Each Thursday throughout the regular season, The Pick List will feature six of the best match-ups across the state, and make our predictions on a handful of other games.
Feature Games of the Week:
Kapaun Mt. Carmel (5-1) at Hays (5-1)
A highly important Class 5A West game at Fort Hays’ Lewis Field Stadium. Currently, Maize is 7-0 and Wichita Northwest 5-0. Then, four teams have one loss: Kapaun Mt. Carmel, Hays High, Goddard and Hutchinson. Maize faces Hutchinson. The winner of Kapaun and Hays High is assured a top-four seed and could have multiple home playoff games.
This is also unofficially for the Western Athletic Conference title. While Hays High has officially won the league, Kapaun played this fall as an honorary WAC member. The City League, which Kapaun has long played, features seven public and two private schools – Kapaun and Bishop Carroll. The private schools elected to have a full season, while the Wichita public schools started later because of COVID-19 in well-publicized preseason events. Hays High went 4-0 in the conference, and Kapaun was 3-0. Its contest versus winless Great Bend was cancelled in Week 4 because of COVID.
Kapaun, Hays, Goddard and Hutchinson were all under .500 last season. The Crusaders have outscored opponents, 233-44, and rank eighth in 5A in scoring offense. Among 5A teams that have played at least six games, Kapaun is second in scoring defense, and Hays High (71 points permitted) is third. Hays High has tallied 166 points.
Last season, Kapaun went 2-7 and scored 96 points all season under former coach Dan Adelhardt, now at Garden Plain. Weston Schartz, in his 37th year overall after other stops in the City League, has turned around the offense. KMC’s lone defeat at a 31-28 loss at Holy War rival Bishop Carroll in Week 2.
The Crusaders have had a balanced backfield with five players with at least 34 carries. Junior Austin Ruda, senior quarterback Andrew Gimino, senior Doug Bates and senior Cale Curtis have led the offense.
Hays High has enjoyed its well-known turnaround under third-year coach Tony Crough. Last year, Hays allowed 29 points a game. The Indians have their four players with FBS offers in junior quarterback Dylan Dreiling (Tennessee baseball commit), senior defensive end Gaven Haselhorst (K-State football commit), junior linebacker Gavin Meyers (multiple FBS football offers), and Jaren Kanak (KU, K-State football).
Hays High’s defense has permitted just 232 yards per game. Kapaun has averaged 400 yards a game, and Hays High 358.
The offense has used three quarterbacks: Dreiling, junior Jordan Dale and Kanak. Dale, also a key basketball player on the 5A Final Four team last winter, has 467 rushing yards and seven rushing TDs. Dreiling has 392 rushing yards and six rushing scores, according to veteran Hays High broadcaster/WAC statistician Dustin Armbruster. Last week, Hays High delivered an inspiring effort in a 21-20 road loss to Maize South.
According to Armbruster, Hays was down a running back, quarterback, left tackle, bandit backer, had three sophomores on the offensive line and two on the defensive line, and still came within a late two-point conversion of beating Maize South. Hays High dealt with injuries and COVID issues, though battled with the Mavericks after a 41-10 playoff loss last year.
Kanak stepped in at quarterback after he had never previously played the position. He finished with 36 carries for 184 yards and two touchdowns. Kanak also completed 5 of 6 passes for 90 yards and a TD. Overall, Kanak has 313 rushing yards, 159 receiving yards and six offensive scores.
Defensively, Haselhorst has arguably been Kansas’ best defensive player with 20 tackles for loss, six sacks, two forced fumbles and 55 total stops. Meyers has 60 tackles, 10 for loss, four sacks, a pair of interceptions, and two forced fumbles. Much of Friday hinges on key Hays High players returning, but overall this should be an outstanding matchup. Both teams have lost to a high-quality 5A West team.
Hays High gets a slight edge being at home. Even with all the Indians’ star power, the difference will likely be decided on offensive drive efficiency, offensive/defensive lines and on special teams. Hays High’s offense had several drives into Maize South’s territory – and red zone – that came up empty last week. Overall, KMC has averaged 8.6 yards per point, while Hays High is at 12.9.
Our Pick: Hays 27, Kapaun 24 (Nicholl)
5A No. 5 St. Thomas Aquinas (4-2) at 5A No. 4 Bishop Carroll (4-2)
Two Class 5A contenders – one coping with a two-game losing streak and the other fresh off what is arguably their biggest win of the season – will battle this week.
St. Thomas Aquinas was handed a crushing 49-6 loss to Omaha-Westside (Neb.) this past week. Senior Tank Young rushed for 146 yards and a touchdown in the loss, but the Saints weren’t able to put much else together offensively. Aquinas sophomore quarterback Maxwell Ford was limited to 3 of 8 passing for 20 yards.
The week before, the Saints fell 39-27 to 6A’s top-ranked Lawrence Lions. In that game, Aquinas fell behind 20-0 in the first quarter but rallied to make it 20-14 at halftime.
It is the first time Aquinas has dropped consecutive games since falling to Blue Valley Southwest and Blue Valley back to back in 2016.
Prior to the losses to Omaha-Westside and Lawrence, the Saints earned strong wins over St. James Academy, 4A’s currently third-ranked Bishop Miege, Raytown (Mo.) and 6A’s currently fifth-ranked Shawnee Mission Northwest.
Young, who is the No. 4 recruit in the state according to 247 Sports, has been the Saints’ top offensive weapon with 904 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns on 152 carries. Ford has completed 17 of 36 passes for 396 yards and two touchdowns. Sophomore Austin Turner is a big-play threat with six catches for 264 yards and three touchdowns. Caden Reeves, a 6-2, 256-pound defensive lineman who has committed to play at Southern Illinois, has posted 2.5 sacks.
While Aquinas is dealing with consecutive losses, Bishop Carroll enters with some momentum after last week’s 56-35 win over Bishop Miege.
Carroll trailed 14-7 early but then took a 42-21 lead into halftime.
Hunter Trail led the Eagle offense with 191 yards and three touchdowns on 27 carries. Quarterback Aaron Niedens passes for 112 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 121 yards and two TDs.
Carroll’s two losses this season were 37-28 to Lawrence and 35-21 to Derby, which is currently ranked No. 3 in 6A.
This will be the first meeting between the Eagles and Saints since Carroll topped Aquinas 38-28 in the 2017 Class 5A state championship.
Our Pick: Carroll 34, Aquinas 30 (Schremmer)
3A No. 1 Andale (6-0) at Wichita Collegiate (7-0)
Wichita Collegiate takes on Andale in a battle of unbeatens for the 3A District 7 championship.
In order to find the last Collegiate victory over Andale, you would have to go back to 2015 when the Spartans defeated the Indians in overtime, 46-45. That victory broke a two-game losing streak for Collegiate, who lost to Andale 34-28 in ’14 and 30-28 in ’13. Collegiate beat Andale in ’12 with a 41-27 result and a 41-0 shutout in ’11. The two schools meeting in 2010 was the first between the two since 1995, which Andale won 33-21 in Collegiates first year in AVCTL Division 4 after moving from the now defunct Mid-Central Activities Association.
Had it not been for Wichita Trinity’s cancellation, Andale would most likely be tied with Canton-Galva (8M-I) for the longest current winning streak in Kansas high school football at 20 games. While both schools are undefeated, Andale sits at No. 1 in the Kpreps.com poll and Collegiate is unranked but in consideration.
Andale has outscored opponents heavily this season, with a 332-57 margin in six contests. The offense has been efficient in running the ball 2,102 yards this season. In Andale’s 66-7 victory over Hesston, Eli Rowland led the team with 189 yards and two scores, while Gabe Ungles scored two touchdowns from the ground and hauled in a receiving score as well. Cody Parthemer, Tank Keeter, Jonah Meyer, and Logan Spexarth all got in on the scoring affair for Andale.
In last week’s 40-21 win over Clearwater, Noah Meyer stepped into the backfield for Rowland and Ungles and rushed for 196 yards and four touchdowns on 30 carries. The status of Rowland and Ungles for this week is uncertain.
On the defensive side, the Andale front has forced fifteen turnovers.
Wichita Collegiate has ran a high scoring offense this season, scoring over fifty points three times and scoring over thirty points in every game. On average, the Spartans score 42 points a contest. In the Spartans 31-10 victory over Hesston, Wesley Fair controlled the offense, rushing for 213 yards and three scores, while passing for 36 and connecting with Michael Fair on a 31-yard strike for the only Spartan passing touchdown of the night.
Defensively, the Spartans have shut out two teams, and have held all their opponents to under 20 points, except Rose Hill, who scored 31 in an overtime affair. In the Spartans 55-14 victory over Wichita Trinity, Collegiate forced four turnovers and held Trinity to 163 yards of offense. Conner Jones led the team with four tackles in the game, while Kobe Turner, Cameron Brown, and Jack Durate picked off passes.
Both teams have won most of their games with wide margins this season. Andale outscored Mulvane by 63 points this season, while Wichita Collegiate outscored the Wildcats by 53 in their season opener. Both teams have played the exact same schedule, other than the Trinity cancellation on Andale, so both teams come in with a common opponent record of 6-0.
Overall, Andale has taken over and the difference in scoring margin favors Andale in all the contests except Halstead. I’m going with Andale to extend their win streak to six games over Collegiate.
Our Pick: Andale 48, Collegiate 35 (Hammeke)
1A No. 4 Conway Springs (6-1) at 1A No. 5 Sedgwick (7-0)
This Class 1A ranked-showdown will not only decide the District 4 championship, but may perhaps establish the winner as one of top two frontrunners to get to the state title game in Hays.
Conway Springs’ lone loss came in the season-opener, 14-13 to rival Garden Plain. In that loss, the Cardinals scored with less than three minutes left, but their two-point conversion attempt to take the lead was stopped by Garden Plain.
Since the season-opening loss, Conway Springs has rattled off six consecutive convincing wins while averaging nearly 56 points per game. Meanwhile, Sedgwick has rolled to an unbeaten record while averaging 47 points per contest. Sedgwick also has a forfeit victory over Wichita Independent back in Week 2.
The schedule hasn’t been difficult for either of these two. Conway Springs’ seven opponents are a combined 12-33, while Sedgwick’s six on-field opponents are a combined 9-32.
The success for Conway Springs comes on the ground. The Cardinals average 265 rushing yards per game and nearly 350 yards of total offense. Heath Hilger leads the Conway attack with 519 rushing yards and eight touchdowns. Jonathan Wright has added 504 yards and 11 touchdowns on the ground. Both have been explosive as Wright averages 14.8 yards per carry and Hilger 11 yards per attempt.
Hilger has also passed for 565 yards and ten touchdowns on just 19 total completions. Wright is also one of the primary receivers with 121 yards and four touchdowns, while Cole Schulte has a team-high 337 receiving yards and six scores.
On the other hand, Sedgwick has the ability to throw the ball with junior quarterback Lance Hoffsommer. Hoffsommer (6-2, 180) was a Kpreps All-State selection last fall as a sophomore when he passed for 2,754 yards and 37 total touchdowns. This season, Hoffsommer has completed nearly 72 percent of his passes for 1,687 yards and 19 touchdowns against only three interceptions.
Hoffsommer’s top target has been senior Henry Burns. Burns leads the team in receptions (39), receiving yards, (826), and touchdowns (12). Junior Blake Huebert is second on the team with 336 receiving yards and three scores.
Hoffsommer also leads the Sedgwick ground game with 405 yards and seven touchdowns. Junior Ryan Stucky has added 374 rushing yards and a team-high nine rushing scores.
This game will likely come down to Conway Springs’ ability to run the ball, control the clock, and keep Sedgwick’s explosive offense off the field. The Conway defense will have to limit the big-play ability of Hoffsommer and Burns. The Cardinal defense has ten interceptions on the season, but they haven’t faced a passing attack like they will against Sedgwick on Friday. Conway Springs has given up a total of 229 passing yards on 29 completions this season. Hoffsommer has surpassed that passing total in all but one game this season. He and Burns may have to make a big play to provide the difference.
Our Pick: Sedgwick 28, Conway Springs 27 (Gilmore)
1A No. 3 Smith Center (6-1) at Inman (6-1)
Smith Center heads to Inman as the Redmen look to win their fifth consecutive district title. Inman is in the midst of their best start in school history and looking to cap off this historic regular season with a district championship.
The Teutons have won six straight after falling to Hutchinson Trinity, 26-20, in the season opener. While the Teutons were outgained versus Trinity 258 to 358, they have outgained every opponent since. Overall, the Teutons have outgained opponents by a count of 2,534 to 1,209.
Jace Doerksen has had a monumental part in building the offensive numbers for the Teutons, surpassing the 1,000-yard passing mark last week versus Whitewater-Remington. Doerksen is 65 of 93 passing for 1,114 yards and 15 scores with only two interceptions. Kyler Konrade is one of his favorite targets as he pulled in four passes for 67 yards and two scores in last week’s win. Both Konrade and Harrison Brunk have held a strong running game as well.
Defensively, The Teutons have forced 12 turnovers and hold a plus eight turnover margin this season. Inman has also limited opponents’ offensive production as the season has gone on - holding Ell-Saline to 100 total yards two weeks ago and Remington to 228 last week. Konrade led the charge with six tackles in last week’s win, while Kendyn Blank grabbed two interceptions and Nate Shober grabbed a pick as well.
Smith Center has primarily kept the ball on the ground this year, rushing for 1,792 yards on the season. Jake Sasse leads the team with 581 rushing yards, while Chase Maxwell trails right behind him with 453 yards. Three other Redmen have over 100 yards on the ground. The passing attack is not as prevalent, but Smith Center have been efficient passing with seven touchdowns on eighteen completions. Griffin Kugler has caught sixteen of those eighteen passes for 284 yards and six of those touchdowns.
Defensively, Smith Center only holds a plus-three turnover margin, while forcing 13. Griffin Kugler has picked off three passes and Bentley Montgomery has picked off two, while six Redmen have forced fumbles. Nate Hendrich is the only player to force both a fumble and an interception. Jake Sasse blocked a field goal versus Ell-Saline. Montgomery leads Smith Center with 57 tackles.
When looking at the teams, both schools hold a 5-0 record against their common opponents, which are District 4 rivals Ellinwood, Sacred Heart, Ell-Saline, Plainville, and Oakley. Both teams hold a respectable loss in their season openers, with Inman falling to fellow Hutch Trinity (6-1), and Smith Center falling to defending 2A runner-up Norton.
Inman averages 43 points a contest, and Smith Center averages about 36. Both teams have given up almost the same amount, with Inman giving up 66 points and Smith Center allowing 63. This one will go down to the wire, but I’m giving Smith Center the edge.
Our Pick: Smith Center 26, Inman 23 (Hammeke)
8M-I No. 2 Leoti-Wichita Co. (7-0) at South Gray (7-0)
This is for the district title from Eight-Man, Division I, District 7. The district finished an historic 16-1 in non-conference matchups. Wichita County has been ranked No. 2 throughout the season. South Gray, a surprise behind back Aaron Skidmore, a retooled offensive line and excellent special teams, has emerged with its best start since 2011.
That year, South Gray was the state runner-up to Madison with Jeff Blattner as head coach, and Grant Salmans as the assistant. This season, the duo both returned to high school with Salmans as head coach, and Blattner the offensive coordinator. Assistant Ty Clark, formerly a Fowler standout, runs the defense and special teams. That ’11 season also marks the last top-two finish in a district for the Rebels.
Wichita County is also looking for its first district title in many seasons. Third-year coach Brant Douglas has done a masterful job turning around the Indians. Wichita County is 6-3, 10-2 and 7-0 with Douglas, though did not win a district title either of the first two years. Before he came, the Indians had four straight 1-8 records followed by 5-4 and 3-6.
In ’18, the Indians finished behind Hoxie and Saint Francis. Last year, Wichita County lost to St. Francis in district play and again in the state semifinals. The Indians tied ’90 as the furthest advancement in school history. This year, Saint Francis is in Division II, and Wichita County is the prohibitive Division I West favorite. However, that balance of power would shift with a South Gray victory. It’s possible this will be the first of two meetings between the schools this fall.
Even with the difficult strength of schedule, both teams have faced little resistance. Wichita County is the lone team to beat Hoxie in a 54-20 season-opening non-district win. Since then, every win has come by the 45-point margin. South Gray beat Meade, 30-12, and held on to defeat Hodgeman County, 22-20, last week. Wichita County beat Hodgeman County by the 45-point margin in the first half.
Versus Hodgeman, South Gray trailed 14-8 after the first quarter. All the points were tallied in the first three quarters. Overall, Skidmore has completed 17 of 34 passes for 311 yards for eight touchdowns. He has rushed 123 times for 1,151 yards and 26 scores. Brady Deges has tallied eight offensive touchdowns, along with 29.5 tackles, 4.5 sacks and an interception. He’s also averaged 38.3 yards per punt and been key with punt blocking.
Up front, senior Carter Riley has anchored at center in his second year of high school football. Seniors David Dyck, Ethan Reed, Ethan Salmans and Alejandro Lupercio have been solid.
Wichita County has its bevy of outstanding players on a depth-laden squad that platoons at many positions. Senior quarterback Kayde Rietzke has completed 71 of 104 passes for 921 yards for 19 touchdowns against three interceptions. Rietzke also leads with 71 carries for 751 yards and 14 scores.
Senior Jesse Gardner has 56 carries for 546 yards and seven TDs. Senior Sheldon Whalen has collected 31 catches for 499 yards and 13 scores. Senior Manny Chavez, a key two-player and transfer from nearby Greeley County, has stepped up with 23 carries for 296 yards and four scores. He paces the defense with seven tackles for loss.
Wichita County has been a top-3 offense and defense in Division I, while South Gray is second with just 50 points allowed. Significant credit to the South Gray coaching staff for turning things around, but Wichita County’s offensive firepower will be tough to slow down.
Our Pick: Wichita County 44, South Gray 30 (Nicholl)
The Pick List:
St. James Academy (3-3) at Blue Valley (3-1) – Blue Valley
6A No. 1 Lawrence (6-0) at Lawrence Free State (0-4) – Lawrence
Maize South (4-2) at 6A No. 3 Derby (3-2) – Derby
6A No. 5 Shawnee Mission Northwest (4-1) at 4A No. 3 Bishop Miege (2-3) – SMNW
Washburn Rural (3-4) at Topeka Seaman (6-1) – Seaman
Goddard (6-1) at Andover (4-3) – Goddard
Pittsburg (4-3) at Basehor-Linwood (4-3) – Basehor-Linwood
Louisburg (4-3) at 4A No. 1 Paola (7-0) – Paola
Scott City (5-2) at Southeast of Saline (6-0) – SE Saline
Hillsboro (5-2) at Hutchinson Trinity (6-1) – Hutch Trinity
Riverton (4-2) at St. Mary’s Colgan (4-2) – Colgan
Thomas More Prep (6-1) at Lakin (4-3) – TMP
Burlingame (5-2) at Doniphan West (3-2) – Burlingame
Cedar Vale-Dexter (4-2) at Oswego (6-1) – Oswego
Wilson (4-3) at Central Plains (4-1) – Central Plains
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