playoff game.”

The Hornets have been led by three-year starting quarterback Mitch Senecal, a rugged senior who is a dual threat running and throwing.

“We need to play great run defense and great pass defense against him and their offense,” Bennett said.

After missing last week’s game at Moriah due to a knee injury suffered two weeks ago against Beekmantown, senior Jarrett Ashton will be dressed for Saturday’s game and may see some action for the Red Storm on Saturday.

The opening kickoff for Saturday’s game is scheduled for 1:30 p.m.

Tupper Lake kicks off this weekend’s gridiron action on the road tonight against Ogdensburg starting at 7 p.m. The matchups feature two teams who are in very different situations. The Lumberjacks are winless with an 0-5 mark while the always tough Blue currently own a 5-1 mark and on playing during a season that followed their trip all the way to the Class C final at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse.

One of the biggest differences between the teams is the numbers game. Tupper Lake has struggled during recent campaigns in part due to a lack of a junior varsity squad, while Ogdensburg has had steady numbers benefitting its traditionally strong program.

“Ogdensburg has a good program,” Tupper Lake head coach Dennis Klossner said. “It will be a tough game, but we know what they do. For us, it comes down to exectuing on offense and defense. They play a spread offense, but they look like they mostly run.”

The ‘Jacks are coming off a 42-7 loss to Canton. In that game, junior Brennen McComber scored Tupper Lake’s lone touchdown on a run that gave his team a brief lead early on.

Tupper Lake will have 19 players dressed for tonight’s contest.

“We’re looking to make a good showing,” Klossner said. “We’ve improved, I’ve seen some good things from our players. They work hard and they don’t quit. We’re a small school but we’ve got a lot of fight.”

The Lumberjacks are looking at the possibility of playing two teams from Section IV over the next coming weeks as they prepare for the Class D postseason. Klossner said the decision hasn’t been finalized.