Class 3A
3A EAST
D4-#1 Holton (9-1) at D3-#3 Perry-Lecompton (10-1) – Perry-Lecompton
Holton will travel to Perry-Lecompton with a trip to the Class 3A state championship game in Hutchinson on the line.
The Wildcats and Kaws met up in Week 3 this season at Holton, with Perry-Lecompton claiming a 28-14 victory. It was in that game that Perry-Lecompton senior quarterback William Welch went down with a season-ending knee injury. After Welch’s injury early in the third quarter, the Kaws got touchdowns from Thad Metcalfe and Reichen Rush to claim the 28-14 win.
Since that time, Metcalfe has transitioned to the quarterback position and has produced 2,000 yards of total offense. Metcalfe has completed 62 percent of his passes for 1,065 yards and ten touchdowns, while rushing for 1,096 yards and 22 scores. Rush has stepped up as the primary back and rushed for 918 yards and 11 scores.
Holton has won seven straight games since the loss to Perry-Lecompton. Canon Karn leads the Wildcat rushing attack with 1,293 yards and 19 touchdowns. Addison Hundley and Konnor Tannahill have added an additional 702 and 553 yards, respectively. The two have combined for 17 rushing touchdowns.
The Wildcats average 372 yards per game on the ground. Holton has only attempted 24 passes on the season, but used a 66-yard completion from Kale Purcell to Karn to set up their first score early in last week’s 42-6 win over Frontenac. Karn rushed 24 times for 249 yards and three scores in last week’s win over the Raiders.
In that first meeting between the Kaws and Wildcats, Metcalfe rushed for 110 yards and two scores and Rush added 81 yards and a touchdown. Karn led Holton with 157 yards and two scores as the Wildcats rushed for 302 yards on 50 attempts.
Both teams are physical up front and are stingy on defense. Holton allows 14.1 points per game, while Perry-Lecompton only allows 9.5 points per contest. This game likely will come down to turnovers and field position. Both teams committed three turnovers in the first meeting, but Holton fumbled six times.
Last year, Holton won the regular season meeting 14-7 before Perry-Lecompton reversed the decision in the second round of the playoffs with a 35-21 win. The Wildcats are good enough to reverse the roles this year, but Perry-Lecompton’s balance on offense makes them the slight favorite.
3A WEST
D7-#2 Wichita Collegiate (10-1) at D7-#1 Andale (10-0) – Andale
Andale is ranked No. 1 in 3A, Collegiate is up to third in the poll.
Andale has the state’s longest current winning streak at 23 straight victories and is the defending Class 3A champion. The Indians won 43-14 at Wichita Collegiate in the district finale. That marks Collegiate’s only loss this season.
Andale has dominated opponents and leads 3A in scoring offense and defense. Collegiate has enjoyed a great season with a total margin of 422-162. The Spartans have a four-win improvement from last year.
Last week, quarterback Wesley Fair had a late fourth-quarter touchdown to beat Southeast of Saline, 27-22. Southeast of Saline was undefeated with the No. 1 scoring defense in 3A entering the contest. Fair, in his first season as the starting quarterback, completed 11 of 12 passes for 124 yards. He rushed 34 times for 126 yards and two scores. Overall, Fair has passed for 919 yards and rushed for 1,640.
Drew Charbonneau continued his big year with double-digit tackles, four for loss. Collegiate ran an impressive 71 plays for 333 yards.
In the first Andale game, the Indians led 6-0 after the first quarter and led 22-6 at halftime. The Indians controlled the game with 73 plays for 348 yards. Collegiate had 44 plays for 199 yards. Andale also finished 11 of 15 on third down, while the Spartans were 2 of 7. Fair rushed 24 times for 113 yards and a TD. However, he completed 2 of 6 passes for 35 yards with zero scores against two interceptions. One of Collegiate’s touchdowns came off a kickoff return.
Collegiate has enjoyed great seasons from Fair and its deep line led by senior twins Nick and Jack Herrman. Charbonneau has played multiple offensive positions.
Andale has plenty of depth with senior lineman Cayden Winter and senior back Eli Rowland. Andale is 46-2 with fourth-year coach Dylan Schmidt. Last week, Andale defeated Riley County, 42-0. Rowland rushed for 215 yards and two TDs. Noah Meyer rushed for 171 yards and two scores.
Collegiate has put together an impressive year, but the Indians are very deep and is the favorite.
Class 2A
2A EAST
D3-#1 Rossville (11-0) at D4-#1 Nemaha Central (8-2) – Rossville
Top-ranked Rossville will go on the road and try to take down defending-champion and No. 3 Nemaha Central.
Last season, Nemaha Central defeated Rossville 29-21 in overtime in the second round of the Class 2A playoffs. The Thunder forced four turnovers in the game and held the Bulldawgs out of the end zone on four downs in overtime. Nemaha Central went on to defeat Humboldt and Riley County before a 19-0 shutout of Norton in the 2A state title game.
This year’s Thunder team has won seven consecutive games since a 29-22 loss to Sabetha in Week 3. Nemaha Central also dropped a 15-13 decision to 3A semifinalist Holton on a last-second field goal in the season-opener.
Nemaha Central has delivered close wins over Silver Lake (40-30) and Osage City (7-0) in consecutive weeks. Nemaha Central overcame five turnovers in last week’s quarterfinal win at Osage City. The Thunder scored the only points of the game on a 3-yard touchdown run by quarterback Zac Kramer in the first quarter. The Thunder defense held Osage City to 151 yards of total offense, forced three turnovers, and stopped the Indians on downs by batting down a 4th-down pass inside the 5-yard line.
Kramer leads the Thunder offense that averages nearly 34 points per game. He’s joined in the backfield by Gage Palic and has an athletic receiving group that includes Tyler Gerety. Kramer and Gerety connected six times for 87 yards last week. Kramer did most of his damage on the ground two weeks ago when he rushed for 187 yards and five scores in the win over Silver Lake.
On the other side, Rossville has rolled to an 11-0 season behind a dynamic offense that averages 56 points per game. Last week the Bulldawgs put up a dominating first half in a 56-7 win over St. Mary’s Colgan.
Junior quarterback Torrey Horak leads the way for Rossville. Horak has rushed for 1,339 yards and 27 touchdowns and passed for 1,134 more yards and 21 scores. Woodrow Rezac is second on the team in rushing with 832 yards and 11 scores, while junior Corey Catron has added 635 yards and 12 touchdowns.
The Rossville defense has been equally impressive in forcing 20 turnovers holding opponents to an average of 13.6 points per game. Kaiden Brown and Catron are the team’s leading tacklers while Mshewe Hale has been disruptive on the defensive line.
Nemaha Central gets the advantage of playing at home, but the Thunder will have to play a cleaner game than they did last week. It’s unlikely Nemaha Central can overcome another five-turnover game and keep pace with Rossville’s high-scoring offense. The Thunder have the capability to slow the Bulldawgs down, but Rossville will make enough plays in the end to advance.
2A WEST
D8-#1 Hoisington (11-0) at D8-#4 Beloit (5-6) – Hoisington
Hoisington is ranked second in 2A, and Beloit remains outside of the top-5.
For the second straight season, Hoisington has a rematch against the team it played in the district finale. Last season, the Cardinals beat Norton, 38-7, in Week 8. Then, Hoisington fell, 10-8, to Norton in one of the 2019’s more memorable games. The contest was played with snow on the sidelines in very cold temperatures. Norton kicked a last-second field goal and went to its first state game in 30 years.
That is Hoisington’s only loss in the last two seasons. The Cardinals are 22-1 in that stretch.
This year, Hoisington beat Beloit, 26-20, in the Class 2A district finale. At that point, a young Beloit squad finished the regular season with two wins. Beloit’s entire offensive line has zero seniors, along with junior quarterback Owen Eilert and sophomore running back Benson Berndt. Beloit qualified fourth out of District 8. Hoisington won District 8.
Since then, Beloit won at TMP, 55-14, and then had a COVID-19 forfeit win versus Phillipsburg. Last week, the Trojans had a remarkable 32-26 double-overtime road victory versus Haven.
Hoisington beat Ellis, 47-0, and then had a forfeit victory versus Cimarron. The Cardinals controlled Garden Plain, 28-14, in the state quarterfinals. Beloit plays host to Hoisington in what is anticipated to be a much warmer game than last fall.
Hoisington lists 12 seniors on its roster, including quarterback Mason Haxton, running back/lineman Josh Ball and running backs Holt Hanzlick, Hunter Morris and Cade Mason.
Hoisington is 70-12 under coach Zach Baird, a Cardinal alum. Baird has led the best stretch in school history. Hoisington reached the quarterfinals in ’15 and semifinals in ’16, ’18 and ’19. The Cardinals have never made a state final – and had never made the semifinals before ’16.
Hanzlick, who missed all of last season with injury, has enjoyed a huge season. He has 120 carries for 959 yards and 14 touchdowns. Ball has 632 yards and 10 scores, though has recently moved to line because of recent injuries. Hanzlick paces the squad with 66 tackles, 10 for loss.
Hoisington has won seven games by 21 points or fewer but has consistently controlled contests. Hoisington has outscored teams, 104-14, in the first quarter. Only Phillipsburg in Week 4 has scored in the first quarter. Hoisington has scored on its first drive of the third quarter in nine of 10 games, according to Cardinal broadcaster Cole Reif. Morris is questionable for the game. Baird called Morris probably the best cornerback he’s had in the last seven years.
Beloit became the first No. 4 district seed to reach a state semifinal since KSHSAA re-configured the district playoff format three years ago. Beloit changed to a power run offense after Week 2. The Trojans, who list just seven seniors on the roster, has clearly been a much different team in the last month. Berndt has 201 carries for 1,161 yards and eight scores. Senior Anthony Henke has 109 carries for 600 yards and 11 TDs. Eilert has completed 36 of 75 passes for 614 yards with eight scores and four interceptions.
Hoisington is more experienced and an extremely disciplined team. The Cardinals are the favorite to reach its first-ever state title, but like last season with Norton, Beloit is very capable of pulling the upset.
Class 1A
1A EAST
D1-#2 Lyndon (9-2) at D1-#1 Olpe (10-0) – Olpe
Lyndon will visit Olpe in a rematch of one of the better games in Class 1A this season. Olpe is trying to get back to the state title game for the fifth time in school history. The Eagles only state title came in 2014 and last reached the title game in 2018. Lyndon is in the semifinal round for the third time in school history. The Tigers have never played in a state football championship game.
Olpe won that first meeting 13-7 in a defensive struggle. Lyndon scored first on a 34-yard touchdown pass from Darian Massey to Toby Miller. Meanwhile, Olpe overcame three early turnovers before taking the 13-7 lead in the second quarter. Eagle quarterback Damon Redeker rushed for a touchdown and returned an interceptions 35 yards for a second score to put Olpe on top.
The Olpe defense was stout throughout the game in holding Lyndon to 166 total yards including 88 yards rushing on 35 attempts. That Eagle defense has been great all season in allowing only 23 total points in nine contests and having posted six shutouts.
The Olpe offense is led by Redeker at quarterback. He’s joined in the backfield by a balanced group of backs including multi-year starter Kynden Robert and Chris Olsson. Meanwhile, Jordan Barnard gives Redeker a physical receiving target that can also make big plays.
The Olpe line might be a bit undersized, but has been solid all season led by senior Max Blaufuss.
Lyndon enters this contest playing arguably their best ball of the season. The Tigers’ only other loss came to Centralia (48-17) during the regular season. Lyndon avenged that loss to Centralia by eliminating the defending-champion Panthers, 26-14, last week.
Luke Detwiler is the primary playmaker for the Lyndon offense having rushed for 1,032 yards and 17 touchdowns and added 257 receiving yards and three more scores. Ethan Eddington is the primary receiving target for Massey with 402 yards and four scores. Miller and Trey Bazil also each have four touchdown catches and Evan Feuerborn has three.
Massey has completed only 47 percent of his passes but has thrown for 1,147 yards and 18 touchdowns.
Dustin Tobler leads the Tiger defense with a team-high 120 stops, while Bazil and Miles Kitselman have added 92 and 91 tackles, respectively.
This figures to be another defensive battle with the team that avoids turning the ball over having the upper hand. Lyndon is playing its best ball of the season right now, but Olpe may be the slight favorite given they’re playing at home and have had an extra week to rest and prepare for this rematch.
1A WEST
D3-#2 Inman (9-2) at D3-#3 Oakley (9-2) – Inman
This is a rematch of a Week 4 game that Inman won, 39-13, at Oakley. Inman steadily pulled ahead in the contest and led 6-0 after the first quarter, 19-7 at halftime and 26-7 after three quarters. Overall, Inman was outgained the Plainsmen by 15 total yards, and Tanner Heckel ran a kickoff back 70 yards for the score.
Both teams came out of District 3. No. 2-ranked Inman has allowed 9.7 points per game, and No. 4 Oakley has permitted 13.4.
While a lot of the classes, specifically 3A/4A/5A, have usual suspects in the state semifinals, Class 1A had multiple upsets last week. A class generally not known for depth, No. 2 and defending state champion Centralia, No. 3 Smith Center and No. 4 Conway Springs all lost.
Centralia fell to Lyndon, Oakley won at Mid-Continent League rival Smith Center, and No. 5 Inman beat Conway Springs. Neither Lyndon, Oakley nor Inman have ever made a state final. Oakley was 0-13 all-time against Smith Center since ’03 before the 20-0 victory at Hubbard Stadium.
Oakley has long enjoyed quality teams under former coach Randall Rath and made a pair of state semifinals in ’05 and ’09, though fell to Smith Center both times. Oakley had reached the quarterfinals six occasions from ’04-15. Inman went to quarterfinals last year, its best finish in 25 years. This season, Inman matches the ’91 squad that went to the eight-man semifinals.
Oakley coach Jeff Hennick has orchestrated a massive turnaround. The Plainsmen had won eight games the previous four years. This year marks the most victories since an 11-1 fall in ’09. Inman has also enjoyed a big turnaround under Lance Sawyer. The Teutons were 0-9 in ’17 and are 6-4, 6-5 and 9-2 since.
Oakley defeated Sedgwick, 27-24, on the road two weeks ago before the road win last Friday. Both teams had a significant amount of returning starters, including Oakley running back Ethan Abell and Inman quarterback Jace Doerksen, who has set the school mark for single season passing yards. Abell cleared 800 rushing yards in ’19 and has 229 carries for 1,868 yards and 26 rushing scores this year. He has 71 percent of the team’s rushing yards.
Abell dominated the Smith Center game with 37 carries for 249 yards and three scores. All but seven offensive plays were Abell carries. Versus Sedgwick, he finished with 37 carries for 179 yards and two TDs. In the first nine games, he averaged 17.2 carries per game.
In the first Inman matchup, he rushed 29 times for 109 yards. Oakley ran 64 plays for 259 yards, though had some inefficient offensive drives, including an interception and 0 of 4 on fourth down.
Senior Eric Cain, who first started at quarterback as a sophomore, has completed 44 percent of his passes for 608 yards with a 2/4 TD/INT ratio. Oakley has turned the ball over only seven times this season and is plus-12 in turnover margin. Oakley was minus-4 in turnover margin last season. Oakley has upped from six yards per play in ’19 to 6.7 yards per play. As well, the Plainsmen have gone to a significantly more ground attack after it used Abell as a receiver a lot in ’19. Oakley ran 56 percent of the time last fall and is up to 82 percent this year.
Senior Jonathan Temaat leads a balanced defense with 64 tackles for a vastly improved unit that permitted 29.6 points a contest a year ago.
Inman has delivered 7.9 yards per play behind a big season from Doerksen. He has completed 66 percent of his passes for 1,516 yards with 18 scores against four interceptions. Kendyn Blank has 80 carries for 694 yards and 11 scores. Derick Johnson has delivered 19 catches for 415 yards and six scores. Kyler Konrade has a team-best 126 tackles, along with eight tackles for loss.
Like Oakley, Inman has few turnovers (nine) and is plus-11 in turnover margin.
An area to watch could be special teams/field position. In addition to Inman’s return game, Oakley has zero touchbacks this year and has averaged 30 yards per punt. Inman has delivered 35 yards per punt. The Teutons have three special teams returns.
Regardless of the result, both teams have enjoyed a highly successful 2020 and both coaches are likely in the running for 1A Coach of the Year – and possibly all classes. Inman won the first game by 26 points but expect this one to be much closer in a game that could go either way. Inman is more explosive in the passing game and has more offensive weapons, though Abell has shown the ability to completely take over games.
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