Christ Prep looking for homeschool national title
Tom and Heidi Hurley have nine homeschooled children in Peculiar, Mo., situated on the border between Kansas and Missouri. Each morning, Tom drives 45 minutes to north Kansas City for his job. Then, Tom, the head football coach of Christ Prep, turns around and heads south for around 25 minutes to the team’s practice field at the Red Bridge Baptist Church in Kansas City, Mo.
The Hurley’s second-oldest son, Connor, is a senior captain and standout running back and middle linebacker. After his school day and part-time job at Discount Tire, Connor goes north and joins his dad and teammates for practice. For games, the Patriots rent a field in the Olathe district.
Like the Hurleys, Christ Prep’s players and coaches come from all over the Kansas City Metro area. Of the team’s 38 varsity players and 20 junior high, around 10 actually attend Christ Prep, a school in Lenexa, Kan. that offers classes three days a week. The other players are homeschooled.
“It’s a labor of love, and it’s something we really enjoy doing, but it is a grind,” Hurley, the head coach since 2011, said.
Some players drive 45 to 50 minutes to practice, including from north of Liberty, Blue Springs and south of Harrisonville – all towns on the Missouri side. Normally, the Hurleys get home between 9 and 9:30 p.m. None of the nine coaches are paid. The majority of coaches have at least five years with the program and several are past Christ Prep players.
“The ministry we have to these young boys, trying to train and equip them for leadership and for moving on in life, and that’s really the reason we do it,” Hurley said.
Christ Prep’s unique situation has led to the No. 1 ranking in the National Homeschool Football Association. The Patriots, which finished second in the national homeschool tournament in ’14 and third last fall, are off to a 6-1 start this season behind an experienced group that returned 10 defensive starters.
“Our goal all year long has been to win the Homeschool national championship,” Hurley said.
The tournament, held in Florida each November, features squads from all across the country. Christ Prep tries to find multiple talented Kansas teams to prep for the national tournament.
Last season, the Patriots lost 12-6 at Jefferson County North, an eventual 10-1 squad, and beat McLouth, Medicine Lodge and Inman. This year, Christ Prep has faced four KSHSAA squads, all on the road, and defeated Wabaunsee (41-0), lost to Olpe (13-8), beat Troy (20-19) and Jefferson County North (28-6).
Olpe is ranked second in Class 1A, while Troy and Jeff Co. North are consistent strong programs. In two weeks, Christ Prep plays host to Class 4A Coffeyville-Field Kindley, a game Hurley and the team is excited about because of the rare nature of playing a much larger school.
Christ Prep has permitted just 9.1 points per game. Defensive coordinator Jay Geeding has served in various roles on the team since ’01.
“His grasp of football is just tremendous, and he has grown every single year and just put our players in the best possible position,” Hurley said.
Christ Prep has built toward this season since ’15, when the much of current group of eight seniors had significant time as freshmen. The offensive line, which Hurley called the team’s strength, has an average weight of 260 pounds. The group has just one senior, left guard Ewen Cornstubble, a team captain, but has plenty of past experience. They’ve helped the Patriots rush for 261 yards a game.
Junior Tanner Bigg stands 6-foot-4, 290, while junior Geoffrey Wiles is 5-9, 265. Junior Adam Wilkins is 6-2, 260, and Cornstubble is 5-9, 240. Sophomore Josiah Lucas, a move-in from Calvary (Fla.) Christian, is 6-foot, 225.
Wiles is the starting center, Bigg at right guard and Wilkins at left tackle. Lucas starts at right tackle. Bigg and Wilkins start at defensive tackle, too, for a unit that generally has four linebackers.
“Really difficult for teams to push us around,” Hurley said.
Connor Hurley and senior Grant Stamatis, the team’s heart and soul, have been close friends and played together since junior high. Hurley leads the team with 69 carries for 453 yards and is tied for third with three rushing scores. Stamatis is second with 58 carries, 357 yards and four rushing TDs, part of an offense that has eight players with at least 100 rushing yards.
Defensively, Hurley paces the squad with 53 tackles, 12 for loss, and has earned interest from NCAA Division III schools, including a pair of Division IIs and NAIA. In his career, Hurley, a four-year starter, has 270 stops, 33 for loss.
Coach Hurley said his son has slimmed down 10 pounds to 210, is “much more muscular, stronger and quicker,” and is able to “get to the spot quicker than the offense.” Stamatis has already broken the school record with 246 punt return yards.
“He has a unique ability to make guys miss, and he has no fear catching the ball in traffic, and it is so rare for him to get tackled for less than a 10 or 15-yard gain,” coach Hurley said.
The special teams, led by senior kicker/punter Grant Gilkeson, has played well especially in the Troy win. Gilkeson is 6 of 6 on extra points and averaged 33 yards on 16 punts, including two inside the 20 against Troy.
“Flip the field on them several times,” Hurley said.
Last season, Christ Prep was unsure who would play quarterback and first put Stamatis at the position. The Patriots learned Stamatis was better suited for running back/slot. Junior Noah Blair took over. Last season, Blair completed 42 of 94 passes for 660 yards with a 7/10 TD/INT ratio. This year, he has improved to 28 of 60 for 417 yards with a 7/2 TD/INT ratio and leads the team with five rushing scores.
Blair picked off six passes as a freshman and sophomore. This year, he has no picks as teams rarely thrown in his direction. Christ Prep has no qualms about leaving the 6-2, 160-pound Blair on an island against the other team’s top receiver.
“Our version of a shutdown corner,” Hurley said.
Against Troy, he completed a 45-yard pass to Stamatis on 3rd-and-27 to set up a touchdown and later threw a 12-yard score to Stamatis. At the end of the contest, Blair blocked a 36-yard field goal to preserve the win.
Wichita Homeschool posting undefeated season
In Week 4, Wichita Homeschool trailed St. Marys Academy by 20 points in the first half on the road in an eight-man Kansas Christian Athletic Association contest. St. Marys had posted back-to-back perfect seasons, including wins versus the Warriors in the regular season and playoffs both years.
Homeschool fought back, and on their penultimate drive, ran the same veer play seven times in a row for eventual score. Then, the Warriors, trailing by six points, got the ball back at their own 15-yard line with 34 seconds left.
Nineteen seconds later, junior quarterback Will Day, in his first season as the starter, tossed the final of his six touchdown passes when he found junior Luke Johnson for a great catch in the end zone.
The Warriors won the game on a successful two-point conversion on a run up the middle for a 62-60 victory. The final drive and touchdown encapsulated the Warriors’ success and 6-0 start this season.
“They said, they were tired of getting beat by St. Marys,” coach Bill Turner said.
Turner, the brother of highly successful Scott City coach Jim Turner, has coached Homeschool since the football program started in 2012. Kenny Collins and his family first started the Warriors more than 25 years ago, primarily for basketball, and now the program has multiple sports, including baseball, volleyball, soccer and golf.
That year, the Warriors went 0-7 with a season-opening 56-6 loss to Oklahoma power Destiny Christian. Destiny led Homeschool by the 45-point margin at halftime.
By rule, the game normally ends, but Destiny’s coach, knowing the Warriors were a new team, told Turner he would play his JV in the second half and allow the game to continue to get the Warriors more reps. Turner always remembered the coach’s kindness.
Homeschool went 2-6 in ’13 before the turnaround. Since then, the Warriors are 7-3, 10-0, 8-3 and 8-2. Last season, Homeschool defeated Pleasanton, an eventual Eight-Man, Division II playoff squad.
“Kids just got tired of losing,” Turner said. “They played basketball for the Warriors and always been really good there in different sports they played, and they worked at it.”
Turner called this year’s team his best squad because of the passing game. Day has completed 76 of 132 passes for 1,185 yards with 18 scores against four interceptions.
“We are more evenly balanced as far as passing and running,” Turner said. “We got a better passing team this year than we did then (in the 10-0 year). They ran the ball pretty well, though, to be honest with you, but I think that year also, our league was down a little bit.”
Homeschool had tried to schedule Destiny Christian again but couldn’t do so until the season opener this year. The Warriors won 68-34 on the road and have averaged 56 points per game this season. The Warriors play host to rival Wichita Sunrise Christian Academy this week.
“It was a good test for us to see where we really were at,” Turner said of Week 1. “They’ve got a great program down there and had for years.”
Homeschool is a significantly non-senior heavy team that has dealt with multiple injuries to key players. Just two healthy seniors play. Senior Grant Mellinger, an excellent receiver, had 25 catches for 327 yards in four games before he went out with a collarbone. Junior Cam Day, Will’s twin, has stepped up, along with senior Marshal Masterson.
Last year’s starting quarterback, Masterson moved positions. In Turner’s eyes, Masterson was the better runner and more accurate thrower, while Day had the stronger arm. Day has improved his accuracy with offseason work and tutelage from Warrior quarterbacks coach Trey Hall. Masterson has missed some time with an ankle injury, though has 41 offensive touches for 504 yards and 10 scores.
“These boys aren’t quitters, and they don’t like to lose,” Turner said. “They just work their butts off day in and day out.”
Like Christ Prep, the Warriors have players from a sprawling area, including Pratt, Medicine Lodge, and a junior high player from Yates Center. Kurt Day is an assistant coach and father to the twins. They live in El Dorado. Assistant Brandon Redic is Turner’s pastor at The Bridge Church. Neither Hall nor Redic has a boy on the team.
Ty Masterson, Marshal’s father, has served on staff with Turner ever year except the first season. Dante Duncan, a former player, is an assistant. Both coaches Masterson and Day said they would continue to coach after their boys graduate. The team practices at the Church of the Cross near Friends University and has games on a turf field at the Boys and Girls Club.
“We’ve got guys here that are in it not just for their kids,” Turner said. “They are in it for the love of the boys and just love the game and love the whole aspect of raising up young men not just for football, but for life.”
Johnson, a standout since his freshman year and the starting middle linebacker, leads the team with 54 carries for 489 yards and 10 scores and is by far the leading tackler with 58 stops.
Turner has multiple adjectives for Johnson, including “a beast,” “just tougher than nails, “jumps like a deer.” In his high school career, the 6-2, 190-pounder has 2,327 rushing yards, 51 offensive scores, 323 tackles, eight fumble recoveries and five interceptions.
While Will Day and Johnson were expected to play well, multiple other players have stepped up.
Junior Josh Martin starts at center, while sophomore Levi Huff and junior Brandon Eck, from Pratt, are at guard. Cam Day and junior Jonah Wolters start at wide receiver and both have played on the defensive line, along with freshman Kaiden Schmidt.
Martin has taken over leading the line, while Wolters has emerged as a leader. Sophomore Kiason Snowbarger has played well at linebacker with 22 stops.
“I’ve been pleased and surprised with some of our younger guys stepping up during injuries,” Turner said.
Ashland adjusting well to 6-Man football
Bill Fox played on the 1976 Ashland state football team. The Bluejays captured another championship in ’80. Bill and his wife, Debby, had two sons, Ben and Giles, and a younger daughter, Lezah.
From ’09-11, the Fox boys played with multiple teammates whose fathers had been on the state title teams. Ashland went 9-1, 10-1 and 11-1 in those years, including a semifinal berth ’10, the school’s best finish in 25 years.
Ben, who graduated in 2011, finished his career with 3,015 total yards, 42 offensive scores and 189 tackles. Giles, one of eight-man’s premier defensive players in the last decade, recorded 369 career tackles with 16 sacks and 10 interceptions and graduated a year later.
In ’12, Giles helped Ashland win the Class 1A, Division II basketball title and averaged 7.5 points and five rebounds a game.
“We had a couple tiffs,” Ben said. “I know our basketball coach kind of told us after we were done and graduated they never wanted us to get together on a box out drill in basketball, because it always would get pretty rough. So other than that, I mean best friends. We have always been real close.”
Both brothers spent time at Dodge City Community College, and then Ben went on to Kansas State and majored in kinesiology. Ben was uncertain of his career path and received a call from the former Ashland superintendent inquiring about him coming back home.
Ben did, completed the Transition to Teach program through Fort Hays State, and became an assistant for then-head football coach Jesse Stebens. Additionally, Ben was able to coach his sister in basketball.
Giles, also an all-state baseball player, had a solid career as a relief pitcher at Fort Hays. A physics major, he earned the Torch Award in 2017 for FHSU’s “outstanding graduating senior.” Giles was unsure about his future, but saw how his brother enjoyed teaching and coaching at their alma mater and returned home.
Now, the Foxes, in their second year working together as football coaches, have led Ashland to a 5-0 start in the Bluejays’ first year of six-man football.
Ashland is the only undefeated squad of six-man’s 11 teams and defeated defending state champion Pawnee Heights, 67-21, in Week 4 and beat Moscow, 46-43, the following week.
Because of two divisions and unbalanced scheduling, six-man has little separation. Golden Plains, Pawnee Heights and Bird City-Cheylin have just one loss. Weskan has beaten Golden Plains and lost to Pawnee Heights by two points.
Ben is head football coach and runs the offense, and Giles focuses on the defense.
Ben coaches girls’ basketball, Giles is junior high boys’ basketball coach, and the two coach track together. Their teaching rooms are across the hall.
“Competitive when we were competing, but now we get to compete together, so we are enjoying that a lot,” Ben said.
After 2011, Ashland delivered a total 18-36 record with massive swings in wins from one season to the next. Last fall, the Bluejays lost eight straight to open the year and won the finale for a 1-8 season. Ashland had just nine healthy players.
Ben said Ashland “saw the writing on the wall,” and after a conversation with athletic director Lee Odell, the Bluejays decided to play six-man for the next two seasons. The choice has upped the numbers and allowed Ashland to enjoy its best start since the Foxes’ playing days.
“Had our chance at getting to some state championship games, and things didn’t fall into place,” Ben said. “That might a little bit of motivation for us.”
The brothers received support from league foe Pawnee Heights, watched YouTube state title games of Texas six-man teams and studied Wyoming/Colorado six-man squads. They traveled to the six/eight-man summer camp at Clifton-Clyde, which provided a chance to talk with Golden Plains and two Nebraska schools. Golden Plains is 17-7 since moving to six-man.
Ashland has focused on running the ball and attacking the entire field. The Bluejays have 13 healthy players and has used just two to three formations.
“Try to get really good at what we do,” Ben said.
Ashland has averaged 201 rushing yards a game. Senior Cody Lohrding played his first two years at Coldwater-South Central. He suffered a concussion injury his sophomore season that affected his eye sight. After he went to Ashland, he couldn’t play as a junior because of transfer rules, and it allowed him time to heal.
Now healthy, he has completed 22 of 33 passes for 376 yards with a 9/1 TD/INT ratio. Known for his athleticism, he ranks second with 190 rushing yards and five rushing TDs. He has helped Ashland post a remarkable plus-18 turnover margin with four interceptions and a pair of fumble recoveries. He also leads the team with 41 tackles.
Sophomore Gage Branson, nicknamed “Beast,” has 61 carries for 493 yards and eight scores and has proven challenging to bring down. Junior Cade Brown had nine catches for 173 yards and four scores.
Junior Gus Krier suffered a knee injury last fall but worked in the weight room and has been an effective blocker and big play threat.
“He’s a strong cowboy, and he blocks hard,” Fox said.
Juniors Hayden McPhail and Greysen Gardiner have played at center. Senior Tate McPherson, whom Ben likened to the Tasmanian Devil for his quickness and strength, starts at nose guard. Konnor Maule, the only other senior, has helped on the line.
Ashland has started slowly versus Pawnee Heights, Moscow and Ashland. Against Pawnee Heights, the Bluejays trailed 13-0 early before they ended the game on a 67-8 run.
“We just wore Pawnee Heights down a little bit,” Fox said.
Ashland limited the Tigers’ standout senior running back Kade Scott to 18 carries for 137 yards and a pair of TDs. It marked Scott’s lowest career output in a game where he had at least five carries. Ashland gang tackled effectively.
“Kind of a kickoff mentality that we are a big net,” Fox said.
A Few Key Games
Week 7 has a high number of contests featuring a non-ranked team that is enjoying a surprising start facing an opponent that’s either ranked or just outside the rankings. In many cases, the underdog has not defeated the favorite for many years – sometimes ever. If any of the underdogs win, it would significantly shake up the classifications.
Class 3A: Hesston (4-2) at Chapman (5-1)
Smoky Valley leads highly competitive District 5 with a 3-0 mark and wins over both teams. Chapman, Halstead and Hesston are all 2-1 in district play. The Fighting Irish took a close loss to Smoky Valley last week, while Hesston fell 28-0 at Smoky Valley in Week 4, the first game back for its all-state duo of quarterback Cameron Cox and running back Parker Roth.
Both players had missed time with injury but have led Hesston to wins against Halstead (38-22) and Rock Creek (54-30). Chapman, already with its first winning season since 2007, counters with 307 rushing yards a game behind quarterback Izek Jackson and fullback Dalton Harvey. Both teams have very experienced offensive lines. This is the first matchup since 2011, and Hesston is 4-0 all-time in the series, according to Kansas Football History.
Class 2A: Osage City (6-0) at Silver Lake (6-0)
This will decide the top two teams in District 2. Silver Lake is ranked second in the classification and has 280 points, tied for second-most in 2A, behind quarterback Mason Griffin and running back Christian Stoner.
Osage City, a nine-win team a year ago, has surprisingly stayed undefeated after all-state quarterback Tucker Kimball graduated. Trenton Plinsky has taken over in the backfield and passed for 744 yards, rushed for 503 and accounted for 24 total scores. The Indians have not beaten Silver Lake since 1993.
Class 1A: Pleasanton (6-0) at St. Mary’s Colgan (4-2)
This game will decide the District 1 champion and affect the pecking order in a deep Class 1A east. Pleasanton has matched last year’s win total from a 6-4 season and is a victory away for its most victories since 2008.
The Blu-Jays bumped up two classes from Eight-Man, Division II and join Olpe and Elkhart as 1A’s only undefeated squads. Colgan was ranked as high as No. 1 earlier this year but fell out of the top-5 after a pair of close losses. Colgan has a total scoring margin of 191-71, while Pleasanton, the Three Rivers League champion, is at 196-74.
The Panthers have played the No. 18 strength of schedule in the 31-team 1A, while Pleasanton is at No. 29, according to Prep Power Index.
For Pleasanton, quarterback Kaden McKee has 1,213 passing yards and 12 scores, along with 308 rushing and eight TDs. Kasen McKee has 45 catches for 717 yards and nine TDs.
For the Panthers, Cade Simmons has 609 rushing yards, and Cal Marquardt has picked off three passes. This is the first matchup since ’09. Colgan is 10-0 all-time versus the Blu-Jays.
8-Man I: Solomon (6-0) at Canton-Galva (5-1)
This will decide the top-two teams in District 4.
Solomon, led by its explosive offense that has produced 344 points, was ranked all year until last week. The Gorillas have surpassed last year’s win total from a 5-4 season and have played the second-easiest strength of schedule in Division I. Logan Krause leads with 757 rushing yards. Canton-Galva has quietly been a surprise with a 296-134 total margin, including a nice win versus Division II Centre-Lost Springs (4-2). Dual threat quarterback Landon Everett has stepped up 848 passing and 925 rushing yards, second-best in eight-man football.
Canton-Galva had just seven total wins in the last three years. The Eagles, off to their best start since ’06, can emerge as a contender in a wide-open east with a victory. That is also the last year the Eagles beat Solomon, which has won nine straight in the series.
8-Man I: Spearville (5-1) at Hodgeman County (6-0)
Unlike the other matchups, Spearville, the underdog, actually has the winning streak in this series. The eight-man powers and big rivals again match up with significant ramifications, this time for a top-five ranking in Division I and the District 6 championship.
Hodgeman County is ranked second in the classification with quality wins versus Medicine Lodge and No. 5 South Central, while the Lancers’ only loss comes to South Central. Spearville, led by quarterback Kolby Stein, has played well in the first year of coach Travis Callaway.
Hodgeman County has received great seasons from the Salmans brothers – sophomore Isaac (743 pass, 505 rushing, 21 TDs accounted for) and junior Eli (889 rush, 11 rush TDs). Eli leads with 54 tackles.
Sophomore Conner Ruff has played well with 48 stops, three tackles for loss and a pair of fumble recoveries. Spearville has won four straight in the series, all by at least 22 points.
8-Man II: Osborne (5-1) at Northern Valley (5-1)
The contest will likely decide the District 5 champion with Osborne at 3-0 and ranked third in the classification. Northern Valley 2-1 in district, has lost to Thunder Ridge, whom the Bulldogs play next week. Because of Osborne’s longtime 11-man history, this is the first all-time meeting between the squads.
Northern Valley is off to its best start since ’12 and is 10-1 in its last 11 regular season contests. Osborne is tied for second in scoring with 342 points and has allowed 170 against the No. 14 SOS. The Huskies have a total margin of 252-114 against the fourth-weakest SOS in the 52-team classification.
This could be a very high-scoring game with star skill power on both sides. Osborne has Darnell and Darrien Holloway and Kade Miller, while Northern Valley counters with Nick Stutsman and Caden Bach.
8-Man II: Axtell (5-1) at Frankfort (6-0)
This marks the second straight week of huge Twin Valley League matchups. Along with No. 1 Hanover, this is a three-team race that will decide District 3 and likely the pecking order in the east for Division II. Axtell had its first 5-0 start since ’01, and then led Hanover in the second half before a 50-42 loss. The close defeat bumped Axtell to No. 2 in the state rankings. The Eagles have their outstanding quarterback/receiver combination of Quinn Buessing and Hunter Koch. This is the first matchup since ’15, and Axtell has won four straight. Frankfort has already recorded its most victories since ’11 behind 208 rushing yards a game.
Juniors Garret Dalinghaus and Branden Bussmann have a combined 14 rushing scores and are the team’s top-two rushers and tacklers. Senior Carson Schreiner has 12 total TDs, including four punt return scores.
Gardner-Edgerton locks down No. 1 seed
With Gardner-Edgerton’s 49-27 win over Shawnee Mission Northwest on Thursday night, the Blazers have clinched the top seed on the east side of Class 6A. Even with a loss next week, Gardner-Edgerton (7-0) can only be equaled by Shawnee Mission East (5-1) – a team the Blazers beat 28-23 to open the season. It’s an incredible feat for first-year coach Ryan Cornelsen considering Gardner-Edgerton began the season on a 10-game losing streak.
Bracket qualifiers are set for 8M-II, District 3
While our analysis isn’t entirely complete, we can conclude that District 3 of Eight-Man, Division II is the only district state-wide where the four bracket qualifiers have been determined entering Friday’s action. Four Twin Valley League Teams, Frankfort, Hanover, Axtell, and Doniphan West will reach the playoffs from this district. Frankfort and Hanover both are unbeaten in district play at 4-0, while Axtell is 3-1 and Doniphan West 2-2. Blue Valley Randolph (2-3) has two wins on the field, but the Rams’ voluntary forfeit of their September 21st district game against Hanover eliminates them from contention for one of the bracket playoff spots.
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