Back to Kpreps this fall, our contributors will hand out helmet stickers to a team or individual that delivered the most important performance of the week in their opinion. Check back each week to see the most recent helmet stickers, and follow @Kpreps on Twitter and Facebook to watch as the Kpreps helmet fills up with stickers as the season goes on.
Helmet sticker: Ellis (Conor Nicholl – Kpreps)
Ellis finished 4-5 last season, though was 3-2 after it lost three of its first four games. The Railroaders defeated Oakley and lost by three to TMP; those squads are a combined 9-3 this fall.
Ellis also had significant returners for 2020 with senior quarterback Tegan Cain, along with more than 95 percent of its rushing yards and 75 percent of its receptions. Konnor Pfeifer, a 1A first team all-state KPreps selection, was back after a team-high 150 tackles.
Ellis, though, has encountered several waves of difficulties. The Railers ended a four-game losing streak last week with a 60-14 district win versus Syracuse. The Bulldogs had permitted 74 total points entering the game.
In Class 2A, District 7, Ellis is 2-4, 1-2, while Syracuse dropped to 3-3, 0-3. Ellis can clinch a playoff berth this week with a home victory versus 1-5 Southwestern Heights.
Ellis’ 6-foot-1, 170-pound wide receiver Daniel Eck, a captain, had three catches for 92 yards and a score in the season-opening win versus Russell. Then, he suffered a major injury in practice and has not returned.
Tyson Jimenez, who led with 30 catches last year and paced with 20 grabs this fall, played in the first five games and is expected to be out a significant time with injury. The Railers have had other players out and dealt with coaching changes.
At the mid-August Last Chance Sharp Performance Combine in Salina, Eck and Jimenez posted impressive vertical jumps of 35 and 33.2 inches, respectively. Junior Mason Gottschalk and Jimenez ran 4.50 and 4.54 seconds in the 40-yard dash.
However, Ellis opened with a 32-8 win versus Russell before back-to-back losses to Mid-Continent League foes Norton and Phillipsburg. In Week 4, Ellis trailed Lakin 18-0 and closed to 18-12 but had an interception in the end zone. Two weeks ago, the Railers narrowly lost at home to county rival TMP, 28-21. TMP ran a pick-six back in the final seconds.
Last week, Ellis prepared to make the 189-mile one-way trip to Syracuse on Friday. A short time before the game, Ellis was further depleted by COVID-19 quarantine, notably on defense.
Still, Ellis posted the strong effort versus Syracuse. Cain completed 4 of 9 passes for 41 yards and two scores. Pfeifer ran 11 times for 100 yards. Cain rushed for three touchdowns. Gottschalk continued his big year with 12 carries for 212 yards and a pair of TDs.
Overall, Ellis ran for 314 yards, the most in the two-year Ty Cass era. From ’18-present, the only time the Railers have tallied more rushing yards was 332 in a 48-14 victory versus La Crosse on Oct. 19, 2018.
Pfeifer finished with 12 tackles, while Rex Johnson tallied 11. For his career, Pfeifer has 345 tackles, 13 for loss and seven sacks. Gottschalk has posted 61 carries for 550 yards, and Pfeifer leads with 71 stops. Senior Zach Schiel has emerged with three interceptions.
Helmet sticker: Lakin Farmer, Halstead (Matt Gilmore – Kpreps)
Lakin Farmer’s game on Friday was among the top rushing performances in state history, but it was also crucial in keeping his team’s playoff hopes alive. Farmer carried 35 times for 533 yards and six touchdowns in the Dragons’ 48-34 win over Hesston. The win was Halstead’s first in the ultra-competitive Class 3A, District 7 that includes top-ranked Andale (5-0; 2-0), unbeaten Wichita Collegiate (6-0; 3-0), and Clearwater (5-1; 2-1). The Dragons host Collegiate this week.
But make no mistake, the storyline on Friday was Farmer. The senior converted quarterback literally carried his team to victory scoring 40 of the Dragons’ 48 points.
He even faced some short-lived adversity on Friday after Hesston tied the game at 34-34. Farmer mishandled the ensuing kickoff backing his offense up at their own 5-yard line. No problem, he simply went 95 yards on the next play for the go-ahead score. He would later add an 86-yard touchdown run to put the game on ice. Halstead rushed for 671 yards in the game.
Farmer’s night was the among the top 11-man, single-game rushing performances in state history, second only to Tanner Wood of Conway Springs who incredibly rushed for 659 yards in an 84-56 win over Chaparral in 2012.
Jake Kizzar of eight-man Chase rushed for 613 yards and scored 11 touchdowns in a game in 2009. One of Kizzar’s touchdowns was a kickoff return. Trailing that is Bryan Kendall of Haviland rushing for 601 yards in a game back in 1974.
More recently, Cannon Burns of eight-man Fairfield rushed for 565 yards and 11 touchdowns in a 91-44 victory over Bucklin back in 2014. Burns’ 11 touchdowns tied the single-game mark set by Kizzar back in 2009, and was later matched by Wakefield’s Zack Melius in 2014. Garrett Myers of Waverly broke the touchdown record in 2015 when he scored 12 times in an 83-44 win over Pleasanton. Myers rushed for 420 yards and 11 scores that night and also returned an interception for a score.
Farmer’s historic night pushed his season rushing total to 1,507 yards and 16 touchdowns. Last year as a quarterback, Farmer rushed for 734 yards.
Oh, by the way, on Friday night, Farmer didn’t just help his team on offense. He also recorded 12 tackles.
Helmet sticker: South Gray (Alex Hammeke -- Kpreps)
The momentum is back in Montezuma.
South Gray overcame some early adversity to roll to a 48-12 victory over the Spearville Lancers on Friday. The victory extended the Rebels’ red-hot start to 6-0, their best since 2011.
Spearville would start the game with the ball and Trace Tasset would quickly put the Lancers on the board with a touchdown. Shortly after, Aaron Skidmore would bring South Gray even with a score. The second Spearville drive only lasted one play as Tasset broke free for a 65-yard run to put Spearville up 12-6.
South Gray’s second possession would end in a fumble, but it only took one play for the Rebels to get it back, as Kimble Martin stripped a Lancer clean and ran in from ten yards out on the defensive score. The momentum, and the lead soon after, would shift to the Rebels’ side.
Skidmore would soon find Martin in the endzone with six minutes left in the half, and would continue their success forcing the Lancers to punt again in their final two possessions of the half. Skidmore would connect to Ethan Salmans from 27 yards out with under a minute to go. South Gray had an opportunity in the final seconds, but Spearville played perfect pass defense to keep the Rebels off the board again before half.
Skidmore, battling through extreme allergies, was only able to practice Wednesday and Thursday.
“He really sucked it up tonight. He’s not feeling well, but he played really well tonight.” Rebels coach Grant Salmans commented on his quarterback.
“I just had to focus in those two days that I got the opportunity to practice.” Skidmore said about his adversity.
The second half was all Rebels.
South Gray would engineer a five-minute drive to start the third quarter, ending in a 6-yard score from Skidmore. A personal foul on Spearville would negate a nice kickoff return from Tasset and the Lancers were eventually forced to punt. Skidmore again would score on a goal-line push with seconds to go in the third quarter.
“Our line does a great job of blocking for him [Skidmore] to get open,” Salmans credited the dominant play of his offensive line.
After holding Spearville on downs, South Gray would tack on their final touchdown of the night - a 5-yard run from Skidmore to make the score 48-12.
Spearville mounted one last threat, reaching the Rebel 4-yard line with under a minute to, but a Lancer fumble on fourth down would seal the game.
South Gray improves to 6-0, and have two big contests left in the season. Next week the Rebels head to Jetmore to take on Hodgeman County for the SPIAA crown, and the following South Gray will host No. 2 Leoti-Wichita County in what could decide the district championship.
As for Salmans, who was an assistant coach on the 2011 team that went 11-1 and finished runner-up in Eight-Man, Division I that year, it feels good. Jeff Blattner, the head coach for the Rebels that year, is the offensive coordinator.
“There was already good kids there,” Salmans said. “We just kinda had to get them in the right direction. Coach Blattner has done a great job with the offense, Coach [Ty] Clark does our defense and has made some great adjustments. We had to make a lot of adjustment, because Spearville changed their blocking schemes against us and his special teams have been really solid all year.”
For Skidmore, they go back to 0-0 heading into Jetmore next Friday.
“We know Hodgeman’s a great team, they’ve been a destiny, and they’ve been a great football team for a long time,” he said. “We’re just going to have to step it up, get better next week, and do the same thing over.”
Helmet sticker: Topeka Seaman (Matt Gilmore – Kpreps)
Coach Glenn O’Neil’s Seaman Vikings have rebounded from a two-win 2019 season to be in the driver’s seat for the top seed on the eastern half of the Class 5A bracket.
Seaman sits at 5-1 with their loan loss coming 34-27 in the final minute to Class 6A’s No. 4 Junction City. The Vikings also hold a marquee win over Class 3A No. 3 Topeka Hayden – the only loss of the season for the Wildcats.
On offense, the Vikings are led by senior quarterback Reid Cowan. Cowan (6-3, 200) has completed 63 percent of his passes for 905 yards and six touchdowns. He’s also added 208 rushing yards and five more scores. Junior Casen Stallbaumer leads the team in receiving with 383 yards and three touchdowns on 26 receptions. Stallbaumer’s classmate Braden Colley has added 15 catches for 292 yards and three scores.
The Viking ground game is led by senior Nathan Zeferjahn (6-0, 215) who has rushed for 481 yards and ten scores. Zeferjahn had his biggest game in the loss to Junction City with 154 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 28 carries.
Zeferjahn also leads the Viking defense with 45 tackles including two for loss. Senior Peyton Murray is second on the team with 41 stops and a team-high six for loss.
The Vikings are currently tied with De Soto (5-1) atop the 5A-East standings, although Seaman holds the average points margin tie breaker. The Vikings remaining games include a visit to Topeka High (1-2) this week, followed by a final home game against Washburn Rural (2-4).
Helmet Stickers (2020 Season)
Week 1 – Cunningham, Goodland, Norton, Wichita Trinity
Week 2 – Bishop Ward, Burrton, Oakley, Wichita Collegiate
Week 3 – Blue Valley Northwest, Hutchinson, Lakeside-Downs, Syracuse
Week 4 – Inman, Minneapolis, Thomas More Prep
Week 5 – Lincoln, Santa Fe Trail, Southeast of Saline, West Franklin
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