Big game, huh?

“Yeah,” laughed Mercer coach Pat McClearn, “I guess you could say that.”

McClearn and the Mustangs (6-3, 4-3 Region 1) are taking on Lakeview (6-3, 4-3 Region 1) tonight at 7 p.m. And if the District 10 playoff berths get doled out like they have in year’s past — four for Region 1 and four for Region 2 — the winner of tonight’s game is in the playoffs, and the loser is kaput.

“They know (what’s at stake),” Lakeview coach Dan York said about his squad. “Mercer is just five miles up the road.”

Considering what’s to be gained or lost this week, York’s Sailors could have picked a better time to pass around the flu bug.

Senior running back Kyle Scott — who is among District 10’s top running backs with 1,057 yards and 14 touchdowns on 145 carries — missed last week’s game due to illness. And on Wednesday, York put Scott’s chances for playing in tonight’s game at about 50/50.

The Sailors could also be without junior two-way lineman Billy Knapp, who is also sick. York said Knapp is 60/40 to play.

More bad news for the Sailors: Junior guard Michael Brown will miss the game after getting thrown out of last week’s game against Kennedy Catholic.

So, Lakeview could have some substantial holes in its lineup tonight.

“When you’re a small school and you have to replace a starter who has been starting all year, that’s tough to do,” said York. “And they go both ways. So when you’re missing one, it’s really like missing two.”

Mercer, on the other hand, has been handling flu season pretty well.

“We actually got hit early,” said McClearn. “We haven’t had (any missing players) in big numbers since Week 4 or Week 5.”

That means the Mustangs are looking to have all of their main starters in uniform tonight. That includes leading rusher, sophomore Kyle Mariacher, who has 855 yards and 12 TDs on 125 carries, and senior Rawlins Huntley who has 453 yards and five rushing touchdowns. Senior quarterback Andrew Erdos will also be playing, having passed for 349 yards and six touchdowns while picking up 586 yards and five TDs on 86 keepers.

Each of those guys have played a key role in turning around the Mustangs’ slow start to 2009.

“We started the year 1-3 and, although I probably wouldn’t have said this then, looking back that probably was a good thing,” McClearn said. “It forced our guys to really pull together. They had two directions they could have gone — keep struggling or pull tighter as a team. And I think they’ve become a little closer as a team.”