The Kpreps Friday First Look provides our impressions of some of the game’s most notable games and performance from Friday night’s action!
Overtime!
While the theme of the opening week of the Kansas High School football season was weather delays, the Week 2 theme might as well have been delays due to extra football.
In total, eight games across the state were decided in overtime including two that went into triple OT.
Here’s a list of all the games that needed more than four quarters to be decided.
Friday’s OT games:
Norton 33, Goodland 27 (3 OT)
Russell 23, Thomas More Prep (3 OT)
Bonner Springs 35, Shawnee Heights 34 (2 OT)
Garden City 13, Hutchinson 7 (OT)
Louisburg 34, Tonganoxie 28 (OT)
Medicine Lodge 48, Pratt-Skyline 42 (OT)
Bennington 34, Washington County 28 (OT)
Waverly 26, Burlingame 20 (OT)
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Class 6A
Manhattan wins the Silver Trophy, 37-21 over Junction City
Manhattan won the annual Silver Trophy game with a 37-21 victory over rival Junction City.
This was a rare margin of victory in the series as 11 of the previous 12 meetings were decided by single-digits.
Manhattan led 24-14 at halftime. Senior safety Colby Klieman had a key interception and Grant Snowden kicked a 42-yard field goal for the Indians. Vinny Smith had a long kickoff return and scored three touchdowns.
Manhattan coach Joe Schartz earned career win No. 100 and picked up his eighth Silver Trophy victory.
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Garden City tops Hutch in OT
Garden City beat Hutchinson, 13-7, in overtime. Buff running back Colin Kleysteuber scored both touchdowns. Garden City lost, 21-20, in this matchup last season.
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Blue Valley Northwest outscores Bishop Miege
Blue Valley Northwest moves to 2-0 after outscoring Bishop Miege, 49-36.
The Huskies led by 21 points twice in the first half after scoring the first three touchdowns of the game behind a pair of Grant Stubblefield scoring runs and a Mikey Pauley touchdown pass to Steven Whitter.
Miege came storming back with 10 points in a span of about :40 seconds right before halftime to pull within 28-17 at the break.
Pauley opened the third quarter with a touchdown pass to Chase Wernimont and a short scoring run of this own to push the Northwest lead to 42-17.
After a Miege touchdown, Pauley hit Max Muehlberger for a short touchdown pass in the fourth quarter to put Blue Valley Northwest up 49-23.
Miege added a pair of touchdowns to pull within the final margin of 13 points.
Pauley completed 21 of 30 pass attempts for 349 yards and touchdowns to four different receivers. He added 57 yards on the ground and another score. Stubblefield added 78 yards rushing and those two early touchdowns.
Whitter caught seven passes for 137 yards and Muehlberger added seven for 110.
Miege was led by quarterback Mac Armstrong who threw for 323 yards and three scores. Tommy Wright led the Stags with six catches for 106 yards and two scores.
Miege (0-2) continues its brutal early-season schedule by hosting St. Thomas Aquinas next week.
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Martin’s big night lifts Blue Valley North Over Blue Valley West
Blue Valley North’s offense stayed how behind senior quarterback Henry Martin during Friday’s 42-21 win over Blue Valley West.
Martin completed 21 of 32 passes for 397 yards and six touchdowns in the Mustangs’ victory. He connected with Jaxon Goldberg six times for 253 yards and two scores, including a 99-yard touchdown strike.
Mekhi Miller caught a pair of touchdown passes and Cole Stratton and Lucas Bullock each added touchdown catches.
Blue valley West was led by Gage Roach’s 262 passing yards and three touchdowns. Sage Huffman led the Jaguars on the ground with 151 yards on 25 attempts.
In two games this season, Martin has thrown for 769 yards and 12 touchdowns.
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Blue Valley runs past St. James, 42-13
The Blue Valley Tigers picked up their first win of the season on Friday by using a dominant ground attack to beat St. James Academy, 42-13.
Three Tigers rushed for more than 100 yards on the night as Blue Valley racked up 343 rushing yards. Michael Solomon led the Tigers with 126 yards and four touchdowns on 17 carries. Quarterback Greyson Holbert added 114 yards and two scores and Kyle Kleweno chipped in 104 yards on the ground on only 8 attempts.
Jackson House passed for 224 yards and both St. James touchdowns. He connected with Tyler Claiborne 11 times for 103 yards and a touchdown.
St. James is 0-2 to start the season after claiming the 4A state championship last fall. The Thunder’s opponent in that 4A title game, Ark City, is also 0-2 after Friday’s 41-0 loss to Andover. The Bulldogs have been outscored 51-7 in two losses.
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Olathe West rallies from big deficit to take down SMNW on Thursday night
On Thursday night, Olathe West trailed Shawnee Mission Northwest 28-6 late in the second quarter before the Owls began to mount their comeback. The Owls outscored the Cougars 19-0 in the third quarter and held off SM Northwest, 39-34.
Junior quarterback Mason McGavran rushed for more than 220 yards and four touchdowns on just 16 attempts and passed for 179 more yards and another score for Olathe West. Anthony Favrow added 70 yards and a touchdown on the ground. Tanner Zimmerman led the Owls in receiving with 105 yards and a touchdown on four catches.
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Class 5A
Aquinas outscores Missouri power Lutheran North, 53-39
In an inter-state showdown, Class 5A’s No. 1 St. Thomas Aquinas scored the game’s final 19 points to defeat Missouri-power Lutheran North, 53-39.
The game was an offensive shootout with the two teams combining for 1,064 yards of total offense. Aquinas rushed for 417 yards in the game led by Gianni Rizzi (138 yards), Sean Carroll (137 yards), and Maxxwell Ford (111 yards). Carroll and Ford each rushed for three touchdowns, while Ford completed both of his pass attempts for 72 yards.
Lutheran North found their success in the air with Brian Brown passing for 402 yards and three scores. Brown also rushed for 103 yards and a touchdown, but connected with Kevon Jacobs ten times for 223 yards and Justin Price four times for 152 yards.
Lutheran North led 32-28 at halftime with the game featuring six lead changes by intermission. Rizzi’s 72-yard touchdown put the Saints up 34-32 early in the third quarter, before Brown connected with Jacobs on a touchdown pass to put Lutheran North on top 39-34.
It would be the last time the Crusaders would score.
Ford scored on a short run at the end of the third quarter to put Aquinas up 40-39. The Saints held that slim margin until just over a minute left when Carroll scored from two yards out to put Aquinas up 47-39.
Aquinas then ended the game with a pick-6 by Wyatt Porter to spoil Lutheran North’s final drive.
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Spring Hill spoils Paola’s opener
Paola took a 7-0 lead in the first quarter, but Spring Hill took control from there spoiling the Panthers’ home opener with a 42-14 victory.
Daniel Mitchell caught a pair of touchdown passes from Fletcher Pankey in the first half as the Broncos built a 28-7 lead at the break. Draven Pipkin caught a touchdown pass and rushed for two scores for the Broncos.
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Class 4A
Andover Central scores late to top Buhler, 21-19
Third-ranked Andover Central dominated the first half, fell behind, then got a huge play late to escape with a 21-19 win over No. 4 Buhler.
The Jaguars led 14-0 at halftime and had stymied Buhler’s ground attack.
But Buhler came back to sore 19 consecutive points capped off by the second touchdown pass from Bradley Neill to Colin Rolland with three minutes left in the game.
Andover Central would respond as Kai Kunz hit Ashton Barkdull on a swing pass the turned into a 54-yard touchdown with 1:00 remaining in the game. The Jaguars went up 21-19 and held on with a late interception to preserve the home victory.
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Piper rallies in 4Q to down Eudora, 26-23
KC Piper quarterback Logan Ladish threw three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter, including a 53-yard strike to Ethan Walker on the game’s final play, to lead the Pirates to a 26-23 dramatic win over Eudora.
WATCH Piper’s Ladish to Walker on the game’s final play! (Courtesy Ryan Wallace @GPCwallace)
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Eudora led 9-0 at halftime before Piper’s Miguel Martin scored from 20 yards out to pull within 9-8. A Silas Etter touchdown reception regained a 16-8 cushion for Eudora entering the fourth quarter.
That’s when Ladish went to work.
He first hit Divante Herrig-Brittian on a 35-yard touchdown pass to pull the Pirates to within 16-14.
Ladish and Herrig-Brittian then connected again on a short touchdown pass to give Piper a 20-16 lead mid-way through the fourth quarter.
Eudora responded with a short touchdown run with under a minute to go to lead 23-20.
That set up Piper’s final drive and Ladish and Walker’s heroics.
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Highland Park pushes Atchison, but Phoenix rise
Topeka Highland Park scored the game’s first 18 points and led 24-7 in the second quarter, but Atchison took control in the second half for a 47-36 victory. Despite Highland Park’s sound effort, Friday’s loss marks the 58th consecutive loss for the Scots dating back to Week 2 of the 2014 season.
This was Atchison’s first win with their new mascot – the Phoenix.
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Chanute ends long losing streak to Pittsburg
The Chanute Blue Comets snapped an 11-game losing streak to Pittsburg by going to Hutchinson Field and beating the Purple Dragons, 21-7.
Chanute scored all three touchdowns in the second half after Pittsburg led 7-0 at the break. Ty Leedy had a long touchdown to get the Blue Comets on the board, then Kam Koester hauled in a short touchdown pass from Eric Erbe to give Chanute a 14-7 lead.
Koester then returned an interception for a score late in the fourth quarter to seal the victory.
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Class 3A
Southeast of Saline pulls away from Beloit in Trojan War
In the KPreps Game of the Week, Southeast of Saline pulled away in the second half for a 36-6 win against Beloit in the Trojan War rivalry. Beloit was ranked No. 4 in Class 2A. SES has not lost in the regular season since Week 7 of 2019. Southeast has won four straight in the series. SES pulled away in mid third quarter when Luke Gebhardt found his twin brother, Jake, for a touchdown pass that tipped off a Beloit linebacker. The game was scoreless after the first quarter.
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Russell holds on for a triple OT win over TMP
In a wild game that Russell led 10-0 early, the Broncos held on to beat Thomas More Prep-Marian, 23-17, in triple overtime at home. Russell had a goal line stand and picked off TMP in the end zone. Russell is 2-0 after 2-16 in the last two seasons. Russell is 2-0 for the first time since 2016 and the second time since ’04. Russell also played without standout senior Jesse Whitmer, the team’s leading tackler the last three years.
Class 2A
Hillsboro ends streak against Hesston
Hillsboro snapped an 8-game losing streak to Hesston with Friday’s 25-14 victory. The Trojans scored once in each quarter in topping the Swathers for the first time since 2012.
Matthew Potucek passed for 126 yards including a touchdown pass to Frank Wichert in the third quarter that put Hillsboro up 19-7. After Hesston closed to within 19-14 in the fourth, Wichert sealed the victory for the Trojans with a 95-yard interception return for a touchdown to put Hillsboro up 25-14.
Potucek and Jamari Harris each rushed for touchdowns for the Trojans.
Ryan Eilert passed for 206 yards and a score for Hesston. Eilert also added a rushing touchdown in the game.
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Southeast shuts out Jayhawk-Linn
Southeast-Cherokee picked up their second victory this week by shutting out Jayhawk-Linn, 37-0 on Friday.
Cullen Mutz and Cooper Hamblin each rushed for two touchdowns and Cade Burdette returned a punt for a touchdown to cap the scoring for the Lancers. Southeast completed their Week 1 game with Uniontown on Monday night, defeating the Eagles, 22-7.
This marks Southeast’s third consecutive win over the Jayhawks.
This was Jayhawk-Linn’s season-opener. They were scheduled to play Northeast-Arma last week, but the Vikings could not field a varsity team this season.
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Class 1A
Conway Springs begins districts by holding off Remington
Conway Springs used their traditional strong rushing attack to hold off an improved Remington team, 40-28 to open 1A, District 4.
The Cardinals rushed for 311 yards on the night led by Izic Billups’ 166 yards and two touchdowns. Brayden Kunz added 96 yards and two more scores. Conway led 20-8 at halftime and extended that lead to 40-16 after three quarters.
Remington added a pair of fourth-quarter scores as Braden Scribner rushed and passed for a touchdown. Scribner had an effective night in throwing for 137 yards and two scores and adding 69 yards rushing and two more touchdowns.
8-Man Football
Little River wins defensive battle over Clifton-Clyde
Defending champion Little River topped contender Clifton-Clyde 14-6 in a strong defensive battle.
The Redskins scored in the first quarter to lead 8-0 and Clifton-Clyde scored their only score right before halftime to pull within 8-6.
Little River added a third quarter touchdowns to lead 14-6 and was threatening late in the game before coming up short deep inside Eagle territory.
These two teams met last season with Clifton-Clyde taking the regular-season game 42-36 in overtime. Little River then won the playoff rematch 46-26 on its way to claim the Eight-Man, Division-I state title a few weeks later.
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Hill City handles Ness City
Hill City earned a 49-18 road win against Ness City in a game that featured 36 carries for 282 yards and four touchdowns from Ringneck sophomore quarterback Aiden Amrein. Amrein tallied four rushing touchdowns and Hill City, ranked No. 5 in Eight-Man, Division I, improved to 2-0.
The contest had 12 turnovers, including a flurry of fumbles in the first part of the first quarter. The game’s first touchdown came on a scoop-and-score from Hill City’s Jaden Nuss. Ness City, with key injuries to several players, fell to 1-1. Amrein was limited to kicking the majority of 2020 because of injury, but has long been an explosive player in the younger ranks. Hill City’s defense had a solid showing, especially with Nuss, Conner Dinkel and Ayden Nickelson.
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Canton-Galva beats Solomon last-minute district game
Canton-Galva and Solomon were each still searching for an opponent for Friday night as late as Friday morning. Finally, the two District 4 members decided to move their Week 7 (October 15th) district game up to Friday and allow for more time to find an opponent later in the season. The result, Canton-Galva cruised to a 56-8 win on Friday to move to 1-0 in district play.
Quarterback Garrett Maltbie threw for 219 yards and four touchdowns and Tyson Struber had more than 150 receiving yards and four total scores in the game.
Perhaps no team has had a more difficult start to the season in terms of scheduling than Solomon. The Gorillas have lost their originally scheduled opponents for the first three weeks due to either COVID or low numbers.
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Additional 8-Man notes:
Chase County’s Mitch Budke scored on a 2-yard touchdown run with :30 seconds remaining to lift the Bulldogs to a 44-36 win over Lebo. Budke rushed 27 times for 198 yards and four touchdowns on the night, while passing for 120 yards and two more scores. Kyle Reese led Lebo with 246 rushing yards and four touchdowns. Reese also passed for 79 yards and a touchdown and added a 20-yard reception.
St. Paul scored on an 8-yard touchdown pass on the game’s final play to top Oswego, 68-66. Oswego had taken a 62-60 lead with under three minutes remaining. St. Paul led 46-42 at halftime. Jace Landes rushed for 230 yards, 4 touchdowns, and returned a kick for a score for Oswego. Jake Hutchinson also added four rushing scores.
Sedan cruised past Flinthills 60-14 in South Central Border League action. Brec Long threw six touchdown passes and rushed for 170 yards and two scores. All five of Dameion Hatton’s catches went for touchdowns spanning 140 yards.
In a significant upset, WaKeeney-Trego defeated Leoti-Wichita County, 76-28. Wichita County was ranked No. 4 in Eight-Man, Division I and was 13-1 in its last 14 games. Trego led 48-16 at halftime. Trego did not play in Week 1 after Chase forfeited.
For the second straight year, Norwich held off South Barber to open Eight-Man, Division II, District 6 play. Norwich won, 26-24, after a 52-50 road victory last season.
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6-Man Football
Western Plains gets to take the field for the first time in two years
In a game that did not officially count in the standings, but certainly was meaningful for those who were there on the home side, Healy/Ransom-Western Plains played its first football game since 2019. In a six-man contest, WPH defeated Cunningham, 52-37, on its Homecoming on Friday afternoon. Cunningham, which faces Centre-Lost Springs on Monday, did not dress its top players.
Western Plains did not have enough players for a season last year. The Bobcats have four foreign exchange students on the football team, including senior running back Eddy Malicovsky, who rushed for four touchdowns and 214 yards. Sophomore Caleb Weeks tacked on three rushing scores and more than 100 yards on the ground.
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